"Humanity not only survived, but grew and prospered, traded, raided, built civilizations, explored the world, created great art and literature etc. for HOW many millenia before the internal combustion engine and petrochemical-based plastics? Yet some dipstick professor has to conduct an "experiment" to see if humanity is capable of living once the oil runs out?"

Oh there will be people, just not nearly as many of them once petroleum and gas stop providing us with cheap convenient energy and, perhaps even more importantly, synthetic nitrate fertilisers.

Although putting my business hat on, I see bright prospects for refounding Standard Oil around a Florida-based liposuction franchise.