Human Extinction: What Are the Risks?

🌎 Get our exclusive NordVPN deal here ➡️ NordVPN.com/sabine It's risk-free with Nord's 30-day money-back guarantee!
Correction to what I say at 11 mins 50 seconds: A supervolcano eruption ejects more than 1000 cubic kilometers of matter (not 1000 cubic meters). Sorry about that!
What do we know about the risks of human going extinct? In today's video I collect what we know about the frequency of natural disasters and just how they would kill us, and estimates for man-made disasters.
👉 Transcript and References on Patreon ➜ / sabine
💌 Sign up for my weekly science newsletter. It's free! ➜ sabinehossenfelder.com/newsle...
📖 Check out my new book "Existential Physics" ➜ existentialphysics.com/
🔗 Join this channel to get access to perks ➜
/ @sabinehossenfelder
00:00 Intro
00:30 What Is an Existential Risk?
02:00 Would Extinction be Bad?
04:18 Man-made Disasters
10:36 What's The Risk of Man-made Disasters?
11:35 Natural Disasters
13:38 What's the Risk of Natural Disasters?
16:55 Why Can't the LHC Produce Black Holes?
19:29 Protect Your Data with NordVPN
Many thanks to Jordi Busqué for helping with this video jordibusque.com/
#science

[@Nefville]

A nice break from the heavy topics, like black holes and neutron stars.

[@TheWorldTeacher]

You are urged to become VEGAN, since carnism (the destructive ideology which supports the use and consumption of animal products, especially for “food”) is arguably the foremost existential crisis.🌱

[@useodyseeorbitchute9450]

@@TheWorldTeacher I thought that existential crisis is accumulating mutational load that with combination with gene-environment mismatch is causing surge of evolutionary maladaptive behaviours and bizarre ideologies. You just presented a symptom of the problem that I point out.

[@komalley35]

Funny

[@michaelblacktree]

hehe

[@1voluntaryist]

Unless you consider extinction the ultimate, i.e., heaviest, topic. I do. But it's not science, it's philosophy, specifically, psycho-epistemology.

[@sahebchoudhury]

I am scientifically almost illiterate and yet I almost never miss watching Sabine's videos. You are gift for people like me. Thank you.

[@Dan-dy8zp]

Well, Imagine someone 200 years ago, 1823, declaring something about how expansive a particular computation is going to be to perform in 2023. That's still not as dumb as her prediction about AGI being unrealistic for the next 200 years because the pace of technological improvement has actually increased since the 1800's. Her claim that AGI is unlikely in the next 200 years COULD be true, but there is no good reason to ASSUME so.

[@sheilakijawani2526]

Samajh bhi aata hai bhai? Kuch chize bouncer jaati.

[@Dan-dy8zp]

@@mootytootyfrooty Yes, I think the big hurdle left is on the software side. Then again, GPT-3 might be 1/300th the computing power of a human brain so whose to say what properties the current systems would have if simply scaled up. Interesting time to be alive, for sure!!!

[@Dan-dy8zp]

@@sheilakijawani2526 Something bounced? This is not clear when translated into English directly.

[@kyran333]

Well imagine what would happen to you if you listen to a Tom cambell video

[@marope]

Sabine at 19:25 "In summary, the biggest existencial risk is our own stupidity" Thank you, Sabine. We have already guessed that conclusion but at least now we can say it is been endorsed by a prestigious German theoretical physicist.

[@twitter.comelomhycy]

Haha

[@SchgurmTewehr]

Who is we?

[@gessie]

@@SchgurmTewehr I assume those of us who view human psychology, history and anthropology empirically as opposed to relying on self-aggrandizing claims such as divinity, moral relativity or other gobbledygook.

[@neilgerace355]

Unfortunately the stupidest ones are the loudest and so they are listened to more. That makes them more powerful than the rest of us.

