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from the crucial-—-but-under-appreciated-— dept.
A sand shortage? The world is running out of a crucial:
An insatiable global appetite for sand, one of the world’s most important but least appreciated commodities, is unlikely to let up anytime soon. The problem, however, is that this resource is slipping away.
Our entire society is built on sand. It is the world’s most consumed raw material after water and an essential ingredient to our everyday lives.
Sand is the primary substance used in the construction of roads, bridges, high-speed trains and even land regeneration projects. Sand, gravel and rock crushed together are melted down to make the glass used in every window, computer screen and smart phone. Even the production of silicon chips uses sand.
Yet, the world is facing a shortage — and climate scientists say it constitutes one of the greatest sustainability challenges of the 21st century.
(Score: 5, Informative) by DannyB on Wednesday August 04 2021, @02:15PM (7 children)
One solution that some would endorse is for us to put our fingers in our ears, bury our heads in the sand, while we still have some, and sing LA, LA LA, LA LA.
Place bets on whether we'll run out of sand or water first.
Every performance optimization is a grate wait lifted from my shoulders.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday August 04 2021, @02:25PM (4 children)
Well, since you have offered no actionable idea for reducing the population growth, you pretty much are the one running around yelling like a crazy person.
(Score: 2) by acid andy on Wednesday August 04 2021, @02:46PM (3 children)
Talking about the issues can help. It needs to be done sensitively. You'll get a few "crazy person"s that claim they'll have extra kids just to spite us, but other than that cultures can shift through awareness.
If a cat has kittens, does a rat have rittens, a bat bittens and a mat mittens?
(Score: 2) by DannyB on Wednesday August 04 2021, @03:01PM (2 children)
Maybe the AC would propose a policy that limits every person to having only one child (with whoever they want).
Problem: people will scream, but my freedom!
And they wouldn't be wrong. But its just like vaccines and masks. At what point will selfish people consider the common good might be more important.
I already think that some people today wouldn't want to bring a child into the increasingly dystopian world we live in.
It is just one of many problems, but for example, the US might no longer be a democracy if we are unable to have peaceful elections and everyone accept the results that are certified from the lowest to highest levels. I cannot imagine how the world would change if the US fails. But I don't mean to down play climate change, the drought, the fires, the floods, rising sea levels, and other problems.
It isn't the end of the world. It really isn't. It could merely be the end of humanity and some other species. And not overnight. Not even this decade. So we can safely ignore it.
Every performance optimization is a grate wait lifted from my shoulders.
(Score: -1, Offtopic) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday August 04 2021, @08:14PM (1 child)
Would you be referring to the inability of the Democrats to accept Trump's victory in the 2016 election?
(Score: 2) by DannyB on Thursday August 05 2021, @04:06PM
Trump won the Electoral College votes in 2016. And became president elect. What are you talking about?
He didn't win the popular vote, but that isn't what officially matters.
Trump won neither the popular nor the electoral college votes in 2020 and thus became the president-reject.
Every performance optimization is a grate wait lifted from my shoulders.
(Score: 3, Funny) by Rich on Wednesday August 04 2021, @02:28PM
If everyone needs sand to bury their head in, that adds to the sand scarcity. Maybe cull some ostriches, they started that idea in the first place?
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday August 05 2021, @09:06PM
p.s. I don't have any kids either.