Are we living in the End Times?


Off-Topic Discussions

1 to 50 of 293 << first < prev | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | next > last >>

I am just asking in general, because it feels like the fabric of reality that holds everything together is falling apart...


4 people marked this as a favorite.

Dude, that was the mushrooms.

Grand Lodge

Actually . . . kind of.

The human race will (EDIT: probably) endure, but existence is going to change drastically.

Grand Lodge

People are getting more stupid and short-sighted on average, if that's what you mean. Though being a high school gym teacher, those are just the people I see.


1 person marked this as a favorite.

I had a classmate in college who wrote a term paper on hegel's end of history being foretold by bob barker's departure from the price is right.


2 people marked this as a favorite.

No more end of times than 476 CE or 1453 CE or 1066 or 790's or the early 1200's or 1914 or 1939.


No, we haven't created AI yet.
But, have you noticed all the pictures we have of the universe appear to contain only dead things. e.g. rocks, plasma, stars.
Maybe the end of times has reached everywhere else and is simply waiting for us to reach out to it.


Are you talking about the Fermi Paradox? There are lots of variables that Drake did not include in his equation.

Do you know how insignificant a portion of our own galaxy we have searched is? Take a tea spoon to a sandpit dig out some sand... That's it on that spoon - we know the size and shape of the sand pit and that there are billions of others out there, but we haven't finished looking through ours.

Life is out there and beyond microbial I would say it's very very rare.


1 person marked this as a favorite.

No, we aren't. Next question.


3 people marked this as a favorite.

Yes, we are.

I predict that everyone here will most likely be dead within the next 150 years. Compared to the existence of the earth and universe, that is a very short time to the end of us here.

So, for us, yes, the end time draweth near (for some, sooner than others).

I'm thinking for most of us, we won't even outlast the next 75 years, much less 100...

So...in that light...the end times are upon us.

In fact, it probably isn't too far fetched to say with reasonable accuracy...within the next 110 years every single one of us on these boards will be dead.

That's a pretty final result...hence...the end times.

Of course, whether there are others after us...well...I'm not a seer on that regards yet...


The 8th Dwarf wrote:

Are you talking about the Fermi Paradox? There are lots of variables that Drake did not include in his equation.

Do you know how insignificant a portion of our own galaxy we have searched is? Take a tea spoon to a sandpit dig out some sand... That's it on that spoon - we know the size and shape of the sand pit and that there are billions of others out there, but we haven't finished looking through ours.

Life is out there and beyond microbial I would say it's very very rare.

Actually, I'm not so certain we even know the size and shape of the sandpit yet.

More likely, we know the information found in that teaspoon, and from that are conjecturing what the rest is like.

I believe one of the reasons they make equations to support the idea that the universe is expanding is because we actually haven't found the edge of it yet. We hypothesize that there is an edge of time and space, but we have not seen time and space which indicates that...

Either the universe is expanding quicker than the forces which would cause it to contract...

OR...if it has started to contract, that contraction has not yet been able to be detected by us yet, as we cannot see the edge of the universe.

Of course, this also goes in hand with the idea that the universe is curved, and hence we couldn't see the actual edge, we'd only be seeing around the curve to tell we've reached the edge....

Which is bizarre in and of itself.

If I recall correctly...(I'm not a scientist...I actually worked in legal stuff previously...which is about as far from science as one can get....)

The Exchange

The 8th Dwarf wrote:

Are you talking about the Fermi Paradox? There are lots of variables that Drake did not include in his equation.

Do you know how insignificant a portion of our own galaxy we have searched is? Take a tea spoon to a sandpit dig out some sand... That's it on that spoon - we know the size and shape of the sand pit and that there are billions of others out there, but we haven't finished looking through ours.

Life is out there and beyond microbial I would say it's very very rare.

Thats okay. Black holes are a sign that civilization reached a certain tech level and then went 'oops!' how many black holes are there in that spoonfull of sand?


