Download or read book The Precipice written by Toby Ord and published by Hachette Books. This book was released on 2020-03-24 with total page 480 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This urgent and eye-opening book makes the case that protecting humanity's future is the central challenge of our time. If all goes well, human history is just beginning. Our species could survive for billions of years - enough time to end disease, poverty, and injustice, and to flourish in ways unimaginable today. But this vast future is at risk. With the advent of nuclear weapons, humanity entered a new age, where we face existential catastrophes - those from which we could never come back. Since then, these dangers have only multiplied, from climate change to engineered pathogens and artificial intelligence. If we do not act fast to reach a place of safety, it will soon be too late. Drawing on over a decade of research, The Precipice explores the cutting-edge science behind the risks we face. It puts them in the context of the greater story of humanity: showing how ending these risks is among the most pressing moral issues of our time. And it points the way forward, to the actions and strategies that can safeguard humanity. An Oxford philosopher committed to putting ideas into action, Toby Ord has advised the US National Intelligence Council, the UK Prime Minister's Office, and the World Bank on the biggest questions facing humanity. In The Precipice, he offers a startling reassessment of human history, the future we are failing to protect, and the steps we must take to ensure that our generation is not the last. "A book that seems made for the present moment." —New Yorker

Download or read book Meeting the Challenges of Existential Threats through Educational Innovation written by Herner Saeverot and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2021-11-22 with total page 252 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Meeting the Challenges of Existential Threats through Educational Innovation is the first book of its kind to provide an educational and systematic analysis of problems and solutions regarding the most pressing threats that humankind is facing. The book makes a case for the importance of education responding to significant threats; including climate change, pandemics, decline in global biodiversity, overpopulation, egoism, ideologies, nuclear, biological and chemical warfare, inequality, artificial intelligence, and ignorance and the distortion of truth. Written by leading experts in their field based on cutting-edge research, the chapters explore these issues and offer suggestions for how education can address these problems in the future. This groundbreaking and highly topical book will be an essential reading for academics, researchers and post-graduate students in the fields of education research, environmental studies, educational politics and organizational management.

Download or read book Existential Threats and Civil security Relations written by Oren Barak and published by Rowman & Littlefield. This book was released on 2009 with total page 320 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Existential Threats and Civil Security Relations critically analyzes, presents, and further develops the major approaches to existential threats--structural, cultural, and rational. It examines the influence these threats have on effective democracies, formal democracies, and democratizing states.

Download or read book What s the Worst That Could Happen written by Andrew Leigh and published by MIT Press. This book was released on 2024-08-06 with total page 241 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Why catastrophic risks are more dangerous than you think, and how populism makes them worse. Did you know that you’re more likely to die from a catastrophe than in a car crash? The odds that a typical US resident will die from a catastrophic event—for example, nuclear war, bioterrorism, or out-of-control artificial intelligence—have been estimated at 1 in 6. That’s fifteen times more likely than a fatal car crash and thirty-one times more likely than being murdered. In What’s the Worst That Could Happen?, Andrew Leigh looks at catastrophic risks and how to mitigate them, arguing provocatively that the rise of populist politics makes catastrophe more likely. Leigh explains that pervasive short-term thinking leaves us unprepared for long-term risks. Politicians sweat the small stuff—granular policy details of legislation and regulation—but rarely devote much attention to reducing long-term risks. Populist movements thrive on short-termism because they focus on their followers’ immediate grievances. Leigh argues that we should be long-termers: broaden our thinking and give big threats the attention and resources they need. Leigh outlines the biggest existential risks facing humanity and suggests remedies for them. He discusses pandemics, considering the possibility that the next virus will be more deadly than COVID-19; warns that unchecked climate change could render large swaths of the earth uninhabitable; describes the metamorphosis of the arms race from a fight into a chaotic brawl; and examines the dangers of runaway superintelligence. Moreover, Leigh points out, populism (and its crony, totalitarianism) not only exacerbates other dangers but is also a risk factor in itself, undermining the institutions of democracy as we watch.

Download or read book Cultural Existential Psychology written by Daniel Sullivan and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 2016-04-06 with total page 315 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Bridging cultural and experimental existential psychology, this book offers a synthetic understanding of how culture shapes psychological threat.

