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Erschienen in:
2016 | OriginalPaper | Buchkapitel
Demographic Transition
verfasst von : William Sims Bainbridge
Erschienen in: Handbook of Science and Technology Convergence
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Abstract
For a century, a key component of social scientific understanding of sustainability on Earth has been the theory that human population growth would gracefully adjust toward stability as the entire world became technologically modern. However, today this theory is in serious doubt, and it is equally plausible to argue that population will grow to natural limits set by starvation and warfare, or that it will shrink to a less violent human extinction. Many current policy debates are affected by these uncertainties, in such areas as national defense, immigration, education, and health care. Only the convergence of social and biological sciences, assisted by contributions from many other technical fields, will achieve a proper understanding of the complex systemic processes involved to identify the most humane and effective policies. Thus, convergence of science and technology will be required to achieve beneficial convergence of all human beings into a single healthy and prosperous society.