Oct 162006
I like to think about the impermanence of things; both on a personal and more macro level. Friends come and go, as do fashion trends, languages, nation-states, and even geological epochs. Nothing last forever, probably not even the human race. The New Scientist examines what would happen to the planet if humans suddenly disappeared. After 100,000 years or so, very few traces of our existence would remain. I find this notion strangely comforting. We are a narcissistic species and it wouldn’t kill us to take a moment now and then to contemplate the universe’s unmistakable apathy regarding our continued presence.
Coming up to our 50th anniversary here at New Scientist, and it’s hard to imagine the publication being that old. Reading an article like this puts it into perspective.