What would happen if every human suddenly disappeared?

Watch the clips and answer the questions.

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What would happen if every human suddenly disappeared?

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Human beings are everywhere. With settlements ​

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every continent, we can be found ​

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the most isolated corners ​

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Earth’s ​

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​

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and tundras.

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on

in

of

jungles,

oceans,

by

off

at

forests,

seas,

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Our impact is so ​

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most scientists believe humanity has left a ​

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mark on Earth’s geological record. So what ​

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happen if ​

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every ​

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on Earth disappeared?

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profound,

permanent

would

suddenly,

human

intense

lasting

could

unexpectedly,

person

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With ​

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maintaining them, some of our creations backfire immediately. Hours after we disappear, oil refineries malfunction, producing month-long blazes at plants like the ​

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in ​

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the southern ​

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and ​

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no one

ones

western India,

United States,

South Korea.

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In ​

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like those in ​

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​

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and New York City, ​

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are abandoned, ​

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in just three days.

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underground rail systems

London,

Moscow,

hundreds of drainage pumps

flooding the tunnels

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​

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​

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​

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​

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​

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By the end of the first week,

most emergency generators have shut down,

and once the fires have gone out,

the earth goes dark for

the first time in centuries.

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​

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​

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​

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​

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​

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After the first catastrophic month,

changes come more gradually.

Within 20 years,

sidewalks have been torn apart

by weeds and tree roots.

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Around this time, flooded tunnels erode the streets above ​

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urban rivers.

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temperate climates, ​

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cycle of seasons freezes and ​

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these waterways, cracking pavement and concrete foundations. Leaking pipes cause the same reaction in concrete buildings, and ​

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200 winters, most skyscrapers buckle and tumble down.

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into

In

the

thaws

within

onto

melts

with

At

a

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In cities built in river deltas like Houston, these buildings eventually wash away completely - ​

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Rural and ​

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decay more slowly, but ​

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Leaks, ​

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- ​

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- now go uncontested.

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filling nearby tributaries with crushed concrete.

suburban areas

in largely unsurprising ways.

mould, bug and rodent infestations

all the usual enemies of the homeowner

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Within ​

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years, most ​

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supporting beams have rotted and sagged, and the resulting collapsed heap is now ​

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to local rodents and lizards. But in this post-human world, “local” has a new meaning. Our ​

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are full of imported plants, which now run wild across their adopted ​

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. Water hyacinth coat the waterways of Shanghai in a thick green carpet.

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75

houses'

home

cities

homes

65

homes'

housed

homed

worlds

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Poisonous giant hogweeds overgrow ​

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​

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Chinese Ailanthus ​

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And as sunken ​

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to ​

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the soil acidity plummets, potentially allowing new plant life to thrive.

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the banks of

London’s Thames River.

trees burst through New York City streets.

skyscrapers add crumbled concrete

the new forest floor,

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This post-human biodiversity extends into ​

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Animals follow ​

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venturing into new habitats with the help of our leftover bridges. In general, ​

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Cockroaches continue to thrive in ​

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but without our heating systems, their urban cousins ​

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out in just two winters.

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the animal kingdom, as well.

the unchecked spread of native and non-native plan

our infrastructure saves some animals and dooms ot

their native tropical habitats,

likely freeze and die

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And most domesticated ​

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are unable to survive without us – save for a handful of resourceful ​

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and feral house-​

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Conversely, the reduced light pollution saves over a billion ​

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each year whose migrations were disrupted by blinking communication tower lights and high-tension wires.

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animals

pigs,

dogs,

cats.

birds

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And mosquitos multiply endlessly in one ​

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manmade nurseries – rubber tires, which last ​

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As fauna and flora flourish, Earth’s climate slowly recovers from millennia ​

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Within 35,000 years, the plant cycle removes the last traces ​

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the Industrial Revolution from Earth’s soil, and it may take up to 65,000 years beyond that ​

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But even after several million years, humanity’s legacy lives on.

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of their favourite

for almost a thousand years.

of human impact.

of lead left by

for CO2 to return pre-human levels.

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unyielding granite, America’s Mt. Rushmore survives for ​

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years. The chemical composition of our bronze sculptures keeps them recognisable for over ​

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. ​

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deep underground, the remnants of cities built on floodplains have been ​

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time as a kind of technofossil.

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Carved in

7.2 million

10 million

And buried

preserved in

Preserved in

and buried

carved in

8.2 million

11 million

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​

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​

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perhaps we can learn more about the world we live in now.

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Eventually, these traces, too,

will be wiped from the planet’s surface.

Humanity hasn’t always been here,

and we won’t be here forever.

But by investigating the world without us,

Multiple Choice

How long does it take for most suburban homes to collapse?

• 10 years

• 25 years

• 75 years

• 150 years

Multiple Choice

Which of these animals thrives after humans leave the earth?

• Dogs

• Cockroaches

• Horses

• Mosquitos

Multiple Choice

Which of the following does NOT happen within the first month that humans disappear?

• Oil refinery fires

• Streets erode into rivers

• Flooded subway tunnels

• Emergency generators shutting down

Multiple Choice

Which of these things lasts the longest on a post-human earth?

• Mt Rushmore

• Suspension bridges

• Bronze statues

• Rubber Tires

Multiple Choice

Which of the following is NOT a side effect of decaying cities?

• Plant life withers underneath fallen buildings

• Crushed concrete in nearby tributaries

• Lower soil acidity on new forest floors

• Fossilized techno cities