Prof Stephen Hawking: disaster on planet Earth is a near certainty
Prof Stephen Hawking said the biggest threats to planet Earth were of our own making, including nuclear war, global warming and genetically engineered viruses
The co
smologist said that genetically engineere The co
smologist said that genetically engineere The co
smologist said that genetically engineere d viruses, nuclear war and global warming all threatened to wipe out the human race in the foreseeable future.
He argued that unstoppable developments in science and technology were likely to prove the biggest danger, adding that the human race may only be able to survive in colonies on other planets in the solar system.
"Most of the threats we face come from the progress we’ve made in science and technology"
Professor Stephen Hawking“We face a number of threats: nuclear war, global warming and genetically engineered viruses," said Prof Hawking, speaking to the Radio Times ahead of his BBC Reith Lecture“Although the chance of a disaster on planet Earth in a given year may be quite low, it adds up over time, becoming a near certainty in the next thousand or ten thousand years.
“By that time we should have spread out into space, and to other stars, so it would not mean the end of the human race.
“However, we will not establish self-sustaining colonies in space for at least the next hundred years, so we have to be very careful in this period."
Killer robots from the film Terminator
Previously Prof Hawking has spoken of the dangers of the rise of artifical intelligence and has called for global agreements to prevent robots becoming uncontrollable.
He added: “Most of the threats we face come from the progress we’ve made in science and technology. We are not going to stop making progress, or reverse it, so we must recognise the dangers and control them. I’m an optimist, and I believe we can.”
Prof Hawking was responding to a question from a schoolboy who asked whether the world was likely to end at the hand of humans, or from a natural disaster.
“Science and technology are changing our world dramatically, so it’s important to ensure that these changes are heading in the right directions," added Prof Hawking.
"In a democratic society, this means that everyone needs to have a basic understanding of science, to make informed decisions about the future.”
Stephen Hawking
When asked what inspires him to keep going, he said that a keen sense of humour had been crucial to stop him becoming disheartened following his motor neurone disease diagnosis.
“When I turned 21, my expectations were reduced to zero,” he said. “It was important that I came to appreciate what I did have. Although I was unfortunate to get motor neurone disease, I’ve been very fortunate in almost everything else.
“I’ve been lucky to work in theoretical physics at a fascinating time, and it’s one of the few areas in which my disability is not a serious handicap. It’s also important not to become angry, no matter how difficult life is, because you can lose all hope if you can’t laugh at yourself and at life in general.”
He also claimed to ‘still get into trouble’ at parties and did not view himself as an introvert.
“I don’t think I’ve ever been called an introvert before. Just because I do a lot of thinking doesn’t mean I don’t like parties and getting into trouble,” he added.
“I enjoy communicating and giving popular lectures on science. My speech synthesizer is very important for this, even though I’ve ended up with an American accent.
“Before I lost my voice, my speech was slurred, so only those close to me could understand, but with the computer voice I found I could talk to everyone without help.
“So it has allowed me to express (rather than change) my personality. I am very grateful to those who developed my computer voice, and to Intel, who continue to work on improving it.”
The first Reith Lecture will be broadcast on January 26 and on February 2 at 9am on BBC Radio 4. The full text will later be published on BBC Online.
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