2. Population Growth
• Currently there is over 7 billion humans on
Earth, and growing rapidly
• Why is this a bad thing?
– We are rapidly running out of resources
– A study by World Wildlife Fund found that by
2050, we will need another planet the size of
earth to support our growing population
3. Population
Growth
• By 2020, we will run
out of Antimony (used
in drugs, and
batteries)
• By 2058, we will run
out of Antimony,
Indium, Silver,
Copper, Titanium,
Tantalum, Gas, Oil,
and Coal.
• Note: This list does
not include
‘renewable’ resources
that my become
extinct by over
hunting/commercial
farming
4. Weapons Of Mass Destruction
• There are an estimated 19,000 nuclear devices
in the world
• 4,400 of which are operational
• If all active nuclear weapons (4,200) were
launched:
– Nuclear winter would occur for up to one year
– EMP blasts would destroy electrical technologies
– Billions of people will die
– Survivors may become eradiated
• Cancers, and other diseases will become more common
• Food and water sources will become contaminated
• A Time-Laps of Every Nuclear Explosion Since 1945
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LLCF7vPanrY
5. Genetic Engineering
• The direct modification of an organism’s
genome
– Genes can be removed, added, turned off,
and turned on
– Can range from plants, virus, bacteria, and
animals
• “GloFish” are the first genetically modified
animal to be sold as a pet
6. Genetic Engineering
• What have we created?
– Genetically Modified Crops
• Poison Resistant Plants
• Disease Resistant Plants
• Merger of two similar plant species, taking the best
of each plant
– Genetically Modified Microbes.
• Protein insulin to treat diabetes
• Human growth hormones
• Alpha-Amylase – used to create bio fuels
7. Genetic Engineering
• What have we created?
– Animals
• Chimeras
– A single organism that is comprised of two different
organism
– Usually an animal
• Improved food qualities
– Food
• Eggs
• Rice
• Fruit
8. Genetic Engineering
• What could go wrong?
– Release of a super virus/disease
– Destruction of a species
– Billions of deaths
• What has gone wrong?
– Bacteria that has killed beneficial soil bacteria
– Bacteria that has made plants toxic
– Crops bring new allergy problems
– Super virus/disease
• Creation of a highly contagious and deadly bird flu strain
(H5N1)
9. Global Warming
• 68.3% of the United States electricity
generation is produced by fossil fuels
– This is releasing Greenhouse Gasses into the
atmosphere, this includes:
– Carbon Dioxide
– Methane
– Nitrous Oxide
– Fluorinated gases
10. Global Warming
• Temperature in the U.S. alone has
increased by 0.86 Celsius
• This is causing disturbances in ocean
flow, causing sever weather storms
• The Polar Icecaps are also melting at an
alarming rate
– This is causing ocean flows to break down
– If this melting continues, their could be a rise
of up to 11 meters in some areas
11. Cloning
• Research is being done into cloning human
body parts for transplantation
• Currently animals have been successfully cloned
• Although unlikely, the human race may begin
cloning as a way of longevity
• It is possible to have undetectable defects with
each clone, until the human race is no longer
able to reproduce, or continue cloning.
– This effect is known as diminishing returns
12. Technological Waste
• Over 1.9 million tons of discarded technology is
being sent to landfills
– These technologies can contain toxic substances
such as cadmium and mercury
– The technology is sometimes melted down for gold,
however this emits toxic
chemicals into the
atmosphere
13. Conclusion
• In the end, technology can not be blamed
for the destruction of the Earth, it is
humans who create the technology, and
use it without known the repercussions
14. Resources
• BBC. (2012). Global Resource Stock Check. Retrieved from
http://www.bbc.com/future/story/20120618-global-resources-stock-check
• Daily Mail. (2007). Scientists create world’s first see-through frog. Retrieved from
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-484072/Scientists-create-worlds-frog.html
• EIA. (2012). Electric Power Monthly. Retrieved from http://www.eia.gov/electricity/monthly/
• FAS. (2012). Status of World Nuclear Forces. Retrieved from
http://www.fas.org/programs/ssp/nukes/nuclearweapons/nukestatus.html
• FDA. (2009). Genetically Engineered Animals. Retrieved from
http://www.fda.gov/animalveterinary/developmentapprovalprocess/geneticengineering/genetically
engineeredanimals/default.htm
• Green Peace. (N.D.). Genetic Engineering: Too Good to go Wrong?. Retrieved from
http://archive.greenpeace.org/comms/97/geneng/getoogoo.html
• GloFish. (2012). GloFish Home Page. Retrieved from http://www.glofish.com/
• RT. (2011). Man-made super-flu could kill half humanity. Retrieved from http://rt.com/news/bird-
flu-killer-strain-119/
• Scientific America. (2008). Trashed Tech Dumped Over Seas: Does the U.S. Care?. Retrieved
from http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=trashed-tech-dumped-overseas
• Nasa. (2011). Contiguous 48 U.S. Surface Air Temperature Anomaly. Retrieved from
http://data.giss.nasa.gov/gistemp/graphs_v3/Fig.D.txt
• TheGuardian. (2002). Earth ‘will expire by 2050’. Retrieved from
http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2002/jul/07/research.waste
