Under a White Sky: Can we save the natural world in time?
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- Author：Elizabeth Kolbert
- ISBN：1784709166
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Summary
The author of the international bestseller The Sixth Extinction returns to humanity's transformative impact on the environment， now asking: after doing so much damage， can we change nature， this time to save it？
CHOSEN BY BILL GATES AND BARACK OBAMA AS A SUMMER READ
Meet the biologists trying to save the world's rarest fish; the engineers who are turning carbon emissions to stone; the researchers trying to develop a 'super coral'; and the physicists contemplating shooting tiny diamonds into the stratosphere to cool the earth。
Elizabeth Kolbert is one of the most important writers on the environment。 Here she investigates the immense challenges humanity faces as we scramble to reverse， in a matter of decades， the effects we've had on the natural world and asks - can we save the natural world in time？
CHOSEN BY BILL GATES AND BARACK OBAMA AS A SUMMER READ
Meet the biologists trying to save the world's rarest fish; the engineers who are turning carbon emissions to stone; the researchers trying to develop a 'super coral'; and the physicists contemplating shooting tiny diamonds into the stratosphere to cool the earth。
Elizabeth Kolbert is one of the most important writers on the environment。 Here she investigates the immense challenges humanity faces as we scramble to reverse， in a matter of decades， the effects we've had on the natural world and asks - can we save the natural world in time？
Reviews
marcia
，
very readable science and actions for climate change 。 many extintsions and how they occurred。 what we have done and what we might be able to do for the future of our world。
Eithan
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It's a nice book， like everyone says- a book about people trying to salvage what they can from mistakes done by other people。 Sometimes it's sad， sometimes inspiring but there's always that sense that we've f*cked up the world so much that it's now only a question of how little we can save so we don't destroy it all， and it creeps the hell out of me It's a nice book， like everyone says- a book about people trying to salvage what they can from mistakes done by other people。 Sometimes it's sad， sometimes inspiring but there's always that sense that we've f*cked up the world so much that it's now only a question of how little we can save so we don't destroy it all， and it creeps the hell out of me 。。。more
Joseph
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I really enjoyed the premise of this book - an investigation into and reflection on our ability as humans to control the environment and the the unanticipated byproducts of these efforts。 As for the content， I appreciated Kolbert's ability to connect the immense scientific/economic/logistical problems she was describing to the populations that are currently baring the brunt of our （collective） past intervention and the possible effects current remedies may have。 However， while intersting， these I really enjoyed the premise of this book - an investigation into and reflection on our ability as humans to control the environment and the the unanticipated byproducts of these efforts。 As for the content， I appreciated Kolbert's ability to connect the immense scientific/economic/logistical problems she was describing to the populations that are currently baring the brunt of our （collective） past intervention and the possible effects current remedies may have。 However， while intersting， these observations by Kolbert felt a little one-note。 Fortunately， the book wasn't very long， so my some redundancy was ok and didn't sour my overall opinion of the Under a White Sky。 I should also note that I don't have a very high aptitude for the sciences and may have failed to appreciate Kolbert's work as much as someone with more pre-existing knowledge may have。 。。。more
Maz
，
An exceptional little book that covers a range of environmental issues。 It's。。。 A necessary read， although it weighs very heavily on your heart。 Well researched， well versed， and well written。 An exceptional little book that covers a range of environmental issues。 It's。。。 A necessary read， although it weighs very heavily on your heart。 Well researched， well versed， and well written。 。。。more
molly
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I was super excited to read this- thought that it might be a sort of non-fiction version of The Ministry for the Future。 And my expectations were probably quite high， given how much I enjoyed her earlier opus The Sixth Extinction: An Unnatural History。 This was good， but struck me more as an essay collection loosely tied around the theme of humans trying to solve the problems of the Anthropocene through new technology。 Like most essays， some caught my interest more than others。 The interminable I was super excited to read this- thought that it might be a sort of non-fiction version of The Ministry for the Future。 And my expectations were probably quite high， given how much I enjoyed her earlier opus The Sixth Extinction: An Unnatural History。 