Question: @ Enda is you were to add another 200 years of research to your theory, do you think it could save man kind?

Enda O'Connell answered on 19 Nov 2012:

Hi gillianhayes and zackattack,

That all depends on whether you think mankind is doomed, and if so, how our downfall is going to happen. There are lots of theories about how humanity might come to an end, such as the spread of a deadly infectious disease, widespread crop failure due to global warming, a natural disaster like a supervolcano or an asteroid strike, another ice age, nuclear or biological warfare, or even contact with extraterrestrial life forms!

As science and technology develops, even though there are still some people who deny climate change is occurring or that there are other threats to humanity, we are getting better at surviving as a species. We are faster at producing vaccines to infectious diseases once they have been identified (e.g swine flu). We are not dependent on one type of crop anymore as happened during the potato famine in Ireland and have even stores of all of the varieties of seeds used in agriculture, such as this one in Norway (http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/pictures/2012/07/120702-svalbard-doomsday-seed-vault-food-supply/), if disease or radiation wiped out all crops.

We are getting better at detecting and understanding different types of natural disaster and even if we might not be able to do much about them, as a race we should be able to survive future disasters, whether it is underground or even on other planets. Although it might not seem like it if you look at the news, but according to scientists like Steven Pinker (in his book “The Better Angels of our Nature: Why Violence has Declined”), we are living in the most peaceful time in history, and though weapons of mass destruction are more powerful, is is decreasingly likely they will be used.

As for extraterrestrial life, none has been found yet, but I am looking forward to that day, and hoping that we can all be friends 🙂