by Alok Jha
primordial 203, 204–6
Black Swan events 265–7
blue orchard bee 84
blue stars 200
Bogdan, Thomas 170, 171
Boltzmann, Ludwig 225
bombs, dirty see dirty bombs
Borlaug, Norman 41
Bostrom, Nick 71, 72, 76, 79, 236–7, 239, 243, 249, 250–1, 264
botulinum 33
brachiopods 10
Braddock, Dunn & McDonald 21
brain 71
merging of computers with human 77, 79
“brain in a vat” scenario 250
brain-computer interfaces 77
Bralower, Timothy J. 154
Brazil
and GM crops 60
British Geological Survey (BGS) 108, 159, 162
British Medical Journal 38
Broecker, Wallace 118
Brown, Lester 91, 93, 95–6, 97, 98
Bt corn 61, 62
“bubble universes” 195–6, 196
Budge, Giles 82
Bush, President George W. 97
scientists letter to concerning cyberwar 52–3, 57
C
CABI 87
caesium 31
Callender, Craig 224, 225
Cambrian explosion 125
Cameron, Sydney 81, 82
cancer
and pollution 131
cannabis 38
Cannell, Elliott 82
Caplan, Arthur 63
carbon 109
carbon dioxide/carbon dioxide emissions 44, 46
and anoxic event 154–5, 156, 157
and global warming 44
removal of from atmosphere and Snowball Earth 124
Carr, Bernard 203, 204, 206
Carrington, Richard 171
Cassman, Kenneth 96
Casti, John 74
cell disintegration 244–7
Centre for Ecology and Hydrology 81
CFCs (chlorofluorocarbons) 134, 135, 136
Chacaltaya glacier (Bolivia) 103
Chalmers, David J. 250, 251
Chechen rebels 34
chemical pollution see pollution, chemical
chemical terrorism 31–3
chemicals, manufacturing of artificial 128
Chernobyl disaster (1986) 31
China 44, 45
birth control 49
desertification 93, 94
rare earth elements reserves 108
resource consumption 44, 106
Chuang Tsu 249
Clarke, Richard 56
climate change 50, 91, 96, 258
impact of 116
and population decline 50
and rise in sea levels 112
and water shortages 101, 102, 103
see also global warming
cockroaches 88
Cohen, Jack 209–10
Cohen, Joel E. 42, 44
Cold War 18, 21, 24, 28
Coleman, Sidney 197
comets 138, 181, 182–3
computer hackers 55, 56
computer simulation, living in a 249–51
computer viruses 56
computers 52–7, 75
human dependence on 53–4
merging with human brains 77, 79
and superintelligence 69–74
and transhumanism 75
conodonts 10
consumption see resource consumption
coronal mass ejections (CMEs) 169, 171, 172
cosmic sterilization 232
Council for Foreign Relations (CFR) 34
Cretaceous-Tertiary mass extinction 11
Crichton, Michael Prey 65
Crick, Francis 233–4
Cyber Command 55
cyber-crime 56
cyber-terrorism 53, 54–6
cyberwar 52–7
cystic fibrosis 235
D
dark energy 226
Darwin, Charles 240
Davies, Paul 212
DDT 128, 131
Dead Hand mechanism 21
dead zones 157
deafness 243
dengue 17
Derocher, Andrew 129, 130
deserts/desertification 90–4
formation of 91–3
ways to stop 93–4
Diamond, Jared 106, 108, 110
Dindyal, Shiva 50
dinosaurs, extinction of 11, 138
dirty bombs 30–4
biological 31–3
easiness of making 33
likelihood of attack by 34
radiological 30–1
disability 243
DNA 233–4, 235
and telomeres 244–7, 245
donepezil 37
“doomsday equation” 43
doomsday machine 18–22
Dowling, Ann 68
Dr. Strangelove 19, 19, 22
Drake, Frank 208, 212
dream/dreaming 248–51
Drexler, Eric
Engines of Creation 64–5, 66
drought 92
drugs, mind-enhancing 36–9
dust storms 91, 92, 93
dysgenics 238–43
E
Earth Policy Institute 95
earthquakes, shifting of
Earth’s axis by 178
Ebola 17
eccentricity 175
Economist, The 54, 56, 57
ecosystems
balance of 86
collapse of due to pollution 127
collapse of 261
impact of GM crops on 61
impact of invasive species on 86, 87–8, 89
Edwards, Clive 130
Einstein, Albert 185, 201, 203, 224, 225
Ejzak, Larissa M. 192
Emmanuel, Kerry 165–6, 167
End-Triassic mass extinction 10
endocrine disrupters 129
Endy, Drew 59
Engelman, Robert 42, 44, 45
environmental collapse 257–62
Environmental Protection Agency 83
epigenetics 236
Estonia, cyber-attacks on 56
eugenics 49, 241, 242–3
euphoria drugs 35–9
European Extremely Large Telescope 212
European Space Agency 140
event horizon 185–6, 226
extinctions
