I have a novel rolling around in my head, and I’m trusting you guys for my research. When I accept my Nobel prize in the field of literature, I’ll make sure to mention you.
Now, seriously. Imagine a population of a few hundred people on board a really big mother of a boat. Think Queen Elizabeth. Think navy aircraft carrier. That kind of boat. Let’s say we have a bunch of cash and convert it into a big floating farm, growing crops. We also have some really big fishing rods. Could we sustain this population (let’s say 300 people) indefinitely on the boat? How much artificial farmland would we need?
I suspect the big problem will be acquiring enough freshwater. How do those nuclear submarines that can stay at sea for months do it? They can’t bring that much water with them, can they? Is it realistically possible to desalinate sea water for this purpose? Could we recycle it?
If not 300, how many do you think we could manage to sustain? The boat has no other purpose other than keeping these people alive and in a reasonably good mood.