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Quote by Annalee Newitz

“I try to be realistic and pragmatic. I have a lot of hope for humanity as a species, but obviously as individuals we can be extremely flawed. We may have to go through some very terrible times in the near future, even if we ultimately survive as Homo sapiens.”

Quote by Annalee Newitz

Author

Annalee Newitz is an accomplished journalist and writer, born in 1969. She is renowned for her in-depth reporting on technology, science fiction, and gender issues. Newitz has served as an editor for 'Make' magazine and has authored several books on technology and culture. more

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“In fact, the early demographer Thomas Malthus believes that the only way the human population would ever check itself was by running headlong into a disaster, like a pandemic or famine. Sometimes we get so frustrated with the slowness of human political processes that we wish a giant flaming rock would solve the problem for us.”

Way Believe Humans Sometimes Facts Problem Running Political Wish Process Rocks Population Solve Disaster Checks Giants Frustrated Famine Slowness Pandemics Human Population Malthus

Author:Annalee Newitz

“I think in the long run, it will be better for us if we solve our problems without suffering through some terrible disaster. I like the idea of change without Apocalypse.”

Ifs Thinking Long Ideas Problem Running Suffering Terrible Solve Disaster Long Runs Apocalypse

Author:Annalee Newitz

“The early Triassic was a period when the planet was recovering from the worst mass extinction it had ever known - that was the end Permian extinction, where climate change caused in part by mega-volcanic eruptions wiped out ninety-five percent of life on Earth. It took about ten or twenty million years for the planet's ecosystems to stabilize. During that time you saw a lot of weird, out-of-balance ecosystems where, for example, crocodile-like predators ripped the crap out of each other along the coasts.”

“Amphibians are dying out like crazy, and frogs and salamanders may be largely extinct by the end of the twenty-first century. Imagine an animal that begins its life in the water, but ends it on land - already, that's pretty weird. But, also, a lot of them are incredibly tiny and look wildly improbable. They have funny little toes, they stretch their throats into weird bubble shapes when they croak, and some of them are poisonous to the touch. I think kids from the twenty-second century might mythologize amphibians the way kids today mythologize dinosaurs.”

“Survivor species tend to have huge populations, so they can afford to lose many individuals and still survive as a species. They also tend to be small. If you're small, you need less food - which is great in a situation where famine is everywhere.”

Ifs Needs Stills Individual Loses Situation Huge Species Population Survivor Famine

Author:Annalee Newitz

“I think small animals can escape from many kinds of natural disaster more easily. There are just more places for them to hide, and more ways for them to find safe habitats. So this means that rats are set up to rule the Earth, but most of us already knew that. Now you know why.”

Thinking Knows Way Kind Mean Earth Natural Animal Safe Disaster Rats Habitat Natural Disaster Small Animals

Author:Annalee Newitz

“I think that humans are also set up to survive. We're not as small as rats, but we make up for that by being intelligent enough to make our own hiding places and to adapt to new habitats, even if they are changing very quickly. We have an enormous population, and can afford to lose billions of people without suffering very much as a species. Indeed, some would say losing five billion people would be good for the planet - I disagree with them, but can't deny that we would do just fine if there were two billion of us or even one billion.”

People Ifs Thinking Humans Two Enough Would Be Suffering Loses Five Planets Fine Losing Intelligent Species Population Deny Be Good Billions Enormous Hiding Disagree Rats Habitat Hiding Place

Author:Annalee Newitz

“Humans are a great survivor species but our survival will be pretty grim if all of the plants and animals we depend on die out. That's why any human survival strategy has to include a plan to maintain our environment roughly in the state that it's in now.”

Ifs Humans States Dies Animal Environment Plans Depends Survival Strategy Plant Species Survivor Our Environment Grim Plants And Animals

Author:Annalee Newitz

“I disagree that we need to contemplate eliminating ourselves in order to move forward. Sure, I think a good dystopian story can serve to steer us on the right path toward a better world. But we also need stories that offer solutions to our problems that are realistic, and workable today.”

Thinking World Needs Stories Problem Today Moving Order Path Offers Solutions Moving Forward Realistic Disagree Contemplating Dystopian Steers Right Path Eliminating

Author:Annalee Newitz

“Imagining the world without us is a recipe for despair and paralysis. I actually think it's more helpful to imagine the world before us, to look back at those unstable ecosystems of the Triassic and realize that were in another phase of unstable ecosystems. Knowing that, demystifying our situation as it were, makes it easier to think about solutions. We are not looking into the unknown. The only thing unknown about the situation is how we're going to fix it, and when.”

Thinking World Looks Realizing Situation Knowing Imagine Easier Despair Solutions Helpful Phases Recipes Ecosystems Unstable Paralysis

Author:Annalee Newitz