Planet Earth is currently on the cusp of the sixth wave of mass extinction. This was announced on January 9 by a professor at Stanford University Paul Ehrlich, quoted by the Daily Mail.
In the 16th century, the English historian and philosopher Francis Bacon expressed the opinion that science should give man power over nature and thus improve his life, adding that science should take a worthy place in the “human kingdom”. In fact, he laid the foundations for scientific research, his famous aphorism Scientia potentia est (“Knowledge is power”) is known. The first researchers appeared in the 19th century.
“Mass extinction is just one of the interconnected existential threats facing civilization, others include climate disruption, global poisoning and a resumption of the nuclear arms race,” Ehrlich said.
WWF is warning that the world will be heading towards the largest mass extinction since the days of the dinosaurs over the next decade. Millions of plants and animals are on the verge of extinction.
Scientists fear that a sixth wave of mass extinction could occur right before our eyes. This is possible due to over-deforestation, hunting and fishing.
Paul Ehrlich says mass extinction is just one of the interconnected existential threats facing civilization, while others include climate disruption, global poisoning and a resumption of the nuclear arms race.
“While there is some debate about the reasons for the previous five mass extinctions, there is no word in the scientific community about the reason for the ongoing sixth – there are too many people, and the richest of them consume too much, and all this is compounded by gender, racial and economic inequality”, Ehrlich added.
According to the professor, everything that we will do in the next 10-50 years will determine the future of humanity.
To date, there have been five mass extinctions on Earth. The last wave was 66 million years ago where a giant asteroid destroyed the dinosaurs.
In December it became known that a “black box” of the Earth would be installed in Australia. The device will record information about the environmental situation. Data on the temperature of the earth, water, and extinction of species will be saved.
The project was developed by researchers from the University of Tasmania. The device is a 7.5 cm thick steel monolith. The recorder will be solar powered. Construction of the structure will begin in mid-2022.
