Humanity, the virus

From the Strib's letters page:

The June 14 edition reports that physicist Stephen Hawking "sees [a] need for colonization of space."

Prof. Hawking favors space settlements that need no support from Earth, so that humans can survive disasters such as global warming, nuclear war or a genetically engineered virus -- which would be created largely by humans.

What is the evidence that the human race ought to survive?

HEATHER BJORK, GOLDEN VALLEY

Please remember that this woman has the good of all humanity on her mind.