I’m getting sick of the word “existential” because of the way the left reflexively uses it with climate change, but it seems like the most apt word for my question here.
A friend just posted something on LinkedIn about how quantum computing might save us by figuring out how to address climate change. I replied, “Have you read Dune?”
Dune is set long after humanity has won a battle against the thinking machines. After the Butlerian jihad they instituted various conventions to prevent anyone from building a thinking machine. (Basically the rest of the universe would come down on you with atomics and wipe you out.)
Threat #1 — machines taking over.
We’ve all just lived through Covid, which — while mild by historic standards — illustrates that we are not immune to pandemics. Something natural or man-made might be lurking out there, and we are woefully unprepared.
Threat #2 — pathogens.
Iran is probably going to get a nuke. (Thanks, Obama.) Several other not-entirely-stable countries have them. China and Russia already have them. The threat of nuclear war is still very serious, although we seem to have forgotten it after the fall of the Soviet Union.
Threat #3 — nuclear war.
Elon Musk is one of the only people I know who’s talking about population collapse as a potential problem. Birth rates and sperm counts are falling, and weird stuff seems to be happening.
This seems like a serious, but mostly survivable problem.
Thread #4 — population collapse.
I list this one for completeness, but I don’t worry about it.
Threat #5 — alien invasion.
Climate change is a real threat, but I don’t think it’s even close to #s 1-4. We can deal with rising seas, bad weather and such. If we’re hit with any of these, I hope it’s climate change.
Threat #6 — climate change.
What have I missed? And which one do you think is the biggest threat?