Hawking: Space key to human survival

HONG KONG, China (AP) -- The survival of the human race depends on its ability to find new homes elsewhere in the universe because there's an increasing risk that a disaster will destroy Earth, world-renowned physicist Stephen Hawking said.

Humans could have a permanent base on the moon in 20 years and a colony on Mars in the next 40 years, the British scientist told a news conference.

"We won't find anywhere as nice as Earth unless we go to another star system," added Hawking, who came to Hong Kong to a rock star's welcome Monday. Tickets for his lecture Thursday were sold out.

Hawking said that if humans can avoid killing themselves in the next 100 years, they should have space settlements that can continue without support from Earth.

"It is important for the human race to spread out into space for the survival of the species," Hawking said. "Life on Earth is at the ever-increasing risk of being wiped out by a disaster, such as sudden global warming, nuclear war, a genetically engineered virus or other dangers we have not yet thought of."

The 64-year-old scientist -- author of the global best-seller "A Brief History of Time" -- uses a wheelchair and communicates with the help of a computer because he suffers from a neurological disorder called amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, or ALS.

One of the best-known theoretical physicists of his generation, Hawking has done groundbreaking research on black holes and the origins of the universe, proposing that space and time have no beginning and no end.

However, Alan Guth, a physics professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, said Hawking's latest observations were something of a departure from his usual research and more applicable to survival over the long-term.

"It is a new area for him to look at," Guth said. "If he's talking about the next 100 years and beyond, it does make sense to think about space as the ultimate lifeboat."

But, he added, "I don't see the likely possibility within the next 50 years of science technology making it easier to survive on Mars and on the moon than it would be to survive on earth."

"I would still think that an underground base, for example in Antarctica, would be easier to build than building on the moon," Guth said.

Joshua Winn, an astrophysicist at MIT, agreed. "The prospect of colonizing other planets is very far off, you must realize," he said.

Hawking's "work has been highly theoretical physics, not in astrophysics or global politics or anything like that," Winn added. "He is certainly stepping outside his research domain."

Hawking's comments Tuesday were reminiscent of the work of American astrophysicist Carl Sagan, who was a believer in the existence of extraterrestrial intelligence.

Sagan, a Cornell University professor and NASA-decorated scientist who died in 1996, noted that organic molecules, the kind that life on Earth is dependent on, appear to be almost everywhere in the solar system.

Sagan played a leading role in the U.S. space program, helping design robotic missions and contributing to the Mariner, Viking, Voyager and Galileo expeditions.

But his work also focused on the search for habitable worlds and intelligent life beyond the solar system, as well as theories about life's origins, ideas popularized in his best-selling 1985 novel, "Contact," which was made into a film starring Jodie Foster.

At Tuesday's news conference, Hawking said he too was venturing into the world of fiction. He plans to team up with his daughter, 35-year-old journalist and novelist Lucy Hawking, to write a children's book about the universe aimed at the same age group as the Harry Potter books.

"It is a story for children, which explains the wonders of the universe," said Lucy Hawking. They did not provide further details.

I'm more worried about the French shooting their Nucs all over the damn place then a big natural disaster lol

I'm more worried about a dumbass President going to war with every fucking country in the Middle East.

Interesting idea though, living on Mars.

But didn't some dude claim the ozone layer was healing itself and all is right with the world?

Fuck these idiots.

But didn't some dude claim the ozone layer was healing itself and all is right with the world?.
well some dude claimed there were WMD's in Iraq and that Bush has done a great job. people claim alot of lunatic shit it seems. [smilie=sayitaintso:

How cool would it be to be the guy who gets to pronounce this?

I mean of course that's the next real step in terms of growing as a species (growing in the physical extention sense). Who really cares how far off it is, because its not nearly as far off as it seemed say in the 1800s.

But to be the guy who says, "Look, this is what we need to be focusing on in this area." He's pretty much taking up the role of any of hundreds of characters in the sci/fi genre for the last century. That would jsut be fun to do.