Download or read book Countdown to Extinction written by Josh Luberisse and published by Fortis Novum Mundum. This book was released on with total page 431 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Countdown to Extinction: Navigating the Existential Threats That Could End Humanity is a comprehensive and thought-provoking exploration of the critical risks that could define—or end—the future of human civilization. In a world increasingly shaped by rapid technological advancements, environmental degradation, and global interconnectedness, this book takes a deep dive into the most pressing existential threats of our time and examines how we can navigate them to secure a thriving future for all. Spanning a wide range of topics, Countdown to Extinction begins by laying the groundwork with an introduction to the fragility of human civilization and the concept of existential risks. The book then systematically explores specific threats, including the transformative power and peril of Artificial General Intelligence (AGI), the revolutionary potential and catastrophic risks of nanotechnology, and the unseen dangers posed by high-energy particle collisions. The narrative continues by examining the ever-present dangers of pandemics—both natural and engineered—and the ongoing threat of nuclear warfare, juxtaposed against the slow-burning crisis of climate change. It delves into cosmic hazards like asteroid impacts and supervolcanoes, the potential collapse of global ecosystems due to resource depletion, and the nightmarish scenarios involving rogue AI and cybersecurity failures. The book also addresses emerging risks associated with synthetic biology, economic collapse, and societal breakdown, while considering the unpredictable nature of "unknown unknowns." Each chapter is meticulously researched, combining scientific analysis with ethical considerations, historical case studies, and expert insights to paint a vivid picture of the potential futures we may face. Yet, Countdown to Extinction is not just about outlining dangers; it is equally a guide to mitigation and hope. The book offers a thorough discussion on global strategies for mitigating these risks, emphasizing technological safeguards, international cooperation, and the necessity of building societal resilience. It calls for the creation of a culture of awareness and preparedness, urging governments, businesses, and individuals to take responsibility and act decisively. The book concludes with a powerful call to action, reflecting on the imperative of addressing these risks and the role of human ingenuity and adaptation in creating a secure and sustainable future. Through detailed analysis and an engaging narrative, Countdown to Extinction challenges readers to reconsider their assumptions, recognize the gravity of the challenges ahead, and embrace the opportunities for transformative change. This is not just a book about survival; it is a manifesto for safeguarding humanity's future. It reminds us that while the risks are formidable, so too is our capacity to overcome them through collective action, innovation, and a deep commitment to the values that unite us all. The choices we make today will shape the course of history, and together, we can create a world that is secure, just, and sustainable for generations to come.

Download or read book Existential Threats written by Lisa Vox and published by University of Pennsylvania Press. This book was released on 2017-07-03 with total page 288 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In Existential Threats, Lisa Vox explores the growth of dispensationalist premillennialism alongside scientific understandings of the end of the world and contends that these two allegedly competing visions have converged to create an American apocalyptic imagination.

Download or read book Calamity Theory written by Joshua Schuster and published by U of Minnesota Press. This book was released on 2021-10-19 with total page 138 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: What are the implications of how we talk about apocalypse? A new philosophical field has emerged. “Existential risk” studies any real or hypothetical human extinction event in the near or distant future. This movement examines catastrophes ranging from runaway global warming to nuclear warfare to malevolent artificial intelligence, deploying a curious mix of utilitarian ethics, statistical risk analysis, and, controversially, a transhuman advocacy that would aim to supersede almost all extinction scenarios. The proponents of existential risk thinking, led by Oxford philosopher Nick Bostrom, have seen their work gain immense popularity, attracting endorsement from Bill Gates and Elon Musk, millions of dollars, and millions of views. Calamity Theory is the first book to examine the rise of this thinking and its failures to acknowledge the ways some communities and lifeways are more at risk than others and what it implies about human extinction. Forerunners: Ideas First is a thought-in-process series of breakthrough digital publications. Written between fresh ideas and finished books, Forerunners draws on scholarly work initiated in notable blogs, social media, conference plenaries, journal articles, and the synergy of academic exchange. This is gray literature publishing: where intense thinking, change, and speculation take place in scholarship.

