The Survival of Mankind E-Book

Robert Maschmann

• Herausgeber: tredition
• Kategorie: Geisteswissenschaft
• Sprache: Englisch
• Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2023

Seitenzahl: 141

Beschreibung

Although humans are by no means a threatened species on this planet, humans are obviously concerned and fearful that mankind will not survive and that the animal species Homo sapiens will be annihilated forever. This seems to be a contradiction. In this book, the author shows that this apparent contradiction is not one. The author shows that the fear of humans that mankind could be annihilated in whatever way is undoubtedly justified and that this fear is not just the unfounded imagination of a species that is apparently more or less so overwhelmed with its own existence that it constantly fantasises about its own demise. However, if this fear of humans that mankind could be wiped out by whatever events is actually justified, then a question immediately arises, the answer to which is, so to speak, the purpose of this book: What would be the conditions that would have to be fulfilled so that under all possible circumstances and for every conceivable case this annihilation of all mankind could be prevented or avoided and there would therefore be no end of mankind? In accordance with the subtitle of this book, the author will therefore make speculations about the conditions under which the continued existence of the animal species Homo sapiens and thus also of Mankind could be guaranteed under all possible circumstances and for every conceivable case.

Leseprobe

Robert Maschmann

The Survival of Mankind

Conjectures about the preconditions for the continued existence of the animal species Homo sapiens

© 2023 Robert Maschmann

ISBN Softcover:

978-3-384-06068-6

ISBN Hardcover:

978-3-384-06069-3 ISBN

E-Book:

978-3-384-06070-9

Printed and distributed on behalf of the author: tredition GmbH, Heinz-Beusen-Stieg 5, 22926 Ahrensburg, Germany

The work, including its parts, is protected by copyright. The author is responsible for the contents. Any use is not permitted without the author's consent. Publication and distribution are carried out on behalf of the author, who can be contacted at: tredition GmbH, Department "Impressumservice", Heinz-Beusen-Stieg 5, 22926 Ahrensburg, Germany.

Table of Contents

Cover

Title Page

Copyright

1 Introduction

2 Mankind

3 The Worst-Case Scenario of Complete Annihilation

4 The Survival of Mankind

4.1 The planetary level

4.2 The cosmic level

4.3 The cosmological level

5 The Immortality of Humans

6 Summary and Concluding Remarks

Literature References

The Survival of Mankind

Cover

Title Page

Copyright

1Introduction

Literature References

The Survival of Mankind

Cover

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

9

10

11

12

13

14

15

16

17

18

19

20

21

22

23

24

25

26

27

28

29

30

31

32

33

34

35

36

37

38

39

40

41

42

43

44

45

46

47

48

49

50

51

52

53

54

55

56

57

58

59

60

61

62

63

64

65

66

67

68

69

70

71

72

73

74

75

76

77

78

79

80

81

82

83

84

85

86

87

88

89

90

91

92

93

94

95

96

97

98

99

100

101

102

103

104

105

106

107

108

109

110

111

112

113

114

115

116

117

118

119

120

121

122

123

124

125

126

1 Introduction

The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species (available at www.iucnredlist.org) is a globally recognized assessment and classification of biological species developed and maintained by the IUCN, the International Union for Conservation of Nature, and Natural Resources. It is an important reference source for the status and endangerment of animal, plant, and fungal species on a global level.

This Red List of Threatened Species uses different categories to describe the endangerment status of a species. The main categories range from

"Extinct (EX): The species no longer exists"

to

"Not Endangered (LC): A species not currently facing an imminent threat".

"Extinction" is the final disappearance of a species or a group of organisms. A species is considered extinct when it no longer has any living individuals and reproduction is no longer possible. Extinction can be either local, when a species becomes extinct only in a certain area, or global, when the entire species becomes extinct on the entire planet.

The classification of a species in one of these Red List of Threatened Species categories is always based on scientific evidence about population trends, range, population size, threats, and other relevant factors. This Red List of Threatened Species is regularly updated to incorporate new information and to monitor the status of threatened species.

The IUCN itself is an international organization dedicated to nature conservation. The IUCN was founded in 1948 and has its headquarters in Gland, Switzerland. IUCN brings together governments, non-governmental organizations, scientists, and experts from a variety of fields to promote the conservation of the natural diversity of species and the sustainable use of natural resources. It is an influential voice in environmental protection and has considerable influence at both national and international levels.

However, if one searches this IUCN Red List of Threatened Species for the animal species Homo sapiens, then one will not find it.