The article is all about how this isn't his area but I think that's part of why he's doing it. Its not a pronouncement of an agenda or a real timeline its an inspirational message and really its the only angle that makes space interesting again. Who the fuck cares if they send another pair of binoculars out to some asteroid in a decaying orbit around Venus. "Sweet, lets count the holes on it!" Lunar-Volleyball Leagues. That's where the excitement is.

Fuck these idiots.

Hawking = idiot

Pharaoh = smrt

I'd punch my time card over living on Mars or the Moon.

Also:


Life on Earth is at the ever-increasing risk of being wiped out by a disaster, such as sudden global warming, nuclear war, a genetically engineered virus or other dangers we have not yet thought of.

If we haven't thought of them yet, how much of a risk can they be?

"We can think of a thousand reasons why you should have this pill, but mostly its for the ones we can't think of." - Contact

Society in general has become so damn paranoid. You have got to be kidding me: we have got to start planning the colonization of other planets? Wow. We're so much closer to having a fix for our own world then flying to and starting a new one.

On another paranoid note: Who would like to be the first one to live on Mars? How many people would worry that there's some life form on the planet that will kill everything that moves over there?

or unknown chemical imbalances resulting from the atmosphere there. Mars isnt meant to contain human life. stick to watching total recall and event horizon. because thats as close as you're gonna get. we can't get hybrid cars dominating the market w/o political resistence. Society is too dumb and arrogant to advance that fast. shyt we still havent caught up on the ozone and its effect on us now. its a joke that people even dispute that. Fuck NASA, put that money into earth, because there will be nowhere else for us to live EVER.

the idea of the matrix has a better chance than the total recall/star trek theory of happening. I do think theres plenty of advances to be made on earth. not many beyond earth though.

Someone check and see if WTFMars.com is taken. We could corner the market.

No one will be breathing the Martian atmosphere (mostly CO2), like Earth in a couple thousand years =) . Not to mention how thin it is. Though I guess living in structures surrounded by the stuff might cause something.

Earth need not be a utopia before people start leaving it (who wants to leave a Utopia?). Creating boats that sail beyond the sight of land was just as complicated and hard to imagine at one time. Starting colonies in the New World, just as hard/possible. We already know how to get there and basically what to do to stay there. Only thing left is to fund it, do it, and discover the problems you only find while being there.

An advancement like colonizing other planets isn't some kind of vacation project to be done only after we figure out all our "real" problems "down here". Its another step in the ladder of evolution. At some point, even if there is now natural disaster that terrorizes the planet, humans are going to need the space and resources of somewhere else. Everywhere will be as crowded as those Japanese hotels where your room is a capsule. More space has always helped civilizations ills.

How cool would it be to be the guy who gets to pronounce this?

I mean of course that's the next real step in terms of growing as a species (growing in the physical extention sense). Who really cares how far off it is, because its not nearly as far off as it seemed say in the 1800s.

But to be the guy who says, "Look, this is what we need to be focusing on in this area." He's pretty much taking up the role of any of hundreds of characters in the sci/fi genre for the last century. That would jsut be fun to do.

The article is all about how this isn't his area but I think that's part of why he's doing it. Its not a pronouncement of an agenda or a real timeline its an inspirational message and really its the only angle that makes space interesting again. Who the fuck cares if they send another pair of binoculars out to some asteroid in a decaying orbit around Venus. "Sweet, lets count the holes on it!" Lunar-Volleyball Leagues. That's where the excitement is.

you must not have read jules verne, he thought we could just fire a cannon and we'd get to the moon.

interesting ideas, though. how sweet would it be to fly around in space? im in.

Q: why are dinasaurs extinct?

