I had a fun, interesting and insightful conversation with a friend the other night which shed light on a couple aspects of my pursuits. In this “lecture” (ha!) we’re going to be discussing the formidable, highly sophisticated equation “Y=Xt”.
Our variables shall be loosely defined by the following:
Y is “the ultimate end-game scenario we’re working towards”
X is “what our society is currently doing”
t shall be a general representation for “time”
This advanced equation will not be quantitatively addressing ANY of our concerns, only qualitatively describing a relationship.
So, Y=Xt. Any questions? Let the conversation begin!
My colleague, an astro-physics major, believes strongly that extra-terrestrial exploration and the colonization of other planets is not just inevitable but the only chance humans will have to survive because of the way we are using the resources available to us on earth.
What this means for our equation is that X (being what our society is currently doing) stays the way it is right now. With time being a constant, Y therefore equals “the inevitable colonization of other planets because we’re unsustainably using our resources and will eventually need to.”
Expanding on the ramifications of this… If, because of our current way of doing things, Y is the eventual colonization of other planets to allow for additional space & resources for the human species it would suggest that once we’ve colonized planet #2 (earth being #1) we will have enough to keep going for another t. Feel me?
But hang on – our equation still holds! Eventually, after a certain amount of t, based on the way we’re doing X, we will soon need Planet #3 to make the equation work. What happens when Planet #3 is destroyed? Well, bring on Planet #4! Right?
The above, based on what I can see, IS the current X. We are currently barreling towards Y knowing we cannot sustain it once we get there. We are aggressively developing ways of modifying Y so that “What our society is currently doing” can just keep on keeping on.
So what was my side of the conversation?
We MUST and CAN ONLY change X. We MUST and CAN ONLY modify “What society is currently doing” because at this t, there is no variability in Y. We cannot colonize Mars right now. Even if some small pocket of elitist individuals has the means of doing this via SpaceX rocket (or whatever else), we will not be anywhere close to using Mars as an ACTUAL residence until way beyond the t where we’ve done irreversible damage to everything we know at which point the basic premise of our equation becomes irrelevant.
Endeavoring to change X is my priority. It is the only way I seen t bringing about any positive, possible outcomes in Y. It is something that most will retort “But that’s just the way the world works” at which point I would direct you to Critical Mass vs The Way the World Works…
My question to you – are your efforts aligned with changing the Y or the X?
-aM
