Avoiding the Great Filter: Illuminating Pathways to Humanity's Future in the Cosmos

As we round the first quarter turn of the twenty-first century in the Common Era, Earth teems with over eight billion human souls—more than at any other epoch in our history. Yet there is no safety in numbers to be found in this burgeoning population; no shield against the myriad threats that loom. At the pinnacle of technological prowess, humanity is uniquely empowered to bring about its own collapse. Yet, while a seemingly silent universe may foretell near-certain doom, Earth’s cleverest ...