Join us on a literary world trip!
Add this book to bookshelf
Grey
Write a new comment Default profile 50px
Grey
Subscribe to read the full book or read the first pages for free!
All characters reduced
The Collapse of Western Civilization - A View from the Future - cover

We are sorry! The publisher (or author) gave us the instruction to take down this book from our catalog. But please don't worry, you still have more than 500,000 other books you can enjoy!

The Collapse of Western Civilization - A View from the Future

Naomi Oreskes, Erik Conway

Publisher: Columbia University Press

  • 0
  • 0
  • 0

Summary

The year is 2393, and the world is almost unrecognizable. Clear warnings of climate catastrophe went ignored for decades, leading to soaring temperatures, rising sea levels, widespread drought and—finally—the disaster now known as the Great Collapse of 2093, when the disintegration of the West Antarctica Ice Sheet led to mass migration and a complete reshuffling of the global order. Writing from the Second People's Republic of China on the 300th anniversary of the Great Collapse, a senior scholar presents a gripping and deeply disturbing account of how the children of the Enlightenment—the political and economic elites of the so-called advanced industrial societies—failed to act, and so brought about the collapse of Western civilization. In this haunting, provocative work of science-based fiction, Naomi Oreskes and Eric M. Conway imagine a world devastated by climate change. Dramatizing the science in ways traditional nonfiction cannot, the book reasserts the importance of scientists and the work they do and reveals the self-serving interests of the so called "carbon combustion complex" that have turned the practice of science into political fodder. Based on sound scholarship and yet unafraid to speak boldly, this book provides a welcome moment of clarity amid the cacophony of climate change literature.
Available since: 06/24/2014.

Other books that might interest you

  • The Pentester BluePrint - Starting a Career as an Ethical Hacker - cover

    The Pentester BluePrint -...

    Phillip L. Wylie, Kim Crawley

    • 0
    • 0
    • 0
    JUMPSTART YOUR NEW AND EXCITING CAREER AS A PENETRATION TESTERThe Pentester BluePrint: Starting a Career as an Ethical Hacker offers listeners a chance to delve deeply into the world of the ethical, or "white-hat" hacker. Accomplished pentester and author Phillip L. Wylie and cybersecurity researcher Kim Crawley walk you through the basic and advanced topics necessary to understand how to make a career out of finding vulnerabilities in systems, networks, and applications.You'll learn about the role of a penetration tester, what a pentest involves, and the prerequisite knowledge you'll need to start the educational journey of becoming a pentester. Discover how to develop a plan by assessing your current skillset and finding a starting place to begin growing your knowledge and skills. Finally, find out how to become employed as a pentester by using social media, networking strategies, and community involvement.Perfect for IT workers and entry-level information security professionals, The Pentester BluePrint also belongs on the bookshelves of anyone seeking to transition to the exciting and in-demand field of penetration testing.
    Show book
  • Scamming the Scammers - cover

    Scamming the Scammers

    Don Mullan

    • 0
    • 0
    • 0
    How many emails have you deleted recently offering you inherited millions from a mystery relative, or the uncollected winnings from an unheard of lottery? Rather than press delete, Don Mullan decided to take the Scammers on at their own game... 
    As a result, welcome to the fantasy world of the saintly Nod and Catherine Nallum and their associates, Bart Ahern, Biggles and Fr Jonathan Ross; of Pastor Patricio, Supreme Head of the Church of Serendipity and his Parisian friends, and of the 3rd Marquess of Miserly-Scholes of Stoke-on-Trent and his PA/lover, Lady Sarah Macbeth... 
    As well as highlighting a very serious issue a recent study showed one million residents in the UK have been defrauded by internet scams Don Mullan begins his quest to scam the scammers, with very memorable results.
    Show book
  • The Human City - Urbanism for the Rest of Us - cover

    The Human City - Urbanism for...

    Joel Kotkin

    • 0
    • 0
    • 0
    The author of The Coming of Neo-Feudalism and The New Class Conflict challenges conventions of urban planning. Around the globe, most new urban development has adhered to similar tenets: tall structures, small units, and high density. In The Human City, Joel Kotkin―called “America’s uber-geographer” by David Brooks of the New York Times―questions these nearly ubiquitous practices, suggesting that they do not consider the needs and desires of the vast majority of people. Built environments, Kotkin argues, must reflect the preferences of most people―even if that means lower-density development. The Human City ponders the purpose of the city and investigates the factors that drive most urban development today. Armed with his own astute research, a deep-seated knowledge of urban history, and a sound grasp of economic, political, and social trends, Kotkin pokes holes in what he calls the “retro-urbanist” ideology and offers a refreshing case for dispersion centered on human values. This book is not anti-urban, but it does advocate a greater range of options for people to live the way they want at all stages of their lives.Praise for The Human City “Kotkin . . . presents the most cogent, evidence-based and clear-headed exposition of the pro-suburban argument . . . . In pithy, readable sections, each addressing a single issue, he debunks one attack on the suburbs after another. But he does more than that. He weaves an impressive array of original observations about cities into his arguments, enriching our understanding of what cities are about and what they can and must become.” —Shlomo Angel, Wall Street Journal “The most eloquent expression of urbanism since Jane Jacobs’s The Death and Life of Great American Cities. Kotkin writes with a strong sense of place; he recognizes that the geography and traditions of a city create the contours of its urbanity.” —Ronnie Wachter, Chicago Tribune
    Show book
  • Heat Wave - A Social Autopsy of Disaster in Chicago - cover

    Heat Wave - A Social Autopsy of...

