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Would count this categorically as one of the ways we do not want to be using technology in the context of climate change, as it’s bypassing the negative feedbac

Would count this categorically as one of the ways we do not want to be using technology in the context of climate change, as it’s bypassing the negative feedback loop that already wasn’t strong enough to prevent us getting to this point in the first place.

mrfusion 5y ago
We need to be punished for our sins against the environment.
- datavirtue 5y ago
  I think we should go a step further and self-flagulate, honestly. Seriously though, this quote made me laugh: "the gene-edited cattle are the same—as far as a consumer is concerned." They should peek in on the anti-vaccine crowd for a glimpse at consumer reality. I'm sure more than a few normies are going to want to see this on the label as well.
  - 34679 5y ago
    "the gene-edited cattle are the same—as far as a consumer is concerned." For me, that statement invokes thoughts of "counterfeit cattle". By that logic, there's no harm to the consumer when someone sells a knock-off purse or watch, as long as it functions the same as the original. Taken a step further, there's no harm in stealing from someone if the victim doesn't know they've been robbed. I'm not against using advances in technology to feed more people. I believe the suffering of a hungry human outweighs the suffering of that human's potential next meal. I don't think it's wrong or immoral for a lion to eat an antelope. But I do believe honesty and openness are important. I want consumers to be able to make educated decisions on what they consume. It should be easy for someone who can afford an all-organic diet to purchase products that are in fact organic.
atemerev 5y ago
But if the loop is eventually not strong enough to have negative effects, why should we reinforce it? I am quite optimistic that the climate change crisis will be eventually resolved by the combination of engineering to restore the environment and adapting our existing technologies to damage it less (like it’s already happening). Humans are very adaptive.
- microjim 5y ago
  At the risk of us getting too abstract here, the trouble with said loop being weak is that it is difficult to link our actions and their impact on our environment. It is weak because the forces in question operate on a very long time scale, and the system hasn’t self corrected as early as one would hope. We are indeed very adaptive! It’s simply a case of us adapting our behaviour to mitigate the consequences, rather than just adapting to live with them.
- TruthIsHeresy 5y ago
  What happens when human adaptivity outpaces our species’ ability to accurately perceive and adequately understand the impact of our own adaptivity? We seem to be becoming increasingly reliant upon technology which is increasingly untested to solve problems that are increasingly a result of this adaptivity. It’s a vicious cycle in which humans identify a problem but lack the necessary perspective to identify and solve the root cause of the problem so we end up with inadequate solutions that mostly prolong and exacerbate the original problem rather than actually solving it. Adaptivity aside, I just don’t think humans are at a point in which we possess the necessary perspective for us to safely engage in large scale commercial genetic modification of life without it backfiring on us in some horribly spectacular way.

mrfusion 5y ago

We need to be punished for our sins against the environment.

datavirtue 5y ago
I think we should go a step further and self-flagulate, honestly. Seriously though, this quote made me laugh: "the gene-edited cattle are the same—as far as a consumer is concerned." They should peek in on the anti-vaccine crowd for a glimpse at consumer reality. I'm sure more than a few normies are going to want to see this on the label as well.
- 34679 5y ago
  "the gene-edited cattle are the same—as far as a consumer is concerned." For me, that statement invokes thoughts of "counterfeit cattle". By that logic, there's no harm to the consumer when someone sells a knock-off purse or watch, as long as it functions the same as the original. Taken a step further, there's no harm in stealing from someone if the victim doesn't know they've been robbed. I'm not against using advances in technology to feed more people. I believe the suffering of a hungry human outweighs the suffering of that human's potential next meal. I don't think it's wrong or immoral for a lion to eat an antelope. But I do believe honesty and openness are important. I want consumers to be able to make educated decisions on what they consume. It should be easy for someone who can afford an all-organic diet to purchase products that are in fact organic.

atemerev 5y ago

But if the loop is eventually not strong enough to have negative effects, why should we reinforce it? I am quite optimistic that the climate change crisis will be eventually resolved by the combination of engineering to restore the environment and adapting our existing technologies to damage it less (like it’s already happening). Humans are very adaptive.

microjim 5y ago
At the risk of us getting too abstract here, the trouble with said loop being weak is that it is difficult to link our actions and their impact on our environment. It is weak because the forces in question operate on a very long time scale, and the system hasn’t self corrected as early as one would hope. We are indeed very adaptive! It’s simply a case of us adapting our behaviour to mitigate the consequences, rather than just adapting to live with them.
TruthIsHeresy 5y ago
What happens when human adaptivity outpaces our species’ ability to accurately perceive and adequately understand the impact of our own adaptivity? We seem to be becoming increasingly reliant upon technology which is increasingly untested to solve problems that are increasingly a result of this adaptivity. It’s a vicious cycle in which humans identify a problem but lack the necessary perspective to identify and solve the root cause of the problem so we end up with inadequate solutions that mostly prolong and exacerbate the original problem rather than actually solving it. Adaptivity aside, I just don’t think humans are at a point in which we possess the necessary perspective for us to safely engage in large scale commercial genetic modification of life without it backfiring on us in some horribly spectacular way.