“And then it was us.”
DISAPPEARING
Species of living creatures have been rapidly declining over the planet. As a matter of fact, 99.9 percent of every living things has already become extinct. So the fact that there are so many people on this planet consuming so many resources that we haven’t run out is a miracle. But one reason why we as people are able to sustain is because of scientifically modified crops and livestock. Unlike any other species, we are able to engineer food for ourselves. But with technology increasing to scale, everything around us is shrinking, meaning smaller populations. So man will hit a point where our numbers will begin to decline. But will we vanish completely before the big asteroid hits us or the sun envelopes the Earth.
HOW DO WE LEAVE
One obvious way in which we vanish is through war. Now, the reason this quickly gets ruled out is because the world powers would immediately step in to keep that from happening. Now that leaves a few other scenarios. One of which is extraterrestrial, and I strongly disagree with aliens taking out the human species from space through an invasion. But there are some viable ways that humanity could become extinct.
- FAMINE
- An extreme shortage of food could lead to the end of mankind. Especially if we get to a place where people start to consume like Americas. We would need at least four planet Earths if everyone lived like Americans. There have already been initiatives to save lives of people impacted by famine in places like the continent of Africa, or other times in history whether it was in Latin America, Europe, or the far east.
- VIRUS
- This is the next deadly end of humanity. And might be even more detrimental than famine. And it’s because we have no cures for viruses because viruses are so similar to the host cell membrane. That means that a lot viruses could very well have been ancient illnesses that man escaped some how in the past reintroducing themselves now. HIV, Herpes, Ebola, and Hepatitis B could have been around going back during our strong evolutionary stages. Just imagine if HIV were to adapt and become contagious like the cold flu, the trouble man would be in on this planet.
- CHEMICAL
- We never really think of a chemical end, but look at what happened in Chernobyl in Russia. That whole entire area is so radioactive that it will take many many years before humanity can live there again. Depending on some nuclear material, people have to stay away from certain places for 3,000 – 20,000 years. You’re talking a massive amount of time where you don’t even know that humans lived here.
- CLIMATE
- The climate shift could put us in a weird position as humans. Because polar ice is already melting causing sea levels to rise. But also, there are believed to be ancient illnesses locked in the ice that predate man. These could be set free triggering a problem bigger than the AIDS epidemic. Also, you’re talking animals that we depend on as a source of food could die off from the unpredictability of the climate or drinking from diseased waters.
- ASTEROID
- The last of the disasters could be the big one. The one that we have always been afraid of, and that is the big rock. This would kill everything, not even bacteria could survive. You’re talking the end of Earth as we know it, forever. These are leftovers from the original big bang, including meteorites and comets. And they can vary in size to very tiny to hundreds of miles across.
WHAT DO WEN DO
So what do we do, well, the answer is nothing really. The asteroid is the most helpless event that could happen. If it hits that’s it, we’re done. But the others we have some sort of control over. It is not too late to stop dumping chemicals, keeping the climate in alliance with where it should be, protect ourselves from viruses, and decrease famine. The choice is ours, and with the direction we’re currently going, we are becoming a more conscious human species. Only thing is, will it last.
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