From: Charles J Knight (c.knight_at_juno.com)
Date: 04/27/99
Date: Tue, 27 Apr 1999 15:01:00 +0000 Subject: Re: [jatkins_at_technistar.com: Good article on demographics] Message-ID: <19990427.150120.6630.0.c.knight@juno.com> From: Charles J Knight <c.knight_at_juno.com>
>The question I think you are trying to answer (using
>high tech design science) is whether human beings make
>those decisions or Gaia makes them for us once the
>population exceeds global carrying capacity.
What is the global carrying capacity? I heard a statistic, at one
point, which stated that the entire current population of the earth
(about 4 billion at the time) could be housed no 1/2 acre plots, on
Australia alone, leaving the rest of the land on the planet available
for agriculture, preserves, etc.
However, relocating the global population is not practical...our
cities are generally aligned along coastlines, rivers/waterways,
and land based shipping routes.
>Also, why floating cities, as opposed to coastal
>cities? Anything that floats has to be much more
>expensive than similar facilities on dry land.
Look at the above statement...our cities are located primarily
along coastlines and riverways. This is a *very* limited
amount of land...and building new rivers, i.e. canals, or reclaiming
coastal land, i.e. Holland, is enormously expensive.
Using those same funds, a megastructure floating island could
be constructed relatively easily...and with 2/3 of the earth's
surface capable of supporting these artificial islands, they would
seem to be a nearly perfect solution.
There are no major engineering problems in need of solutions
either. Buckminster Fuller drew up plans for megastructure islands
back in the 60's and 70's...entirely plausible, given technology today.
However, there's one question we haven't answered. Why not
just build a similar facility on dry land? Well, some land is not
suitable for building...or the cost is too high...or shipping is not
practical...or the infrastructure needed does not exist. Why not
just start out with a clean slate, in situations like those?
-- Chuck Knight
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