Do You Think December 21 2012 is The End Of The World?

[The Bman]

If a global blackout occurs, couldn't we just build new power plants and have electricity again?

 

[BubbleBelly542]

If a global blackout occurs, couldn't we just build new power plants and have electricity again?

Do you really think it would be that easy?

 

[sumbrownkid]

I might do those, but if the blackout is for long period of time, things could get worse for me, it is easier said than done to live without electricity ...

The first thing my family complains about when the power goes out is the wifi router.

 

[Ridox2JZGTE]

The first thing my family complains about when the power goes out is the wifi router.

One of countless complaints that will come soon after that ... global blackout for a year could mean the end of the world for some. Imagining the implications alone is a nightmare, from city to countries.

 

[kikie]

What will happen with this thread on december 22?

 

[PeterJB]

It will be either be closed or won't exist because the world has ended.

 

[Antonisbob]

^ Sounds like a happy ending for this thread.

If there was no electricity? We'd still have cars, oil lamps, ice boxes, fireplaces, batteries maybe? ect. I don't see how living without it would be the undoing of humans.

 

[Ridox2JZGTE]

^ Live in global blackout for a full year, 1st month to 3rd month, goverment collapse, monetary system ruined, anarchy, no factory running, no refrigeration, no lights, no heater, rare fresh food, batteries supply thinning, fuel supply drying up ... keep on and it will get worse within a year.

 

[Skuh]

^ Live in global blackout for a full year, 1st month to 3rd month, goverment collapse, monetary system ruined, anarchy, no factory running, no refrigeration, no lights, no heater, rare fresh food, batteries supply thinning, fuel supply drying up ... keep on and it will get worse within a year.

We survived for thousands and thousands of years without electricity. We ate. We traded, we not only survived. we flourished.

 

[BubbleBelly542]

We survived for thousands and thousands of years without electricity. We ate. We traded, we not only survived. we flourished.

But things have changed. Now the majority of us need electricity to function. We've had it for too long.

 

[theotherspongey]

But things have changed. Now the majority of us need electricity to function. We've had it for too long.

This.

 

[Skuh]

But things have changed. Now the majority of us need electricity to function. We've had it for too long.

Yes life would be drastically different, but we wouldn't die (as a people, not individually) and the world would not end. After a time people would adjust and life would reasert itself. Just like it did before. We set up banking without electricity before. We invented the internal combustion engine, the steam engine. Life would be very different, but in no way would it end. They're would be the riots and things that have been predicted first, but we would survive, then flourish again.

 

[Antonisbob]

^ Live in global blackout for a full year, 1st month to 3rd month, goverment collapse, monetary system ruined, anarchy, no factory running, no refrigeration, no lights, no heater, rare fresh food, batteries supply thinning, fuel supply drying up ... keep on and it will get worse within a year.

Hence why I said iceboxes and oil lamps, we have a few of those that would be good enough. & what about fireplaces? That's your heat and lights right there. Also, I don't see how there would be anarchy? Please explain. The police still use horses, and obviously guns will still work.

Yes life would be drastically different, but we wouldn't die (as a people, not individually) and the world would not end. After a time people would adjust and life would reasert itself. Just like it did before. We set up banking without electricity before. We invented the internal combustion engine, the steam engine. Life would be very different, but in no way would it end. They're would be the riots and things that have been predicted first, but we would survive, then flourish again.

I forgot about steam and coal power, seriously we could just go back to that for the time being until we got electricity again. It's almost the same thing.

 

[marluxiaXI11]

Most all of our electricity is made using steam.

 

[Ridox2JZGTE]

Hence why I said iceboxes and oil lamps, we have a few of those that would be good enough. & what about fireplaces? That's your heat and lights right there. Also, I don't see how there would be anarchy? Please explain. The police still use horses, and obviously guns will still work.



I forgot about steam and coal power, seriously we could just go back to that for the time being until we got electricity again. It's almost the same thing.

Things are not going to be so simple, panic will ensues, and most people will not be able to adapt, having thoughts of money being useless is the first sign. No bank in operation, no shop open anymore, everybody will get what they want/need by stealing. Of course, these won't happen straight way, in the 1st month or so, when everything that is available in the market have been consumed.

Yes, they can life with coal, fireplace and such, but getting coal won't be easy task when the whole economy and transport system is gone after several months global blackout. Police force might still work, but how do they earn their food and living ? Guns might be used by many, to get whatever they need, killing seems to be rampant when the society lost their leadership amidst the "blackout" domino effects.

I understand that in short period it won't be a huge issue, but if global blackout in such massive scale and long period, there's no telling how bad it could be.

