Amid
all the stupidity and nonsense regarding Armageddon/Doomsday/the Apocalypse/End
of Days this is a refreshing – well, maybe not refreshing, but certainly sane –
note from the Jeffrey Epstein Foundation, known for funding scientific
research, that it will convene a second world conference on Coping with Future
Catastrophes. The gathering is expected to take place in Dubai
in the United Arab Emirates.
An
earlier conference in the US Virgin Islands saw a distinguished panel of
scientists identify and consider “the greatest threats to the Earth,” which
included acts of bioterrorism and high-energy chain-reactions.
Thank God they weren’t discussing a zombie apocalypse or solar flares or rogue planets, or wayward asteroids. No, these were smart, learned people from MIT, Harvard and Arizona State discussing real threats.
The next conference will consider “the major challenge” of the 21st century: “how to meet energy needs for economic growth... without further damaging the climate ... and risking further spread of nuclear weapons," explained Lawrence Krauss co-chair of the Bulletin of Atomic Scientists' board of sponsors.
MIT’s Marvin Minsky, another participate, added: “We need to identify the greatest threats to our Earth, but we also need to prioritize them.”
It is hoped that the second gathering can begin a “process of setting up a non-governmental agency to monitor the list and work on preventative measures,” Minsky said. “There's a great need for an international organization to collect data…to prioritize looming disasters and to establish preventative measures."
Call me a geek, but hearing real scientists addressing real issues gives hope that Doomsday will remain a hysterical myth perpetrated by simple-minded morons and idiots. I trust scientists far more than I trust bunker bunnies.
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