ted conference

TED is an amazing conference for technology, entertainment, and design. It basically brings together 1,000 fascinating thinkers and doers from around the world. (Credit to TED.com) I was first introduced to TED by Richard Yoo and Morris Miller, the founders and former management of Rackspace.com.

TED’s Mission is to spread ideas. So I’m going to help them out and tell you guys about a TEDTalk I watched today about 10 ways our world may end. It’s funny and so real.

Video can be viewed on bottom of my blog post. Without further delay, here’s my summary on 10 ways our world may end:

10) Human Depression: The World Health Organization estimates that 1/5 people are clinically depressed. People are living longer and healthier, but how about happiness?

Solution: Give us mental health insurance!

9) Alien Invasion: There are estimated millions of planets in the milky way galaxy. Billions in our universe. There’s a likelihood that we’ll confront a group of living beings.

Solution: Get the State Department working on a plan to meet, greet, and negotiate with a more advancecd species. Colonize the milky way!

8 ) Ecosystem Collapse: We’re living in a time with mass animal extinction. A lot of this is human caused.

Solution: Create huge biodiversity reserves. (Think Noah’s Ark!)

7) Particle Accelerator Mishap: People are trying to make anti-matter and tiny black holes. Of course, hoping that they’ll either destroy themselves or evaporate. What if they don’t?

Solution: Stop doing accelerator experiments! Sorry, Johnny… no more making black holes!

6) Biotech Disaster: Biotechnologies can destroy our food supply.

Solution: Treat biotechnology with same security scrutiny we apply to nuclear engineering. OR just don’t use biotechnology!

5) Reversal of Earth’s Magnetic Fields: Happens every few thousand years. We lose the magnetic field around the earth for a good 100 years. In other words, we’re gonna fry.

Solution: Replenish Ozone Layer. (It’s working!)

4) Giant Solar Flare: Atmosphere has done well protecting us from sun flares. If other nearby stars have super solar flares, we’re screwed.

Solution: Start terraforming Mars. Will take 300-500 years to do. No reason why we shouldn’t start now :)

3) New Global Epidemic. Think Flu, Small Pox, Bubonic Plague, AIDS. ‘

Solution: Stop feeding our animals antibiotics.

2) Humans, meet a Rogue Black Hole: They’re gobbling everything up, including light. Space is big, but if a black hole got within a billion miles of earth, we’re screwed.

Solution: Hurry up and find another earth-like planet to inhabit!

1) A Really, Really Big Asteroid Heads for Earth: Petrankek says this isn’t an if, but rather a when. An asteroid 5 miles wide would cause vast extinction. Estimated that there are hundreds of thousands of asteroids between Mars and Jupiter about 1/2 mile wide. Listed as #6 most likely cause of premature human death in America. (after homicide, car accidents, plane crash, etc…)

Solution: Put in more money for NASA’s search for asteroids OR figure out way to blow up an asteroid or alter its trajectory.

Petrankek is basically thinks that the worst way we can react to all of this is by saying, “geeze, why think about an asteroid hitting us when we have human drama and profits to worry about?”

I’m personally thinking, “Why are we still alive?”

PS: This guy is NOT being paid to make this presentation. And in response to a reader’s comment, this isn’t as obvious as it seems if we’re not taking any action.

Jessica Mah is a 17 year old entrepreneur, blogger, and sophomore in college. She’s currently the founder of a startup, managing editor at Startupism.com, SimonsRockers.com, and Jessicamah.com.

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