[@r.guerreiro140]

You are the stupid here, Mr P You and your hate speech toward mankind

[@maxmustermann9587]

A talk about human extinction is not complete without a detailed consideration of the benefits. Thank you for this.

[@publicdomain1103]

Whole other segment on machine cannibalism and the ethics of recycling ones own.

[@flirtwithdanger_les]

Human extinction might be a bad thing for nature; consider atomic power plants, chemical factories and bioweapon / chemical weapon labs without maintenance.

[@maxmustermann9587]

@@flirtwithdanger_les Nah, nature has survived much more dangerous things than humanity. It just won't be the nature we live in.

[@mr2981]

@@flirtwithdanger_les Maybe the last few people left could turn the lights off.

[@Erowens98]

Thats impossible to determine objectively. As there is no objective meaning for life. Its just the outcome of accidental chemical reactions. Anything that doesn't directly effect humans, essentially, does not matter. Since we're the ones making up the rules for what "matters" to begin with. Space rocks don't care. The only reason we even care about climate change is because it might make earth harder to live on for humans via its effects on the ecosystem

[@ArtemisShanks]

I can always count on Sabine’s videos to amplify any existential crisis I happen to be entertaining.

[@philipm3173]

Impermanent and suffering are all conditioned things and all formations have the characteristic of impersonality (egolessness). When one perceives this with insight one ends suffering

[@fredflintstone8048]

A lot of 'gain' in the amplification...

[@aurelienyonrac]

@@philipm3173 it's true only if it's true for you.

[@TS-1267]

....OH! .. INDUBITABLY OLD FRUIT!. .... 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿🙏🖖😆😆

[@carlodave9]

Same here. The worst thing about human extinction would be that all chihuahuas would die.

[@michaelworkman4057]

Gotta hand it to Sabine, she's reassured us and warned us in ways that are very useful, well-put and simplified but not dumbed down. Happy new year Sabine and thank you again!

[@ififif31]

10:35 Sabine's take that "we pretty much learned nothing" to a 16.4% average probability of a nuclear attack by experts is flat out wrong and dangerously misleading. Sabine obviously never heard of an important statistical/probabilistic concept called the WISDOM OF THE CROWD. She seriously needs to look that up and make a correction video because she's dangerously misleading the public and it's this kind of ignorance that's gonna end human civilization. For example, we know that if you ask a bunch of people to guess the weight of a cow, the range of guesses is gonna be very wide but their AVERAGE is gonna be a VERY GOOD approximation to the actual weight. (BTW a 16.4% probability of a nuclear attack is basically the same probability as dying in a single round of Russian roulette.)

[@genoesposito3526]

Sabine, I love your videos and how you approach these complex subjects. Keep up the fantastic work!

[@MedlifeCrisis]

I can’t say I’m as optimistic as you regarding COVID being Pirates 3. No one learned their lessons, they still went to see the fourth movie and judging by how humanity reacted with a mild virus I am confident we’ll totally balls up the response to a future super plague

[@theblinkingbrownie4654]

I have seen enough zombie movies to know that we are doomed

[@Chamelionroses]

Happy New year

[@flagmichael]

@@theblinkingbrownie4654 Absolutely! No species that was _not_ doomed would make zombie movies. That would be ridiculous.

[@hugegamer5988]

I think Covid hit a sweet spot. If there were hundreds dropped to the ground in the street, with cars driving into poles and the drivers collapsing on the ground, like in plague movies, people would be scared shtless and take it seriously. It’s the being spread without symptoms and only killing 3-5% slowly that allowed it to infect everyone and really bring out the stupid. I’m sure the next response will be stupid, it’s just going to be hard to top the last stupid.

[@michaelblacktree]

@@jamielondon6436 - The word 'hubris' comes to mind.

[@sully671]

Loved the intro, lighthearted talk about human extinction. Sabina humor fills me with joy.

