Ebola

[C00kiemonster]

This disease flares up occasionally and then calms down again, however it is a terrifying disease, killing quickly and basically bleeding from the inside out.

If ever there was something that could spread into a worldwide killer, this is it.

Imagine if this got onto the streets of London

http://news.sky.com/story/1293312/afric ... d-of-ebola" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

I really do believe that ultimately nature will get fed up of us lazy humans and start something big.

[Kwacky]

BBC News this morning were going on about the lack of decent antibiotics. There's little profit in them so the drug companies aren't interested.

Nature will get us back one day.

[D6]

Zombie plague.

[Cavetroll87]

Although on a serious note I do think your right and that eventually something will take us out, maybe not completley, but a definate culling. In the famous words of Geoff Goldblum before he was mauled by a T-Rex "Life will find a way"

[Kwacky]

We're reproducing at an alarming rate. Hasn't the world population doubled in the last 50 years? That sort of growth can't be sustained and unless it's dealt with by humans I reckon Mother Nature will find a way to cut our numbers.

As for zombies I reckon we're almost there judging by the number of braindead people out there.

[StMarks]

We're reproducing at an alarming rate. Hasn't the world population doubled in the last 50 years? That sort of growth can't be sustained and unless it's dealt with by humans I reckon Mother Nature will find a way to cut our numbers.

As for zombies I reckon we're almost there judging by the number of braindead people out there.

Very true Kwacky. (or Bertrand)

[D6]

I'm using a shotgun for zombie apocalypse. I did great with one clay pigeon shootnig.

[StMarks]

This is a bit of fun.:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-15391515" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[Monty]

We're reproducing at an alarming rate. Hasn't the world population doubled in the last 50 years? That sort of growth can't be sustained and unless it's dealt with by humans I reckon Mother Nature will find a way to cut our numbers.

As for zombies I reckon we're almost there judging by the number of braindead people out there.

Very true Kwacky. (or Bertrand)

Current thinking is it will plateau as cultures change around the world and infant mortally improves. Many parents in developing countries have more children than they need or want because they expect to lose a few. The data shows this is changing and most are moving in line with developed country numbers.

Some developed countries now have reducing populations.

[D6]

An alien invasion should sort those population figures out.

[Norfolknchance]

The antibiotic crisis has been known about for a very long time, in both the medical world and in pharmaceuticals. The main problem is that they are a valuable resource that have been squandered unnessarily by GPs prescribing them for illness they have no effect on and being used to bulk up livestock by putting them in feed. As a result the once useful weapon of antibiotics has been severely blunted. New technologies may come up with solutions (whole genome sequencing, for instance could reveal weaknesses in bacterial genomes which may be utilised) but they will take time, with researching them and the regulatory hurdles to overcome. Antibiotics have been abused as a tool and now we are going to pay the consequences.
Rant over.

Antibiotics don't affect virus so Ebola would not be affected by this.

[StMarks]

..Current thinking is it will plateau as cultures change around the world and infant mortally improves. Many parents in developing countries have more children than they need or want because they expect to lose a few. The data shows this is changing and most are moving in line with developed country numbers.

Some developed countries now have reducing populations.

Whilst the Catholic Church are still actively campaigning to outlaw contraception in the (educationally vulnerable) developing countries, I can't see that mindset taking hold particularly swiftly.

Interesting thought though, but looking at the population density, even if it reached a plateau at the current level, I seriously doubt the planet would be able to sustain the consumption our species requires.

Meanwhile, at least there’s trackdays.

[Monty]

..Current thinking is it will plateau as cultures change around the world and infant mortally improves. Many parents in developing countries have more children than they need or want because they expect to lose a few. The data shows this is changing and most are moving in line with developed country numbers.

Some developed countries now have reducing populations.

Whilst the Catholic Church are still actively campaigning to outlaw contraception in the (educationally vulnerable) developing countries, I can't see that mindset taking hold particularly swiftly.

Interesting thought though, but looking at the population density, even if it reached a plateau at the current level, I seriously doubt the planet would be able to sustain the consumption our species requires.

Meanwhile, at least there’s trackdays.

It's already happening and has been for a long time. Check this vid out, definitely worth an hour of your time. He's a statistician but don't let that put you off.

[video]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-UbmG8gtBPM[/video]

[StMarks]

[
It's already happening and has been for a long time. Check this vid out, definitely worth an hour of your time. He's a statistician but don't let that put you off....

Thanks for that Monty.
I will have a look, however I am leaving work now & I'm blessing the Barton Bike Night with my presence tonight, so it will have to wait for the moment.

Meanwhile, although I will be will be approaching it with an open mind, I can't help thinking of that old adage; Something about lies, dam lies & statisticians.??

[Monty]

He's the Peter Snow of the statisticians world. Very clever graphics, even I could understand it!

[Blade]

I'm using a shotgun for zombie apocalypse. I did great with one clay pigeon shootnig.

I think I might still have a black widow catapult in the attic some where, that and 10mm ball bearings should do it I reckon

[R34PER]

I'm using a shotgun for zombie apocalypse. I did great with one clay pigeon shootnig.

I think I might still have a black widow catapult in the attic some where, that and 10mm ball bearings should do it I reckon

I remember my old black widow when I was a kid, I upgraded to the cobra with the front sight but it got pinched when I left it in one of our dens once
Couldn't afford BB's though. just small rocks and marbles, there used to be a nearby clay factory too and their waste was in sphere form, we dug them up and used them as special marbles we called clay dabs. they were good in a catty.

I'm not sure how long a .177 and couple of sets of golf clubs would work for, I may be in trouble I'd much rather the 9mm Glock I tried in Aus.

[StMarks]

He's the Peter Snow of the statisticians world. Very clever graphics, even I could understand it!

He focuses on examples that reinforce his argument.
He only mentions the positive social changes, and infers that they are more general than the statistics actually illustrate. Furthermore he constantly ignores the African countries, because they largely buck his "global trends"

Having written that, he does present a plausible & easy to swallow case.
However even if he is 110% correct, the population growth will only slow & plateau, it has a long way to drop before it becomes sustainable IMHO.

Am I being bigoted Monty.? I do hope not.

[duke63]

The biggest threat will be if a virus such as ebola becomes airborne. I believe there were real fears about this happening to HIV at one point.

The nature of viruses is that they can adapt and change very quickly.

If that were to happen, then the world's population would fall very quickly.

[Kwacky]

I wouldn't worry about waiting for Mother Nature, it seems that man wants to jump the gun


Professor Yoshihiro Kawaoka of the University of Wisconsin-Madison has created a deadly new strain of the 2009 swine flu virus — for which there is no known vaccine

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/ ... eople.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;