The Future Of Life

An essential book for anyone who cares about life on earth.Having previously read Wilson's 'Diversity of Life', I wanted to read this more up to date book. What really strikes me about this writer is his continued optimism that somehow mankind will adopt a different approach to bio diversity and pull back from the brink before wiping out most of the life forms that we share the planet with. I sincerely hope that his optimism is well placed.

Arrived extremely quickly and great quality

Interesting

A brilliant book that outlines the threats to the natural world because of human activity. It tells of species and natural environments under threat, and explains how their preservation is essential for our future too.

Edward Wilson is America's, if not the world's, leading naturalist. Years of field work are applied in The Future of Life in a global tour of the world's natural resources. How are they used? What has been lost? What remains and is it sustainable with present rates of use? With broad vision, Wilson stresses our need to understand fully the biodiversity of our planet. Most importantly, that knowledge must include a realistic view of human impact on those resources. While many works of this genre sound tocsins of despair with little to offer in countering the threat of the "outbreak" of humanity on our planet, Wilson proposes a variety of realistic scenarios that may save our world and our own species. Survival will be obtained from a sound knowledge base, and the foundation for that insight starts here.Wilson begins with an open letter to the patron saint of environment defenders, Henry David Thoreau. He offers a comparative view of today's Walden Pond with that of Thoreau's day. Wilson will use such comparisons for the remainder of the book. The issue is clear: humanity has done grave damage to its home over the millennia. The growth of human population, but more importantly, the usurpation of the biosphere for limited human purposes, threatens a world losing its ability to cope with the intrusion. Can this planet, with human help, be restored to biodiversity levels that will ensure its ongoing capacity to provide for us?Wilson's writing skills readily match his talents as a researcher. Presenting sweeping ideas with an economy of words, he avoids vague assertions or the need for the reader to fill in information. With each stop of our global voyage in his company, he provides detailed information describing examples of human "erasure of entire ecosystems." At this pace, he informs us, we will soon require four more planets of our resource levels to sustain humanity's intended growth. In the classic tradition, he introduces a protagonist for continued economic growth debating an environmental defender. Both views can be accommodated, he assures us, but only if a population limiting bottleneck is achieved. What level of humanity can the planet endure? The numbers frighten, but the resolution, Wilson stresses, isn't inevitable.Diversity, he argues, is the key. Even our agricultural crops can benefit. A mere hundred species are the foundation of our food supply, of which but twenty carry the load. Wilson counters this precarious situation by urging investigation of ten thousand species that could be utilized. Further, and this point will give many readers qualms, Wilson urges genetic engineering to apply desired traits between crop species. He urges these strong measures as a means of reducing the clearing of habitats to enlarge farming acreage. In conclusion, he stresses the application of ethical values in considering the environment. Each of us must make ourselves aware of our impact on our nest. If you are to survive, it may well rely on whether you read and act on the ideas in this book. Although other works on this topic are available, Wilson's stands above the others for clarity, scope and suggestions for survival. Are you, he asks, willing to add one penny to the cost of a cup of coffee to retain the world's natural reserves? It's the question confronting us all. [stephen a. haines - Ottawa, Canada]

In this compelling book Edward O. Wilson repeats some of the entreaties to mankind that he makes in "The Diversity of Life".They are, however, entreaties that have to be made if the damage that the human race is doing to the planet is to be stemmed. This book avoids cliche because the problems that Wilson highlights remain as relevant as ever and the solutions that he suggests bring home the simplicity of an environmental solution and the complexities of an economic one. It is the comparison and coalition of economic and environmental aims that makes this book a triumph and, to echo the former reviewer, a book that must be read by everyone.

