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The biggest global threats – Climate Change and Nuclear War

Artificial intelligence, asteroids and zombies: how the world could end, news.com.au 14 Dec 14 “…… 1. Climate change

Scientists, including Dr Karl, say you would have to be pretty daft to not acknowledge the effect that humans and our carbon emissions are having on the planet. Recent reports suggest that average temperatures will likely rise 2-4 degrees from where they are today, which will create a dramatic environmental shift.

The author of an Australian climate change report from earlier this year, Professor Will Steffen, has warned that the economic damage will be just as bad as the physical damage.

“We’re talking about the loss of beaches, property, infrastructure and commercial assets worth billions to our economy,” he said.

This probably won’t end humanity, but we will need to learn to focus all our resources on getting through it. Millions of mostly people – most of whom are poor – will lose their homes, and weather shifts will greatly change the agriculture industry.

2. Nuclear war

Movies and video games would certainly like you to believe that a nuclear war is the most plausible way for humanity to end.

While Dr Karl pointed out that we have gone from around 50,000 nuclear weaponsacross the world to about 16,000, he says even one nuke going off in a major city would have a catastrophic effect for the rest of the world.

While a war between Russia and Western countries probably won’t end absolutely everything, it would send us into a nuclear winter. Not just from the immediate damage or radiation – the Earth would get cooler, the ozone layer would be damaged and rainfall would be significantly reduced, meaning the crops we use for food would struggle to grow.

The effect of this would be felt for up to 20 years…….http://www.news.com.au/technology/science/artificial-intelligence-asteroids-and-zombies-how-the-world-could-end/story-fnjwl2dr-1227155744514

December 15, 2014 - Posted by Christina Macpherson | general