Nitrogen Quote by Alan Weisman
““Before artificial nitrogen fertilizer became widely available, the world's population was around 2 billion. When we no longer have it - or if we ever decide to stop using it - that may be the number to which our own naturally gravitates.””
About This Quote
Source Book: The World Without Us by Alan Weisman, 2007
Human population growth has been tied to artificial nitrogen; losing it could drastically reduce numbers.
In simple terms: Fertilizer fuels population size; without it, numbers may fall.
Key Takeaway
Consider sustainable alternatives to synthetic fertilizer.
Themes
population
environment
technology
food security
Mood
concerned
urgent
Type
environmental
analytical
When to use this quote
- farming
- policy planning
- global health
Key Concepts
agriculture
resource dependency
ecology
Questions to Reflect On
- What are the risks of abandoning synthetic fertilizer?
- How can we balance food needs with ecological limits?
A Different Perspective
Transitioning away from fertilizer is complex and may cause shortages.
![“In a certain sense I made a living for five or six years out of that one star [Ï… Sagittarii] and it is still a fascinating, not understood, star. It's the first star in which you could clearly demonstrate an enormous difference in chemical composition from the sun. It had almost no hydrogen. It…” quote by Jesse L. Greenstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/478/jesse-l-greenstein-68462_areas_in-a-certain-sense-i-made-a-living-for-f_529211.jpg)
![“A small bubble of air remained unabsorbed... if there is any part of the phlogisticated air [nitrogen] of our atmosphere which differs from the rest, and cannot be reduced to nitrous acid, we may safely conclude that it is not more than 1/120 part of the whole. [ Cavendish did not realize the…” quote by Henry Cavendish](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/5f1/henry-cavendish-118427_air_a-small-bubble-of-air-remained-unabsorbe_751063.jpg)