[@carlodave9]

For me, this was the Midsummer Night’s Dream of Sabine vids. A masterpiece! But perhaps her informed cynicism and dry humor has slowly damaged me in some way.🤔

[@Angel-wo8gv]

The title with the :D face absolutely got me rolling on the floor xD

[@waynesloane8447]

Great video Sabine, the voice of reason, very informative; and with some fab humour.

[@ChrisJones-cp6mn]

Watching average one of your videos per day. Really easy to follow along, without being condescending. Thank you!

[@chucknaussie]

Sabine, I don't usually comment but just wanted to say I appreciate your channel/commentary and it is indeed "without the gobblygook" and yet it is rigorous and disciplined and this has great appeal to the educated and curious. Another aspect I also like is your dry humor. Look forward to seeing more of your content !!

[@rileyhoffman6629]

I so appreciate someone with such a profound understanding of her subject she doesn't need jargon or a proprietary grip.

[@rileyhoffman6629]

@@annarock8966 What ??

[@phaymphantom256]

Everything she says is gobbledygook.

[@marcomoreno6748]

​@@phaymphantom256Least upset flat earther.

[@js70371]

“So today I want to talk about something light hearted - human extinction.” Hahahaha!!! I love this channel and I love gallows humor. Happy New Year to you and your family Sabine!! Wish you all a happy, healthy, peaceful, prosperous and Nuclear Armageddon free 2023 from Canada!! ☮️❤️🙏🇨🇦😂🍻

[@kindlin]

I think we can all get behind an armageddon-free 2023.

[@NyscanRohid]

Could you maybe chill?

[@carlospenalver8721]

👍🏼 this was her best one yet, looking forward to more in the new year and as an added treat I’m going to apply to 2023 a new way of thinking about the end of the world with something Sabine talked about in one of her previous videos concerning “ does the past still exist” and take 1 second off the doomsday clock right so each time I go to move it forward to boom time it’s already too late and walk back and forward and back and forward . 🤣 happy New Years .🎉🎊🍾🥳🍻

[@js70371]

@@NyscanRohid Nyet 🇷🇺🙏🍻

[@HxTurtle]

she used to live in Canada (and so did I; not that this would matter any, lol)

[@itfrombit]

Never before has such a serious topic been discussed so lightheartedly. Wonderful, as always. Should the world end, I wish Sabine would comment on it all for us. Black holes and LHC? Good to see, that the universe is not so badly designed.

[@michael-ms4ho]

Thanks for keeping it lighthearted this time around 😂 a lot of people can explain this but doing it and making you laugh at the same time is truly a gift thanks

[@Nero-dz5gr]

I really like the dry humor mixed with valuable information. absolut "edutainment" (which is the best form to learn) Also the firm way of talking sabine really envokes attention.

[@throckmortensnivel2850]

Another excellent presentation from one of the best science presenters on the internet. I always look forward to your videos, Sabina, so keep them coming.

[@area51z63]

LOL if you buy Alphabet she can work for you like she works for me.

[@BigDsGaming2022]

Sabine

[@area51z63]

Sabine has decided to not deal with reality and instead pretend that the math works

[@segfault-]

@@area51z63 LOL right back at ya. Your comment about the big bang.. I can't... You've got to be trolling.

[@area51z63]

@@segfault- Actually since I own Alphabet, I have a responsibility to monitor my company for excellence, which you appear unable to provide on any topic. However as long as your comedy routine gathers enough views and advertising dollars for my bottom line you will be allowed to continue. PS. Did your crypto go to zero yet?

[@MaryAnnNytowl]

Great video as usual, Sabine!

[@UKUSA]

Sabine, your insights on the risks of human extinction are intriguing and thought-provoking. I love how you approach these complex subjects with both intelligence and a sense of humour. Keep up the fantastic work!

[@scambammer6102]

Humans WILL go extinct some day. Could start with that premise and work backwards.