and invasive species 88
species threatened with 259–60, 259
and telomeres 246
see also mass extinctions
extraterrestrials 207–11, 209
extremophiles 178, 210
F
Fahey, David W. 136
false vacuum 195–6, 197
family planning 49
famines 97
Farley, Kenneth 183
fertility rates 48–9, 50–1
fertilizers 129, 131
Feynman, Richard 66
Fish Canyon Tuff event 150
floods 112
and rise in sea levels 114
flu pandemics 13–14, 17
Avian flue 14, 16
Spanish flu (1918) 14
Swine flu (2009) 13–14
food crisis 95–9
causes 96–8
impact of on the state 98–9
solutions 99
and use of grain crops for biofuels 96, 97–8
Food and Drug
Administration 38
food prices 98
Foresight 37
Freitas Jr., Robert A. 66–8
French Naval Chemical
Research Laboratory 31
Future Generations 242
Future of Humanity
Institute 76
G
Gagosian, Robert B. 117, 119
galaxies, collision of 218–22, 220
Galton, Francis 241
gamma-ray bursts (GRB) 189–93, 190
GCHQ 55
general relativity 185, 201, 204, 225, 226
genes
creation of in
laboratory 62
genetic modification (in crops) see GM crops
genetic modification (in humans) 76, 78, 233–7
difficulties in 234–5
problem with unchecked 236–7
ways of preventing potential problems 237
genetic mutation 239–40
genetic superhumans 233–7
Geological Society 150, 151, 152
geomagnetic reversal 158–62, 160
germ-line genetic engineering 235, 236
Glashow, Sheldon 231–2
Gleick, Peter H. 104
Gliese 710 183
global pandemics see pandemics
Global Viral Forecasting
Initiative (GVFI) 16
global warming 116, 121
and carbon dioxide emissions 44
and food crisis 96, 98
and mass extinction 12
and rise in sea levels 112–13, 115
slowing of Earth’s obliquity 178
see also climate change
globalization 86
GM (genetic modification)
crops 59–62, 63, 99
benefits of 59–60
impact of on ecosystems 61
solutions to dangers 63
wild populations of 60–1
worldwide 60
Gnacadja, Luc 91
Gobineau, Joseph Arthur 240–1
golden apple snail 86, 87, 89
Gornitz, Vivien 114
Grady, Monica 141
grain consumption 96
Grant, Madison 242
Great Dying 10
Great Plains 92
Greely, Henry 37, 39
“green revolution” 96
green water 104
greenhouse gases 91, 123–4 see also carbon dioxide
Greenland 121
Greenland Ice Sheet 112–13, 115, 178
Gregory, Jonathan 113
Gulf Stream 116–21, 119
Guth, Alan 195, 196
H
H5N1 virus see Avian flu
Haber-Bosch process 110
halocarbons 134, 135
Hawking, Stephen 203, 204, 205, 208
Heisenberg, Werner 194
helium 107
Hernquist, Lars 219, 220, 221
Hiroshima 24, 26
HIV 16, 17
Hoffman, David 20, 22
Hoffman, Paul 124, 126
Hofstadter, Douglas 69
Holdren, John 171, 173
Hosono, Hideo 109
human genome 78
Human Genome Project 234
human modification 76–8
see also genetic
modification (human)
humanists 75
Hurricane Katrina 165, 165
hurricanes 164–6, 165
Hut, Professor Piet 141
Huxley, Aldous
Brave New World 35, 36
hydrogen sulfide 155, 156, 157
hypercanes 166–7
hypernova 191
I
ice ages 27, 119, 123, 175
ice sheets, melting of 112–13, 115
ILOVEYOU virus 56
imidacloprid 83
India 44
birth control 49
nuclear weapons 28
water stress 103
Indian Ocean tsunami (2004) 144
indium 109
Industrial Revolution 41
inflation of universe 195
influenza see flu
information extinction 252–6
Institute for European
Environmental Policy (IEEP) 88, 89
intelligence
artificial 69–74, 77
and race 240
intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs) 25
Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change see IPCC
International Atomic Energy Agency 34
International Union for
Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List 83, 88
International Water
Management Institute 102
invasive species 85–9
economic cost of 86, 87, 88, 89
impact of on biodiversity and ecosystems 86, 87–8, 89
and increase in tourism and trade 87
solutions 89
IPCC (Intergovernmental
Panel on Climate Change) 12, 101, 102, 103, 115
Iran
and nuclear weapons 28
Iraq 34, 98
J
Jackman, Charles 192
Jacobs, J.A. 161
John, Jeremy Leighton 253, 254
Joint Strike Fighter 56
