The most popular themes of the media and modern cinema are variations on the theme of the end of the world, the apocalypse and global catastrophes. To understand what excites the modern layman, it is enough to turn on the TV or watch the rating of popular films. In the first place are films about global catastrophes that threaten the extinction of life on the planet. In the cinema, of course, everything ends with the victory of mankind. But what are the endings of these scenarios in the works of scientists?
Terminology
By definition, a disaster is an event that caused numerous casu alties or damaged the he alth of a large number of people who simultaneously require medical care, causing disruption of the work of organs and institutions. Global catastrophes are catastrophic events affecting all of humanity, affecting relationships within the entire world.communities. Such catastrophes do not recognize borders, and no state can cope with them alone.
Classification of disasters
There are many criteria for classifying global catastrophes of mankind. For example, according to the damage done, the number of victims, the time of the flow, the area covered by the territory. But the most common classification is according to the nature of their origin. And here the following types of catastrophic events are distinguished:
- Man-made disasters (caused by human activity). Allocate industrial, transport, social disasters.
- Endogenous (natural forces and energies of the planet Earth itself) and exogenous (gravitational and hydrodynamic forces, solar energy) natural disasters.
Natural and anthropogenic - the unity of opposites
Any classifications of global catastrophes of the Earth are very conditional. Most often, we observe a combination of many factors of a different nature, leading to catastrophic consequences. For example, a global ecological catastrophe, on the verge of which humanity has found itself since the end of the 20th century, has many causes. And only the understanding of the current situation and the adoption of the world concept of sustainable development of mankind, we hope, will keep us at the point of bifurcation, while we are looking for a way out of the current situation of global catastrophe. It's no secret that the planet's natural resources will last, according to forecasts, for another 50-100 years. And during this time the task of scientific and technological progress -to find ways of energy and resource provision of mankind. At the same time, do not ruin the planet.
Forecast is a delicate matter
Disaster prediction is a whole scientific trend that, based on monitoring a huge amount of data, models the development of a situation and predicts possible consequences. Synergetics, mathematics, physics, astronomy and many other sciences - each of them has entire branches with their own enthusiasts engaged in such forecasts. Let's not forget about the mass of near-scientific theories, which are widely replicated by the press. All this creates a certain tension and causes anxiety among the ordinary inhabitant of the planet. Without going into panic, here is the most accessible and scientific rating of global catastrophes of the Earth that humanity can expect.
Catastrophic immortality
On our planet there are "immortal" creatures that can cause a global catastrophe. And these creatures are jellyfish. So say researchers from the University of British Columbia (USA). According to them, the number of these organisms on the planet has increased by 62% in recent decades, which has led to changes in the number of fish, whales and penguins. And these are just the first symptoms of an impending danger that could change the entire face of the planet.
Researchers at Harvard University (USA), who have already managed to stop aging in experimental mice today, see catastrophic consequences in a bold prediction that in the coming decades a “cure for death” will be found forperson. It is not difficult to imagine what such a discovery will lead to. We will fight for resources with our own descendants.
Biology is our enemy?
The development of pharmaceuticals is, of course, a boon for humanity. But scientists predict that people may well develop resistance (immunity) to antibiotics. In this case, any infection can become fatal. Already today we know many strains of microorganisms that have overcome the threshold of resistance to our drugs. As we continue to invent new pharmaceuticals, will this continue forever?
Science fiction predictions in action
This scenario will delight fans of the Terminator saga. World-famous robotics professor Noel Sharkey (University of Sheffield, UK) believes that we have come to a stage in the development of artificial intelligence, when the robots we have created may well decide to get rid of their creators. And the instructions for ethical standards in the creation of robots, issued by the British Standards Institute, are a real confirmation of a new era in the development of human civilization.
Big brother
For more than 60 years, mankind has been sending signals into outer space. Doctor of astronomy Seth Szostak and physicist Stephen William Hawking admit the discovery of people by alien representatives. And since we haven't found them yet, isn't it likely that when they find us, it won't be like Columbus meeting the natives?inhabitants of the New World?
Distant perspective
The latest astronomical data suggests that there is an Oort cloud on the periphery of the solar system, from which a whirlwind of “stone showers” arrives at us with a frequency of 28 million years. And then there is Halley's comet, which flies near our planet once every 1770 years. It is believed that during its last approach to the Earth, the Mayan civilization died (837). So consider - as long as we can sleep peacefully.
Dangerous light
Explosions and plasma ejections into outer space constantly occur on our Sun. The probability that some kind of explosion will lead to a global catastrophe on Earth is 12%. The last strong plasma ejection occurred in 1989, and the most powerful magnetic storm (violations of the planet's magnetic field) was then recorded on the planet. A burned out transformer in New Jersey and massive power outages around the world are the aftermath of this storm.
Killer Asteroids
The asteroid that killed the dinosaurs was 10 kilometers in diameter. The fall of a cosmic body with a diameter of 90 kilometers to Earth with a 100% guarantee will end life on the planet. Even a meteorite 1.5 kilometers would kill millions of people and deprive us of sunlight for many months through a dust cloud.
Ozone is the basis of organic life
Multiple data on the thinning of the ozone layer of our planet and the appearance of holes in it can also be the end of the organiclife. The appearance of this boundary of the atmosphere lit the green light for the movement of living matter. The destructive ultraviolet will destroy protein molecules, stopping organic evolution. Space programs, the greenhouse effect and weapons development - which of the above can we stop right now?
Writing about global catastrophes and scenarios for their development is a thankless task. How many scientists - so many opinions. And it's hard not to agree with their arguments. But you can watch the notorious series and agree with Fox Mulder and Dana Scully that "the truth is out there."
