Stephen Hawking fears Trump decision.

[TigerRaptor]

https://www.thesun.co.uk/tech/3935615/s ... t-humanity

I've always respected Hawkings but his theory seems irrational. Maybe Hawkings should consult with a midget to confirm it.

[Tunnelcat]

He is getting older. Maybe a little dementia has started settling in. Even Einstein started having senior moments before he passed away.

But in the grand scheme of things, in the little time that Trump will be around to mess things up environmentally, that's just a blink in time for our planet. The climate has been constantly changing since the earth was created. The only question is, when or if will we reach some theoretical tipping point on atmospheric CO2 loads and should we humans even worry about it? We obviously can't all agree on if there's a real problem anyway. Whatever happens during all that back and forth blathering, scientists currently believe we're close to reaching the carbon tipping point, so can our species even do anything about it at this juncture? Or perhaps it's already too late and nothing we do can salvage the situation.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carbon_di ... atmosphere



However, some things are moot. Eventually, the sun will begin use up all it's hydrogen and expand in size. The luminosity will begin increase as well. That will eventually doom the earth by boiling off all the oceans and cooking the surface into cinders. Of course, the full effect of all that increased energy that won't happen for at least 3.5 billion years. In the meantime, we humans have plenty of time to either cook and poison ourselves into oblivion by blithely dumping our energy waste into the atmosphere like a big fat garbage can or else fall back on the hope that we can progress technologically enough to move our entire race to another planet once we've made this one uninhabitable. In the meantime, why can't we stop squabbling and work together to try to save the air we breathe instead of arguing like a bunch of third graders and use our brains to work to come up with a better energy solution that's not so finite, inefficient and dirty?

https://www.universetoday.com/12648/wil ... red-giant/

[Ferno]

I see your questions.
Each and every time I post on my Facebook page or tweet about my crusade for a clean energy future, I see them.
There are always a few of you, asking why we should care about the temperature rising, or questioning the science of climate change.
I want you to know that I hear you. Even those of you who say renewable energy is a conspiracy. Even those who say climate change is a hoax. Even those of you who use four letter words.
I've heard all of your questions, and now I have three questions for you.
Let's put climate change aside for a minute. In fact, let's assume you're right.
First - do you believe it is acceptable that 7 million people die every year from pollution? That's more than murders, suicides, and car accidents - combined.
Every day, 19,000 people die from pollution from fossil fuels. Do you accept those deaths? Do you accept that children all over the world have to grow up breathing with inhalers?
Now, my second question: do you believe coal and oil will be the fuels of the future?
Besides the fact that fossil fuels destroy our lungs, everyone agrees that eventually they will run out. What's your plan then?
I, personally, want a plan. I don't want to be like the last horse and buggy salesman who was holding out as cars took over the roads. I don't want to be the last investor in Blockbuster as Netflix emerged. That's exactly what is going to happen to fossil fuels.
A clean energy future is a wise investment, and anyone who tells you otherwise is either wrong, or lying. Either way, I wouldn't take their investment advice.
Renewable energy is great for the economy, and you don't have to take my word for it. California has some of the most revolutionary environmental laws in the United States, we get 40% of our power from renewables, and we are 40% more energy efficient than the rest of the country. We were an early-adopter of a clean energy future.
Our economy has not suffered. In fact, our economy in California is growing faster than the U.S. economy. We lead the nation in manufacturing, agriculture, tourism, entertainment, high tech, biotech, and, of course, green tech.
I have a final question, and it will take some imagination.
There are two doors. Behind Door Number One is a completely sealed room, with a regular, gasoline-fueled car. Behind Door Number Two is an identical, completely sealed room, with an electric car. Both engines are running full blast.
I want you to pick a door to open, and enter the room and shut the door behind you. You have to stay in the room you choose for one hour. You cannot turn off the engine. You do not get a gas mask.
I'm guessing you chose the Door Number Two, with the electric car, right? Door number one is a fatal choice - who would ever want to breathe those fumes?
This is the choice the world is making right now.
To use one of the four-letter words all of you commenters love, I don't give a damn if you believe in climate change. I couldn’t care less if you're concerned about temperatures rising or melting glaciers. It doesn't matter to me which of us is right about the science.
I just hope that you'll join me in opening Door Number Two, to a smarter, cleaner, healthier, more profitable energy future.