Yes, of course, one might now object, that is perfectly clear. Man, or Homo sapiens cannot appear on this Red List of Threatened Species as an endangered animal species, because man is man and not an animal. That would be however (unfortunately) completely wrongly thought. From a biological point of view, Homo sapiens is just as much an animal species as Canis lupus, Equus asinus or Neofelis nebulosa.

"For evolutionary biology, humans are one animal species among many, with characteristics that can be explained as adaptations to past and present environmental conditions. […] The fact that humans have abilities that are found only in rudimentary form in other animals - language, art, and science, for example - contradicts this only at first glance. From a biological point of view, humans have unique characteristics - just as all other living beings are special and unique in their own special way" (Junker 2021; p. 7).

Humans in their existence as animals and as living beings are then classified (as everybody knows) in the biological systematics as specimens of the genus Homo. The animal species Homo sapiens is the only and last remaining (recent) species of the genus Homo. All other species of the Hominines (i.e., species of the genus Homo) have disappeared sooner or later in the course of human evolution.

"In general, it can be stated that during most of the hominin evolution, several related species coexisted in the same geographic regions, perhaps even in the same places. Thus, the traditional picture of human evolution as a ladder of stages from ape-like ancestors to present-day humans is not accurate. It is more like a tree with many branches, some of which belong only to the early period, others reaching almost to the present. Unusual, however, is the present situation, in which there is only one species - Homo sapiens" (Junker 2021; p. 29).

If humans had to be classified as an animal species in this Red List of Threatened Species, then only the category "Not Endangered (LC)" would be possible for them. However, the animal species Homo sapiensis (at least at the moment) so far away from a possible extinction that even the classification into the category "Not endangered" would be a disproportionate exaggeration. For a problem of Mankind is currently not so much the possibility that it could become annihilated, but rather the problem of an increasing overpopulation of Earth by more and more people.

The animal species Homo sapiens is nevertheless constantly inscribing itself, indirectly so to speak, on this Red List of Threatened Species. Because the animal species Homo sapiens is in the process of wiping out and causing the disappearance of other biological species on a grand scale through its uncontrolled reproduction in connection with the way it manages its planet, whereby this Red List of Threatened Species is becoming longer and longer.

But even though the animal species Homo sapiens would not even be classified as endangered with regard to its survival, at least from a scientific point of view, there are still people who fear that Mankind will not survive and that the animal species Homo sapiens could disappear from Earth forever. And many people who believe that the end of Mankind is possible could certainly put together a whole potpourri of catastrophes off the top of their heads that could wipe out Mankind. These would certainly include climate change, the nuclear threat, the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, pandemics and other global health crises, and social, political, and economic instabilities. To name just a few of these possible catastrophes.

So, although on the one hand humans are by no means among the threatened animal species on this planet, on the other hand people are obviously (also) concerned and fearful that Mankind might not survive and thus the animal species Homo sapiens might be wiped out forever. This seems to be a contradiction.

In this book I will show that this apparent contradiction is not one. I will show that people's fear that Mankind could be wiped out in whatever way is undoubtedly well-founded and that this fear is thus not just the unfounded imagination of a species that is apparently permanently more or less so overwhelmed with its own existence that it therefore constantly fantasises its own demise.

If, however, this fear of people that Mankind could be wiped out by whatever events is actually justified, then a question immediately arises, the answer to which is, so to speak, the purpose of this book: What would be the preconditions that would have to be fulfilled so that under all possible circumstances and for every conceivable case this wiping out of Mankind could be prevented or avoided and so there would be no end of Mankind? In accordance with the subtitle of this book, I will therefore make speculations about the conditions under which the continued existence of the animal species Homo sapiens and thus also of Mankind could be guaranteed under all possible circumstances and for every conceivable case.

But this also means that the content of this book is more or less already mapped out.

First, I will try to determine what is meant by the term "Mankind" in the first place. Yes, it is true: The term "Mankind" is used all the time and everywhere, and above all when people want to emphasise the drama, the scope, the moral relevance and thus the importance of their findings, insights, and actions. As will be shown, a (meaningful) definition of the term "Mankind" is not so easy at first. In any case, however, it would be wrong to define the term “Mankind” in such a way that it simply denotes the people living now or today. For then the term “Mankind” would simply denote nothing and would only be an empty term.

Then I will discuss which experiences and insights can lead people to fear that Mankind might not survive. This is all the more astonishing because there is no experience of whether Mankind could be wiped out. For if people had already had some experience of the end of Mankind, then I would not exist, nor would any other human being, and this book here would never have been written. In this context, it will then also become apparent that, as I have already said, people's fears that all human beings could be wiped out by catastrophic events and that the history of Mankind could thus also come to an end are quite justified.