[@jimbenge9649]

Sabine, I have enjoyed learning so much this year from your channel/channels (including how to pronounce your name). You make me think very deeply about what I think I know, what I learn from others and most importantly, how to help educate the willing and enquiring minds of my grandchildren. Just like to say there is something about your dead-pan humour that endears you to us Yorkshire folk. Happy new year to you and yours. 🍾🥂

[@user-mo5hz9kp6y]

She's nice looking too.

[@Secretname951]

The recent prime minister we had from Yorkshire was quite deadpan…

[@ififif31]

10:35 Sabine's take that "we pretty much learned nothing" to a 16.4% average probability of a nuclear attack by experts is flat out wrong and dangerously misleading. Sabine obviously never heard of an important statistical/probabilistic concept called the WISDOM OF THE CROWD. She seriously needs to look that up and make a correction video because she's dangerously misleading the public and it's this kind of ignorance that's gonna end human civilization. For example, we know that if you ask a bunch of people to guess the weight of a cow, the range of guesses is gonna be very wide but their AVERAGE is gonna be a VERY GOOD approximation to the actual weight. (BTW a 16.4% probability of a nuclear attack is basically the same probability as dying in a single round of Russian roulette.)

[@dmd7472]

@@user-mo5hz9kp6y cringe comment.

[@polarpalmwv4427]

I enjoy the high level concepts and the dry humor! Very entertaining AND informative. :)

[@johnpetrakis379]

Yes! Almost, dare I say? sarcastic

[@Heeroyui752]

Very enlightening and easy for me, the unscientific to understand. Subscribed!

[@mollypenwhistle7918]

Thank you for this video..... and for all your work, making thing understandable and with humour, priceless. Do keep doing what you do 😊

[@AJPemberton]

Interesting and amusing. The best combo :-) I think I did catch one error: Super volcanoes eject 1000 Km3, not 1000 m3 (11:50)

[@billspruce8368]

You are awesome, Sabine... thank you and Happy New Year!!

[@semyonsemyonov1407]

Precisely formulated facts explained with a nerdy humour. Brilliant combination, as always. Thank you, Sabine, keep it up!

[@djelalhassan7631]

What precisely formulated facts?

[@semyonsemyonov1407]

@@djelalhassan7631 I just love the laser-sharp precision, with which Sabine is able to put facts into words. Leaves no space to misinterpret them, even if one wanted to.

[@RhaniYago]

Habe den Kanal erst vor ein paar Tagen entdeckt und bin total begeistert. Jetzt weiß ich genau, wie ich die nächsten Tage und Wochen abends verbringe - alle alten Folgen ansehen. Sabine, Sie sind eine Wucht.

[@naughtrussel5787]

Useful information to consider whilst doing the planning for the next year. Thank you, I'll take it into account.

[@segfault-]

Outstanding video as always Ms Hossenfelder. Keep it up! And thank you!

[@sandramoorewilliams5384]

I love your videos - and your dry sense of humor. Both are brilliant!

[@dennistucker1153]

Love this subject. I thought about this for some time. This concluded with a couple statements about survival. Survival comes down to 2 items. 1) Recognizing threats before too much damage is done. 2) Taking appropriate mitigating actions in time before too much damage is done. I agree with the categories of threats(natural caused & man-made). I estimate that most threats are man-made and mostly due to not being able to recognize the threats.

[@fredericdewitt1208]

A happy note to start the New Year. Seriously, Sabina, I love your sense of humor. Best wishes for the New Year.

[@jgarbo3541]

At least get her name right...

[@sapelesteve]

Thank you for all of the interesting & informative videos this year Sabine! Happy New Year to you & your family! Be well & I look forward to what you have in store for us in 2023! 💥💥👍👍💖💖

[@dushratt]

Sabine's sense of humour is 👌🏾😁 Especially the deadpan delivery of zingers. Can't get enough of it.

[@richardfeit8296]

You are a ton of fun, and brilliant. Thank you for making learning science fun.

