The Science of Life

I will begin with a conclusion which is... uncomfortable to say the least.  Then I will walk through how this conclusion was reached.  It is something which will have you call bullshit on me off the bat, but please hear me out (or read me out?).  I have written a theoretical ecology paper last summer which shows that the human population will stop growing no later than 2031, and will drop (not plateau) shortly thereafter.  The cause?  Resource depletion.  Please, read me out. Now, how did I come to this conclusion?  By the power of maths! In ecology, there is a situation where, when a major cause of death for a species is removed, the population of that species goes through what is called exponential growth .  This is where the rate of change (percent change) is constant, and since the population today is more than it was yesterday, the greater the net change.  Let's say the percent change is 1% and we started with $100.  Tomor...

Suddenly, there is silence. It's been quiet for a while now, but now that the rounds are complete, it is complete silence, here on the surface of Mars. Not that this is really Mars. In the deserts of Southern Utah, there is a crew at the Mars Desert Research Station, running simulations for a trip to Mars. There are strict protocols for such things. Ideas accumulated on the ground put into place by The Mars Society. So simple are these ideas that most people – and even higher percent of scientists – would not think of them. Like, for instance, keeping a comp notebook at each piece of equipment to track use and maintenance. Keeping a log on the computer for suggested SOP for the crew who takes over on the next cycle change. In the isolation of the desert, these people can teach us a few things about how to do what we do as Environmental Scientists. For one, it is alright to be a nerd and proud of it. In fact, it is the preferred state of mind for us....