This was good， but struck me more as an essay collection loosely tied around the theme of humans trying to solve the problems of the Anthropocene through new technology。 Like most essays， some caught my interest more than others。 The interminable chapter on the pupfish living in a tiny sinkhole in the middle of the desert immediately leaps to mind as my own personal weakest link。I really shouldn't start with weak links， though， because several of the other chapters were highly interesting。 The attempts to electrocute carp in the Mississippi River/Lake Michigan water system， the beleaguered communities living on the rapidly disappearing coastline of Louisiana， some of the seemingly far-fetched schemes to launch various substances into space （including diamonds！） and more quickly turn down the temperature， attempts at carbon recapture， all of these were good stories。 Although surprisingly well-covered in fictional form by Ministry for the Future， really。One last gripe though is that the book has a distinctly unfinished feel。 She mentions COVID-19 ending her globetrotting interviews and I immediately thought aha。 Ah， well， perhaps there will be a second book。 。。。more
Angie
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A very well written and fascinating book about humans trying to solve problems we have created。 The end of the book turns the focus to climate change and weighs the importance and implications of climate-altering geoengineering ideas。 I found the book was more realistic and direct instead of optimistic which I appreciated and it really makes you think about some big important questions
Richard Reese
，
Elizabeth Kolbert， author of the Pulitzer Award winning The Sixth Extinction， has written a potent new book， Under a White Sky。 She sums it up as “a book about people trying to solve problems created by people trying to solve problems。” So much of what we do echoes the plot of the Sorcerer’s Apprentice folktale — vivid imaginations， half-baked cleverness， dangerous overconfidence， and zero foresight result in frightening unintended consequences。 Kolbert puts on a journalist uniform， and visits t Elizabeth Kolbert， author of the Pulitzer Award winning The Sixth Extinction， has written a potent new book， Under a White Sky。 She sums it up as “a book about people trying to solve problems created by people trying to solve problems。” So much of what we do echoes the plot of the Sorcerer’s Apprentice folktale — vivid imaginations， half-baked cleverness， dangerous overconfidence， and zero foresight result in frightening unintended consequences。 Kolbert puts on a journalist uniform， and visits the wizards on the cutting edge of ingenious technology。 She presented eight scenarios of human hubris。 Two are about climate change。 The title， “Under a White Sky，” is a reference to her discussion of SRM。 Solar Radiation Management is what is usually meant by “geoengineering。” The goal of SRM visionaries is to reduce the rate of atmospheric warming by bouncing away a significant portion of the incoming solar radiation。 To do this， they envision dumping a million tons of highly reflective particles into the stratosphere each year — 40，000 planeloads of sulfur dioxide， calcium carbonate， or something。 Some fear that SRM would turn the blue skies white。 What could possibly go wrong？ I need to put this in context。Petroleum geologist Walter Younquist noted that in less than 500 years， we’re going to burn up the oil， gas， and coal that took more than 500 million years to create。 It took 109 years to consume the first 200 billion barrels of oil， ten years for the second 200 billion， and six and a half years for the third。 Of all the oil ever consumed， 90 percent has been used since 1958。 We’re taking a high speed one-way joyride into the deep unknown， with no brakes， and no understanding。Alice Friedemann explained why life as we know it would be impossible without fossil energy。 Many core processes cannot be run on electric power — trucking， shipping， air travel， manufacturing， agriculture， mining， and so on。 Wind turbines， solar panels， and high capacity storage batteries have limited working lifespans， and making them requires high impact processes and materials。 They are “re-buildable，” not “renewable。” The current electric grids of the world were not designed to reliably function on intermittent inflows of energy。 So， the global transition to happy “green” energy would be a monumental undertaking。The atmosphere is already overloaded with greenhouse gases， and we constantly add more。 This leads to a perpetual downward spiral。 As the gases accumulate， the atmosphere retains more heat， shiny white ice sheets keep melting， so less incoming solar heat is reflected away， so the atmosphere gets warmer， so more ice melts…， etc。 Vast regions of permafrost are beginning to thaw， allowing ancient organic material to decompose， and emit methane。 Vast undersea deposits of frozen methane hydrates are beginning to melt， sending even more methane into the atmosphere。 Consequently， this is why the planet’s formerly tolerable climate is shape-shifting into a furious city-smashing movie monster。 It’s important to understand that the carbon released into the atmosphere does not quickly dissipate， it accumulates。 Environmental historian J。 