Stephen Hawking: scientific and technical progress could wipe out life on Earth

Nuclear war, global warming and genetically modified viruses - are some of the scenarios that Hawking describes the cause of the possible disappearance of humanity from the Earth. And he says that progress in science and technology will create new and new threats, so that every year increases the risk.

"Given that in a single year, the threat of a global catastrophe on the planet can be considered as relatively low, with the passage of time will only increase the risk that he would do such a disaster almost inevitable in the next few thousand or ten thousand years - said Hawking. - By this time, we will have to settle in space, on the other stars, so that the end of the Earth was not the end of humanity ».



Professor Hawking lecture project BBC Reith Lectures, dedicated to research black holes. His reasoning was a response to an audience question.

"We are not in a position to build a self-contained colonies in space for at least the next 100 years, so at this time we should be very careful," - said Hawking.

The main threat to mankind - not an asteroid or a black hole, and the people themselves. "Even if you get into a black hole, you will be able to survive, there is a way out - said Hawking. - A progress can we destroy more likely. We must not stop him, but we must recognize the danger of the development of science and more carefully control it ».

A year ago, Stephen Hawking warned about the threat of artificial intelligence, calling him "the greatest mistake of mankind." With the ability for self-learning, AI will continuously improve themselves, it will start the process of technological singularity. This technology will surpass humans and begins to control the financial markets, research, people and weapons development, beyond our understanding.

Source: geektimes.ru/post/269456/