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"A VINTAGE PAPERBACK ORIGINAL Deforestation. Desertification. Species extinction. Global warming. Growing threats to food and water. These driving issues of our times are the result of one huge problem: Us. Just over two hundred years ago, there were one billion humans on Earth. By 1960, there were three billion. There are now over seven billion of us. By 2050, there will be at least nine billion people on this planet. And, sometime near the end of this century, the world population will reach ten billion. As we continue to grow, these problems continue to grow. And this means that every which way we look at it, a planet of 10 billion people is set to look increasingly like a nightmare. Stephen Emmott, a scientist whose lab is at the forefront of research into climate, ecosystems, food-webs, and plant biology sounds the alarm. TEN BILLION is a snapshot of a planet, and our species, approaching a crisis: how we got here, what's happening now, and where this leaves us for the rest of this century. TEN BILLION is anything but a "green" book. And it's not another book about the climate. TEN BILLION is a book about us"--"A VINTAGE PAPERBACK ORIGINAL Just 10,000 years ago, there were only one million humans on Earth. By 1800, just over two hundred years ago, there were one billion of us. By 1960, there were three billion. There are now over seven billion of us. By 2050, there will be at least nine billion other people--and, sometime near the end of this century, there will be at least ten billion of us. There is simply no known way to provide this many people with clothes, food, and fresh water. And any action we take to address these issues will turn up the thermostat on global warming. Stephen Emmott has dedicated his career to researching the effects of humans on the Earth's natural systems. This is his call to arms, an urgent plea to re-imagine the interconnected web of our global problems in a new light"--… (more)
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User reviews
This is the most ridiculous book I've ever read. First of all most pages only have 2 or 3 lines on them. It's a small, thin, little book that is 2/3 empty. Secondly if you're too cowardly to talk about birth regulations and euthanasia don't write a book about our overpopulation.
While I don't disagree that we have a very serious problem at hand, I do have a number of problems with this book. The overall tone is very patronizing (the issues aren't very new or surprising, yet I can almost hear him leading into each statement with "Did you know???). There are lots numbers and facts, but without proper citations. The pages jump from topic to topic without good transition or synergy. There doesn't seem to be a lot of good substance; maybe it would have been better to publish this as a children's or coffee table book with large glossy full-color pages. And finally, while the author is very good at pointing out that the sky is falling, he does so without giving us any workable solutions or even an umbrella to stand under (consume less! he says).
Towards the end Emmott chides those who try to help out by turning off their mobile chargers, purchasing electric cars, or foregoing children, suggesting that they are merely assuaging their guilt. Perhaps this book is just his way of doing the same.