R。 McNeill wrote， “Some proportion， perhaps as much as a quarter， of the roughly 300 billion tons of carbon released to the atmosphere between 1945 and 2015 will remain aloft for a few hundred thousand years。” If all of humankind camped on Mars for 50 years， the warming cycle on Earth would not promptly stop。 Not everyone is an enthusiastic fan of SRM。 As the planet continues warming， more flights will be needed to release more tonnage of reflective particles。 What goes up， must come down。 Could falling dust harm our lungs？ If sulfur dioxide particles were used， this could damage the ozone layer， and add sulfuric acid to the rain。 The bottom line is that SRM does not eliminate the primary cause of climate change — massive ongoing emissions of carbon compounds。Kolbert also discussed a theoretical solution to the climate crisis。 She visited the brave new world of Direct Air Capture （DAC）。 It involves extracting the carbon from the atmosphere， and injecting it deep underground at locations with ideal geology， where it would mineralize into calcium carbonate， and harmlessly stay there forever。 One plan involved building 100 million trailer sized DAC units around the world。 It sounds like a miracle， the answer to our prayers。 We can save the world and keep living like lunatics too！In another scenario， she discussed Chicago’s heroic war on Asian carp。 The city is a ghastly disaster area that generates enormous amounts of sewage， garbage， pollution， and toxic waste。 Years ago， the Chicago River was used to conveniently move lots of crud into Lake Michigan， where it would be out of sight， out of mind， and out of nose。 Eventually， a few oddballs began to wonder if this was intelligent。 Luckily， experts solved the problem by changing the course of the flow。 They began sending the filthy dreck down the new Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal， which would eventually dump it into the Mississippi River， which is far less sacred to many Americans。 Unfortunately， the river is home to four species of Asian carp， some of which can weigh up to 100 pounds （45 kg）。 In the Mississippi， when motorboats pass by， numerous carp leap high into the air， sometimes injuring fishermen， and knocking boaters overboard。 Waterskiing has become an especially dangerous activity。Unfortunately， Chicago’s alterations to the flow of filth was not a flawless design。 It was theoretically possible for carp to migrate into the Great Lakes。 The carp are so good at extracting plankton that it was possible they might deplete food resources that enabled the survival of indigenous lake fish。 If they spread throughout the Great Lakes， it would be a death sentence for sport fish like walleye and perch。 This upset some folks。 Rachel Carson opposed poisoning the new canal， so they installed electrified underwater fences to electrocute the carp。 What were Asian carp doing in the Mississippi？ In 1964， the U。S。 Fish and Wildlife Service imported the fish to control exotic aquatic weeds。 How smart was that？Kolbert also spent time with folks engaged in genetic engineering。 The cool new CRISPR technology enables them to make green chickens。 Other gene splicers want to resurrect the extinct passenger pigeon。 My father was in diapers when the last bird died in 1914。 Some estimate that there were once 3 to 5 billion passenger pigeons。 In 1800， they may have been the most numerous birds on Earth。 The pigeons were forest animals， and their primary food was mast — nuts and berries that grew on trees and woody brush。 A。 W。 Schorger （1884-1972） wrote an outstanding book on pigeon history。 He mentioned a 1663 report from Quebec， noting that one scattershot blast into a dense flock could kill up to 132 birds。 Some migrating flocks， a mile wide （1。6 km）， and miles long， darkened the sky for up to three days。 Folks could hear the roar of countless wings before the flocks came into view。 They could fly up to 62 miles per hour （100 km/h）。 Farmers hated the huge flocks that generously assisted at harvest time。 Market hunters adored them as an easy way to make money。 In 1913， William Hornaday wrote， “In 1869， from the town of Hartford， Michigan， three car loads of dead pigeons were shipped to market each day for forty days， making a total of 11，880，000 birds。 It is recorded that another Michigan town marketed 15，840，000 in two years。”Should we bring the pigeons back from extinction？ Forests were where they nested， where they roosted for the night， and home to their primary food resource， nuts。 While the hunters were taking a devastating toll on the birds， others were obliterating their habitat。 Loggers eagerly turned forests into gold。 Farmers nuked forests to expand cropland and pasture。 Explosive population growth converted forest ecosystems into hideous hotbeds of industrial civilization。 Greetings GMO pigeons！ Welcome to our nightmare！ Enjoy your resurrection！Kolbert’s book is easy to read， not too long， provides us with a provocative look in the mirror， and encourages us to reexamine our blind faith in unquestioned beliefs。 She gave us a pair of dueling quotes。 Hippy visionary Stewart Brand once asserted， “We are as gods and might as well get good at it。” This annoyed biologist E。 O。 Wilson， who responded， “We are not as gods。 We’re not yet sentient or intelligent enough to be much of anything。” A one hour interview with Kolbert discussing this book is HERE。 The message is， if you’re not pessimistic about the future， you’re not paying attention。 。。。more
