3 ms·

It's an uncomplimentary reference to a scene in the film Interstellar.

Robotbeat 9y ago
And odd, isn't it? 1) The whole point of Interstellar is, yeah, if you're facing an existential threat, more farmers isn't going to help you much. 2) Farming is one of the biggest contributors to climate change and perhaps THE largest contributor to humanity's impact on the environment. We probably need to eliminate most farming and replace it with a synthesized vegan diet (i.e. grown in vats, processed to reintroduce texture, etc) if we really care about protecting the environment.
- maxerickson 9y ago
  Can we make the vats out of self replicating carbon structures and then stick them out in sunny, sandy soil?
  - Robotbeat 9y ago
    We can (haha, farming), but it's much less efficient than synthesis (i.e. photovoltaics to produce electrolyzed hydrogen/methane which is then fed to hydrogenotrophic/methanotrophic bacteria that produce protein, starches, fats, etc), especially for protein production. And it competes with nature for land and resources, especially water. And the need to keep pests at bay also causes big impacts. As does the run-off.
- whatshisface 9y ago
  If we're imagining technology advanced enough to vat-grow vegetables (and social controls strong enough to make everyone eat them), we might as well just imagine better runoff control, better land usage, and low-toxicity pest and herbicides.
  - Robotbeat 9y ago
    We already do eat vat-grown stuff. And I'm mostly talking about staples, which make up the vast majority of farmland. For anything mashed or made into flour or oil or powder, there's basically no fundamental difference between it being made in a vat versus a field. Whole, unprocessed vegetables like lettuce, etc? Well, that corresponds to a small fraction of farmland, and it also grows great hydroponically. Don't need to grow that in vats.
    - wiz21c 9y ago
      >>> it also grows great hydroponically you must be joking. A lettuce which has grown in some backyards, with time and sun (and a lot of fight against various insects, true) tastes so much better. But maybe your hydroponics are better than mine. I'm all for optimizing farming if it's possible but I don't want any compromise on quality (taste, nutrients, whatever).
- wiz21c 9y ago
  >>> We probably need to eliminate most farming For a start we could just avoid wasting so much : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Food_waste#Global_extent https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Food_waste#Global_extent

And odd, isn't it? 1) The whole point of Interstellar is, yeah, if you're facing an existential threat, more farmers isn't going to help you much. 2) Farming is one of the biggest contributors to climate change and perhaps THE largest contributor to humanity's impact on the environment. We probably need to eliminate most farming and replace it with a synthesized vegan diet (i.e. grown in vats, processed to reintroduce texture, etc) if we really care about protecting the environment.

maxerickson 9y ago
Can we make the vats out of self replicating carbon structures and then stick them out in sunny, sandy soil?
- Robotbeat 9y ago
  We can (haha, farming), but it's much less efficient than synthesis (i.e. photovoltaics to produce electrolyzed hydrogen/methane which is then fed to hydrogenotrophic/methanotrophic bacteria that produce protein, starches, fats, etc), especially for protein production. And it competes with nature for land and resources, especially water. And the need to keep pests at bay also causes big impacts. As does the run-off.
whatshisface 9y ago
If we're imagining technology advanced enough to vat-grow vegetables (and social controls strong enough to make everyone eat them), we might as well just imagine better runoff control, better land usage, and low-toxicity pest and herbicides.
- Robotbeat 9y ago
  We already do eat vat-grown stuff. And I'm mostly talking about staples, which make up the vast majority of farmland. For anything mashed or made into flour or oil or powder, there's basically no fundamental difference between it being made in a vat versus a field. Whole, unprocessed vegetables like lettuce, etc? Well, that corresponds to a small fraction of farmland, and it also grows great hydroponically. Don't need to grow that in vats.
  - wiz21c 9y ago
    >>> it also grows great hydroponically you must be joking. A lettuce which has grown in some backyards, with time and sun (and a lot of fight against various insects, true) tastes so much better. But maybe your hydroponics are better than mine. I'm all for optimizing farming if it's possible but I don't want any compromise on quality (taste, nutrients, whatever).
wiz21c 9y ago
>>> We probably need to eliminate most farming For a start we could just avoid wasting so much : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Food_waste#Global_extent https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Food_waste#Global_extent