| Since the start of industrialization, man has consumed ever-increasing amounts of resources at an ever-accelerating rate, changing the planet to such an extent that some scientists now speak of a new geological epoch: the Anthropocene. Human influences have thrown many natural cycles out of sync. The total extent is comparable to the effects of devastating meteorite impacts or super-volcanic eruptions that led to mass extinctions of species in distant eras. If humans are able to cause such cataclysmic consequences by their actions, it should also be possible to mitigate the consequences by changing those actions. Many scientists agree that this will not be possible by way of technological progress alone but only through profound social changes. |