The "Times" ended in 1974, on a Tuesday at 4:17 PM.


I certainly hope so since the credit card bills are due. If not, then I will have to pay them.


1 person marked this as a favorite.
Grand Magus wrote:

No, we haven't created AI yet.

But, have you noticed all the pictures we have of the universe appear to contain only dead things. e.g. rocks, plasma, stars.
Maybe the end of times has reached everywhere else and is simply waiting for us to reach out to it.
The 8th Dwarf wrote:

Are you talking about the Fermi Paradox? There are lots of variables that Drake did not include in his equation.

Do you know how insignificant a portion of our own galaxy we have searched is? Take a tea spoon to a sandpit dig out some sand... That's it on that spoon - we know the size and shape of the sand pit and that there are billions of others out there, but we haven't finished looking through ours.

Life is out there and beyond microbial I would say it's very very rare.

This is one of the best TED talks I've seen in a while: > The Great Filter <

"The universe is vast, dark, empty and dead." It made me laugh.


4 people marked this as a favorite.

No.

If you think the violence is bad right now, you should compare it to WW2. Seriously, the statistics on the number of people killed is pretty astounding, not just the raw numbers though. The # per 100,000 killed in violence is something like 10-20 times what is now, and that includes the violence in Syria, whatever place is bad in Africa right now, Ukraine, etc.

If you think diseases are worse... well, we are living longer and healthier. This is again supported by quite a bit of data and evidence.

Kids... teen pregnancy is at an all time low in the US

Kids... they're smarter than they used to be. Just try doing their homework for them. A lot of schools are now sending home instructions and aids for parents so that they'll be able to actually help. As for complaining about their behavior, that goes back as far as recorded history, so it's not new.


What could happen is that we dump the currect, admittedly imperfect, system for another more to the tastes of our so-called leaders. One without checks and balances, one more "efficient", with "better" "leadership", a more "Sustainable" one. Along with the unwillingness to expand when we need to, to consider all energy sources including the unpopular ones, and the failing of antibiotics... It is a pretty bad recipe.

The Exchange

Quote:
Kids... they're smarter than they used to be. Just try doing their homework for them. A lot of schools are now sending home instructions and aids for parents so that they'll be able to actually help. As for complaining about their behavior, that goes back as far as recorded history, so it's not new.

No... I distinctly remember being smarter than all the adults of the time when I was a kid. No way kids today are smarter than that. Grown ups are stupid.


2 people marked this as a favorite.

Cthulhu hit the snooze button so we're good for at least another 9 minutes.


1 person marked this as a favorite.

Don't worry, Trip: Godzilla just stumbled across R'lyeh and proceeded to have himself a little calamari. I bet Cthulhu with a little marinara went down great.

The best answer I've ever heard is that we should largely be unconcerned with whether there's a scheduled "End Times." Instead, we should live according to our formed consciences at all times, which leaves us ready for whatever comes.

The Fall of Rome was the End Times. So was the year 1000. Didn't the Mayans just have an End Times scheduled a few years ago?

I figure if Jesus Himself said He didn't know, that's probably a good indication that no one else does, either.

Kids may be more jaded today, but they're not significantly more intellgent.


Well... I have at best another 60 years here... So as long as we last that long, I don't care. It's not my responsibility after that.


Jaelithe wrote:
Kids may be more jaded today, but they're not significantly more intellgent.

I had a huge long, rambly post that quickly got away from me.

I'm not necessarily saying kids are more intelligent, but rather that the increases in human knowledge mean that being born later gives you better access to that knowledge. Kids born today have an easier time with computers than those who were born 60 years ago (typically).

Also, if you have a friend with a kid in grade school, I recommend looking at their math homework. When my friend's kid was in kindergarten, her math homework was about on par with what I had in 2nd, maybe reaching up to some of the 3rd grade stuff. This wasn't special smart kid homework either, it was the standard stuff they send home with everyone. She's in 1st grade now, but I haven't bothered to look at what they're working on.