Just imagine if several countries did not know why the blackout occurred and casting suspicion to their rival countries or conflicting ones. They may well be attacking each other with WMDs instead working together, which will be very difficult in a total global blackout, no computers, no power source.

 

[m8h3r]

I can't believe people actually think this is true. I'd recommend selling your house and living your last 2 months in style. See where that gets you.

 

[Skuh]

steam engines, generators, hand cranks, water wheels. All create electricity. You can't stop electricity only ruin the appliances we use now. So we make new ones. Yo cant stop electricity. It isn't possible. Therefore we can create new appliances.
People got paid before we harnessed electricity.

 

[Ridox2JZGTE]

steam engines, generators, hand cranks, water wheels. All create electricity. You can't stop electricity only ruin the appliances we use now. So we make new ones. Yo cant stop electricity. It isn't possible. Therefore we can create new appliances.
People got paid before we harnessed electricity.

I was just making a "what if" statement, like what if global blackout for full year, no electricity whatsoever, all of those generators, water wheels, steam engines are out of the picture. Every one on earth has no electricity for one full year. Just saying

 

[hennessey86]

The world will end one day, but I highly doubt it will end on the 21st of December this year. We will destroy our selves, we are constantly looking for more powerful weapons and its only a matter of time before a nuke falls in to the wrong hands. We also live in a very dangerous universe where a number of things could wipe out the earth.

 

[kikie]

The world will end one day, but I highly doubt it will end on the 21st of December this year. We will destroy our selves, we are constantly looking for more powerful weapons and its only a matter of time before a nuke falls in to the wrong hands. We also live in a very dangerous universe where a number of things could wipe out the earth.

Not to mention the extinction of the human race.

 

[homeforsummer]

I have watched a hypothetical simulation where people's living suddenly gets out of electricity in a certain programme featuring about the "crisis of our civilization and our life" on TV before, and it said that without an electricity the circulation of people's live stops about 30 days or so after cutting off the supply of it completely.

I actually have some respect for those people we may currently consider a bit nutty... those who have vast larders full of years worth of tinned food and water, and grow their own veg outside, and defend it all with guns. In the case of a catastrophic, long-term power failure (highly, highly unlikely, but not impossible by any means), they'll quite happily survive for a decent amount of time before the grid is brought back up.

steam engines, generators, hand cranks, water wheels. All create electricity. You can't stop electricity only ruin the appliances we use now. So we make new ones. Yo cant stop electricity. It isn't possible. Therefore we can create new appliances.
People got paid before we harnessed electricity.

I think you're underestimating the potential of a large-scale power failure.

Yes, it's possible to generate electricity, but hand-cranking a wheel is a little different than a large power station providing power for millions. Likewise, though steam engines or diesel generators can keep going, there's limited use to that when all the transformers at sub-stations have been blown out from power surges and need replacing.

It's about more than just your toaster going pop, it's about power grids that serve billions of people worldwide becoming inoperable all at once, and virtually everything we rely on - including communications to send for aid, medical services, being able to pump gasoline to send repairs around a country - all going dead at once.

Yes, given time society could rebuild itself even after a cataclysmic catastrophe, because we have the knowledge as a species to re-build anything that we've built up until now. But I think you're over-simplifying our ability to just flip the switch and get back on track.

 

[Skuh]

I actually have some respect for those people we may currently consider a bit nutty... those who have vast larders full of years worth of tinned food and water, and grow their own veg outside, and defend it all with guns. In the case of a catastrophic, long-term power failure (highly, highly unlikely, but not impossible by any means), they'll quite happily survive for a decent amount of time before the grid is brought back up.



I think you're underestimating the potential of a large-scale power failure.

Yes, it's possible to generate electricity, but hand-cranking a wheel is a little different than a large power station providing power for millions. Likewise, though steam engines or diesel generators can keep going, there's limited use to that when all the transformers at sub-stations have been blown out from power surges and need replacing.

It's about more than just your toaster going pop, it's about power grids that serve billions of people worldwide becoming inoperable all at once, and virtually everything we rely on - including communications to send for aid, medical services, being able to pump gasoline to send repairs around a country - all going dead at once.

Yes, given time society could rebuild itself even after a cataclysmic catastrophe, because we have the knowledge as a species to re-build anything that we've built up until now. But I think you're over-simplifying our ability to just flip the switch and get back on track.

Not at all, I think you undersetimate humans. Like I said, riots and all of those bad things would happen. We as a people would survive though. We did before there is absolutely no reason we couldn't again.
Like I said also. It just isn't feasible that we would have a blackout for a year.

 

[kikie]

A bit off topic but I'd like to ask a question if you don't mind.

