Chapter VII Second Way for Human Being to Annihilate


Section II Involuntary Disaster

First, careless experiment

In fact the extinction of human being may be caused by careless experiments besides the use of the destructive measures by those purposeful people.

We all know that many scientific discoveries were gained unexpectedly when having experiment, so the scientific fruits are not the intended ones when implementing the experiment, which is common in scientific developments. Since the science and technology is uncertain, those involuntary discoveries may be more important than the primary defined research goals.

Discovery of X-rays, honored as three great discoveries of late 19 century, was such kind of unexpected success. In the end of 19 century, physics circle was commonly caring about the essential problems of cathode rays, so a lot of physical scientists were researching on this topic, including German physical scientist Roentgen. One time when he was experimenting, unconsciously he put one parcel of photos besides the equipments of experiment. After the experiment ended, he found that the sealed photo were sensitized, which was impossible thing in common cases. This occasional event made Roentgen think a lot, and then he repeated this experiment for many time, which proved that this was a unknown rays passed through the sealed paper, and then it was named as X rays.

Discovery of X-rays has great scientific values; its application has not only provided physics with a strong tool but also boost greatly the developments of medical technology. Roentgen was also awarded with first Nobel physics prize due to his discovery of X rays.

Penicillin was also an unexpected discovery in lab. British bacteriologist Fleming was mainly devoted into the researches of curing the cut infection. But he failed to succeed after hard works for many years. One time he found casually that the surround of fungus in the culture medium appeared a circle of blank; the grape cocci which cause the cut to infected and mattery disappeared.

Further researches betrayed that it was the fungus which killed the grape cocci, while this kind of fungus is poisonous to the material rather than leucocyte. This could show that it can be used to cure humane diseases, and Fleming named it as penicillin.

Penicillin has save many lives of sick and injured soldiers in World War Two, and became one of three great discoveries besides B-bomb and radar. It is still medicine of special effects to cure many kinds of diseases in present days, and Fleming also won Nobel Prize of 1945.

Scientific discoveries and inventions were uncountable. For example, Newton discovered universal gravitation when he casually observed that the apple fell down from tree. But not all this kinds of casual discoveries can bring benefits to human being; experiments have resulted into disasters some times.

For example, Franklin, famous American politician and scientist, was always interested in electricity, thorough observing the sound of Leyden jar and its produced bright, he thought about the thunder in the sky. He wanted to know whether these tow were the same one. In order to solve this problem, he made a kite with silk fabric, tied one end of kite with thin iron thread, and then led the thunder down, this succeeded in proving that the heaven electricity was thoroughly same with ground electricity.

In fact it is very dangerous to catch the electricity through kite, while Franklin was just lucky to avoid the electrical attack. Others were not so lucky. One year after Franklin’s experiment, Liheman, a Russian physical scientist, led his student to take the same experiment, but he was attacked by thunder and died on the spot.

Franklin also almost died in one electrical experiment. On time when Franklin took an experiment of using a Leyden jar to electrocute turkey, as a result, he was electrocuted to faint. After awakening, he said humorously: “oh my god, I intended to electrocute a turkey, but almost kill a fool as a result.” 

There are many cases of scientific experiments resulting into disasters. Nitroglycerin is a kind of strong explosive, used in mineral exploration and road construction etc since invented. But it is not safe, since it will go explored once shook a little or warmed up a little, and its production process is very complex. Nobel kept on the researches of the safety of this kind of explosive, and tried to simplify its production process. His younger brother was helping him.

On third August of 1864, his brother led several technicians to work with simpler way, but it explored, his brother and other 4 persons died on the spot. Nobel happened to go out and escape this disaster.

After accident, Nobel failed to give up the continuous researches on nitroglycerin, esp. its safety. He found that it could be absorbed dry with the diatomite; this kind of compound can be safely transported, so he began to research on how to improve the explosive and detonator. It explored again in experiment due to carelessness, and Nobel was hurt on whole body, but he was not dead fortunately.

The suddenness and carelessness of experiments were resulted from none-cognition of uncertain science, which make any scientists unable to safely and accurately judge the results of experiment. So some casual fruits can be found in scientific experiments while some disastrous events can also occur.

With the deeper and deeper exploration to the uncertain scientific fields, science will develop into higher and higher rank, and the scientific strengths resulted from higher science and technology are sure to be greater and greater. This kind of scientific strengths can benefit human being and also bring about destruction. When this rank reaches some certain level, it will have the ability to annihilate human being.

Unfortunately, scientist usually never take measure of annihilation human being as their researching goal except few abnormal persons, but results of scientific researches won’t work according to the intention of scientist. When one scientific    experiment plan is carrying on, the former goal failed to reach but the other unexpected results are available, which is completely the case some time. Such kind of experiments failed to gain effective fruits and some destruction and disasters are completely possible to occur.

Anyway, in late long process of scientific developments, with our scientific researches will go into higher rank, the energies released by fruits of scientific researches will become bigger and bigger, so it may be completely possible to give evils and sins due to the un-expectation and carelessness.