All of this doesn't mean that the kids are more intelligent, but rather that the human knowledge base has expanded and we're getting better at giving our kids access to it (both with technology and advances in teaching).


1 person marked this as a favorite.
Lemmy wrote:
Well... I have at best another 60 years here... So as long as we last that long, I don't care. It's not my responsibility after that.

Your humanitarian sensibilities are noted.


Irontruth wrote:
Jaelithe wrote:
Kids may be more jaded today, but they're not significantly more intellgent.
I'm not necessarily saying kids are more intelligent, but rather that the increases in human knowledge mean that being born later gives you better access to that knowledge.

Agreed. My ex-girlfriend, who was entirely too young for me, used to astound me with both her techno-savvy and appalling ignorance, often in the same conversation.


Jaelithe wrote:
Lemmy wrote:
Well... I have at best another 60 years here... So as long as we last that long, I don't care. It's not my responsibility after that.
Your humanitarian sensibilities are noted.

You might be taking this thread too seriously. ;)

It starts with a statement about the fabric of reality falling apart, for pity's sake!

Besides, kids these days love apocalyptic settings (Specially zombie apocalypses). And my kinda of thinking is, ironically, the most likely to cause an apocalypse, so in a way... I'm doing future generations a great favor! ^^


Jaelithe wrote:
Irontruth wrote:
Jaelithe wrote:
Kids may be more jaded today, but they're not significantly more intellgent.
I'm not necessarily saying kids are more intelligent, but rather that the increases in human knowledge mean that being born later gives you better access to that knowledge.
Agreed. My ex-girlfriend, who was entirely too young for me, used to astound me with both her techno-savvy and appalling ignorance, often in the same conversation.

Now that I can relate to.

I was talking about the movie The Giver recently, and I was astonished at the similarities to Brave New World.

However, the younger people didn't even know what BNW is. Instead they were debating whether the Movie Equilibrium (a Fahrenheit 451 type movie) was taken from the Giver or if the Giver was taken from Equilibrium. They thought since the movie the Giver came after Equilibrium, it was copied from a movie...

Until some bright chap brought up the Giver was based on a book that came out before Equilibrium (Bravo) so they figured Equilibrium was taken from the Giver instead (facepalm).

They never even seemed to have heard about books (and movies) such as Brave New World, Fahrenheit 451, or 1984.

I could only gawk in amazement at the route that conversation took.


1 person marked this as a favorite.
Lemmy wrote:
Jaelithe wrote:
Lemmy wrote:
Well... I have at best another 60 years here... So as long as we last that long, I don't care. It's not my responsibility after that.
Your humanitarian sensibilities are noted.
You might be taking this thread too seriously. ;)

Nah. That was meant to be dry amusement. I should have included a smile.

Like this! :D


1 person marked this as a favorite.
GreyWolfLord wrote:
Jaelithe wrote:
Irontruth wrote:
Jaelithe wrote:
Kids may be more jaded today, but they're not significantly more intellgent.
I'm not necessarily saying kids are more intelligent, but rather that the increases in human knowledge mean that being born later gives you better access to that knowledge.
Agreed. My ex-girlfriend, who was entirely too young for me, used to astound me with both her techno-savvy and appalling ignorance, often in the same conversation.

Now that I can relate to.

I was talking about the movie The Giver recently, and I was astonished at the similarities to Brave New World.

However, the younger people didn't even know what BNW is. Instead they were debating whether the Movie Equilibrium (a Fahrenheit 451 type movie) was taken from the Giver or if the Giver was taken from Equilibrium. They thought since the movie the Giver came after Equilibrium, it was copied from a movie...

Until some bright chap brought up the Giver was based on a book that came out before Equilibrium (Bravo) so they figured Equilibrium was taken from the Giver instead (facepalm).