Reading about the solar flares and EM pulse and black outs, I wonder if it's possible to protect electronics from an EM pulse by disconnecting everything from the power grid, remove the HDD and car battery?

 

[Ridox2JZGTE]

A giant solar flare that overwhelmed the whole earth surface would kill all electronic devices whether they were on or off. The radiation would be too much. My only guess based from what I read back in college and from the net. Don't take my word for it.

 

[nealcropper]

A giant solar flare that overwhelmed the whole earth surface would kill all electronic devices whether they were on or off. The radiation would be too much. My only guess based from what I read back in college and from the net. Don't take my word for it.

If a solar flare that massive reached the earth, your electronics would be the least of your problems.

There are many reasons why the earth would become inhospitable. Humans being the main cause.

There are also many other reasons, there are asteroids floating around in our solar system right now that hold enough energy to completely destroy our Eco-system, it's not the impact that would cause the most devastation but the after affects.

Also there is a dying star about 4 light years away from our earth,(forgive me if the distance isn't right), and scientists think that it is the going to be the most dangerous type of supernova. When this star has used most of its energy, it will fire out radiation, Gamma radiation, from both poles. I'm not sure if these beams of Gamma will be strong enough to reach our earth, but if it does it will strip the o-zone from our atmosphere irradiating our planet almost beyond repair.

There are many reasons as to how the planet will come to an end, none of them concrete, but there are two things you can be sure of, it is going to happen, and it won't happen any time soon.

 

[BobK]

There are many reasons as to how the planet will come to an end, none of them concrete, but there are two things you can be sure of, it is going to happen, and it probably won't happen any time soon.

Fixed.

 

[nealcropper]

Fixed.

Lol, if thats the only thing someone can find wring with that post, then that's good enough for me! Lol.

 

[Quackjack]

If we invade Iran don't expect much of an earth afterwards.

 

[kennylmao]

A giant solar flare that overwhelmed the whole earth surface would kill all electronic devices whether they were on or off. The radiation would be too much. My only guess based from what I read back in college and from the net. Don't take my word for it.

It's gonna sound stupid but could you wrap your appliances in foil paper to protect them from electromagnetic pulses?

 

[homeforsummer]

Not at all, I think you undersetimate humans.

Not in the slighest, but I think you're not quite comprehending just how much of our lives are based around electricity to some degree or another. All communication. The entire transport network, to some degree, which would affect distribution of everything, from food to healthcare. Our monetary system, from personal accounts to being able to buy a chocolate bar in a corner shop when the till doesn't work. Or any food you have stored in a fridge or freezer, which goes off within a few days - and can't be replaced, because the shops are shut. And all the milk and bread has gone off there, too.

Like I said, riots and all of those bad things would happen. We as a people would survive though.

I never said they wouldn't. But society depends on fairly finely-balanced systems which can be thrown into disarray during catastrophes. Things can be fine for a day, like in New York a few years back, but for a week? A month? Half a year?

We did before there is absolutely no reason we couldn't again.
Like I said also.

When? Hundreds of years ago? If that's what you're suggesting, then I'm afraid it doesn't count. Hundreds of years ago our entire society wasn't based around things relying on electricity.

Again, I'm not talking about a situation like "Oh, bummer, my TV doesn't work" - I'm talking about virtually everything of any importance in society relying on electricity to function at some stage down the line.

It just isn't feasible that we would have a blackout for a year.

Who says it needs to take a year for society to crumble?

Could you imagine a scenario in which one single country like the UK lost power even for an entire week? Come on, our transport network nearly fell apart when David Cameron suggested that fuel supplies were low and that people should top up their cars.

Add inability to get food, or water, or healthcare, or anything else like that, and even in a week you'd have widespread panic. It's not even like everything would suddenly return to normal when the switch flipped back on, either.

Also there is a dying star about 4 light years away from our earth,(forgive me if the distance isn't right), and scientists think that it is the going to be the most dangerous type of supernova. When this star has used most of its energy, it will fire out radiation, Gamma radiation, from both poles. I'm not sure if these beams of Gamma will be strong enough to reach our earth, but if it does it will strip the o-zone from our atmosphere irradiating our planet almost beyond repair.

Have you got a source for that?

While the situation you describe is plausible, the picture which you've painted I suspect is vastly exaggerated. The nearest star to Earth is indeed around 4 light years away, but it's expected to last another four trillion years.

I suspect the one you're referring to is WR 104, but even this isn't expected to die for another few tens of thousands of years. And even then, we'd have to be directly hit by a Gamma-ray burst for it to cause any trouble to Earth, so it's not just a reasonably unlikely event, but extremely unlikely to happen any time this year.