    Eric Klinenberg

    • 0
    • 0
    • 0
    The “compelling” story behind the 1995 Chicago weather disaster that killed hundreds—and what it revealed about our broken society (Boston Globe). 
     
    On July 13, 1995, Chicagoans awoke to a blistering day in which the temperature would reach 106 degrees. The heat index—how the temperature actually feels on the body—would hit 126. When the heat wave broke a week later, city streets had buckled; records for electrical use were shattered; and power grids had failed, leaving residents without electricity for up to two days. By July 20, over seven hundred people had perished—twenty times the number of those struck down by Hurricane Andrew in 1992. 
     
    Heat waves kill more Americans than all other natural disasters combined. Until now, no one could explain either the overwhelming number or the heartbreaking manner of the deaths resulting from the 1995 Chicago heat wave. Meteorologists and medical scientists have been unable to account for the scale of the trauma, and political officials have puzzled over the sources of the city’s vulnerability. In Heat Wave, Eric Klinenberg takes us inside the anatomy of the metropolis to conduct what he calls a “social autopsy,” examining the social, political, and institutional organs of the city that made this urban disaster so much worse than it ought to have been. 
     
    He investigates why some neighborhoods experienced greater mortality than others, how city government responded, and how journalists, scientists, and public officials reported and explained these events. Through years of fieldwork, interviews, and research, he uncovers the surprising and unsettling forms of social breakdown that contributed to this human catastrophe as hundreds died alone behind locked doors and sealed windows, out of contact with friends, family, community groups, and public agencies. As this incisive and gripping account demonstrates, the widening cracks in the social foundations of American cities made visible by the 1995 heat wave remain in play in America’s cities today—and we ignore them at our peril. 
     
    Includes photos and a new preface on meeting the challenges of climate change in urban centers 
     
    “Heat Wave is not so much a book about weather, as it is about the calamitous consequences of forgetting our fellow citizens. . . . A provocative, fascinating book, one that applies to much more than weather disasters.” —Chicago Sun-Times 
     
    “It’s hard to put down Heat Wave without believing you’ve just read a tale of slow murder by public policy.” —Salon 
     
    “A classic. I can’t recommend it enough.” —Chris Hayes
    Show book
  • Sapiens by Yuval Noah Harari - Book Summary - A Brief History of Humankind - cover

    Sapiens by Yuval Noah Harari -...

    FlashBooks, Dean Bokhari

    • 0
    • 0
    • 0
    Book Summary of "Sapiens" by Yuval Noah Harari 
     
    Important note: This is not the original book. This is a book summary of the following book: 
    Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind by Yuval Noah Harari 
    About 
    Our species, Homo sapiens, started out as just another insignificant animal—among countless others. But at some point, homo sapiens made a rapid jump to domination over all other species. This rapid rise has left humanity anxious, destructive, and often miserable—despite all our efforts to be happy. Yuval Noah Harari's book 'Sapiens,' traces the origins and effects of what we think of as “human progress” from small bands of hunter-gatherers 100,000 years ago to the present-day global network through which our species has come to dominate the Earth. This bird's-eye view of human history delves into the development of sapiens' social organization and the structural features of human cultures through which our species has spread and evolved, including breakthroughs like human language, the use of human imagination, and the rise of the concept of a better future that lies just beyond the horizon. Through these mechanisms, our species has evolved into a species that's increasingly in control of our own destiny. This book considers how this evolution has occurred, whether this progress has been beneficial, and what the future might hold for our species. 
     
    Here's what you'll learn about in this summary:  
    —How our species has evolved, not just biologically, but socially. 
    —How history, overall, is moving in the direction of global unity of humankind. 
    —How none of the outcomes of history have been inevitable, and the flexible nature of the social order may mean that our species can control its destiny.
    Show book
  • Teach for Climate Justice - A Vision for Transforming Education - cover

    Teach for Climate Justice - A...

    Tom Roderick

    • 0
    • 0
    • 0
    In Teach for Climate Justice, accomplished educator and social and emotional learning expert Tom Roderick proposes a visionary interdisciplinary and intersectional approach to PreK–12 climate education. He argues that meaningful instruction on this urgent issue of our time must focus on climate justice—the convergence of climate change and social justice—in a way that is emotionally safe, developmentally appropriate, and ultimately empowering. Drawing on examples of real-life educators teaching climate change, Roderick identifies eight key dimensions of climate education that will prepare students to face the challenges of the climate crisis and give them the means to take action. These dimensions include not only educating for a deep understanding of the scientific, geopolitical, and socioeconomic equity issues that surround global warming, but also cultivating appreciation for the environment, building a supportive community, and fostering active hope for the future. In support of this crucial endeavor, Roderick suggests evidence-based teaching strategies, practices that promote inclusivity, and tools for social and emotional learning. This timely and uplifting book lays out a powerful vision for teaching, learning, and curriculum development to nurture a generation of courageous, informed advocates for climate justice.
    Show book