They never even seemed to have heard about books (and movies) such as Brave New World, Fahrenheit 451, or 1984.

I could only gawk in amazement at the route that conversation took.

not everybody reads the same stuff. Intellectual wind tunnels can be awful.


GreyWolfLord wrote:
They never even seemed to have heard about books (and movies) such as Brave New World, Fahrenheit 451, or 1984.

I wonder how old they were... I only heard about Brave New World and Fahrenheit 451 in the last 5 years or so...

I read 1984 when I was a teenager because my dad had the book... But I never knew how famous/influential it was 'til I visited my sister in London, a few years ago.

The Exchange

the woz jumps ship


Pathfinder Maps, Starfinder Adventure Path, Starfinder Maps, Starfinder Roleplaying Game, Starfinder Society Subscriber; Pathfinder Roleplaying Game Superscriber

We are a day closer to the end (of the world, humanity, the universe, or whatever) today than we were yesterday. But I have no reason to believe that any of these ends are imminent.

Silver Crusade

I certainly hope so! The end is nigh, and it is wonderful!

The Exchange

celebs not as popular as they thought

Kk looses 1.3 million folowers in instagram purge of spambots...


2 people marked this as a favorite.
yellowdingo wrote:

celebs not as popular as they thought

Kk looses 1.3 million folowers in instagram purge of spambots...

So that's where my follower went.


2 people marked this as a favorite.
Triphoppenskip wrote:
yellowdingo wrote:

celebs not as popular as they thought

Kk looses 1.3 million folowers in instagram purge of spambots...

So that's where my follower went.

You're worth following just for that comment.


In the sense that massive changes are on the horizon that will change the way humanity currently lives forever..

Yes.

We can not sustain the explosive population growth indefinitely.

Our increased food production, transportation and technology relies on a non sustainable resource, fossil fuels.

We will run out. It is a fact.

Will we end up in a Mad Max style world?

No.

Will the way of life we have lived, the comfort we have enjoyed and much of the technology we have created become obsolete?

You bet your bum!

Just my opinion.

Grand Lodge

3 people marked this as a favorite.
Pathfinder PF Special Edition, Starfinder Roleplaying Game Subscriber
Asmodias wrote:
I am just asking in general, because it feels like the fabric of reality that holds everything together is falling apart...

I remember Plato seeing pretty much the same thing.... only in Greek. In between his complaints about "the younger generation".


1 person marked this as a favorite.
LazarX wrote:
Asmodias wrote:
I am just asking in general, because it feels like the fabric of reality that holds everything together is falling apart...
I remember Plato seeing pretty much the same thing.... only in Greek. In between his complaints about "the younger generation".

Wow, either you're really old or that's Plato Gianakos, the dude who runs the falafel and gyro cart at the mall, you're talking about.


1 person marked this as a favorite.
LazarX wrote:
Asmodias wrote:
I am just asking in general, because it feels like the fabric of reality that holds everything together is falling apart...
I remember Plato seeing pretty much the same thing.... only in Greek. In between his complaints about "the younger generation".

OTOH, while such complaints have always been common, we're now capable of doing far more damage to the world than the Greeks could dream of.


Game Master Scotty wrote:

In the sense that massive changes are on the horizon that will change the way humanity currently lives forever..

Yes.

We can not sustain the explosive population growth indefinitely.

Our increased food production, transportation and technology relies on a non sustainable resource, fossil fuels.

We will run out. It is a fact.

Will we end up in a Mad Max style world?

No.

Will the way of life we have lived, the comfort we have enjoyed and much of the technology we have created become obsolete?

You bet your bum!

Just my opinion.

Will our technology become obsolete? Certainly. Much like our parent's technology has become obsolete.

If, however, we do use up our non-sustainable resources without finding something that can effectively replace them, it will look like a Mad Max style world. Or worse.
Without cheap energy of some sort, not only won't we be able to sustain our comfortable lifestyle, but our population levels as well. Serious population crashes are never pretty.


