The precipice: Existential risk and the future of humanity

Sears, Nathan Alexander

Ord's view of humanity's potential not only shapes much of his moral argument for prioritizing existential risks,[4] but also the comparative analysis of existential risks. While humanity may face serious "unknown" or "other" existential risks, Ord does not explain why they should be treated a priori as greater risks than either nuclear war or climate change. Secondly, Ord identifies the most serious anthropogenic existential risks, which are nuclear war, climate change, other environmental risks, bioengineered pandemics, and artificial intelligence. Personally, I see Ord's book as making a valuable contribution to a particular understanding of existential risk, shaped largely by the author's conception of "humanity's potential.". [Extracted from the article] Copyright of Governance is the property of Wiley-Blackwell and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)