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> It’s always humbling to look into the dark night sky and wonder about the significance of our existence I don't find it humbling, quit the reverse. When I lo

> It’s always humbling to look into the dark night sky and wonder about the significance of our existence I don't find it humbling, quit the reverse. When I look into the night sky I note that human brains are the most intricately complex things we know of or have evidence for. It's shocking how lifeless and brainless and beneath humble the rest of the universe appears to be. We live and thrive in a hydrogen scrapheap, and as far as we know, we are all that is going on.

nkrisc 5y ago
What’s humbling is even for all that, our effect on the universe will still be nonexistent and eventually every bit of evidence that could ever possibly point to our existence will turn to dust and will be indistinguishable from every other bit of dust. Even if we persist for a billion years, we’re still temporary.
- prewett 5y ago
  We're currently regretting that we've managed to increase the CO2 levels in our atmosphere to levels that may have substantial effects on climate. Some yokel-head environmentalist got linked to yesterday that we can get geothermal energy everywhere if we just dig far enough; just imagine the headlines years from now when we discover that we've been letting out all the heat from the part of the earth that keeps the magnetic field running that keeps our atmosphere from going the way of Mars. Putting the heat back in there will make getting rid of CO2 look like an elementary school project! I'd say leaving no trace might be a useful challenge for us...
  - nkrisc 5y ago
    I think you’re underestimating the amount of energy contained within the Earth. We’re not going to “let the heat out”. Just like every gravity assist steals energy from the planet and gives it to the spacecraft. We’ve actually slowed down Jupiter… by a tiny, tiny amount. But still probably less than some random asteroid does all the time.

nkrisc 5y ago

What’s humbling is even for all that, our effect on the universe will still be nonexistent and eventually every bit of evidence that could ever possibly point to our existence will turn to dust and will be indistinguishable from every other bit of dust. Even if we persist for a billion years, we’re still temporary.

prewett 5y ago
We're currently regretting that we've managed to increase the CO2 levels in our atmosphere to levels that may have substantial effects on climate. Some yokel-head environmentalist got linked to yesterday that we can get geothermal energy everywhere if we just dig far enough; just imagine the headlines years from now when we discover that we've been letting out all the heat from the part of the earth that keeps the magnetic field running that keeps our atmosphere from going the way of Mars. Putting the heat back in there will make getting rid of CO2 look like an elementary school project! I'd say leaving no trace might be a useful challenge for us...
- nkrisc 5y ago
  I think you’re underestimating the amount of energy contained within the Earth. We’re not going to “let the heat out”. Just like every gravity assist steals energy from the planet and gives it to the spacecraft. We’ve actually slowed down Jupiter… by a tiny, tiny amount. But still probably less than some random asteroid does all the time.