A: they didnt have a space progam.

first off, hawking = genious. i always wondered why he didnt concentrate on his own neurological disease rather than space.

but anyway... i saw a special on tv a month or two ago talking about colonizing space or another planet. it wasnt focused on if we need to or anything, but just what it would take. it would take 200 people, specifically selected by genetic screening to ensure the most diverse gene pool possible. each couple would need to have either two or three kids, cant remember exactly. the next five generations after the initial 200 people, will have been previously mapped out as far as who has kids with who (this is all based on couples, not reproducing with a number of different people because its better that way as far as inbred genes). after the five generations, people would be able to reproduce with whomever they want withough fear of inbred genes, aside from the obvious sibling, cousins, and whatnot. it was pretty interesting, either on discovery or natl geographic channel.

i'm sorry but the idea is pretty corny. in a couple thousand years who sees the earth being here? Sometimes genius doesnt equate to common sense. evolution on earth is believed to have taken millions of years. evolution on mars in a couple thousand years isnt even half way likely if thats the case.

heres a question. who thought we'd have flying cars by now back in the 80's or atleast something that didnt run on oil dominating the market?[smilie=running.gif] [smilie=paca.gif]

i'm sorry but the idea is pretty corny. in a couple thousand years who sees the earth being here? Sometimes genius doesnt equate to common sense. evolution on earth is believed to have taken millions of years. evolution on mars in a couple thousand years isnt even half way likely if thats the case.

heres a question. who thought we'd have flying cars by now back in the 80's or atleast something that didnt run on oil dominating the market?[smilie=running.gif] [smilie=paca.gif]

In a couple thousand years who sees the Earth being here? Evolution on mars in a couple thousand years?

I gotta say Gutz, I'm not really following you here.

http://ec1.images-amazon.com/images/P/0553278223.01._SS500_SCLZZZZZZZ_.jpg

i'm sorry but the idea is pretty corny. in a couple thousand years who sees the earth being here? Sometimes genius doesnt equate to common sense. evolution on earth is believed to have taken millions of years. evolution on mars in a couple thousand years isnt even half way likely if thats the case.

heres a question. who thought we'd have flying cars by now back in the 80's or atleast something that didnt run on oil dominating the market?[smilie=running.gif] [smilie=paca.gif]

In a couple thousand years who sees the Earth being here? Evolution on mars in a couple thousand years?

I gotta say Gutz, I'm not really following you here.

You would not be the first. But gutz is great. He provides pron. He can stay.

there are two basic approaches to making mars inhabitable:

if we were to drop carbon dioxide converters there to start an oxygen conversion it would take a very long time. along with that, machines would need to be dropped on the ice caps to start a melting process so there would be liquid water there. then, trees could be planted and once theres something along the lines of a rainforest or two the planet could start to self-sustain the atmosphere and water levels. even if this was done, mars doesnt have anywhere near the atmosphere earth does right now so even small meteors could strike the equipment and put it out of commission.

the other basic option is a mars colony, basically building a city in a bubble like 'total recall' and small meteors would still be a huge liability. in this scenario, building an underground colony would be much more reliable since meteors wouldnt cause as much damage. this would probably be combined with scenario one, but would put a lot of human life in danger.

of the two choices, the first is more feasable. weve already put a bunch of equipment on mars, so we could just start dropping converters there too. as of now it would only be a small scratch on the overall solution but you have to start somewhere. the increase in oxygen itself would help to melt the ice caps since the atmosphere would develop. this would also, gradually, decrease the threat of meteors while not endangering human life.

in case youre all wondering i didnt pull this out of my ass, just what ive gathered from a lot of tv specials and science articles ive read over the years.

[quote=Gutz Gatsu]

In a couple thousand years who sees the Earth being here? Evolution on mars in a couple thousand years?

I gotta say Gutz, I'm not really following you here.

No one will be breathing the Martian atmosphere (mostly CO2), like Earth in a couple thousand years =) .
Maybe i'm misinterpreting the quote. My bad if so.

For those with a 'hard' science fiction bent, read the Mars trilogy by Kim Stanley Robinson.

I think research into "how to sustain life abroad" will inevitably help us on many of the "how to sustain life at home" issues.

We can't go to Mars while we're still in Iraq, a fact that George Bush learned a couple years ago.

The world gets smaller every day because we make the world smaller. Being small isn't always a virtue, as anyone who receives "make yours longer" spam should appreciate.

