Universe

Right now earth population is 6.5 billion. What is the highest limit that human population would ever reach? And what is earth’s maximum capacity to absorb humans? With so much pollution, waste, deforestation, environmental damage, etc etc how long is it before earth will perish simply because too many humans exist?

There isn’t a real number for this quesiton because it depends on so many variables. For instance, if everyone was super conscious of our environment including all governments and corporations and everybody worked hard to recycle and find better ways not to pollute, more efficient and non-toxic way s to deliver energy – we could have a lot more people on the planet than if we didn’t give a crap and determined our pesonal welfare today was all that mattered.

Maybe we passed the optimum around 1600 or so, but that’s hard to say because the distrubution of humanity was very uneven. Compare Europe and Asia to the Americas and Africa. The former were densiuly populated and breeding disease and mass wars whereas the latter was not densely populated and their disease and wars were smaller. If they hadn’t been invaded by the "civilized" countries they probably could go on until the planet burned up.
On the other hand we enjoy more comforts and a longer life. Would you want to die of appendicitis? Or an infection?

I believe the hope for humanity as a species, is to be able to use our huge brains to regulate our population size to an optimum in conjunciton with Earth’s ability to sustatin us. If we don’t then Humanity will be just a blip on the screen of Earth’s life.

Music video by Michael Jackson performing Earth Song. © 1995 MJJ Productions Inc.

Duration : 0:6:43

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We are living in exceptional times. Scientists tell us that we have 10 years to change the way we live, avert the depletion of natural resources and the catastrophic evolution of the Earth’s climate.

The stakes are high for us and our children. Everyone should take part in the effort, and HOME has been conceived to take a message of mobilization out to every human being.

For this purpose, HOME needs to be free. A patron, the PPR Group, made this possible. EuropaCorp, the distributor, also pledged not to make any profit because Home is a non-profit film.

HOME has been made for you : share it! And act for the planet.

Yann Arthus-Bertrand

HOME official website

http://www.home-2009.com

PPR is proud to support HOME

http://www.ppr.com

HOME is a carbon offset movie

http://www.actioncarbone.org

More information about the Planet
http://www.goodplanet.info

Duration : 1:33:18

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I would like professional answers only please.
If we remove all of the oil and natural gas from the earth for man’s use here on the surface, does that take fuel away from the center of the earth’s process? Could the removal of these fuel sources, be the cause of global warming. If so, is it the sun that now keeps the surface warm, rather than heat coming up from the center of the earth, which does not provide enough heat internally, therefore, could this be the cause of the ice melting in our northern hemisphere, and also raise the earth’s surface temperature?
If you answer this, please furnish a Reference where you obtained your information.

Well!!!!!!!!

You are partially correct!!!

First on interior of Earth ….
The earth is divided into four main layers: the inner core, outer core, mantle, and crust.

The Earth’s surface is composed mostly of water, basalt and granite. Oceans cover about 70% of Earth’s surface. These oceans are up to 3.7 km deep. The Earth’s thin, rocky crust is composed of silicon, aluminum, calcium, sodium and potassium. Being relatively cold, the crust is rocky and brittle, so it can fracture in earthquakes.
Under the crust is the rocky mantle, which is composed of silicon, oxygen, magnesium, iron, aluminum, and calcium. The upper mantle is rigid and is part of the lithosphere (together with the crust).
The Earth has a iron-nickel core that is about 2,100 miles in radius. The inner core may have a temperature up to about 7,200°C , which is hotter than the surface of the Sun. The inner core which has a radius of about 1,228 km is solid. The outer core is in a liquid state and is about 2,260 km thick.

Now, On Fossile Fuel (Gas, Oil and Petrochemical Products..)…

Gas and oil were formed from the remains of small sea creatures and plants that died and fell to the bottom of seas. Over many millions of years, layers of mud or other sediments built up on top of these dead animals and plants. The pressure from these layers and heat from below the Earth’s crust gradually changed the once-living material into oil and natural gas.
Over time, the layers of rocks in the Earth’s crust move and may become squashed and folded. Gas and oil may move through porous rocks and may even come to the surface. In some places, pockets of oil and gas can be found, because non-porous rocks have trapped them.

Hence, All the fossil fuel you are talking about lie ONLY in the Earth’ s Crust….

So, they wont affect the heat internal to the Earth.

Now, on global warming….

The global warming has led to increase in mean earth surface temperature and thus melting of polar ice. There are frequent melt down of glaciers that result in floods and other natural calamities. The melting of ice at the poles had led the mean sea level. And further increase in temperature may further melt the ice and lead to further increase in mean sea level, which will engulf low lying countries.

Global Warming is increasing the earth’s average temperature. The Green house gases are the main culprits of the global warming. The green house gases like carbon dioxide, methane, and nitrous oxide are playing hazards in the present times. These green house gases trap heat in earth’s atmosphere and thus result in increasing the temperature of earth. The excessive emission of these gases is the major cause of global warming.

How Fossil fuels cause global warming?

The major source of carbon dioxide is the power plants. These power plants emit large amounts of carbon dioxide produced from burning of fossil fuels for the purpose of electricity generation. Coal is the major fuel that is burnt in these power plants. The coal gives out eighty percent more carbon per unit of energy it produces as compared to natural gas.

Another major source of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere is the emission from the cars and other vehicles. About twenty percent of carbon dioxide emitted in the atmosphere comes from burning of gasoline in the engines of the vehicles. Moreover if sports bike and vehicles that are essentially designed for rough terrain, emit more carbon dioxide when used for general purpose on roads. It is always better to use vehicles designed for city driving on the city roads.