Patti
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Kolbert presents us with a Pandora's box of geoengineering， only forgetting to include the hope。 It's a sobering read。 I was too depressed to give it 5 stars。 Kolbert presents us with a Pandora's box of geoengineering， only forgetting to include the hope。 It's a sobering read。 I was too depressed to give it 5 stars。 。。。more
Scott Humphries
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This is a worthwhile， if light， review of the environmental funk we find ourselves in。 Kolbert starts with a rundown on our perennial （and sometimes wacky） efforts to keep Asian carp out of the Great Lakes and then broadens her analysis to include all sorts of examples where we've shot ourselves in the foot trying to manipulate the environment， all as a precursor to discussing what we do about carbon emissions and the rising average global temperature。 Short and worth a read。 This is a worthwhile， if light， review of the environmental funk we find ourselves in。 Kolbert starts with a rundown on our perennial （and sometimes wacky） efforts to keep Asian carp out of the Great Lakes and then broadens her analysis to include all sorts of examples where we've shot ourselves in the foot trying to manipulate the environment， all as a precursor to discussing what we do about carbon emissions and the rising average global temperature。 Short and worth a read。 。。。more
Nitay
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A great read。 Kolbert is a delightful writer， keeping the feel both serious but never overbearing， as many environmental books can be。 The different chapters are refreshingly short and succinct， rarely feeling dragging or tiring。
Megan
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A fascinating book about people who are （paraphrasing Kolbert） trying to solve the world's biggest problems， which were created by people who were trying to solve the world's biggest problems。 A fascinating book about people who are （paraphrasing Kolbert） trying to solve the world's biggest problems， which were created by people who were trying to solve the world's biggest problems。 。。。more
Nicola Bramwell
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[ Cross-posted to the Nicola Bramwell Blog ]I honestly wasn’t a big fan of Kolbert’s The Sixth Extinction—I thought it was too long and meandering—so I’m happy to report that I enjoyed this book a whole lot more。 It was much shorter and to the point， and it provided a lot of interesting information about conservation efforts that I had never heard of before。While Kolbert reviews the various environmental issues plaguing us today， she spends less time describing these issues in detail and mor [ Cross-posted to the Nicola Bramwell Blog ]I honestly wasn’t a big fan of Kolbert’s The Sixth Extinction—I thought it was too long and meandering—so I’m happy to report that I enjoyed this book a whole lot more。 It was much shorter and to the point， and it provided a lot of interesting information about conservation efforts that I had never heard of before。While Kolbert reviews the various environmental issues plaguing us today， she spends less time describing these issues in detail and more time on the various methods that the world’s best scientists and engineers are exploring to potentially resolve these issues。 Kolbert covers several major topics， including loss of biodiversity， widespread coastal flooding and loss of landmass due to rising ocean levels， worsening weather patterns， and the melting of glaciers。The book feels more like several smaller works strung together rather than one cohesive book with a main idea， but I didn’t mind that because it allowed Kolbert to trim out the excess narration that I felt plagued The Sixth Extinction and focus more closely on delivering important information。That said， I have read more informative and in-depth books on conversation efforts and environmental issues in recent years， so this one falls firmly in the “slightly above average” category。 。。。more
Dawn Perrett
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I listened to it on an audiobook。 Somewhat interesting。 I viewed it as a college lecture series。
Brian Norman
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Exceptionally researched and tightly written， this book on climate change and what we are trying to do about it is a rewarding read。 Amazing how many ingenious ways we have of combating climate change yet cannot raise the funds to do so。
Geoffrey Hagberg
