Life is fragile, civilization even more so

7.5.24:

One of the aims of the blog was not to re-invent the wheel. No need to repeat myself any more than absolutely necessary.

 I was having this kind of thought this morning after reading about a space rock that whizzed by Earth at 61k mph.  At that speed, and at that mass, we would be history if that thing hit the Earth.  So this is a reminder post of what I've already posted.  Our time here on an individual basis is very short.  Our time here as a civilization is but a blink of an eye on the cosmic level.  We'd better keep that in mind, or we could be out.  Either by our own hands, or by a force much bigger than ourselves.

6.27.12:

That thought just occurred to me.  It pleased me so much that I couldn't resist coming here and putting it up on the blog.

It may be so self-evident that it doesn't need explanation.  But if it does, here goes:  self-preservation is amongst the most primitive and most powerful of instincts of every living thing.   Life is more established and will tend to survive-- self-preservation will see to that.   Life has existed on this planet for almost the entire history of the planet, but civilization is a new thing as far as the history of this planet is concerned.  If push comes to shove, as the saying goes, the weaker will give way.   Life survived the asteroidal impact that destroyed the dinosaurs-- life continued, but the "apex" life forms didn't make it.  Likewise, if something cataclysmic happens- civilization, which is at the apex- could well be the first casualty.

Civilizations have risen and fallen too.  But humans are still around.  Yet there are no guarantees of that either.