[@taidee]

Oh Sabine, this was so relaxing, great stuff to enter the new year with 😂

[@kbjerke]

Just started reading your book, "Existential Physics." (It was a Christmas gift.) Fascinating read, Sabine! Happy New Year!

[@ProfessorBeautiful]

It was very good... I scarfed it down in a day.

[@kbjerke]

@@ProfessorBeautiful I am trying to "relish and savour" it!! Very enjoyable as well as entertaining. Happy New Year to you!

[@buckrogers3727]

Thanks from Australian Sabine, good luck up there, we’ll be thinking of you!

[@GeographRick]

I love the topics she covers and how she explains things. Also, her sense of humor is great. /Talk about a light hearted topic like human extinction.

[@Oler-yx7xj]

The best New Year's day gift! (Video, not the extinction)

[@TheWorldTeacher]

You are urged to become VEGAN, since carnism (the destructive ideology which supports the use and consumption of animal products, especially for “food”) is arguably the foremost existential crisis.🌱

[@dradenlol8667]

This video is very informative and the humor riddled throughout it is not lost on me :)

[@morenofranco9235]

Ah Ha! Sabine. I love your presentations. I Always love to hear your thinking. With a bit of dry fun included. You make me laugh with some of your insights. Keep going, Professor. Thank you for your Wisdom.

[@gennoveus]

You're one of my favourite youtubers, Sabine. I had to get a VPN for work purposes so I actively decided to use your link. I hope you get some royalties or something. Thanks for the fascinating, well researched, and subjective videos!

[@fixingyourdystopia7131]

😄 Sabine, you put me a smile on within the first ten minutes, once again! Thanks 👍 A happy new one to you, too!🍾🎇

[@robertschlesinger1342]

Excellent video. Very interesting, informative and worthwhile video.

[@kiwi1fruit]

I love your subtle humor!

[@rerite2]

Love Sabine's sense of humor and puns.

[@ricardopena4961]

Sabine always puts a smile on my face.

[@basteagui]

it was a really uplifting video this end-of-the-year. i feel renewed!!

[@techworld8961]

Thank you, Sabine, for all the info in the video. Very informative, as always!

[@InfinityBlue4321]

Info and misinfo ( the climate change part)...

[@mymusicmymusic6154]

I love listening to Sabine’s videos. I learned enough to battle people! The funniest part with her sarcasm people think I actually know what I’m talking about! However I seriously don’t know what I’m talking about!

[@ZoltanCsordas]

You are so easy to listen to and are actually funny too :)

[@GodfatherXXI]

Human Extinction: How Likely Is It? - 100%

[@deebee4575]

I believe so.

[@chrisdraughn5941]

“On a long enough timeline, the survival rate for everyone drops to zero.”

[@Jawst]

If we delete India, africa and Russia it would definitely extend our resources and reduce risks...

[@fannyalbi9040]

it is a light hearted topic 😂

[@manofsan]

After I'm dead, I don't care

[@maximumentropy1863]

Sabine Hossenfelder, Thanks for all the fun and the distraction from every day realities.

[@MichaelLloydMobile]

"Well not too seriously, I'm not good with that." Words to live by.

[@lyricsvaultla]

Woow, I'm speechless, I've been watching some of your videos for a couple of weeks and I've never seen a youtube channel as awesome and fun to watch as yours. I'm kind of new in the world of tech, I started as a 19 years old girl, and now, after after some years, I can't believe how similar 'tech researchers' are to the ones you mention, like, it makes sense, but I was so innocent. Amazing channel Sabine.

[@alcyone1349]

I like how you save a place for a light-hearted comment even around a grim topic such as extinction. Other than that, excellent demonstration as always.

[@sparky7915]

There are so many satellites in orbit now. What happens if one should fall to earth? LInk: kzbin.info/www/bejne/jXWcZaB7jquUedk

[@billy-raysanguine2029]

Very interesting and as always entertaining! I'd absolutely love for the audiotracks of your videos to be available as podcasts so you could listen to them on the train or in the car.

