Jun 202006
Stephen Hawking is warning that it might be time to start thinking about leaving the cradle to ensure the long-term survival of the species. Of course, neither Hawking nor anyone can predict with any accuracy the number of habitable planets that might be within a reasonable distance of our solar system. And even if we did identity one or two planetary baskets into which we can place some of humanity’s eggs, we aren’t going to get there anytime soon. I’m not even sure I’ll even see a mission to Mars in my lifetime. Hawking’s “Spaceward Ho!” exhortations are well-intentioned, but somewhat lacking in practical suggestions.
But if some variation of Big Bad does slap the human race back into the Stone Age, somebody better remember how to find this global seed bank located near the Arctic. After all, survivors of the apocalypse are going to need some greens to complement their steady diet of irradiated giant rat.