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What is it: in the author's own conclusion， "a book about people trying to solve problems created by people trying to solve problems。"Why I love it: Three quotes stand out to me that ground the effort of this book。One is from Dune: "The highest function of ecology is the understanding of consequences。"One is attributed to Einstein and quoted in Under a White Sky: "We cannot solve our problems with the same thinking we used when we created them。"One is from MacArthur grant winner and director of What is it: in the author's own conclusion， "a book about people trying to solve problems created by people trying to solve problems。"Why I love it: Three quotes stand out to me that ground the effort of this book。One is from Dune: "The highest function of ecology is the understanding of consequences。"One is attributed to Einstein and quoted in Under a White Sky: "We cannot solve our problems with the same thinking we used when we created them。"One is from MacArthur grant winner and director of Harvard's Center for the Environment， Dan Schrag， speaking both of his own work and of the work of Kolbert in writing Under a White Sky: "My job is not to tell people the good news。 My job is to describe the world as accurately as possible。"Kolbert accomplishes something remarkable with this book， in that while the 'subject' of her book is the scale of ecological intervention， the complexity of genetics and geopolitics and global climates， the million ways civilization alters the natural world to better accommodate human need， what Kolbert actually writes about is people at their work and various sets of observable data。The people at their work form a series of portraits in Under a White Sky that show the kinds of thinking， kinds of belief and disbelief， kinds of ingenuity and stubbornness， required for any one individual to think they can solve the crises facing their surrounding environment。 These are scientists， but they matter to Kolbert not only for their science; she encounters them in their fields of research， but she presents them in their personal and social contexts。 Regardless their field of work or extremity of personality， Kolbert cares about each of them enough to write of them with honesty and persuasion。The observable data is an equally challenging bit of craft， as Kolbert takes on human interaction with natural ecosystems in a wide range of contexts （only the final third of the book is directly about the traditional 'climate change' leaving the majority of the book to range through agriculture， hydrology， marine biology， genetic engineering， and more）。 In all of these contexts， Kolbert maintains an impressive diligence to present observation distinct from opinion--her own and the opinions of the scientists she interviews。 There's almost no explicit overarching structure to the book， in fact， leaving these observations often to speak for themselves。 Kolbert trusts that the patterns are clear enough to not require much editorial commentary。These two facets combine as a complex and moving view of nature--nature that is， by the data， radically altered by human interaction and simultaneously radically unsuited to human need， but also nature that is inspiring the devoted effort of thousands of scientists to attempt to save or solve their small piece of it （or sometimes to attempt to save or solve the whole thing）。You might also like: Islands of Abandonment， which is about the ways nature reacts naturally to human alteration and provides a beautifully written counterpoint to all the human reaction to human alteration that fills Under a White Sky。 。。。more
Susan
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This well written book is a series of essays as the author says， "about people trying to solve problems created by people trying to solve problems"。 The book is divided into three sections: about water issues， about animal issues and about "sky"" issues。 All of these issues relate to climate change and showcase so many people who are working to solve the problems related to rising ocean temperatures， invasive species and CO2 emissions。 I took it slow， reading a chapter a day so I could absorb th This well written book is a series of essays as the author says， "about people trying to solve problems created by people trying to solve problems"。 The book is divided into three sections: about water issues， about animal issues and about "sky"" issues。 All of these issues relate to climate change and showcase so many people who are working to solve the problems related to rising ocean temperatures， invasive species and CO2 emissions。 I took it slow， reading a chapter a day so I could absorb the author's extensive research and well explained science。 I took lots of notes so I could retain the material and can highly recommend this book， if you care of the fate of our planet。 。。。more
Manuchy
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Under a white sky centers around how man， trying to solve man-made environmental issues， ends up creating even bigger issues with even bigger consequences。 I absolutely ADORED this book; all of the examples given and how the methods used relate to each other， its astonishing。 My favorite quote/part was when a marine biologist was doing a express-rescue of a unique species of pupfish （the whole species consisted of 32 fishes and fit in two water buckets）。 He spent years trying to save this fishes Under a white sky centers around how man， trying to solve man-made environmental issues， ends up creating even bigger issues with even bigger consequences。 I absolutely ADORED this book; all of the examples given and how the methods used relate to each other， its astonishing。 My favorite quote/part was when a marine biologist was doing a express-rescue of a unique species of pupfish （the whole species consisted of 32 fishes and fit in two water buckets）。 He spent years trying to save this fishes; one day someone asked “why are you trying so hard to save this fishes？ What good are them？” To which he responds “what good are you”。Another quote I loved was the analogy of comparing geoengineering to chemotherapy。 Hilarious yet serious， clear and intelligent， this book shows how the natural world we live in， is not natural at all。 <3<3<3 。。。more
