Technology for all its advantages and life altering usage has a lot of doomsday scenario, the downsides of each invention is the potential to cause irreparable damage when abused, the level of destruction we have wrought in the past is astounding in itself, but with the golden age of technological invention upon us, what possible worst scenario is possible if our invention goes awry or used for innovative wrong purposes?
You must have come across different representations of apocalyptic events as portrayed in popular media; movies and books, what is the possibility of such scenario coming to fruition?
This list contains a few technological inventions that have the possibility of wiping out humanity as we know it from the face of the earth.
1. ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE (AI) WEAPONRY
Artificial intelligence can be defined as activity dedicated to creating intelligent machines and computer programs which enables forethoughts in its activities and functions in its environment like humans. It is basically creating a machine with a human thought process.
Artificial Intelligence is considered by some to be the greatest danger man; the fact that the average man and even the specialist have very limited knowledge about AI is dangerous in itself.
Of course no sane person would deliberately decide to destroy the world, but an extinction level event set in motion by a mistake is not off the mark. One of the main problem is the attitude towards artificial intelligence by the populace, not understanding the complex process by which it works is one thing but projecting the believe that Artificial intelligence will be inherently good is what may lead to major disaster.
AI use in warfare may range from Robotic soldiers, sentient landmines, and microscopic spies used in reconnaissance, attack and defence and it is closer than we think, with a report claiming AI warfare as inevitable and regards it as the future of warfare. Autonomous robots, when developed and used for war may even rival the impact nuclear weapons have.
2. NUCLEAR WEAPONS
Remember Hiroshima and Nagasaki? There is no example as apt as the destruction of these two cities in japan during world war two, and that was just the early version of nukes. The destructive power of today’s nuclear warhead is hundred folds greater than those dropped on Japan, and with over fifteen countries having nuclear capabilities; nukes have become more of an offensive deterrent, but what happens when war is unavoidable between one or more nuclear capable country? The utter annihilation that would be unleashed will make the two previous world wars like child’s play, the effects of a nuclear warhead detonating goes beyond the immediate destruction which is immense; there are also long term ramifications to human health and the environment.
The explosion of a nuclear releases an intense heat, blast waves and toxic level radiation with the effect of annihilation of people, buildings and everything caught in the blast radius, with the radiation causing severe effects to the environment.
The survivors of the intense heat, firestorm and blast will still have the radiation aftermath to contend with; even those outside the blast radius won’t be safe. Short and long term effect includes
- Central nervous system damage
- Inability of the body to produce new blood cells resulting in profuse bleeding and life threatening infections
- Risk of leukaemia and other forms of cancer on the rise
With nuclear war, total destruction is the designed aim.
3. BIOLOGICAL WEAPONS
Biological weapons have been depicted in popular media with scenarios in comics, television and films, dystopian novels (think circle series by Ted Dekker) there are many instances and variations of such weaponry.
Biological warfare is the intentional use of microorganisms and toxins to produce diseases and death in living organisms. The scary thing about biological weapons is the easy access to disease producing agents, low production and the difficulty in detecting it by security systems, they are easily transmitted too. (Nature does most of the work). Bioweapons include equipment and means of delivery which is created to use these toxins for hostile intent.
Biological weapons are similar to nuclear weapons in their shared abilities to cause wanton destruction, the use of biological weapons as a means of strangulating the economy of the target is not to be taken likely. A three prong attacking on crops, livestock and people is capable of bringing a nation to its knees, the scary aspect is the cloak and dagger mystery that can be employed by the perpetrators if they so wish. Such method can be carried out under the veil that the occurrence is as a result of natural outbreak of diseases of epidemic proportions. Like Nuclear attack, defence against these types of attacks is reactive (which is after the fact, hence useless), the sudden attack usual make obvious a lack of strategy in case of eventuality.
Imagine an outbreak of war where biological warfare is employed, living organisms are used as vectors; insects, pests and delivery methods like aero sprays, water delivery system and organic carriers like soil, and with the ease of transportation in the world today, one infected human can carry a virus into another country causing un uncontrollable cascade of events (The last Ebola virus outbreak in Africa comes to mind) causing millions to die before the world knows what is going on. And unlike Nuclear warfare, there is very little precision in the use of bioweapons, collateral damage is always involved and according to research, among all weapons of mass destruction, the one most feared are bioweapons. With the era of biotechnology upon us, gene designed organism can now be used in the production of deadly bioweapons that has never been seen before.
4. DRONES
Recent years have seen the emergence of a new kind of warfare; drone attacks. Unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), as they are also called started as a major weapon employed by the United States on terrorism, other nations including the United Kingdom, China, Germany and Israel have also joined the fray. Supporters believe drones are a very humane way of waging war and it reduces the cost of war with increased precision.
Drones can either be a tiny as a Mosquito or as large as an airplane and can be used for surveillance and war. They are used as delivery system for lethal missiles remotely (An operator sits at control panels pushing buttons and determining where to strike).
Drones as a weapon of war are used for killing and spying and even with the precision, there is still the matter of collateral damage when innocent people are caught in the crosshairs of a drone strike. Depending on perspective; it is seen as an instrument of terror and clean war.
One disturbing attribute is the uses of signature strikes where launched missile target activity cluster instead of precise target causing civilian’s injuries and deaths.
5. CYBERWARFARE
Cyberspace is the world of computer networks, the users, the information which is stored and communicated; it is basically the merging of human and the network which he uses.
The internet has evolved from just sending emails or compiling information, it now handles a lot from the internet of things (IOT) to social media. The sphere of commerce, communication, transportation and every critical aspect of modern day civilization are linked with the internet.
This amazing invention has also birthed cybercrime which has been said by some quarters as the most dangerous threat to economy and national security of nations. The internet has no boarders and in situation where war on this virtual in this cyber space is launched (cyber war), the features you have enjoyed off this international network can be turned against you very fast. Cyber war comprises the use and target of computer and their networks in war; it can include both offensive and defensive actions including cyber-attack. A state sponsored cyber war can be used to invade another nation’s for hostile purposes; it can be used to steal sensitive information which can be used to propagate chaos. Energy, food, communications and transportation are especially vulnerable to disruption, this attacks can also be very risky to civilians (Attack on an electric grid may harm innocents)
In the future, wars may just not be fought with only guns, nuclear or biological weapons; the click of mouse miles away that unleashes deadly computer programs which can attack transportation, communication and causing havoc to military networks is a very great possibility. The internet can become a virtual battle ground.
Guest article written by: Tosin Ariyo is Technology writer and an ardent follower of the field and the implications it has brought to our present life style. He is excited with what the future holds for us tech wise.
It’s crazy scary seeing such a resurgence in the fear of nuclear war, but I think it’s pretty well founded. With some pretty scary arsenals still kicking about, and a growing number of nuclear states, even if we can avoid the political contests that could lead to war, there’s still the (very real) threat of an accidental nuclear strike.
If you’re interested in a pragmatic (but kinda terrifying) counterpart to your post, it’d be awesome if you’d check out my supppperrrrr in-depth guide to actually surviving a nuclear attack: http://ashtales.com/how-to-survive-a-nuclear-attack/
With that said, I’m screwed if any of your other four doomsday scenarios come knocking 😛
Thanks for the killer post!
It would be more than nice to see that science and knowledge focuses to generate energy sources that are natural and are not polluting the environment, and also a way of protecting nature, the plants, the animals, the forests of the planet and the water (fresh and seawater).