[pm90]

We were supposed to have annihilated all of human life in a nuclear firestorm. But somehow we did manage to survive. Sure, the Great Firewall and China's potent surveillance system does alarm me greatly. But as long as the people who create these technologies also work in a society which places responsible limitations on their use, we might just be able to get to being an interplanetary species at some point.

Once humanity becomes capable of living and thriving in different planets/outer space without the mother planet is when things will start getting really interesting.

[hodgesrm]

I would not rule out nuclear catastrophe just yet. The technology has only been available for 75 years. So far most of the weapons have been in the hands of nations with stable command and control structures. That may not be the case in the next few decades.