Karin Mika
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This was neither a happy book， nor a book with a story for a plot， but it presented a layperson's look at how humankind has pretty much wrecked the environment and destroyed the planet。 The book isn't really judgmental。 A lot of the damage humankind has done has been by virtue of simply existing and moving from place-to-place and also by trying to fix some of the damage previously caused。 The author looked at a lot of things we don't really think about from day-to-day， such as the danger of inva This was neither a happy book， nor a book with a story for a plot， but it presented a layperson's look at how humankind has pretty much wrecked the environment and destroyed the planet。 The book isn't really judgmental。 A lot of the damage humankind has done has been by virtue of simply existing and moving from place-to-place and also by trying to fix some of the damage previously caused。 The author looked at a lot of things we don't really think about from day-to-day， such as the danger of invasive species （creatures， insects， and plants） as well as some of the odd schemes scientists have thought of in the past to "fix" various problems （including strategic melting， mass cloud seeding， and the blocking of floes from the polar ice cap）。 The author visited numerous sites （like New Orleans and Greenland） for an on-the-ground look at what's happening and what scientists are attempting to do。 She explained the problems related to the existence of New Orleans and how all the efforts to control the Mississippi wind up causing problems elsewhere。 She also talked about how the pandemic did diminish emissions spread out across the world， but then concentrated CO2 in the air where large groups of people lived。 I found it interesting to learn that there is a plant in Iceland that does remove CO2 from the air and convert it into rock， but it's expensive to do so and wouldn't do much good unless we had plants all over the world doing the same thing。 （Maybe New Orleans could benefit from this。）The ultimate message is scary。 There's almost nothing we can do to prevent the damage that will ultimately be caused by what has already been done。 However， the book isn't so much a warning or even an admonishment of humans for acting badly。 A lot of the damage caused happened simply because humans are here。 A different type of damage might have been caused by another dominant species。 We just wouldn't know about it。 The book is merely about how many scientists and environmentalists are doing their best to find at least some solutions while not causing different problems。 。。。more
Eric Williamson
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Important glimpse at the alarming cycle of geomodification to mitigate the effects of previous geomodification - are we stuck in a hopeless loop？
Becky Myrick
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another audiobook chosen because I love listening to the narrator Rebecca Lowman"a book about people solving problems caused by people solving problems"takeaway: climate has been more erratic in the past as evidenced by studying ice cores。 The recent relative climate calm allowed the rise of writing， agriculture， and technology because people didn't have to move all the time when their environments turned unfavorable。 Yes， we are hurrying global warming along at an alarming pace， but we've also another audiobook chosen because I love listening to the narrator Rebecca Lowman"a book about people solving problems caused by people solving problems"takeaway: climate has been more erratic in the past as evidenced by studying ice cores。 The recent relative climate calm allowed the rise of writing， agriculture， and technology because people didn't have to move all the time when their environments turned unfavorable。 Yes， we are hurrying global warming along at an alarming pace， but we've also slotted ourselves into stasis which is costly to maintain （think New Orleans and other coastal cities fighting rising water levels）。Reasons #349208 to #420393 to go off grid in an earthship 。。。more
Rachael Easler
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“A book about people trying to solve problems created by people trying to solve problems。 “ “Scientists can only make recommendations， implementation is a political decision。” More thoughts soon。 I need to take more notes and listen more carefully。 So many great thoughts and tangents， but I can’t recall the details that actually matter。
Jean
