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Our civilization has been driven by expansion. Without it we'd probably collapse into a neurally-connected well-organized ant colony without need for further te
by trhway 1y ago
Our civilization has been driven by expansion. Without it we'd probably collapse into a neurally-connected well-organized ant colony without need for further technological/social/economic progress (which would naturally select/cull out corresponding features in our brain). And, i'd guess that is possible one of the forms of the Great Filter stopping many civilizations.
At 53 and good health, i'm contemplating that my end in 30-40 years would be me buying a one way to Mars and just exiting the habitat out without suit after enjoying a dinner with a Martian sunset view, breaking, even in such a small way, the chains of "We come from the earth, we return to the earth" :)
- sorcerer-mar 1y agoThat's a truly awful way to die (all your fluids and gases suddenly surging through your tissue). Seems much easier to reframe the "chains" of earth into acceptance of a remarkable cycle that we're privileged to get a glimpse of from the inside and just die happily here with your loved ones.
- JumpCrisscross 1y ago> Seems much easier to reframe the "chains" of earth into acceptance of a remarkable cycle that we're privileged to get a glimpse of from the inside and just die happily here with your loved ones This works for most people. Most humans didn't leave Africa or Mesopotamia or the Old World, either originally or in the Age of Exploration, and most Americans today don't have a passpport.
- trhway 1y agoThe technicalities would be worked out. The awfulness isn't a goal here. The acceptance would have me still in Russia :)
- sorcerer-mar 1y agoPresumably you left Russia to get to something better, not worse on pretty much every dimension except novelty
- trhway 1y agoYep, and dying on Mars feels to me better than on Earth.
- sorcerer-mar 1y agoOn what dimensions would that be preferable?
- JumpCrisscross 1y ago> On what dimensions would that be preferable? Novelty, for one.
- sorcerer-mar 1y agoYeah, makes sense. Novelty like what toys provide! Obviously one is free to want that. When I think of the opportunity costs involved, it seems repugnant to be honest. The opposite of glorious.
- trhway 1y agoThat is about my point - i want to get as far as possible from such a philosophy as it is taking over the civilization. I lived under similar philosophy in USSR and, as long as it is up to me, i'll be trying to put a distance in all senses.
- sorcerer-mar 1y agoEh, pathologies at both ends! I hope you achieve your dream though (and that you devise a more pleasant way to do it ;))
- JumpCrisscross 1y ago> Yeah, makes sense. Novelty like what toys provide! And art and scientific endeavour and exploration and possibly all the things that make us human, but sure.
- modo_mario 1y agoWhy would we not chase technological progress without increasing our proverbial footprint? We're not starting to inhabit new bodies of land for a long time now. We're slowing down our footprint growth among those in the most developed places but chasing new technologies hasn't slowed down accordingly.
- trhway 1y agoNot a full answer, just a minor comment. >We're not starting to inhabit new bodies of land for a long time now. Last century has been aviation - start of the expansion into the 3rd dimension - and later - space.