(Credit)
The "Pale Blue Dot" original photo:
And from Saturn's orbit, 23 years later:
Carl Sagan's talk about the pale blue dot:
Earth is the only home that we have. It would be nice if we treated our home with a little more respect than one might give to a single-wide that one is renting for three months whilst evading a process server.
I hold little hope of that ever happening. Short-term self-interest seems to be hard-wired into us ugly bags of mostly water.
"Earth is the only home that we have. It would be nice if we treated our home with a little more respect than one might give to a single-wide that one is renting for three months whilst evading a process server."
ReplyDeleteThat needs wider distribution. Mind if I...?
It will treat us with the respect that we treated it.
ReplyDelete"[T]here is nothing wrong with the planet. Nothing wrong with the planet. The planet is fine. The PEOPLE are fucked." -- G. Carlin
ReplyDeleteFVH
D, feel free!
ReplyDeleteThanks!
ReplyDeleteThe Drake Equation is a framework that consists of a set of increasingly restrictive variables that is used as a framework for thinking about how many intelligent civilizations there are in the galaxy at any given moment.
ReplyDeleteTo me, the most interesting variable is the last one, 'L', which represents the lifespan of an intelligent, technological civilization. The question is whether it's possible for a species to develop into a technologically advanced society and survive that process. We have a very small sample size of a single species, but based on that sample it certainly appears that by developing technology that extends lifespans and increases the power of weapons, you end up with either a planet that's ability to sustain it's intelligent population is destroyed or a species that destroys itself before it learns to live in peace...
"Ugly bags of mostly water" is a bit harsh and misguided. All those who think people don't belong on this planet feel free to jump off the nearest bridge. The rest have to figure out how to live here in moderate comfort while not screwing the place up. Earth is a product of uncaring physical forces that combined to form the place where we find ourselves as a species. I'm sorry, but it is mostly about us. The reason we want a pristine earth is for our benefit, not the mosquito's. So let's stop the happy horseshit and admit that the most we can do is our best while keeping our creature comforts. And celeb please stop flying around in private jets while you lecture me.
ReplyDelete