[@aleksandrpeshkov6172]

Enters Maseratti : " Moving Your freights along with Your rates..."

[@leokaloper4132]

The crucial phrase lies at 19.24. it really is so true. Making all this video to tell us that ? Well. it was worth it, You're great.

[@tarsrobot4996]

Light hearted 🤣 Happy New Year ✌️💓

[@eonasjohn]

Thank you for the video.

[@wotireckon]

Thanks Sabine, have a happy new year (if we survive that long).

[@luciddreams6210]

Warms my heart ♥️

[@varagoss]

Great video.... thx.

[@therealb888]

Now this the kind of video that a a true physicist would do on the new year eve and I LOVE IT! ❤

[@yazidghanma7424]

The material you present in my opinion is the most scientific. Especially when you say that risk of extension comes from our stupidity. Happy new year

[@duelenigma7732]

Thank you Sabine, science is a healthy snack for my mind.

[@d.p.7520]

8:30 Pirates of the Caribbean 3 movie reference is HILARIOUS! I must say I wasn't prepared for that one. Thank you Sabine.

[@redbaronsnoopy2346]

Sabine, thank you for all content for our edification & enjoyment. You have a brilliant sense of humor and perspective, and I thank you again for sharing it. I wish you and yours a wonderfully Happy New Year. . . .always looking forward to your next lessons. 🖖

[@thomassmith6232]

I recall that before they set off the first atomic bomb in 1945 that someone asked what the probability was that it would set fire to the atmosphere and destroy all life. The flippant answer; 50-50.

[@kittypeanut4102]

Sadly we survived

[@Medley3000]

7:07 This shows a completely wrong understanding of the problem. Just assuming that greenhouse gas emissions would be reduced or even reduced to zero, the climate will not return to pre-industrial levels. Rather, we are on the way to a new normal. One that is much more dangerous to the human species than before. Because we will lose our habitat in large parts of the world. Sir David Anthony King a British chemist, academic, and head of the Climate Crisis Advisory Group said: "If (and that is a big IF) we should reduce the emissions to zero tomorrow [...] The loss of ice from Greenland will continue irreversibly and the loss of methane from the permafrost regions in the landmasses around the arctic circle will also be lost. The first giving rise to a sea level rise of maybe seven meters. And the second giving rise quite possibly to temperature rise of 5 to 8° C."

[@melchitherabbit]

Thank you!

[@bepaminondas7520]

Hi Sabine, thank you for all the videos. Can you please consider doing a video on ergodicity and why it is so important for decision-making? Apparently the foundational paper is "Evaluating Gambles Using Dynamics"

[@albertobernal2537]

Hmmm, interesting. Do these scammers actually sift through comments with "Hi Sabine" or "@Sabine" manually to post their message? Or is it automated by scraping site data, flagging comments and inserting the scammy message? Hmmm... :P *Oh and I meant the "Text me via..." comment using Sabine's YT avatar - I suppose it will be purged eventually.

[@petermaunsell4575]

@@albertobernal2537 pretty sure thats an AI bot trying to find someone to explain ergodicity to it.

[@AnthonyKongSYD]

Exactly what I need to watch on NYE to prepare myself for the next year 😁

[@naughtyrobutt]

My fav youtube stand up comedian ❤

[@Rickdcpr]

A big fan of Sabine 's dark sense of humor and sometimes afraid of not getting it... :)

[@jessicamorgan3073]

Fab video, thanks 😊 A small correction, a super volcano emits >1 000km³ of material, not 1 000m³. Happy new year!

[@verbumsat]

Yes - this "small" error, is of 9 orders of magnitude, error. But what's an '9 orders of magnitude' error, among friends!?!

[@tfan2222]

@@verbumsat Or, or, consider: Maybe it was a typo and someone missed the “k”?

