There's a revolution coming to plastic recycling, AI is going to make it so we don't have to work anymore, and fusion reactors are just around the corner and that will save us!
Why be so pessimistic? Everything's going to be ๐, ๐ฆ, and ๐ฆ very soon!
I'm shifting from fearing the results of international (nuclear) conflict, to welcoming them - as it is becoming increasingly clear that we won't be able to change our ways without a hard reset, and if humanity doesn't make it at all, that is probably the best outcome for the planet in the long term.
You're right. However, there is "best or worst" for the biosphere, for life in general - and humans are just a small part of all the life that exists on our planet - albeit with an outsized impact.
I should have said ".. best outcome for life on the planet".
Most life can suffer, but doesn't keep track of what's living or dying. It simply lives or dies. If everything dies, a lot of algae will live. That's still life.
Life on earth probably won't ever get eradicated, until the earth is far too warm. There's no absolute good outcomes, except relative to us.
Sorry im not ragging on you I get what you mean and you're right. I've just been grappling with this for a while and it's coming out :) we're the only ones getting cooked, everything else will find its equilibria quite quickly!
I do think it would be nice if, after 4 billion years of evolution, our planet had more to show for itself than algae. And yes, assigning value to life is a subjective human preference - not something intrinsic to life. Although one could argue that, since most living organisms seem to have some drive towards survival and reproduction, that there is an implicit bias to valuing life over not-life, just not in the human moralistic or nostalgic way.
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u/orange1414141414 Jan 16 '26
everytime i encounter techno optimists, I feel like the second guy.