In a couple thousand years who sees the Earth being here? Evolution on mars in a couple thousand years?

I gotta say Gutz, I'm not really following you here.
No one will be breathing the Martian atmosphere (mostly CO2), like Earth in a couple thousand years =) . Maybe i'm misinterpreting the quote. My bad if so.
That "like Earth in a couple thousand years" comment was just a pollution joke I threw in there. I would imagine the Earth will be here in a couple thousand years just on the fact that its been here for billions of years prior so another thousand or two seems a rather safe bet. (Though if you are talking the Earth being here in a useful state, a.k.a not nuked to all hell, not spinning out of its ideal orbit via colision with a huge rock, its a little more risky of a bet but I wouldn't say its that much harder to assume.)

Anyway, your comment about genius not always jiving with common sense is a solid one though I think it actually helps in this case. Hawking is undoubtable being optimisitic with his "we could have a colony on Mars in 40 years" but the lack of groundedness in his comments, the flat statements that say "we can do this and we should, right now" are inspirational. There have been times when our nation seemingly as a whole, aspired to achieve something. There are very few of those times that haven't revolved around killing some other nation. One of those moments is the space race (and even that revolved around keeping others from getting a military advantage on us). But while a good deal of the space race was "beat the Russians", a lot of it, for the ordinary people it inspired to be sceintist and mathematicians, was "get to the moon" "do something no one's ever done".

In a less idealistic sense the last time the nation was unilaterally interested in space the desire and ability of the children of this country increased to a huge degree. Kids wanted to be astronauts or rocket scientists. (Ever wonder why sayings like "He's no rocket scientist" use rocket scientist instead of molecular biologist or mesozoic archaeologist? Its because at one time everyone wanted to be a fucking rocket scientist and no one gave a shit about bones in dirt.) Science and Math programs were shoveled money compared to today. There are high schools all across the nation with planetariums. Planet-ariums! And this is in the 50s and 60s. That kind of costly and highly focused equipment isn't getting scattered out into public high schools today. What the hell you gonna use a planetarium for other than your Astronomy class? That kind of expendature for one subject? A far cry from a transparency and multi-colored markers so the teacher can color in the water parts of her "Earth" sketch blue. When's the last time the nation wasn't lamenting school children's lack of interest in Math and Science? Answer, when the whole country was interested in getting into space.

Doing something this untried, that requires so many resources both economic and human, and that has the potential to inspire an entire people (and which already has a history of doing so) has beneficial effects all over the place in all kinds of areas. Hell, if they could convince the public that Osama was trying to beat us there, we'd be set.

As for Mars, who cares, i'll be dead by the time that happens.

Fuck these idiots.

Hawking = idiot

Pharaoh = smrt



Carry on.

As for Mars, who cares, i'll be dead by the time that happens.
I'm gonna guess you don't give a fuck about the generations before you that busted their asses off to make your quality of life possible. And who the fuck knows how long you're going to live?! You could get hit by a truck and die today, or pop over-the-counter Klotho anti-aging pills in a few years and be a spry 160. Average life expectancy in the Western world has doubled in the 20th century, and climbed by about 2 years just since the start of the 21st century -- huge numbers! The big gating factors appear to be "how can our society deal with increasing amounts of older people" and "quality of life per heartbeat". Whenever I see futurist stuff like "go to Mars", I rarely assume that I wouldn't be around to appreciate in some fashion.

Doing something this untried, that requires so many resources both economic and human, and that has the potential to inspire an entire people (and which already has a history of doing so) has beneficial effects all over the place in all kinds of areas. Hell, if they could convince the public that Osama was trying to beat us there, we'd be set.

Yeah... but what would Jesus do?

I'm seriously considering buying a Suzuki Hayabusa. I prolly won't have to be worried about the future too much.

But it is kind of freaky thinking about catastrophes(sp?) that could end the world. Didn't the earthquake and the Tsunami that followed it in Asia throw the length of our days off by .0003 secs or something? Kind of fragile I'd say.

