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Natural selection will fix this in no time, as the genes and cultures that lead to people not making kids die off. Widespread availability of contraceptives and

by TFYS 11mo ago

Natural selection will fix this in no time, as the genes and cultures that lead to people not making kids die off. Widespread availability of contraceptives and abortion is recent enough that we just haven't had the time to adapt yet. The desire to have sex has been enough to keep birth rate high for most of human history. Now evolution is strongly selecting for cultures and genes that lead to more kids even in the presence of birth control. In a few of generations we'll start seeing birth rates recover.

nsoonhui 11mo ago
I am not sure will all culture remain immune to the "curse" of modern comfortable lives that lead to low birthrates. This remains unproven. And based on current trend it seems that it's the most religious group ( Islamists, Orthodox Jews) who props up the birthrates. But they are also economically most unproductive and most anti-science ones, so I really unsure where this will lead us.
dariosalvi78 11mo ago
Except religious fanatics, the trend is universal and driven by other factors than abortion or contraception
- TFYS 11mo ago
  The trend is universal because birth control is becoming universal. The only places that still have high birth rates are places where birth control isn't easily available (and religious cultures). It could be driven by other factors as well, but I'm betting it's mostly just birth control. We don't have a very strong innate desire to have kids, it is the desire for sex that human reproduction has mostly relied on. We're only a couple of generations into birth control, so we're only now starting to feel the effect.
  - sigwinch 11mo ago
    I think you’d lose that bet. Women die in childbirth regularly. And it’s not birth control but our stratospheric advances against infant mortality that most strongly influence population dynamics.
    - txrx0000 11mo ago
      Nope. In this case it's definitely birth control. Birth rate got cut in half when the pill was introduced. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Combined_oral_contraceptive_pill#Society_and_culture https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Combined_oral_contraceptive_pi... I mean, come on, it's literally called "birth control". It would be strange if it didn't affect birth rate.

by TFYS 11mo ago

nsoonhui 11mo ago

I am not sure will all culture remain immune to the "curse" of modern comfortable lives that lead to low birthrates. This remains unproven. And based on current trend it seems that it's the most religious group ( Islamists, Orthodox Jews) who props up the birthrates. But they are also economically most unproductive and most anti-science ones, so I really unsure where this will lead us.

dariosalvi78 11mo ago

Except religious fanatics, the trend is universal and driven by other factors than abortion or contraception

TFYS 11mo ago
The trend is universal because birth control is becoming universal. The only places that still have high birth rates are places where birth control isn't easily available (and religious cultures). It could be driven by other factors as well, but I'm betting it's mostly just birth control. We don't have a very strong innate desire to have kids, it is the desire for sex that human reproduction has mostly relied on. We're only a couple of generations into birth control, so we're only now starting to feel the effect.
- sigwinch 11mo ago
  I think you’d lose that bet. Women die in childbirth regularly. And it’s not birth control but our stratospheric advances against infant mortality that most strongly influence population dynamics.
  - txrx0000 11mo ago
    Nope. In this case it's definitely birth control. Birth rate got cut in half when the pill was introduced. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Combined_oral_contraceptive_pill#Society_and_culture https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Combined_oral_contraceptive_pi... I mean, come on, it's literally called "birth control". It would be strange if it didn't affect birth rate.