Stephen Hawking doesn’t need an introduction. His name speaks volumes. The brilliant astrophysicist has enlightened one and all with his various theories about the earth and the universe around. At a recent press conference Hawking expressed that despite knowing that we-humans are destroying quite many things that maintain the balance between man and nature, despite knowing that the damage has far exceeded the hope to make it right and despite making a mess of everything natural around us, we aren’t yet ready to mend our ways. Hawking proposes that we are about to be wiped out off the face of the earth in 1000 years or so.
Hawking says: “Although the chance of a disaster to planet Earth in a given year may be quite low, it adds up over time, and becomes a near certainty in the next 1,000 or 10,000 years.” And if you consider about the age of the universe, 1000 years isn’t that far practically. But does that mean total annihilation is imminent and unavoidable? If you believe Hawking, he has an optimistic approach to offer.
He says that forget 1000 years, we should be worried only about the next 100 because he believes that in a 1000 years’ time “we should have spread out into space, and to other stars, so a disaster on Earth would not mean the end of the human race.” But he also adds that, “We will not establish self-sustaining colonies in space for at least the next hundred years, so we have to be very careful in this period.”
According to Hawking, nuclear war, genetically engineered viruses and global warming are the greatest threats to the mankind and these can loom large over humanity in form of some disaster any given day. Hawking stresses on the fact that the next 100 years are extremely important for us because these will be the Hundred Years of Caution for us.
In order to save the humanity, we will even have to be very responsible in choosing who our leaders should be. He also stressed that a little scientific knowledge should be necessary for all. He said that in a democratic society “everyone needs to have a basic understanding of science to make informed decisions about the future. Communicate plainly what you are trying to do in science, and who knows, you might even end up understanding it yourself.”
Though this is something that will happen in the far-far future, we will have to take charge of things because you never know when that future transforms into the present.
[adinserter block=”7″]
Author: Technology Blog