Game Master Scotty wrote:

In the sense that massive changes are on the horizon that will change the way humanity currently lives forever..

Yes.

We can not sustain the explosive population growth indefinitely.

Our increased food production, transportation and technology relies on a non sustainable resource, fossil fuels.

We will run out. It is a fact.

Will we end up in a Mad Max style world?

No.

Will the way of life we have lived, the comfort we have enjoyed and much of the technology we have created become obsolete?

You bet your bum!

Just my opinion.

As far as population goes it is expected to decline in the long term after peaking in the next 100-150 years. This is based on aging population trends and slower reproduction rates in first world nations. There will be a time in our relatively near future (ie less than 500 years) where labor jobs will be unnecessary and virtually all occupations will be research or creative.


1 person marked this as a favorite.
BigDTBone wrote:
Game Master Scotty wrote:

In the sense that massive changes are on the horizon that will change the way humanity currently lives forever..

Yes.

We can not sustain the explosive population growth indefinitely.

Our increased food production, transportation and technology relies on a non sustainable resource, fossil fuels.

We will run out. It is a fact.

Will we end up in a Mad Max style world?

No.

Will the way of life we have lived, the comfort we have enjoyed and much of the technology we have created become obsolete?

You bet your bum!

Just my opinion.

As far as population goes it is expected to decline in the long term after peaking in the next 100-150 years. This is based on aging population trends and slower reproduction rates in first world nations. There will be a time in our relatively near future (ie less than 500 years) where labor jobs will be unnecessary and virtually all occupations will be research or creative.

Assuming no crash.

Also assuming we manage to restructure society so that those who can't research or produce creative works for sale have some way to survive.


thejeff wrote:


Also assuming we manage to restructure society so that those who can't research or produce creative works for sale have some way to survive.

Service jobs will never go out of fashion. There will always be things that I don't want to do myself and am willing to pay another person to do for me, even if that's just changing the batteries in my personal robot. The one thing that technological improvements will never be able to do is to create more time.


thejeff wrote:
BigDTBone wrote:
Game Master Scotty wrote:

In the sense that massive changes are on the horizon that will change the way humanity currently lives forever..

Yes.

We can not sustain the explosive population growth indefinitely.

Our increased food production, transportation and technology relies on a non sustainable resource, fossil fuels.

We will run out. It is a fact.

Will we end up in a Mad Max style world?

No.

Will the way of life we have lived, the comfort we have enjoyed and much of the technology we have created become obsolete?

You bet your bum!

Just my opinion.

As far as population goes it is expected to decline in the long term after peaking in the next 100-150 years. This is based on aging population trends and slower reproduction rates in first world nations. There will be a time in our relatively near future (ie less than 500 years) where labor jobs will be unnecessary and virtually all occupations will be research or creative.

Assuming no crash.

Also assuming we manage to restructure society so that those who can't research or produce creative works for sale have some way to survive.

It won't be a reaction it will be an evolution. Similarly to how we don't train people to fletch arrows or show horses anymore. Sure, there are specialists who can do these jobs, but they are far from prolific.


I don't think the Mad Max world will ever really happen because running things like cars and oil refineries requires more then a good set of hand tools. Without modern manufacturing, you just can't produce the massive amounts of crap required to keep a car running, much less a big ass factory or refinery.

These days, everything is so full of electronics it won't survive a damp weekend, much less an EMP burst.

I think we are now living in a decline of cheap energy. That sounds strange to say when oil is $50 a barrel, but post peak oil is not about running out of oil, it is about running out of consistently cheap oil. Oil prices are expected to fluctuate wildly, which historically wrecks industrial economies.

The most thoughtful and entertaining book about post-collapse life is James Howard Kunstler's World Made By Hand. The super quick summary is that things go back to a lifestyle similar to the 1800's, not Burning Man.