[@michaelkyriacou7026]

Yo Sabine, thanks again for your time and effort!! Gotta mention its unlike you the way you brushed through global warming without even taking into consideration tipping points!! We're about to surpass our first major tipping point before the end and the decade!! Which projects a 2c temperature raise before 2030,you dont need me to point out how unforgiven tipping points are!! Thanks again, happy holidays!! 🖤🖤🖤

[@sanb8595]

While not debating that human activity is causing global warming, it’s irrelevant to human extinction. Greenland used to be Green and lush. There will always be plenty of land for humans to thrive. Miami Venice can disappear but new lands will become the next frontiers. Global warming is irrelevant to the survival of human species.

[@fwboring802]

Thank you.

[@Vincent-kl9jy]

Sabine, would you consider talking about the amplituhedron in a future video? Only you could make something like that easy to understand.

[@Czechbound]

@coachgreg Great piece in this video about available calorie reduction for different nuclear war scenarios. Sabine is very funny. Might be an idea for a video !

[@BartdeBoisblanc]

Because only Sabine could deadpan the sentence: I want to talk about something light hearted human extinction.

[@paulb6476]

You are brilliant, but I especially love your dry humor.

[@jeffreyatlee8785]

I need that book. I have always had a hunch that the desire for symmetry (despite its rarity) in science and other fields (wait, is there a field outside of science?) often leads people and other minds astray. It's unnatural and therefore inefficient.

[@KeithCooper-Albuquerque]

Thanks for another great video. I have enjoyed all of your content this year and I look forward to much more next year! Happy New Year to you and yours!

[@BryanLawlor]

Totally agree about the pandemic being a blessing in disguise. It was a mild disaster that gave us a preview of the challenges we might face. Can't say I'm super optimistic about our ability to handle disaster well, but it is what it is!

[@TheHesseJames]

I'm afraid we didn't learn much. Mankind is good at learning in the field of science but not in the field of sociology or politics. That's not how we roll.

[@jasonking1284]

Well, it is very apparent if something like super contagious Ebola did make an appearance, we would all be fucked. The authorities seem to take action AFTER the infection has settled in. That is way, way too late. Restrictions and quarantines need to be enforced immediately, not wait until several hundred of infected people are allowed across borders....

[@leonstenutz6003]

@@TheHesseJames My initial impulse is to agree fully with you. Yet if we observe the bigger picture, despite all that is still terible in human society and politics, we have, overall, come a far way from the days of cannabilism, savage tribal raids, mass open slavery, serfdom and feudalism, widespread tyranny, and so on. That said, your point is well taken. We humans are nowhere near as advanced and secure in ecologic, economic, social, and political development as we are in technology and science. Changing this stark reality is actually a central focus of my current work. Regards from Bolivia.

[@putyograsseson]

@@leonstenutz6003 yeah technology advances faster than ethics

[@the-based-jew6872]

The man made bioweapon you mean. Oh and now the usa are experimenting with them. Much like China have been. Since 2002 China have been researching rcial bi0weapns. Not a good time for humanity. Especially experimenting with such deadly weapons.

[@SpecialEDy]

If Hawking Radiation exists, then the Hadron Collider black holes evaporated. If Hawking Radiation doesn't exist, those miniature black holes are orbiting somewhere near the Earth's core, feeding and growing in side

[@someguy_namingly]

Great video, although I think it's underestimating the existential risk from AGI a fair bit, especially the "let's just extrapolate this" part. There's a lot of interesting research on AI safety out there :)

[@randomusername6]

Yeah, I feel Sabine didn't do this particular topic justice.

[@Ockerlord]

Her claim is that we won't be able to run AGI at consumer hardware for a few hundred years. a) that seem extremely unlikely to me. b) even if it were true, it doesn't solve alignment in any way.

