Print

Please login or register.
1 Hour 1 Day 1 Week 1 Month Forever
Login with username, password and session length

[Lizzie_Zoom]

Did anyone else watch last night the excellent lecture by Professor Hans Rosling "This World: Don't Panic - The Truth About Population" (BBC2 2100)?

Professor Rosling is a statistician with the rare gift of being able to make his subject highly watchable and enjoyable.  He explained in wonderful computer graphical detail the history of the World's population and how social change has affected the situation to the point were you could understand the argument that the World's population will peak at 11 billion by 2100, and then start a decline due to over the last 50 years families across the globe reducing to an average of 2 children. His projections on population growth, and very importantly wealth, was fascinating.

Although he did not touch on how we can feed 11 billion, he explained how there was real hope for the human population in the future. But based on history, and remembering the flawed predictions of Thomas Malthus in the 1820s, I believe we should have nothing to worry about  on that one.  An interesting fact was that it is predicted that of that 11 billion, only 10% will live in western countries. 

Really worth a watch.  Available on BBC iPlayer. 

[MR MISTER]

His quiz was on here yesterday afternoon. Notice you didn't do it cos you didn't want to make a monkey out of yourself.

http://www.omegaowners.com/forum/index.php?topic=119146.0

[Field Marshal Dr. Opti]

Yep...and very informative it was, Lizzie.

Basically it comes down to this........ if men kept it in their pants more, and women invested in stronger knicker elastic, then we wouldn't need to worry about global population overload

[Field Marshal Dr. Opti]

Did anyone else watch last night the excellent lecture by Professor Hans Rosling "This World: Don't Panic - The Truth About Population" (BBC2 2100)?

Professor Rosling is a statistician with the rare gift of being able to make his subject highly watchable and enjoyable.  He explained in wonderful computer graphical detail the history of the World's population and how social change has affected the situation to the point were you could understand the argument that the World's population will peak at 11 billion by 2100, and then start a decline due to over the last 50 years families across the globe reducing to an average of 2 children. His projections on population growth, and very importantly wealth, was fascinating.

Although he did not touch on how we can feed 11 billion, he explained how there was real hope for the human population in the future. But based on history, and remembering the flawed predictions of Thomas Malthus in the 1820s, I believe we should have nothing to worry about  on that one.  An interesting fact was that it is predicted that of that 11 billion, only 10% will live in western countries. 

Really worth a watch.  Available on BBC iPlayer.

I wonder if the good professor takes into account the probable life expectancy of the average person in 2100.

I'm guessing about 110.......

[Rods2]

Global population is close to peaking where fertility has dropped to only about 2.5 children per woman. Later in the 21st century we may well see the global population starting to contract like it is in most rich industrialised countries.

The shift in wealth generation to particularly Asia, but to all fast developing nations has only just started and to put China's growth into perspective, their growth produces the equivalent of new Greek GDP every three months and a new 8th largest GDP in the world with Italy every year. 

The EU high regulation, scarce high priced energy is driving Western Europe into an economic backwater, this is why it is sensible for the UK to leave the core of the EU and just have a EFA agreement like the two richest countries in Europe Switzerland and Norway.

The biggest worry is not food but energy, we can solve that for the next 1000 years through Thorium nuclear power, but I'm not sure that the political will to do this is there in many countries until it is too late. The other big danger, which is why a few extra degrees of global warmth is a good thing, would be another Northern hemisphere ice age, like we have had for the majority of the time in the last 100,000 years as that would wipe out most of the North's population.

[Lizzie_Zoom]

Did anyone else watch last night the excellent lecture by Professor Hans Rosling "This World: Don't Panic - The Truth About Population" (BBC2 2100)?

Professor Rosling is a statistician with the rare gift of being able to make his subject highly watchable and enjoyable.  He explained in wonderful computer graphical detail the history of the World's population and how social change has affected the situation to the point were you could understand the argument that the World's population will peak at 11 billion by 2100, and then start a decline due to over the last 50 years families across the globe reducing to an average of 2 children. His projections on population growth, and very importantly wealth, was fascinating.

Although he did not touch on how we can feed 11 billion, he explained how there was real hope for the human population in the future. But based on history, and remembering the flawed predictions of Thomas Malthus in the 1820s, I believe we should have nothing to worry about  on that one.  An interesting fact was that it is predicted that of that 11 billion, only 10% will live in western countries. 

Really worth a watch.  Available on BBC iPlayer.

I wonder if the good professor takes into account the probable life expectancy of the average person in 2100.

I'm guessing about 110.......

Yes, he noted that with reduced families infant death rates had fallen and the life expectancy of adults was steadily increasing across the globe.

[Varche]

It won't get to 11 billion because all young men will adopt the Japanese trend for a "virtual girlfriend" on their comms device. Compliant, always available, doesn't answer back. Doesn't get in the way of leisure time and computer games. Why would the youth of tomorrow bother with the real thing?!

[Field Marshal Dr. Opti]

It won't get to 11 billion because all young men will adopt the Japanese trend for a "virtual girlfriend" on their comms device. Compliant, always available, doesn't answer back. Doesn't get in the way of leisure time and computer games. Why would the youth of tomorrow bother with the real thing?!

Yes, I saw the documentary. Nubile schoolgirls seem to to be the current favourite for these guys who are often in their thirties and forties.

[Lizzie_Zoom]

It won't get to 11 billion because all young men will adopt the Japanese trend for a "virtual girlfriend" on their comms device. Compliant, always available, doesn't answer back. Doesn't get in the way of leisure time and computer games. Why would the youth of tomorrow bother with the real thing?!

Yes, I saw the documentary. Nubile schoolgirls seem to to be the current favourite for these guys who are often in their thirties and forties.

Now, don't we have a term to describe that?