4 ms·
Humans Have Exceeded Six of the Nine Boundaries Keeping Earth Habitable
- Jensson 3y ago> Crossing six of the nine boundaries isn’t a guarantee of disaster Then are they really boundaries? How were those boundaries chosen? Sounds like they were chosen to be sensationalist rather than facts. For example, the by far biggest problem in their graph is "Genetic - Bisophere Integrity". But that doesn't seem to be a major risk today, but looking at how out of bounds that value is you'd think that we are at the brink of extinction.
- user_7832 3y agoI don't think they're sensational. They appear to be based off "these levels/values are okay, these are uncomfortable and beyond this is bad". The graph shows that in a way. But I'm not a biologist and don't know what "Genetic - Bisophere Integrity" means.
- SamoyedFurFluff 3y agoSo I studied a bit of ecology at a university level and biosphere integrity likely refers to retaining the ecological systems on the planet. For example, forests can influence the weather/climate. Deserts are growing in size, which is a terrifying prospect for farmers. When you strip off the topsoil of the meadow for farmland, you get the great dust bowl of the usa which caused mass migration and poverty. This isn’t to mean the basic “this is neat” of having so many well adapted creatures and plants of all unique shapes and sizes populating the earth in various places.
- user_7832 3y agoThanks!
- DueDilligence 3y ago[dead]
- evolve2k 3y ago> The international group of scientists that conducted the research, which draws from 2,000 studies Seems like they based it off of enough studies.
- tourmalinetaco 3y agoThere is no such thing as “enough” studies, more data is always needed to support a claim. Which is all this is, a theoretical boundary decided using studies, not some intrinsic law of reality. That’s not even going into whether those are quality studies or not.
- Nevermark 3y ago"Enough" depends on the purpose, right? Are there enough studies to credibly worry? Seems fair to say there is. Are there enough studies to stop further study? Not a chance, as you say. But the rewards are likely to be clarity of details, not reversals of concerns.
- tourmalinetaco 3y ago> Are there enough studies to credibly worry? Maybe, if the studies are accurate. And considering the recent headlines calling into question the accuracy of studies, the reality of mass-produced studies, and the general faults of the peer-reviewed system, I’m willing to say it’s a good chance most of them aren’t. Assuming, however, that they all are the most damning studies to ever grace mankind, I have no need to worry. I have only so much ability to alter the course we’ve been put on. As do most people. Until the day we eviscerate our corporate & political overlords and institute ecological safety nets, there is nothing we as a group can do to offset the damage that governments and corporations have done to the planet.
- Nevermark 3y agoSo if the studies are each compromised in various ways, carry on, no worries. If the studies are ground truth, only to be reconfirmed again and again, carry on, no worries. Well, you have a resilient plan! We do seem to be waiting for a critical mass of pain to motivate a sustained and researched response. I am having trouble visualizing what could possibly do that. Enough pain to reach the rich, presumably. Or not. I hear private jets have fabulous climate control.
- MattPalmer1086 3y agoThe article states that the boundaries reflect the values that would keep that aspect stable within pre industrial levels. Crossing a boundary means you are actively degrading that aspect and pushing it away from what would support human habitability. It is not an irretrievable or unrecoverable tipping point.
- FrustratedMonky 3y agoInvasive species, need to introduce a natural predator into the ecosystem. Rats-Snakes Rats/Snakes-Mongoose Birds-House Cats Human-? ...
- bugglebeetle 3y ago…CEOs
- crooked-v 3y agoMore generally: late stage capitalism.
- revscat 3y agoAnd it’s total capture of every political system on Earth.
- avgcorrection 3y agoIt just is the political system of every impactful society on Earth. With perhaps a few exceptional holdouts with either a lot of grit or nuclear weapons.
- mistermann 3y agoWhich is where the real problem lies, not capitalism as everyone believes. Capitalism is supposed to be, and is claimed to be, subordinate to the democratic will of the people.
- codetrotter 3y agoWe have heard your concerns. Rest assured, a pack of wild crocodiles will be available for delivery if you wish. Although I must say it is weird to wish for natural predators to be released in one's own home. Oh what’s that? Ah, you don’t want the natural predators in your home? You are just wishing that other people be eaten? It’s funny how everyone is always willing to sacrifice humans. As long as the humans being sacrificed are not they themselves.
- andrewstuart 3y agoMoney and greed are close to impossible to overcome.
- avgcorrection 3y agoMaybe on a societal level. But not as an innate thing to humans. In fact this “greed is inevitable” line of thinking is one of the justifications for our current system.
- anthony_d 3y agoNot sure what your thought process is there… if something is impossible to overcome on a societal level doesn’t that mean it’s innate to humans? We don’t quit being human because we’re in a large group. Group behavior is different from some individual’s behavior but it’s the same as other individual’s behavior. Are you saying greed isn’t inevitable?
- avgcorrection 3y ago> Group behavior is different from some individual’s behavior but it’s the same as other individual’s behavior. It isn't. There are greedy and sociopathic people out there which will hoard power and money (greed) for themselves. To the point that we get such cataclysmic problems. And there has been an environment for such people ever since we were able to hoard foodstuff (grains) and other valuables. The degree to which normal people are greedy is not comparable.
- revscat 3y agoIt is almost impossible to discuss, but because of this a peaceful solution may not be possible.
- corinroyal 3y agoIt's funny that so many people have a harder time visualizing the end of extractive capitalism than they do the end of the world as we know it. But once oligarchs start talking about fleeing to Mars, it's probably time to do some refactoring to balance inputs and outputs over the long term.
- FrustratedMonky 3y agoOn the chart, really surprised the 'Ocean Acidification' isn't higher. Thought one of the big impacts of atmospheric CO2 was the impact on acidification. Guess we have some room to grow on that scale.
- drewcoo 3y ago> On the chart, really surprised the 'Ocean Acidification' isn't higher. Agreed. Not sure how they're measuring that. I also wonder what they're thinking about with freshwater, given recent articles about how heat rising means water less able to hold oxygen for freshwater life. Yes, even if the water is still there (which it may not be) and even if it's not polluted (and it's probably polluted with something) rising temperatures kill ecosystems.
- dang 3y agoEarth beyond six of nine planetary boundaries - https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=37500752 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=37500752 - Sept 2023 (173 comments)
- zingababba 3y agoOh no we're all going to die
- dazc 3y agoYou were warned.