Download or read book Existential Threats and Moral Prospects written by Courtney D. Schlosser and published by Covenant Books, Inc.. This book was released on 2024-01-08 with total page 413 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: SUMMARY Part I of this book argues that we live in a dangerous world system, one that has sickened humanity. Part II argues that there is a way out, in re-imagining how things could be. Everyone has a role to play in the renewal of the social system, since our leaders have largely failed and many institutions are collapsing. Existential Threats are those problems that endanger the life and well-being of everyone like war and nuclear weapons, accelerating climate change, over-population, cultural violence, injustice, and the inequality of capitalism. As serious as these problems are, they are not permanent. Moral Prospects are the possibilities that represent the most significant social change like, ending war and militarism, predatory capitalism, humanly caused climate change, over-population, cultural violence, and moral corruption. The system can be changed for the better through an enlightened population. Although some Existential Threats may be pedestrian and local, others are global and apocalyptic, endangering all species. At the same time, the crisis created by world events, presents great opportunities for transformative change with revolutionary consequences.

Download or read book Overcoming the Threat to Our Future written by David Anderson and published by Xlibris Corporation. This book was released on 2018-10-04 with total page 399 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This is a book about the social, political, philosophical, religious, and economic presuppositions we have believed to be inherent truths that we are now discovering were built on geo-ecological flaws. We are being faced with an existential threat. There is the possibility of human extinction. And unlike threats in the past to all forms of life on the planet, this one will not be determined by a random meteorite/asteroid or natural planetary happening. It will be self-inflicted. We are that species. Where have we all gone wrong? Could it be that certain elements in our thought process laboriously pieced together from the beginning of our bronze/iron/agricultural age are now working against us? And if so, what are those elements? Finally, the question is, How could we, the most clever and brilliant primate ever to evolve, be bringing this on ourselves? Is it that we have an evolutionary self-destructive neurotic/psychotic cranial imperfection? And if this is the reason, at what stage of our evolution did that imperfection occur? Finally, do you and I biologically/psychologically/neurologically have the ability to move away from that imperfection?

Download or read book The Era of Global Risk written by SJ Beard and published by Open Book Publishers. This book was released on 2023-08-23 with total page 268 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This innovative and comprehensive collection of essays explores the biggest threats facing humanity in the 21st century; threats that cannot be contained or controlled and that have the potential to bring about human extinction and civilization collapse. Bringing together experts from many disciplines, it provides an accessible survey of what we know about these threats, how we can understand them better, and most importantly what can be done to manage them effectively. These essays pair insights from decades of research and activism around global risk with the latest academic findings from the emerging field of Existential Risk Studies. Voicing the work of world leading experts and tackling a variety of vital issues, they weigh up the demands of natural systems with political pressures and technological advances to build an empowering vision of how we can safeguard humanity’s long-term future. The book covers both a comprehensive survey of how to study and manage global risks with in-depth discussion of core risk drivers: including environmental breakdown, novel technologies, global scale natural disasters, and nuclear threats. The Era of Global Risk offers a thorough analysis of the most serious dangers to humanity. Inspiring, accessible, and essential reading for both students of global risk and those committed to its mitigation, this book poses one critical question: how can we make sense of this era of global risk and move beyond it to an era of global safety?

Download or read book Global Catastrophic Risks written by Nick Bostrom and published by Oxford University Press. This book was released on 2011-09-29 with total page 577 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A Global Catastrophic Risk is one that has the potential to inflict serious damage to human well-being on a global scale. This book focuses on such risks arising from natural catastrophes (Earth-based or beyond), nuclear war, terrorism, biological weapons, totalitarianism, advanced nanotechnology, artificial intelligence and social collapse.