Having learned a lot from other books by the author, I expected much from this one with its promising title. All the greater was my disappointment. This is a good mainstream discussion of the importance of biodiversity. But it suffers from three major faults. The first is a misleading title. The book does not deal with the future of "life" because the future of humanity is not discussed. This is a great pity. Humanity is moving through a phase-jump, acquiring the unprecedented ability to terminate its existence, to change its core attributes, and perhaps to clone itself and also to create life. These "gifts" of science and technology are fateful, also for human action on endangered species. Therefore the problem with the book is not only a misleading title, but missing a variable critical for its actual concern. This leads the second error, namely quite some tunnel vision. Not only is the future of humanity ignored, but the future of the climate is not discussed despite its profound significance for the biosphere, directly and indirectly. If temperatures and sea levels rise they impact on many species and their habitats, including "hot spots" of species diversity. And climate changes will constitute heavy stressor on humanity which will unavoidable receive priority over other biosphere concerns. The third fundamental mistake is the mood of optimism, especially pronounced in the last chapter. All the describe species preserving activities, however important, are inadequate, determined government action being essential as clearly recognized by the author. But such action depends on politics. Here the author becomes utopian, assuming that democratic public pressures and activities of NGOs based on a widely accepted pro-nature ethos will cause political leaders to give species preservation high priority.Public pressures do demand action to reduce visible pollutions and other glaring environmental damages. But, given a global culture of consumerism and the propensity of human being to be mainly concerned with the short range, mentioned by the author as probably hardwired by evolution, no determined large-scale species-preserving action can be realistically expected to result in the foreseeable future from public pressures.The example given by the author of the demilitarized zone between North and South Korea as a candidate for being made into a "wildlife sanctuary of a future unified Korea" (p. 185) demonstrates that he misapprehends geostrategic realities. And the trust he puts in neurosciences to help humanity to "anticipate and step away from political and economic disasters" (p. 156) casts further serious doubts on his outlooks.All this serves to reinforce my view that being an outstanding biologist and naturalist and the ideas of sociobiology and consilience are not enough of a basis for dealing with the realities of humanity. More is needed for designing effective humanity-craft policies - however urgently needed, including for species diversity preservation as ably discussed in this book.Professor Yehezkel DrorThe Hebrew University of Jerusalem

This book is fantastic. It sets out clearly the damage the human race has done in the past and explains the problems all species including our own will face in the future. However this book is not all doom and gloom and the author uses arguments from all spectrums to make a case for conservation without brow beating or blinding the reader with scientific terms. This is easily the best and most balanced book I have read on the subject.

After reading this, I had a MUCH better understanding of why all the global warming and environmental scientist talk is so significant to pay attention to. This would be a great educational piece for so many. Parts were pretty dense, but I had to read this for a book club and was very glad I did!

I bought this book for a couple who felt that they were among a tiny minority who loved the beauty of this earth and were enraged at the criminally exploitative treatment of it. When I read the first chapter I could not put it down. This book is a must read for every sane person on the planet, a spectacularly clear and careful study of how things great and small fit together, interdepend on eachother. To disregard any part of it or abuse that living heritage, poses a threat to our very existence on the one hand and on the other, points to our interdependence. I was stunned to learn that most of the species have yet to be identified and catalogued. Wilson knows all the arguments of both extremes on environmental issues, and while he articulately addresses these with balance, reason, and knowledge that only a scientist of his calibre could do, he never looses the sense of joy and wonder over what he has discovered in his journey, nor the urgency to preserve and protect it. In the final chapter he offers realistic and visionary options for insuring a better world. This book is a masterpiece, a Virgilian guide away from the hell we are creating, the limbo we are in, and a view of the paradise we have been wontonly destroying.

Perfect condition. No odour. Very pleased.

Edward O. Wilson has produced a map of recovery from the devastation we have wrought on Earth and it's life-support systems in this monumental book. As he so expertly points out, humanity is at the "bottleneck " stage of existence right now: that worrisome convergence point where all of our past environmental mistakes have caught up with us and met our current unsustainable resource use that huge population and unrealistic life style demands create.Add to that, Earth's life-cycle mechanics being thrown out of whack by global warming and dwindling green cover resources that help regulate it, water scarcity, pollution, and we have a dire pan of worms on our hands. Wilson maintains, however, that our vast accumulated reservoir of technology and abundant earth resource-cycle knowledge can help us through the bottleneck and on to a more rational, thoughtful, and harmonious future with Earth's regulation processes influencing all of our ethical and moral guidelines in our activities on Earth.On the front cover is a beautiful art rendering of what, at first appears to be an expertly produced flower arrangement. But taking a closer look at it reveals a collage of plants and animals that are extinct or on the verge of extinction and then on pages viii to x is a diagram and list of the cover species and listed by common and taxonomic names.Next, is the Prologue which is a letter to Henry David Thoreau. It is actually a dialogue of Wilson having a posthumous conversation with Thoreau at Walden's Pond where in part, he explains to H.D.T what state of environmental affairs we are now in- very moving!Wilson's writing style is very gentle, sometimes poetic, and an easy flowing discourse packed with compelling punch lines for thoughtful consideration of the subject matter at hand: hopeful survival of all Earth's flora/fauna. And he posits this can be accomplished in dialogue such as: "In order to pass through the bottleneck, a global land ethic is urgently needed." and, "Surely the rest of life matters. Surely our stewardship is our only hope. We will be wise to listen to the heart, then act with rational intention and all the tools we can gather and bring to bear." And, "The great dilemma of environmental reasoning stems from this conflict between short-term and long-term values."For those that are familiar with the works of Thomas Berry- "The Dream of the Earth" and "The Great Work", Chet Raymo- "The Path", et al., Hawkin and Lovins- "Natural Capitalism" and many more such fine thinkers and doers, will no doubt be impressed with the ground that Wilson covers with his very realistic, but guarded pronouncement that we humans will get through the bottleneck if we immediately start listening to the voices of reason and start embracing what life-style changes we need in order enhance our survival possibilities. To be sure, it is a crap shoot in our survival odds, but Wilson helps bump-up those odds with his guarded enthusiasm based on a life-time of biology and environmental study. There is an abundance of resources and organizations mentioned all through this great work. Thank you, Prof. E. O. Wilson!

