Ask Lemmy

That technology requires massive manufacturing capacity that requires civilization. When water and food become scarce from a changed climate, there goes that.

We won't go extinct for a time, agreed. We'll cling to our hardened structures and aging tech for as long as we can.

But humans thrived on easy mode. In a climate we evolved to thrive in. Without that, we'll become subject to nature's whims once again.

This is precisely why "we're going to colonize Mars" is a hilarious pipedream. We couldn't make a practically infinitely forgiving environment that automatically recycled our waste, water, and air work. We stressed it as hard as we could for as long as we could until it started pushing back, yet we only increased our attack.

A few peak humans growing potatoes on mars is a cute "yay humanity" moment. But you've met us. A colony of hundreds, or thousands, some born into what would inevitably be a highly class segregated system that demands their servitude, given the private profit egotists now in charge of such things, where anyone making a mistake or having had enough easily leading to boom everybody dead try again? Yeah, that'll go swell.

The Yellowstone Caldera erupting would probably do it, too. Also, a sufficiently big meteor, a rogue planet, or black hole. All would are beyond our current level of technology to survive or avoid. Or a local supernova, although there are no known likely candidates so that one is less likely.

Humans can do a lot of things that they aren't.