4 Ways The World Could End In Your Lifetime (And 3 Ways We Can Stop It)

6. It Could Already Be Too Late To Stop Climate Change

Talk about climate change is coming from all angles these days, so much so that it has become background noise, something of an intangible concept.

It is, however, as serious as herpes - and about as much fun - and, like herpes, it will not be made to go away by ignoring it.

Whilst estimates for exactly how swift and how terrible the consequences will be are varied, some of the more fatalistic experts reckon that we could have as little a 100 years left to enjoy humanity as we know it. Dr Frank Fenner is amongst the pessimists, stating that, regardless of the steps humanity takes, our fate is sealed. Extreme weather conditions, the collapse of ecosystems, drought, famine, economic collapse, overcrowding, pollution of the water supply - all of these are outcomes of our dramatically warming planet, and none of them is exactly a day at the zoo.

Others are slightly more optimistic regarding our ultimate fate, suggesting that we could escape the hellscape Earth of the future, but only if we make drastic changes now - leaving as much as 80% of the remaining fossil fuels in the ground and properly investing in cleaner energy. Both camps agree, however, that our current set up is unsustainable to the point of disaster.