Buildings, both commercial and residential represent a larger source of global warming pollution than cars and trucks. Building of these structures require a lot of fuel to be burnt which emits a large amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere.

Finally, on conclusion…
Global warming does not mean that the Sun gets more hotter or the internal heat from the Earth heats up the Earth. It is purely due to the Green House Effect.
The fossil fuels, which emit more green hose gases, are the major source for global warming. Hence, they have to be excluded from use!!

Hoe I gave you that Professional touch..

We know that global warming is destroying earth. The earth becomes more unfriendly by the day, and only few people try to reduce global warming, most of us don’t even care about global warming. So eventually the earth will become an unfriendly planet. How long will the earth becomes an unlivable place for humans if there aren’t any environmental actions done? What’s the best action to counter it?
I forgot this, but please also state the reasons of your answers.

Global warming and the depletion of resources such as coal, oil, gas and water are very serious problems for mankind but the earth is unlikely to become uninhabitable in the foreseeable future.

However, if we do nothing about these problems we will suffer very severe social and economic disruption and a further increase in wars. Mass starvations, migrations, wars and plagues could decimate the human population and leave the survivors scratching a living without any of the technological supports we currently enjoy in the developed world.

The solution is to adopt a simpler lifestyle supported by technology rather than go on using technology to waste the world’s resources. (As indicated above the alternative is to have a simple lifestyle forced upon us by exhausting the resources so that technology will not be available to provide comfort).

We need to demonstrate to our politicians that we will welcome sustainable policies (e.g. no more airport runways) by adopting simpler lifestyles individually. Travel by public transport and by walking and pedalling. Work, shop and socialise locally. Stop buying stuff and taking foreign holidays just to keep up with the neighbours. Repair and re-use stuff. Recycle what can not be re-used.

Having reduced demand for stuff and the energy needed to manufacture, distribute and dispose of that stuff we need to use technology to develop further resource saving measures (e.g. insulation) and to develop sustainable energy resources (e.g. wind, wave, tide, hydro and solar). These are exciting challenges and opportunities for employment.

The good news is that a simple lifestyle based around local services is healthier (walking and cycling improve fitness and enable you to enjoy other activities more) and more fun than trying to keep up with the neighbours. By adopting such a lifestyle you will demonstrate this to others.

Best wishes

http://disney.go.com/disneynature/ Coming to theaters April 22nd 2009

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If I understand correctly, liquid state matter occupies more space compared to solid matter. So, if the Earth’s liquid mantle (or lava) were to somehow solidify and be compacted all the way to the iron core, would the overall earth’s diameter decrease? If so, would we all be heavier because the effects of gravity would be more due to us being closer to the Earth’s core?
If the Earth’s diameter does decrease, what would the new estimate be? And how much heavier (weight – not mass) would we be as a result?
The answers received so far don’t really answer the question. Please help!!!

i think you answered the question yourself! the solid would be more dense and take up less space, so the diameter would probably decrease.
and yes, as distance decreases the force increases, so we would weigh more, but our mass would be the same.

Some of the questions that I am curious of.

1. If everything in the Universe were to disappear, what would happen if a large mass such as Earth or the Sun were to pop back into existence? Would anything strange happen to gravity?

2. Would I weigh the same on Earth if Earth no matter what location it came to rest at in the Universe?

3. If Earth could travel at different speeds, could this change how much I would weigh standing on Earth?

No. Earth’s gravity is a function of its mass and our distance from its center of mass, not its position in space. Remember, it is always moving to new space as it circles a sun that is orbiting the Milky Way. We’ve never been in the same part of space in our lifetimes, and it was 250 million years ago that the sun was in this part of its galactic orbit last.

1. If everything in the Universe were to disappear, what would happen if a large mass such as Earth or the Sun were to pop back into existence? Would anything strange happen to gravity? It wouldn’t be expected to. Gravity would temporarily cease to exist in the massless universe. If only the earth returned with nothing on or around it, it’s gravity would affect nothing, and nothing would exert a gravitational pull on the earth. If the earth returned with just you on it, gravity would feel normal to you.

2. Would I weigh the same on Earth if Earth no matter what location it came to rest at in the Universe? Yes, as long as there were no other gravitationally significant objects nearby. If you moved us to an orbit around Jupiter, Jupiter would pull you and change your weight, making you lighter if it was over your head (maybe even pulling you and earth to it if it wasn’t in orbit) and heavier if it was below your horizon.

3. If Earth could travel at different speeds, could this change how much I would weigh standing on Earth? Technically, yes, but practically, no. If the earth spun like a pulsar, 30 times or more a second, that movement would increase your weight catastrophically. But that’s rotational motion. Translational movement would not affect your weight or gravitational experience in a way that you could sense.

Onboard cameras capture the amazing journey of Atlantis into space, and the dramatic return of the solid rocket boosters.

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The Secret Team has created a gift for you. This clip features our beautiful Planet Earth. As you experience this clip you will emit positive forces of energy across Planet Earth that will reach every single living thing on it. You will lift yourself, and as you lift yourself, you lift the entire world.

The magnificent music was composed and graciously gifted for this clip by composer Jo Blankenburg.

From The Secret to you, here is Planet Earth – our home.

This clip can be downloaded at http://www.thesecret.tv/planet-earth/

Duration : 0:3:7

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