Story Guide
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[Target Audience: Upper elementary students]
Quiz game!
Q1: What does Prof. Diamond think is the reason for the difference between the areas that developed technology and civilization and the areas that did not?
Q2: What does Prof. Diamond think is the priority environmental problem?
Answers
Q1: What does Prof. Diamond think is the reason for the difference between the areas that developed technology and civilization and the areas that did not?
Answer : 1. Differences in geographical conditions
Prof. Diamond started to study the reasons that technology and civilization develop in some areas and not in others, triggered by the question that Yali, the man he met in New Guinea, asked.
He concluded that there are no superior or inferior races, and differences in geographical conditions significantly influenced the history of civilizations.
Q2: What does Prof. Diamond think is the priority environmental problem?
Answer : 3. No priorities
Prof. Diamond pointed out that the environmental problems we are confronting have complex relations to one another, and even if most problems are successfully addressed, the remaining problems will continue to pose a threat to the planet's health. It is important to address all the problems.
The worst thing to do is to prioritize a single environmental problem over the others. Prof. Diamond emphasizes that we must solve all environmental problems.
Important points!
Differences in geographical conditions including locations, landforms, climate and animals or plants strongly influence the development and destruction of civilizations.
Environmental problems have complex relations to one another. Therefore, we should not prioritize individual problems, but solve all environmental problems.
More details!
The 12 most serious environmental problems
Prof. Diamond described 12 serious environmental problems facing society past and present in his book Collapse. Here we introduce all of them.
Prof. Diamond pointed out that even if 11 out of 12 problems are successfully addressed, the remaining problem will continue to pose a threat to the planet's health.
We should start from not prioritizing individual problems, but consider all problems as connected.
[Destruction or depletion of natural resources]
1. Destruction of ecosystems
Forests, wetlands, and coral reefs are precious ecosystems that provide resources. However, they have been destroyed through the use of land for cities and agriculture.
2. Depletion of marine resources
Fish and shellfish contribute a large percentage of the protein consumed by humans. However, the amount of marine resources have been decreasing due to overfishing and destruction of ecosystems.
3. Loss of biodiversity
The diversity of living things enriches ecosystems and provide benefits. However, organic extinction caused by overfishing and overhunting, and destruction of ecosystems leads to the loss of diversity.
4. Deforestation and soil problems
Fertile soil is essential for agriculture. Erosion and chlorination of soil caused by agricultural activity, however, significantly decrease soil productivity.
[Limit of natural resources]
5. Energy issues: Depletion of fossil fuels and more
Fossil fuels are an extremely important energy resource. It is thought that petroleum and natural gases will be used up in a few decades. Without the development of alternative energy resources, we can expect to encounter problems.
6. Depletion of water resources (in rivers, lakes, etc.)
Freshwater is essential for human life. Most of the world's freshwater in rivers and lakes is already being utilized and it will eventually dwindle.
7. Limits to the use of the world's terrestrial photosynthetic capacity
The supply of sunlight for plant photosynthesis is not infinite. Because the photosynthetic capacity of a land is determined by its size, if most of the Earth's photosynthetic capacity is used for farming, little will be left over to support the growth of wild plants.
[Toxic chemicals]
8. Contamination by toxic chemicals
Toxic chemicals artificially produced and discharged from factories remain in the environment and have an adverse effect on humans and ecosystems.
9. Destruction of ecosystems by alien species
Species transplanted by people from their natural environment to locations where they are not native can devastate native species and destroy ecosystems.
10. Global warming by greenhouse gases
Among the greenhouse gases that cause global warming, carbon dioxide is increasing significantly due to the use of fossil fuels and plastics, and methane is increasing significantly through the intestinal fermentation of food by cows and sheep we raise and the leakage of fuels.
[Overpopulation]
11. Rapid overpopulation
The world's human population is growing and is expected to keep growing*.
*The global population as of 2019 is approximately 7.7 billion, and it is predicted to be approximately 10.9 billion in 2100.
12. Human impacts on the environment by overpopulation and the improvement in the standard of living
Humans consume resources and generate waste. The more our population increases and the more the standard of living in developing countries increases, the greater mass production and waste become. This leads to more serious environmental problems.
Professor Diamond is
featured in Gring and Woodin's Comic!
- Gring and Woodin's Comic
- Blue Planet Prize Fun School Series
- Prof. Diamond's Fun School