[@bernhardlangers778]

Well, the nuclear winter theory has been heavily challenged as of late, especially since the actual amount of material being blasted up into the atmosphere is dwarfed by volcanism. A full scale nuclear war would likely end most modern civilisations, but an extinction should be considered highly unlikely, especially since modern weapons produce very little nuclear fallout in comparison to past weapons.

[@friedrichjunzt]

aah some good ol' German optimism on New years eve! 👍 (no sarcasm here, this video is really optimistic by German standards 🤷‍♂️)

[@snp27182]

Sabine taking down all the particles physicists. Absolutely savage.

[@chadoftoons]

whats weird is that yellowstone is the one volcano almost always mentioned and yet its probably the most well observed one that i wonder how long it would take for any other to explode again. It also just does not seem possible for yellowstone to explode when it moved over underground

[@flagmichael]

The Siberian Traps should get a seat at the table of supervolcanoes to respect.

[@maxhubych2443]

Thank you, Sabine, I'm curious about that other kind of extinction you refer to at 1:41. Has this possibility of human extinction been researched? I can fairly well imagine the possibility of doctors fundamentally altering human genetic material to the point where the most successful/favored individuals are no longer closely related to us "organic" humans. I guess this would be a kind of extinction via eugenics. What do you think? Have you come across any research into this?

[@aleksandrpeshkov6172]

Enter Huxley Bros : " 100 + annos in the.... making "

[@Volkbrecht]

Not research, but this is basically what Elon Musk and others spekulate to achieve when they think about starting out towards space. Since Transportation would be scarce, that'd basically mean restarting the species from a small, select sample of highly intelligent individuals, in an environment where genetical engineering may become a necessity.

[@Moon_Metty]

Human extinction would be a disaster, because without humans there would be no gobbledygook.

[@LastMotivateUs]

Great video, hovewer I felt a bit depressed not heard about lethal alien invasion :)

[@rubberspoon]

Just found you. Love your stuff. Can you explain how the younger dryas happened? It happend multiple times in always with similar time spans.

[@MaGaO]

That smile at the end of the intro

[@TheWorldTeacher]

You are urged to become VEGAN, since carnism (the destructive ideology which supports the use and consumption of animal products, especially for “food”) is arguably the foremost existential crisis.🌱

[@MaGaO]

@@TheWorldTeacher For some values of _arguably_

[@BoonPflug]

I thought the most convincing argument against the black hole at the LHC was that the lifetime of a black hole depends on its size, and since it would be extremely small, its lifetime would be negligible and it would practically instantly turn into hawking radiation.

[@Archgeek0]

Yup. Even if there were a major malfunction that somehow both let let a hole form, and also let the beam pile several entire kilograms of protons into it... you'd still have a monumentally tiny black hole that would violently shine itself apart, dumping the mass-energy of several kilograms not far from its point of formation. It would, at worst, completely wreck the collider facility in a way distressingly similar to a low-yield nuke, but it'd pose no threat to the world at large, unless a powerful militarist organization mistook the event for a hostile nuclear strike and started an exchange about it. That's of course at the absurd end of the severity spectrum, because if something did really somehow let a hole form, its mass would much more likely be scarcely in tens of grams range or less, so it'd violently shine itself apart much faster, but with only enough yield to wreck the detector and irradiate its surroundings.

[@Volkbrecht]

I didn't care about it not because it was unlikely, but more because a black hole devouring the planet is nothing that would affect humanity. It would just wipe us out, without a lot of time for feeling sorry for ourselves. If we ever manage to end the species, something like that would be a good way to do it.

[@maxheadrom3088]

Did someone manage to explain the Tunguska Event? I remember a hypothesis involving cormic rays. Thanks.

[@auroraglacialis]

Great Light topic, I just heard it when going to sleep

[@MCsCreations]

Well... That's the biggest issue, Sabine. We have more than enough stupidity among humans. 😬 Anyway, stay safe there with your family! 🖖😊 And happy new year!