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Food items like coffee, tea, soft drinks, chocolate, and alcoholic beverages are not essential for bodily nourishment. To make these, we are growing grape, coffee, tea, chocolate plantations for which we have occupied a lot of land from nature. As the use of these food items grows, more and more land will be brought under human occupation. So, by minimizing the use of such food items, we will be helping nature.
Do not blindly believe that everything suggested by scientists with great fame and reputation is good. As an example, I will mention an idea discussed in the news recently to eliminate global warming, reported to have been suggested by the big name American scientist Edward Teller. He is often called the father of the hydrogen bomb, and he wields a lot of influence in US military and government circles.
Dust in the atmosphere reflects some of the incoming sunlight back into outer space before it reaches the earth. Because of this, almospheric dust can decrease the amount of energy that the earth absorbs from sunlight.
Teller's proposal is to make dust bombs and explode them in the stratosphere. This will create a layer of dust in the stratosphere which will reman floating there for several years. This dust layer will reflect part of the incoming sunlight into outer space, thus eliminating global warming without having to cut down the amount of fossil fuels burnt.
This proposal sounds quite logical. However, if the stratospheric dust layer reflects away too much of the incoming sunlight, the earth may begin to freeze. If this happens, we are totally helpless since it is almost impossible to remove the dust layer once it is created.
It is our duty to vigorously oppose the implementation of such dangerous technologies.
Above all, I am sure you can use your imagination to lead a very happy and highly productive life without the need for fancy future technologies being developed that cause the destruction of the small fraction of nature that is left.
Next: References
Up: How You Can Help
Previous: Teach Children to Appreciate
Katta G Murty
2001-09-27