I would also take a look at what happened in North Korea about 10-20 years ago. It is amazing what happens when the coal doesn't reach the powerplant, and the cascading effects of scarcity.


Fergie wrote:

I don't think the Mad Max world will ever really happen because running things like cars and oil refineries requires more then a good set of hand tools. Without modern manufacturing, you just can't produce the massive amounts of crap required to keep a car running, much less a big ass factory or refinery.

These days, everything is so full of electronics it won't survive a damp weekend, much less an EMP burst.

I think we are now living in a decline of cheap energy. That sounds strange to say when oil is $50 a barrel, but post peak oil is not about running out of oil, it is about running out of consistently cheap oil. Oil prices are expected to fluctuate wildly, which historically wrecks industrial economies.

The most thoughtful and entertaining book about post-collapse life is James Howard Kunstler's World Made By Hand. The super quick summary is that things go back to a lifestyle similar to the 1800's, not Burning Man.

I would also take a look at what happened in North Korea about 10-20 years ago. It is amazing what happens when the coal doesn't reach the powerplant, and the cascading effects of scarcity.

How does Kunstler think we get back to the 1800s? As I understand it, we couldn't support a fraction of today's population with that kind of society and infrastructure. A population crash of that magnitude would be ugly. I have a lot of trouble seeing how we stop at the 1800s.


BigDTBone wrote:
thejeff wrote:
BigDTBone wrote:


As far as population goes it is expected to decline in the long term after peaking in the next 100-150 years. This is based on aging population trends and slower reproduction rates in first world nations. There will be a time in our relatively near future (ie less than 500 years) where labor jobs will be unnecessary and virtually all occupations will be research or creative.

Assuming no crash.

Also assuming we manage to restructure society so that those who can't research or produce creative works for sale have some way to survive.

It won't be a reaction it will be an evolution. Similarly to how we don't train people to fletch arrows or show horses anymore. Sure, there are specialists who can do these jobs, but they are far from prolific.

So you are assuming the vast majority of people will be working and effective at research and creative jobs?

We don't fletch or shoe horses much anymore, but we still have plenty of labor jobs. There are things for people to do who aren't cut out for that kind of work. But less than there used to be. We're already having problems with not having enough labor to keep our population employed.

Shadow Lodge

2 people marked this as a favorite.

* tosses and turns a bit *

* checks the stars *

* goes back to sleep *


thejeff wrote:

How does Kunstler think we get back to the 1800s? As I understand it, we couldn't support a fraction of today's population with that kind of society and infrastructure. A population crash of that magnitude would be ugly. I have a lot of trouble seeing how we stop at the 1800s.

The book doesn't talk much about exactly what happened, but I think it involved some catastrophic stuff on the coasts, followed by famine, disease, and lots of hardship. One of the themes of the book is that information beyond word-of-mouth just isn't available. People might know about the next town over, but not much beyond that. Centralized government, schools, health, etc. are non-existent. Most people are forced into subsistence agriculture, and most of the day is spent getting food, water and the basics of survival.

This summer I biked across Iowa, and can tell you that there is no shortage of farmland available. If it was used to grow the most nutritious food, not cornsyrup and cattlefeed, it could probably feed the world. Without tractors it would take a tremendous amount of labor, but there isn't much else to do after society fails.


Fergie wrote:


The book doesn't talk much about exactly what happened, but I think it involved some catastrophic stuff on the coasts, followed by famine, disease, and lots of hardship. One of the themes of the book is that information beyond word-of-mouth just isn't available.

Then it's patently ridiculous. Ham radio with 1800s tech is trivial -- which in turn gives us universal Internet via packet radio for anyone who wants it.

The book may indeed be entertaining, but I suspect that the Silmarillion is a better predictor of what life would be like post-crash.

1 to 50 of 293 << first < prev | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | next > last >>
Community / Forums / Gamer Life / Off-Topic Discussions / Are we living in the End Times? All Messageboards

Want to post a reply? Sign in.