Then, after discussing what might usefully be meant by the concept of Mankind and why people may reasonably fear that Mankind will not survive and that the history of Mankind may come to an end at some point, I will determine, on the basis of the concept of Mankind I have developed, what conditions must be in place for it to be possible to say, at any point in the future and for any point in the future, that Mankind has survived and that the history of Mankind has not yet come to an end.

I will then set out to find events that could lead to the annihilation of Mankind, in order to determine, through the analysis of these events, the conditions that would have to exist in any case and under any circumstances for Mankind to survive such events and so that at any time in the future and for any time in the future it could be said that Mankind has survived and that the history of Mankind is not yet over. I distinguish between events on the planetary, cosmic, and cosmological levels.

If one goes in search of events that could endanger the survival of Mankind on the planetary level, then these are events that have their cause on Earth itself and could wipe out Mankind through their destructive potential. In this context, I will of course (must) also discuss the consequences of man-made climate change for the continued existence of Mankind. However, I can and will then give good reasons why man-made climate change does not and cannot mean the end of Mankind. It will also be shown that no single event on the planetary level would be capable of wiping out Mankind.

When one looks for events that could endanger the survival of Mankind on the cosmic level, then these are events that have their cause in the solar system or in outer space and that could, so to speak, cause the annihilation of Mankind from there. Certainly, the most prominent example of such an event is an asteroid which, due to its trajectory through the solar system, could hit Earth and cause such devastating damage that human life on Earth would no longer be possible. However, it will become apparent that it is not the asteroids flying around in the solar system that pose the greatest cosmic threat to Mankind. For there is a cosmic event that is certain to occur and which, if it did occur, would certainly wipe out Mankind. From this event one can then conclude very clearly which conditions would have to be fulfilled at least on the cosmic level in order to be able to avoid and prevent an annihilation of Mankind at least on this level.

If one goes in search of events that could endanger the survival of Mankind on the cosmological level, then on this level it is actually not a question of individual events that could occur, but of certain states that the universe as a universe itself could assume and that could cause the annihilation of Mankind because the universe could assume such a state that would make life and thus also human life impossible in this universe. The universe could (at least according to the conclusions of cosmologists as well as astrophysicists, which they draw from their equations, observations, and simulations) assume such a state in the course of time because the universe is not a static but a dynamic universe and changes and develops, so to speak, as a universe itself. If there could be such states of the universe that would make all life in the universe impossible, then one can likewise derive from these possible states of the universe those preconditions that would have to be fulfilled under all circumstances and in any case and without restriction on the cosmological level (so to speak on the level of the universe itself) so that Mankind could survive and would not become annihilated.

Finally, and at the very end, I will discuss the consequences for the survival of Mankind if it were possible to make people immortal.

So that no misunderstandings arise here: Of course, I am not referring to any kind of metaphysical concepts of immortality, such as the idea of an immortal human soul that survives the death of humans. I will refer to such assumptions as notions of some kind of transcendent immortality. I will call the idea of a transcendent immortality of human beings the idea that a human being could live on beyond death in an immaterial form of whatever kind. A human being becomes transcendently immortal when the body of this human being dies, but his soul, spirit, consciousness, or ego (or whatever other immaterial entities one might consider potentially immortal in the context of human existence) continue to exist practically forever beyond death. This transcendent immortality is of no importance for the survival of Mankind because transcendent immortality is a merely imagined immortality of people who have already died and are dead.

What is important for the survival of Mankind is that immortality which I will call inner-worldly immortality, for this inner-worldly immortality would be the immortality of living human beings and thus also the guarantee for the survival of Mankind. I will call the idea of inner-worldly immortality the idea that people could, on the one hand, achieve biological immortality, i.e., stop the ageing process of their bodies and achieve an unlimited regenerative capacity of their bodies. On the other hand, I understand inner-worldly immortality to be what I will call machinic immortality. The idea of machinic immortality is the idea that although a human body dies, its soul, spirit, consciousness, or ego could somehow be stored on or transferred to a non-human material substrate, and that human beings (at least any immaterial parts of them) could achieve immortality in this way.

This chapter on the possibility of an inner-worldly immortality of human beings and the consequences of such an inner-worldly immortality of human beings for the survival of Mankind is, however, already the conclusion of this book, because I will not pass judgement on whether Mankind can survive or will sooner or later be extinguished on the basis of the preconditions which I will then have established