According to physics: It can’t. According to religion: What does this switch do again?
According to Elder G:
Physically: within 8 minutes, Earth goes dark, temperatures plummet, and photosynthesis halts. Within weeks, oceans start freezing from the top down. Within months, most life dies, except for deep-sea vent creatures and maybe WLBOTT elders huddled around a twine-fueled campfire. Metaphysically: poets rejoice at the metaphorical material. Existentialists mutter “told you so.” Chickens refuse to lay eggs.
There’s a little more to the story, but for the most part, not good:
Within a week, the average global surface temperature would drop below 0°F. In a year, it would dip to –100°. The top layers of the oceans would freeze over, but in an apocalyptic irony, that ice would insulate the deep water below and prevent the oceans from freezing solid for hundreds of thousands of years. Millions of years after that, our planet would reach a stable –400°, the temperature at which the heat radiating from the planet’s core would equal the heat that the Earth radiates into space
Humans could live in submarines in the deepest and warmest parts of the ocean, but a more attractive option might be nuclear- or geothermal-powered habitats. One good place to camp out: Iceland.
The island nation already heats 87 percent of its homes using geothermal energy, and, says astronomy professor Eric Blackman of the University of Rochester, people could continue harnessing volcanic heat for hundreds of years.[1]
Of course, the sun doesn’t merely heat the Earth; it also keeps the planet in orbit. If its mass suddenly disappeared (this is equally impossible, by the way), the planet would fly off, like a ball swung on a string and suddenly let go.
Iceland is basically sitting on a hotplate (the Mid-Atlantic Ridge). Magma close to the surface makes tapping geothermal relatively easy and inexpensive.
Today, about 87% of homes are heated by geothermal energy, with the rest primarily using renewable hydroelectric. That means Iceland is already one of the most energy-independent nations on Earth.
“Hundreds of years” is conservative. As long as tectonic processes continue — and they will, for millions of years — there’s heat to harvest.
“One Good Place to Camp Out” The article frames Iceland as a survival haven in case of cosmic catastrophe (like the Sun going out, which we just joked about). Without sunlight, you’d lose agriculture and most energy systems, but geothermal keeps pumping regardless of solar input. That makes Iceland uniquely positioned:
Heat → warmth in freezing conditions.
Steam → electricity and industrial power.
Potential greenhouses → indoor agriculture using artificial light, still powered by geothermal.
Update
No, the sun hasn’t gone out, but we ran across a video from one of our favorite channels (What If?) that talks about the sun going out. We’ve been too negative: the author enumerates many advantages should this occur.
Better astronomy
Improved satellite service
Single time zone / more efficient trade
Zero risk of solar flares
No bridge maintenance
and so on and so forth….
Why Do Squirrels Chase Each Other?
Part play, part dominance, part romance. Young squirrels chase for fun (a form of “tag”). Adults chase to establish hierarchy or to court. To human eyes it looks chaotic, but in squirrel society it’s their equivalent of speed dating combined with WrestleMania.
How Did Horseradish Get It’s Name?
It has nothing to do with horses (thank goodness). The German name Meerrettich (“sea radish”) was mistranslated into English. Somewhere, someone heard “meer” as “mare,” and voilà — horseradish. Horses, for the record, want no part in this culinary mess.
Just How Gross is a Fly Swatter?
Think about it: every successful swat creates a Rorschach blot of insect innards across your wallpaper. Add the fact that flies themselves are little disease-ferries, and you’ve basically made abstract art with germs. WLBOTT could probably sell framed swatter art at auction under the label “Bio-Expressionism.”
[By the way, this remains one of the most popular exhibits at the WLBOTT Museum of Stuff.]
What Exactly is Wrong with People?
Biologically: evolutionary leftovers (fight/flight over tiny stressors, tribal wiring, sugar cravings). Psychologically: the human brain is a kludge — a chimpanzee motherboard duct-taped to a lizard’s nervous system.
Biologically: Evolution’s Leftovers
We evolved for survival, not happiness. That means our instincts are optimized for “don’t get eaten by a tiger,” not for “handle office politics gracefully.”
Fight-or-flight is still triggered by emails, traffic jams, and awkward holiday dinners.
Sugar cravings made sense on the savannah (rare energy jackpot). In the supermarket aisle, it’s a disaster.
Psychologically: The Brain as a Kludge
Imagine a DIY computer cobbled together from three mismatched parts:
The Lizard Brain (basic survival, aggression, reproduction).
The Chimp Brain (emotions, tribal dynamics, gossip).
The Professor Brain (logic, abstract thought, quantum mechanics… but also rationalizations for buying a third air fryer).
Instead of a smooth upgrade path, evolution duct-taped them together, so we get conflicting signals: panic, impulse, and reason all arguing at once.
Socially: The Human Circus
We still carry our tribal wiring into a global world — craving “in-groups” and fearing “out-groups.” That’s why office cliques, political parties, and even soccer fandom feel life-or-death.
Add social media, and you’ve given the chimp brain a megaphone.
