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Interacting with complex systems produces complex side-effects. And ecosystem is complex enough that we can't really predict those side-effects before they hap
by PunchyHamster 10mo ago
Interacting with complex systems produces complex side-effects.
And ecosystem is complex enough that we can't really predict those side-effects before they happen and they can make other things worse.
Just spraying random stuff that happens to work on paper is equivalent in subtlety to electroshocking patient to fix their mental issues.
That is not to say it is not possible, but on top of being expensive it would require a lot of care to not make stuff get worse in other ways.
- whimsicalism 10mo agoRight, but the point is that we've already had the test with so2, so it's not really "before they happen".
- estearum 10mo agoWe literally have not. We have tested low-altitude, low-saturation, continuous maritime dispersal. You can go look up the differences in dissipation dynamics between that and what’s being proposed by the BS in Econ student and his growth marketing cofounder.
- whimsicalism 10mo agoI don't now who the BS in econ student you're referring to is, as it's not the context of the article. We have had massive SO2 emissions from past stratovolcano eruptions. Sure - there is definitely some gap between these natural processes and the artificial processes being proposed, but it is a narrow enough gap that it does preclude a fair number of second-order effects, compared to almost all geoengineering ideas that do not have such natural experiment equivalents.
- IsTom 10mo agoAcid rain isn't great either
- card_zero 10mo agoWell electroconvulsive therapy works quite well and is still in use as a stopgap at times of urgent need. So this analogy argues the wrong way.