Intensifying global heat threatens livability for younger and older adults

throwaway5752

CO2 levels are detectably weakening human bone and making you more anxious at current levels: https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11869-026-01918-5 (look at the CO2 level over time image for a sense of perspective) CO2 levels are increasing your risk of diabetes: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S016041201... ? They are not slowly increasing, they are hockey sticking. The worst case is coming to pass. People are addicted to optimism here. It is unfounded - there is one action and it is to reduce CO2 emissions drastically at the expense of economic growth or we will destroy the world as we know it. It cannot be overstated how dire the situation is.

ltbarcly3

This seems like a reasonable analysis. One thing I think it neglects is the ability of people to adapt, and the fact that people don't adapt until forced to. For example, in many countries will provide shelters when conditions reach the point that it is necessary to do so: https://tribune.net.ph/2025/03/10/doh-directs-hospitals-to-s... https://biz.chosun.com/en/en-society/2025/06/17/5LYKRPNYTJEQ... You can search, there are hundreds of examples. Additionally, individuals and families put thought and effort into solving this for themselves. Setting up a room with a beat up old window AC and salvaged insulation, even if they they can only run during peak times to provide protection for their elderly relatives, for example. People in these countries aren't going to start suddenly dying by the millions when it gets to hot, they will adapt and overcome. Rich industrialized countries should provide some kind of compensation, it's manifestly unjust for rich countries to keep all the benefits while poor people have to reallocate already meager resources to survive the consequences. Rich countries should provide offsetting investments in education and infrastructure. It would be a massive benefit to a poor community that depends on importing diesel to generate electricity if they were provided with wind and solar capacity, especially solar in this case. This would directly make their AC use more affordable as well as reduce additional emissions.

graemep

Higher temperatures reduce "the level of physical activity that a person can safely sustain without experiencing an uncontrolled rise in body temperature" is hardly surprising. For those of us who have lived in a hot climate its a statement of the obvious. Not only that, its a lot harder to concentrate so it affects mental work as well as physical. That is why, for example, air conditioning is an aid to productivity in hot climates - Lee Kuan Yew claimed air conditioning was a critical factor in Singapore's prosperity.

chneu

Having children in 2026 is a very selfish and completely asshole thing to do. We're destroying the world as fast as we can. Our emissions are going up FAST. We're melting every bit of ice on the planet. We're deforesting for more beef at an insane rate. We're using more plastic than ever. If you have a child today, you're a selfish asshole. Their world is going to be so, so bad. Famine, crazy weather patterns, mass human migration, wars, resource scarcity. This is what you're gifting your children. Inb4 everyone has their excuse. Nobody is willing to sacrifice, at all, for the greater good. Everyone wants to blame boomers but nobody since has done SHIT and when young folks stand up, suing for their right to a livable environment, most people tell them they're being "doomers" or "cynical". We're just as bad as our grandparents, we just have more excuses than they do.