Second, careless uses of scientific and technologic products

Uncertainty is one of basic characters of science and technology, many scientific and technologic products have been produced and used in great amount, but we are not sure about its function and safety. The practices tell us that scientific and technologic products may result into serious disaster when used some time. It is lucky that the level of scientific developments is not so high in present days, but science and technology will develop further till some certain level, then human being may face the result of extinction due to this carelessness.

There are many cases of disasters due to the careless uses of scientific and technologic products: we know that destroy of ozonosphere has attracted widely attentions of whole world in present days. Since it is resulted from use of Freon, whole world is adopting unified behaviors to limit and cancel the uses of Freon.

But Freon was advocated greatly by scientists when invented by DuPont, it was even apotheosized. Freon is nontoxic, incombustible and stable, no erosion to metal material, so it is widely used in refrigeration industry and other many fields. But it is unexpected that it is its stability that leads to the un-reverse destruction of ozonosphere.

Since the Chloro-fluoron-carbon disposed in refrigeration is very stable, it can float with air into sky, but it won’t decompose in stratosphere, where it meets the strong excitement of ultraviolet which is not filtered and the chlorine in Chloro-fluoron-carbon can be decomposed, and the decomposed chlorine will react with the unstable ozone, as a result, the ozone is spoiled.

Formation of ozonosphere is result of primary cultivation for several billion of years, also the protection Deity of lives on Earth. Only a careless use of a scientific and technologic products can produce great destruction, which won’t be completed with time of hundred years, this can show what a big disaster the careless uses of scientific and technologic products will result into.

Use of DDT also originated from such kind of carelessness. Muller of Swiss chemist started researches on pesticide since 1935. He uses DDT to test mosquito and insects etc. It showed that DDT has strong effect of killing insects, and this kind of compound is harmless to human being and livestock. Hence as first greatly used organic pesticide, DDT was widely used, and Muller gained Nobel Medical prize and physiology prize in 1948.

However, only ten years late, the negative effects of DDT showed, 人们 discovery  after using DDT for a long time, those pests gained abilities to defend medicine, but the natural enemies of those pests have been killed, so the pests are more rampant. In addition, birds absorbed DDT when eating the pests; their eggs will have thin crust, which will result into death of child birds. So DDT has obvious harms to the biologic diversity. In the same time, human being is suffering DDT directly, after researches, DDT has the effects same with female sexual hormone, which can reduce the masculine nature of man and affect his fertilizing.

Due to mentioned series harms, DDT was banned to use by each country continuously. But since DDT is insoluble in water, its toxicity will reduce slowly, so though it was banned to use for over 20 years, the bodies of birds and human being have sometime  DDT available, even the remote penguins in south pole have contained DDT it their bodies.

There are other cases including that there are some problems stay un-researched thoroughly, but they are produced greatly. This may result into the great destruction or extinctive powers. For example, combustible ice may result into such bad disaster if used carelessly.

The combustible ice is the water compound after combination of methane and water. It looks like ice, existing in the constant frozen earth layer in the bottom of sea. The bottom of sea with area of 400 million square meters, it covers 10% of total area of sea. An international judge shows that total combustible ice in whole Earth is equal to 2 or 3 times of total amount of coal, oil and natural gas of whole world, which can satisfy the energy uses of human being for 1000, so it is honored as one of most valuable energies.

But this kind of energy may give global disaster if explored carelessly. One unit of combustible ice can result into 164 units of methane, while the greenhouse effects of methane are equal to over 20 times of carbon dioxide, but it is very difficult to develop combustible ice. If one piece of combustible ice is moved from bottom to surface of sea, it will volatilize to none. Combustible ice deposit may result into leakage of great amount of methane even spoiled a little; esp. the combustible ice on the edge of land is more difficult. Once it breaks out, it will result into tsunami, seabed coast, sea water poisonization, while the sprayed methane will all enter the gas, and the global gas temperature will increase rapidly. If some countries really begin to develop combustible ice in great amount before the researches are mature, the results maybe beyond imagination.

After a scientific and technologic product was researched and produced, scientists are usually unable to completely accurately judge its absolute safety when used. The more complex is this scientific and technologic product and higher it is in scientific achievements, the more difficult to judge its safety level. In contrast, the higher is a kind of scientific and technologic product in its scientific achievements, the greater is its ability to destruct, this kind of great destructive strengths will have ability to annihilate human being sooner or later since the science and technology continues to develop into higher rank.

So we can see that when science and technology develops enough to have ability to annihilate human being, while the self annihilation of human being won’t be inevitable since some people with abnormal thinking may use the annihilation measure, the careless use of scientific and technologic products may result into human being annihilation. This conclusion can fully explain that due to uncertainty of science and technology, when the science and technology develops into some certain degrees, the uncertainty of science and technology will surely make us unable to avoid the fate of human being extinction in any measures. In order to avoid the human being annihilation, the only choice is to stop the developments of science and technology before it has the ability to annihilate human being.

A vivid parable is that there must be landmines in front, and further we go the landmines are more. These are the landmines of science and technology. If we can accurately know the position of these landmines, we can walk clear of them. But due to the uncertainty of science and technology, we don’t know their accurate positions, so if we continue to walk ahead, we are sure to meet the landmines. If we want to avoid touching the landmine, we should stop going further.