A meteor could throw the earth off of its axis. This guy on the tube was saying if we lost some gravity, we'd all be thrown into space. LOL. Nuclear war, Earthquakes...its all some weird shit to think about from time to time but don't want to dwell on it. Live every day to its fullest fellas.

But it is kind of freaky thinking about catastrophes(sp?) that could end the world. Didn't the earthquake and the Tsunami that followed it in Asia throw the length of our days off by .0003 secs or something? Kind of fragile I'd say.
~2.68 microseconds were "lost". For some perspective, the total tidal effects of the moon result in the day gaining ~15 microseconds/year.

It would be really cool to be down with Jesus, cause then non of this shit would ever matter. Religious peeps are lucky. I've tried but it just never caught on with me.

It would be really cool to be down with Jesus, cause then non of this shit would ever matter. Religious peeps are lucky. I've tried but it just never caught on with me.
maybe orthodox religion isnt right for you. its flaws can drive people away sometimes. try taking a more spiritual route and removing the priest in between you and God. JMHO. you could also put a bullet in your head and get immediate enlightenment and answers.[smilie=burgerking.: :cool:

Just a note:

If you did the latter and your family got all upset and spoke out ....

It would be really cool to be down with Jesus, cause then non of this shit would ever matter. Religious peeps are lucky. I've tried but it just never caught on with me.
maybe orthodox religion isnt right for you. its flaws can drive people away sometimes. try taking a more spiritual route and removing the priest in between you and God. JMHO. you could also put a bullet in your head and get immediate enlightenment and answers.[smilie=burgerking.: :cool:

I'm having to much fun for the later. I have a pretty decent life. My big inspiration was my cousin who was a quadraplegic. He had the best attitude....showed me I had nothing to complain about.

My dad was way high up in our church, he made it absolutely painful to go to the place. Parents died when I was young so if nothing else, he made sure I would hate church the rest of my life. Good going dad.

I do not deny that there might be a supreme being...agnostic or however you spell it. I just hope he doesn't mind if peeps swear all the time, or I'm fucked.

Fool...Lets not go there again...please!

Just a note:

If you did the latter and your family got all upset and spoke out ....

Yeah.

Yeah.

Yeah.

Don't get me started.

Hold me back!!!

http://www.loveinwar.com/img/briefs/124.jpg

i think this was the best thread i've read on this board ever.

i think this was the best thread i've read on this board ever.




I agree with -Irony-






AlsoIdidn'treadit

It would be really cool to be down with Jesus, cause then non of this shit would ever matter. Religious peeps are lucky. I've tried but it just never caught on with me.
maybe orthodox religion isnt right for you. its flaws can drive people away sometimes. try taking a more spiritual route and removing the priest in between you and God. JMHO. you could also put a bullet in your head and get immediate enlightenment and answers.[smilie=burgerking.: :cool:

I'm having to much fun for the later. I have a pretty decent life. My big inspiration was my cousin who was a quadraplegic. He had the best attitude....showed me I had nothing to complain about.

My dad was way high up in our church, he made it absolutely painful to go to the place. Parents died when I was young so if nothing else, he made sure I would hate church the rest of my life. Good going dad.

I do not deny that there might be a supreme being...agnostic or however you spell it. I just hope he doesn't mind if peeps swear all the time, or I'm fucked.

Fool...Lets not go there again...please!

Damn.

Tahoe was right.

If we calmed down, we might find common ground.

I had you pegged as a Jesus freak. I admit, though, I was merely stereotyping based on your affinity for Fox News. I thought perhaps you watched that channel for the 24/7 coverage on the War on Christmas or something.

Spending any money on space for anything other than a missle defense system is retarded, even star wars is far fetched, but at least we can use that.