Jones, Steve 239
K
Kataev, Vitalii 21
Kelly, Henry C. 31
Kirschvink, Joe 124–5
knowledge, storage of 252–6
Korobushin, General Varfolomei 21
Kuiper Belt 181
Kurzweil, Ray 77–8, 79
L
La Palma 143, 145, 146
Landerer, Felix 178
Large Hadron Collider see LHC
Late Devonian mass extinction 10
Leape, Jim 259
Levi, Michael A. 31
LHC (Large Hadron Collider) 202, 203–5, 204, 206, 256
little ice age 27
Lituya Bay 144–5
Liu, Yifan 33
Long Now Foundation 256
Lubchenco, Jane 172
Lynn, Richard 242
Lyons, Gwynne 131
M
M31 see Andromeda
McGuire, Bill 143, 152
machines
and intelligence 69–74
McKibbin, Warwick 15–16
McLellan, Bill 66
McMurty, Gary 146
magnetic field, reversal of 158–62, 160
magnetosphere 162, 169
Malthus, Thomas 40, 41, 49, 50, 95
Essay on the Principle of Population 41, 49
Manhattan Project 24, 57
mass extinctions 8–12
future 11–12
past 155, 156, 157, 180, 246, 258
and anoxia 154
and asteroids 11, 138, 161, 167, 180
and gamma-ray burst 193
and magnetic reversal 161
main events 9–11
and supervolcano
eruptions 150
Matrix, The 249
Mayan calendar prediction 6
medicine 75
Medvedev, Dmitry 28
mega tsunami 142–6
Melott, Adrian 193
memory enhancement drugs 37
metals, recycling of 109
methane 157
methylphenidate (Ritalin) 36, 37
Milankovitch, Milutin 175–6, 177
Milky Way
collision with Andromeda
hypothesis 219, 221, 222
Millennium Ecosystem Assessment (2005) 258
mind-enhancing drugs 36–9
miniaturization, drive for 66
Modafinil 36–7, 38
Monbiot, George 262
Monsanto 60, 63
monsoons 119
Montreal Protocol 135, 136
Moon 178, 231–2
Moravec, Hans 71
MQ-1 Predator aircraft 55
Murray, Robin 38
Musser, George 227
mutually assured
destruction (MAD) 24–8
N
Nagasaki 24, 26, 26
Nakamura, Eiichi 109–10
nanorobots 64–5, 66–7, 67
nanotechnology 64–8, 67, 77, 78
and Feynman’s challenge 66
self-replication scenario 64, 66–8
National Academy of Sciences 96
natural selection 239, 240, 240–1
Nature 37, 65, 99, 101, 102, 104
near-Earth objects (NEOs) 138, 141
Newton, Isaac 224, 264 9/11 (2001) 266
nitrous oxide (N20) 136
; nomads 92
Nosema bombi 82
nuclear weapons 23–8
arms race between United States and Soviets 25
development of 24–5
and doomsday machine 18–22
mutually assured destruction (MAD) phrase 24
nuclear winter 26–7
likelihood of 28–9
O
Obama, Barack 28, 54
obliquity 175–7, 178
oceanic anoxic events (OAEs) 154–6
O’Neill, Brian 45–6
Oort cloud 181–3, 182
Ordovician-Silurian mass extinction 10
Oxford, John 17
oxygen depletion 153–7
ozone hole 134–5, 134–5
ozone layer 156, 167
demise of 132–6
and gamma-ray burst 192
P
Padilla, Jose 34
Pakistan
and nuclear weapons 28
pandemics 13–17
economic costs 16
flu 13–14, 17
impact on society 15–16
spread of diseases 14–15
and surveillance of animals 16–17
what to do 17
Parkinson’s disease and pesticides 131
Parr, Doug 62
particle physics 229
PCBs (polychlorinated biphenyls) 129, 130, 131
Pearce, Fred Peoplequake 46, 48
Pentagon 265
Perimeter (doomsday machine) 18–22
Permian-Triassic mass extinction 10
pesticides 128, 129
effect of on wildlife 130
killing of bees by 82, 83, 130
and Parkinson’s disease 131
Pesticides Action Network 82
Petranek, Stephen 258
pigs 16
Pimentel, David 89
Pinker, Steven 74
Planck density 203, 205
planetary nebulae 215, 216
plutonium 31
polar shift 174–8
Pollard, David 177
pollution, chemical 127–31, 258
and cancer 131
effects on people 127, 131
effects on wildlife 127, 129–30
forms of 128–9
manufacturing of artificial chemicals 128
solutions 131
polychlorinated biphenyls see PCBs
population decline 48–51
and birth rates 48
and climate change 50
and fall in sperm count 50–1
financial incentives for women to have children remedy 51
impact of 48
reasons for 49
population growth 11, 40–6
and birth control 49
and consumption 42, 44
controlling 45–6, 49
and “doomsday equation” 43
environmental impacts 46
impact of 42
and Malthus 40, 41, 49, 50, 95
pessimist and optimist views of 41–2, 43