The Earth Without…

Written by: Caroline Kim

December 17, 2022

In reference to the book, The World Without Us, by Alan Weisman, today’s blog is about the earth without its fundamental pieces: water, plants, and humans. What does the earth really need, what could the earth do better without, and how would these presences and absences of these pieces alter earth.

Simple put, life would not be able to exist without water- no plants, animals, or humans. NASA has done the work to create visuals of what earth would look like without water: . Essentially, what would be left where water once was would be shallow land bridges between continents, oceanic ridges, and trenches (Nace). Oceans help distribute and absorb solar radiation and regulate earth’s temperatures, meaning temperatures and radiation would be extreme without water on earth (Flinn).

Plants work to regulate our planet’s temperatures by absorbing billions of tons of oxygen (Kelly). “people… they’re not just taking carbon out of the land, they’re actually changing the land’s capacity to take up carbon” (Kelly). In the absence of plants, “The population of all animals would face two threats: running out of breathable air and running out of food” (Plant Departure). According to New Scientist, “herbivores would starve to death in a few weeks… if fruit and seeds remained, birds and animals that eat them would last longer… carnivores would go next” (Plant Departure). Again, we reach the same conclusion that earth would be unlivable without plants.

But what would happen if humans went extinct? This is the answer Weisman answers thoroughly in his book. Weisman answers, “Without people to run pumps that divert rainfall and rising groundwater, the subways of huge sprawling cities like London and New York would flood within hours of our disappearance” (Bryce). Oil and nuclear plants would likely cause explosions and spills without supervision, which could lead to a major climate crisis (Bryce). Additionally, petroleum spills would be repurposed by plants, and former streets would soon be covered in vegetation (Bryce). According to Weisman, the absence of chemicals would result in insects, plants, and recovery of wildlife; essentially, biodiversity would thrive (Bryce). However, there isn’t definitive say whether the earth would be unlivable without humans; conversely, it may be much better off.

Sources:

Nace, Trevor. “NASA Reveals What Earth Would Look like If the Oceans Dried Up.” Forbes, Forbes Magazine, 10 Dec. 2021, https://www.forbes.com/sites/trevornace/2020/02/03/nasa-reveals-what-earth-would-look-like-if-the-oceans-dried-up/.

Flinn, Gallagher. “What If the Oceans Disappeared?” HowStuffWorks Science, HowStuffWorks, 24 Aug. 2022, https://science.howstuffworks.com/science-vs-myth/what-if/what-if-oceans-disappeared.htm.

Kelly, Morgan. “Without Plants, Earth Would Cook under Billions of Tons of Additional Carbon.” Princeton University, The Trustees of Princeton University, 16 Oct. 2013, https://www.princeton.edu/news/2013/10/16/without-plants-earth-would-cook-under-billions-tons-additional-carbon.

“Plant Departure.” New Scientist, New Scientist, 28 June 2017, https://www.newscientist.com/lastword/mg23431311-500-plant-departure/.

Bryce, Emma. “What Would Happen to Earth If Humans Went Extinct?” LiveScience, Purch, 16 Aug. 2020, https://www.livescience.com/earth-without-people.html.