It sounds like we still have a long way to go:

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/russia/5079904/Trouble-in-space-Row-brews-on-space-station-over-food-and-toilets.html

there are two basic approaches to making mars inhabitable:

if we were to drop carbon dioxide converters there to start an oxygen conversion it would take a very long time. along with that, machines would need to be dropped on the ice caps to start a melting process so there would be liquid water there. then, trees could be planted and once theres something along the lines of a rainforest or two the planet could start to self-sustain the atmosphere and water levels. even if this was done, mars doesnt have anywhere near the atmosphere earth does right now so even small meteors could strike the equipment and put it out of commission.

the other basic option is a mars colony, basically building a city in a bubble like 'total recall' and small meteors would still be a huge liability. in this scenario, building an underground colony would be much more reliable since meteors wouldnt cause as much damage. this would probably be combined with scenario one, but would put a lot of human life in danger.

of the two choices, the first is more feasable. weve already put a bunch of equipment on mars, so we could just start dropping converters there too. as of now it would only be a small scratch on the overall solution but you have to start somewhere. the increase in oxygen itself would help to melt the ice caps since the atmosphere would develop. this would also, gradually, decrease the threat of meteors while not endangering human life.

in case youre all wondering i didnt pull this out of my ass, just what ive gathered from a lot of tv specials and science articles ive read over the years.

I don't know if anyone has addressed your post yet, but I will:

The polar ice caps on Mars are TINY compared to the rest of the planet. And who knows the composition of the ice? Also, the Earff is, or used to be, rife with underground water sources (check out the Ogallala Water Aquafir under Nebraska and about half the western US)--on Earff, we have a measurable amount of water that varies by something less than 1%--the cycle of rain, snow, melt, etc. That doesn't exist on Mars.

To cultivate life on Mars we'd need to breed a race of beings that doesn't need to drink but about 2 oz of water a day to survive, and plants that don't need it either. Not gonna happen.

Mars is not an option. We need to find another Earff. If Earff won't support human life, we are doomed. Other planets are like a bazillion light years away. And who says we need to survive anyway? If there is a god, he probably didn't just create this ONE planet in the whole realm of outer space. I mean, why would he stop with this one, which, according to the book he suposedly wrote, is populated by a bunch of fuck ups?

The amount of water doesn't matter if we're not trying to put 4 billion people there. But yeah, Mars isn't a viable option anyway.

I like Motwon's take on the whole thing: Paranoia is the keyword. I mean, they ain't no global warming yet, they ain't no big comet or some shit headed our way, and they ain't no virus that's killed off fo' billion mothafuckas.

BUT--now I'm ascared of those "unknown dangers we have not yet thought of"--holy fucking shit!

Now, I'm thinking of them, and I'm scared shitless! I'm thinking about the 2000 foot tall indestructible bowl of Froot Loops! I'm thinking about a gigantic killer kitchen table! The kind with big eyes and big tires like a big Redneck Mobile and has ray guns that shoot constantly in all directions and don't even care if they destroy a McDonald's! Oh holy hell, humanity is DOOMED! GOURD HELP US ALL!

Damn.

Tahoe was right.

If we calmed down, we might find common ground.



Wow, Tahoe was preaching the calm even 3 years ago!

Wow, Tahoe was preaching the calm even 3 years ago!

You either 'have the calm' or you don't. I obviously do.

Let's just send Tahoe, a F350 and 20 bitches to Mars. That shit will be a budding colony in 10 years.
and internet, you still need to post here

First two of the twenty.

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/24/Bea_Arthur_and_Angela_Lansbury_%281989%29.jpg/663px-Bea_Arthur_and_Angela_Lansbury_%281989%29.jpg

http://img405.imageshack.us/img405/6355/avduh1.jpg

Your great grand-daughter is hot! Our Martian descendants are gonna be smokin'!

Glad I could help steer this thread in the right direction.

I'm open to 3sumz with these gals

http://img183.imageshack.us/img183/834/brokebackgj8.jpg

milfs

http://img451.imageshack.us/img451/2234/janipkf5.jpg

did I mention milfs

http://img212.imageshack.us/img212/8202/jabik2ms7.jpg

chicks that you can put into a time machine before they married NBA players for teams that are done are welcome too

http://img231.imageshack.us/img231/2748/evaasshg5.jpg

Former MTV hosts..

http://img180.imageshack.us/img180/8591/venmintrl2bigjw0.jpg