Scientists Resort to Once-Unthinkable Solutions to Cool the Planet

[JohnMakin]

These are true long-shots. We need to drastically reduce emissions in a time frame that is becoming increasingly unrealistic. I don't pretend to know the solution, but part of it is going to have to be the global economy realizing our current level of consumption is not sustainable. Since that is not likely to ever happen, we should shift to a combination of emissions reduction + catastrophe mitigation (funding for building seawalls on vulnerable coasts, investing in new agriculture technology to help stave off famine, etc.).

[archontes]

We just need to price reclamation into the cost of energy. If a process that has reduced emissions is more efficient, it'll be used, if it's not, it won't, and if the product isn't worth the cost of its combined production and reclamation, it won't be purchased.

[krunck]

Yes. We need to end growthist economic thinking. Slowing or reversing population growth would also help.

[ramijames]

At this point I think I've just given up. I don't believe my kids even have a future. We are all just going through the motions.

[jdawg777]

https://archive.is/1QlL0

[jaggs]

Sigh. Another day, another attempt to normalize geo-engineering. Some of the most insane ideas ever to see the light of day. Follow the money and you'll see where it starts (hint: carbon capture and carbon credits are losing their revenue generating hype).

[jdawg777]

Personally I like some of these ideas. They could be our only hope of preserving earth's climate. Face it, we already manipulate earth's environment on a massive scale - just not intentionally.

[dadjoker]

Or, we could just accept that 1) the earth goes through warming and cooling cycles and 2) some warming is not a bad thing.

But, as jaggs, points out, follow the money - that's what this is all about.

[hnhg]

The world is not ready for the kind of migration that a warming planet will drive. Think of the scale of social upheaval and conflict. Outside of the human cost, the economic repercussions will be immense. This is why most institutional investors are taking this very seriously. Follow the money indeed.

[itishappy]

That's already widely accepted.

Also accepted is that at some point it becomes a bad thing. Boiling the oceans is a hyperbolic example, there's clearly an ideal temperature range.

Not accepted is what that threshold is and where we're headed, because current trends don't look like any warming or cooling cycles in human history.

[lm28469]

"Some warming" and "some cooling" killed and displaced entire species over continents but besides that sure

[imtringued]

This isn't a cycle though.