A
study just published in
Nature has pointed out that it's just about time for the earth's sixth mass extinction, and that this extinction might in fact be underway as we speak.
Time magazine, covering the story,
suggests that within 300 years 75% of the species on the planet could be wiped out.
National Geographic
thinks change is coming even faster:
By the year 2100, human activities such as pollution, land clearing, and overfishing may have driven more than half of the world's marine and land species to extinction.
Dude, we eat those species!
I've done some Googling on the "sixth mass extinction," and all I can say is I wish I hadn't. Although I must admit it is somewhat gratifying that there is a group of scientists that share my "we're all gonna die" perspective. Take this
cheery article abstract from the
Asian Journal of Experimental Sciences, for example:
Mass extinctions probably account for the disappearance of less than 5% of all extinct species – 95% of species extinctions occur between mass extinctions. In short, extinction can occur at any time in Earth’s history. The concept of sustainable use of the planet assumes that humans can live on the planet indefinitely – or at least until the sun dies. However, human production of greenhouse gases is resulting in rapid climate change that threatens human society globally. In addition, greenhouse gas emissions are increasing markedly, and no agreement has been reached on specific goals for reducing emissions. Finally, coal is being used to replace diminishing supplies of petroleum, despite evidence that coal produces about twice as many greenhouse gas emissions per unit of energy produced than petroleum. Although alternative sources of energy (e.g., wind, solar, geothermal) are becoming increasingly popular, humankind’s primary source of energy is fossil fuels. Global climate change resulting from anthropogenic greenhouse gas emissions has already affected food production, water supplies, natural habitat, and human security. Climate change and other types of habitat destruction threaten the biospheric life support system upon which human survival depends. All these issues suggest that Homo sapiens may be just another stochastic event that is adversely affecting life on Earth.
It doesn't feel very good to be called "just another stochastic event that is adversely affecting life on earth," does it?
I guess the moral of this story is that we should probably live it up because we're going extinct, possibly soon.