Famed biologist and godfather of sociobiology (and its current prodigy, evolutionary psychology), esteemed Harvard professor and one of the great scientists of our time, Edward O. Wilson outlines in this engaging but somewhat reserved book what is happening to the planet's biodiversity and what can be done about it.The Prologue is a "letter" to Henry David Thoreau as Wilson seeks to establish a conservationist continuity between the author of Walden and ourselves. The open letter is somewhat self-conscious and artificial, but certainly appropriate for a work that celebrates nature and hopes to be a modest instrument in helping to preserve the natural world.The first chapter is a survey of the life forms that live in "the biospheric membrane that covers Earth" (p. 21) with an emphasis on extreme climes including Antarctica's Lake Vostok (under two miles of ice) and the Mariana Trench (deepest part of the ocean at 35,750 feet below sea level). Chapter Two makes the assertion that the planet is currently going through a dangerous "bottleneck" characterized by disappearing habitats and extinction of species the likes of which have not been seen since the dinosaurs disappeared 65 million years ago. The culprit is of course us, represented by our short-sighted exploitation of non-renewable resources. Here Wilson begins his theme, to find a "universal environmental ethic" that will lead us "through the bottleneck into which our species has foolishly blundered." (p. 41)In the next chapter, "Nature's Last Stand," Wilson delineates just how bad things really are as he surveys the rampant deforestation and other ecological obscenities currently taking place in the world. (Incidentally, those of you interested in a readable and painstakingly detailed account of what we are doing to mother earth, full of facts and figures, see Stuart L. Pimm's The World According to Pimm: A Scientist Audits the Earth, 2001.) Wilson continues with an estimate of how much the biomass is worth in dollars and cents ($33-trillion per year, which I think is similar to Pimm's figure). He makes the important point (which cannot in my opinion be repeated often enough) that the "cost" of doing business ought to include the damage or loss of "the free services of the natural economy" currently not figured into bottom line accounting. Thus the cost of extracting coal from the ground ought to include the value of the land torn up; the cost of wood from a tree ought to include the cost of watershed lost, etc. If the real costs of using the land, the rivers and the oceans, and the air were factored in--which some day they will be, whether we like it or not--some commodities would be seen as too expensive to harvest willy-nilly, and we might very well choose more environmentally agreeable alternatives.In the final chapter Wilson gives "The Solution" which relies heavily upon the work of non-governmental environmental organizations that are attempting to use economic power to save the rain forests and other endangered "hotspots" throughout the world. Their technique includes outbidding the loggers for the rights to the forests, raising the standard of living of those who live in these endangered areas, and getting governments to see the value of their unspoiled lands.Obviously Wilson is preaching to the choir here since myself and most others who will read this book will already be true believers in saving biodiversity. Perhaps the value of the book is in further educating us in the ways this might be done. Wilson is hopeful that we will wake up before it is too late. Indeed every minute counts because once the environment is gone it is gone forever to be replaced by God knows what. Wilson emphasizes not only the unknown value of all the plants, animals and microbes that are going extinct but the moral correctness of saving them. It is here that one notices a change in tone from the Edward O. Wilson of years ago. He is now so intent on saving what biodiversity is left that he is seeking to engage religion in the task!This is Wilson somewhat mellowed at age seventy, seeking conciliation with former disputants for the greater good of planetary life. This is the entomologist as statesman.The reason Wilson surprisingly points to the morality of saving wildlife as the key inducement is that we are robbing the world of our children and our grandchildren for our leisure and luxury today. It is a significant moral issue because we are putting what will be a terrible cost onto them, and they haven't a say in it at all!I want to add that the danger inherent in the rampant devastation of the biosphere, whether through the direct destruction of ecologies or through pollution, is beyond our ability to foresee. The spectre of a runaway greenhouse effect is just that, a phenomenon that may be upon us before we realize it, leaving us with no ability to stop it. Think of Venus and a surface temperature that melts lead. There is nothing in our present understanding of the biosphere that I know of that rules out that possibility. We are not only stupidly playing with fire, we are playing Russian roulette with ourselves and we are holding the gun to the head of our children. Wilson's book is an attempt to guide us away from such utter folly. I just hope that those people in the Bush administration and at the Wall Street Journal and the Economist and elsewhere who think that our resources will take care of themselves read this wise and penetrating critique and assume personal moral responsibility for their actions and utterances.