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Many people expressed gloomy prediction for the survival of human species on this planet. Most had expressed opinion that what we are doing to our planet is not “natural”. That our greed, egoism, intolerance, disregard for other living things and our aggressiveness in pursing what ever benefit us will lead to our ultimate demise. I don’t agree with such a conclusions. First of all saying that what we are doing is not natural is implying that we are an aliens and not part of this planet. It is same as saying that actions of the fox getting in the chuck house and killing dozen of chucks, although he can eat only one, are unnatural.
For long time now humans did try their best to eradicate some insect and animal species we consider to be pests, without success. The rabbits, mice, rats’ sparrows, starlings, foxes, mosquitos and cockroaches and so on, and still they thrive despite of biological, chemical and mechanical warfare against them. Some species exploited and took advantage of niche environments and thrived as long such environment existed. When environment changed they become extinct with or without human intervention. It is said that crocodiles exist basically unchanged for 200 million years.
And as long there is a demand for their skins and meat their species survival is assures regardless of destruction of their habitat. Other species (rabbits, mice and so on) rapidly adapted to the changing environments and they survive. We are like rabbits or other pests. Because of our intelligence, our ability to adapt and what some describe as our bad attributes we will adapt to whatever conditions our environments trow at us. The current civilisation will eventually disintegrate or change; our population may increase to tens of billions or drop dowun to few millions. But our spices will survive (barring external catastrophe- such as big asteroid impact) to explore and to understand the Universe we are living in
If there is intelligent life somewhere in the Universe and if laws of physics indeed are same everywhere, any intelligent life regardless if carbon based or based of something else must follow very similar path to our evolution. The laws of conservations of energy and entropy will dictate this. For any intelligent self-preserving organism to act on anything it have to gain more energy then it expend on such an action. If not it will e4ventualy become extinct. It does not mean that intelligent life could not develop in symbiotic relationship with its environment, but then it is highly unlikely that such an organism will ever attempt to leave it planet. It may think about the Universe and come to understanding of it but unless you believe in metaphysics it is unlikely we can make contact with it.
Finally, it is interesting that same predictions of doom and inevitable demise exist in all cultures and religions. May it be a evolutionary mechanism that make us to accept political or religious leaderships and bind us to the groups that are better equipped for survival then an individual alone would be?
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