Download or read book The Precipice written by Toby Ord and published by Bloomsbury Publishing. This book was released on 2020-03-05 with total page 471 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: What existential threats does humanity face? And how can we secure our future? 'The Precipice is a powerful book . . . Ord's love for humanity and hope for its future is infectious' Spectator 'Ord's analysis of the science is exemplary . . . Thrillingly written' Sunday Times We live during the most important era of human history. In the twentieth century, we developed the means to destroy ourselves – without developing the moral framework to ensure we won't. This is the Precipice, and how we respond to it will be the most crucial decision of our time. Oxford moral philosopher Toby Ord explores the risks to humanity's future, from the familiar man-made threats of climate change and nuclear war, to the potentially greater, more unfamiliar threats from engineered pandemics and advanced artificial intelligence. With clear and rigorous thinking, Ord calculates the various risk levels, and shows how our own time fits within the larger story of human history. We can say with certainty that the novel coronavirus does not pose such a risk. But could the next pandemic? And what can we do, in our present moment, to face the risks head on? A major work that brings together the disciplines of physics, biology, earth and computer science, history, anthropology, statistics, international relations, political science and moral philosophy, The Precipice is a call for a new understanding of our age: a major reorientation in the way we see the world, our history, and the role we play in it.

Download or read book X Risk written by Thomas Moynihan and published by MIT Press. This book was released on 2020-10-20 with total page 481 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: How humanity came to contemplate its possible extinction. From forecasts of disastrous climate change to prophecies of evil AI superintelligences and the impending perils of genome editing, our species is increasingly concerned with the prospects of its own extinction. With humanity's future on this planet seeming more insecure by the day, in the twenty-first century, existential risk has become the object of a growing field of serious scientific inquiry. But, as Thomas Moynihan shows in X-Risk, this preoccupation is not exclusive to the post-atomic age of global warming and synthetic biology. Our growing concern with human extinction itself has a history. Tracing this untold story, Moynihan revisits the pioneers who first contemplated the possibility of human extinction and stages the historical drama of this momentous discovery. He shows how, far from being a secular reprise of religious prophecies of apocalypse, existential risk is a thoroughly modern idea, made possible by the burgeoning sciences and philosophical tumult of the Enlightenment era. In recollecting how we first came to care for our extinction, Moynihan reveals how today's attempts to measure and mitigate existential threats are the continuation of a project initiated over two centuries ago, which concerns the very vocation of the human as a rational, responsible, and future-oriented being.

Download or read book What Is The Matter With Us written by Matt Henri and published by Notion Press. This book was released on 2024-04-26 with total page 270 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: WHAT IS THE MATTER WITH US is Matt Henri’s diagnosis of Living with self-induced existential risks. The book is a journey based on Matt’s lifelong experiences and global travels to find an answer to the following question: If no one wants pollution, mental and physical illnesses caused by humanity, then why is this happening? Matt provides key insights that answer this question and exposes the nexus of our predicament. We live in a period of increasing existential risks, and the world is unprepared. Living with existential risks invites the reader to choose their own path to embrace a future that benefits not only the reader personally but All life and support spheres.

Download or read book Artificial Superintelligence written by Roman V. Yampolskiy and published by CRC Press. This book was released on 2015-06-17 with total page 216 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A day does not go by without a news article reporting some amazing breakthrough in artificial intelligence (AI). Many philosophers, futurists, and AI researchers have conjectured that human-level AI will be developed in the next 20 to 200 years. If these predictions are correct, it raises new and sinister issues related to our future in the age of

Download or read book When the Stars Begin to Fall written by Theodore R. Johnson and published by Atlantic Monthly Press. This book was released on 2021-05-04 with total page 333 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A “persuasive . . . heartfelt and vividly written” call to counter systemic racism and build national solidarity in America (Publishers Weekly). The American Promise enshrined in our Constitution states that all men and women are inherently equal. And yet racism continues to corrode our society. If we cannot overcome it, Theodore Johnson argues, the promise that made America unique on Earth will have died. In When the Stars Begin to Fall, Johnson presents a compelling blueprint for the kind of national solidarity necessary to mitigate racism. Weaving together history, personal memories, and his family’s multi-generational experiences with racism, Johnson posits that solutions can be found in the exceptional citizenship long practiced in Black America. Understanding that racism is a structural crime of the state, he argues that overcoming it requires us to recognize that a color-conscious society—not a color-blind one—is the true fulfillment of the American Promise. Fueled by Johnson’s ultimate faith in the American project, grounded in his family’s longstanding optimism and his own military service, When the Stars Begin to Fall is an urgent call to undertake the process of overcoming what has long seemed intractable.