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I was thinking this would be a difficult book to describe…then， the author did it for me: “This has been a book about people trying to solve problems created by people trying to solve problems。” （page 200）The book is like reading a “science digest”。 I did not know the back story on some of the problems "we" inadvertently created by trying to solve other problems， for example the introduction of Asian Carp， and so the reading was interesting。In the third part of the book， the author describes som I was thinking this would be a difficult book to describe…then， the author did it for me: “This has been a book about people trying to solve problems created by people trying to solve problems。” （page 200）The book is like reading a “science digest”。 I did not know the back story on some of the problems "we" inadvertently created by trying to solve other problems， for example the introduction of Asian Carp， and so the reading was interesting。In the third part of the book， the author describes some of the problems we are considering to attempt to solve。 Will these “solutions” create other problems？ There is an interesting discussion on what is happening with Carbon Capture and Geo-Engineering。 。。。more
Mahsa Rafiee
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“This has been a book about people trying to solve problems created by people trying to solve problems”Excerpt FromUnder a White Sky: The Nature of the FutureElizabeth KolbertThis material may be protected by copyright。
Kathleen Witte
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Interesting！ Approachable！ Solutions-based climate science！！！！！！If you’re curious what’s being done to mitigate （or even try to reverse） the already disastrous effects of climate change， this is a great， readable primer on some of the specific projects scientists are working on。 Presumably it’s not comprehensive， but for the purposes of introducing a casual reader to the idea of geoengineering， that’s probably a good thing。 I listened to it， and sometimes I struggled to understand what exactly w Interesting！ Approachable！ Solutions-based climate science！！！！！！If you’re curious what’s being done to mitigate （or even try to reverse） the already disastrous effects of climate change， this is a great， readable primer on some of the specific projects scientists are working on。 Presumably it’s not comprehensive， but for the purposes of introducing a casual reader to the idea of geoengineering， that’s probably a good thing。 I listened to it， and sometimes I struggled to understand what exactly was happening， just because the ideas were often complex。 But Kolbert is a fantastic non-fiction storyteller。 Any lack of understanding is my own fault。 Kolbert herself laments that the book does not have the ending she had hoped: the pandemic shut down her international research early。 Therefore， the book wraps up…abruptly。 It’s fine， but it’s not exactly elegant。 Still， overall， a fascinating and I think realistic？ look at the options we have now that we’ve made our bed。 。。。more
Deni
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Can't believe getting hit by a jumping carp is something I'll now worry about。 Can't believe getting hit by a jumping carp is something I'll now worry about。 。。。more
kanchan
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This is a book about people trying to solve problems created by people trying to solve problems。。。。
Helen Irvin
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It’s motivating to read about the huge depth and breadth of scientific effort and ingenious research being conducted in response to climate change。 The book isn’t overly rosy， given it’s a survey of humans’ attempts to patch over problems we created with still more unnatural solutions。 Still， it left me in awe of technology and more hopeful than any other climate book I’ve read。
Andy Gettings
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Takeawayst• If we cut our carbon emissions to 0 today， the earth is likely to heat up 10 degrees F over the next couple of centuries。t• Glacial ice cores from Greenland indicate that temperatures have been more stable for the past 10，000 years than any other 500 year period or something like that for the past 100，000 years。 t• Did this stable climate allow stable， dependable crops which led to our current civilization？This could have been a dry book， but there are many other very interesting cli Takeawayst• If we cut our carbon emissions to 0 today， the earth is likely to heat up 10 degrees F over the next couple of centuries。t• Glacial ice cores from Greenland indicate that temperatures have been more stable for the past 10，000 years than any other 500 year period or something like that for the past 100，000 years。 t• Did this stable climate allow stable， dependable crops which led to our current civilization？This could have been a dry book， but there are many other very interesting climate-related eye openers。 。。。more
Relena_reads
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This book is brilliant， but I also want to know how you get Kolbert's travel budget。 At least the trip to meet the Devil's Hole Pupfish won't cost me very much。 This book is brilliant， but I also want to know how you get Kolbert's travel budget。 At least the trip to meet the Devil's Hole Pupfish won't cost me very much。 。。。more
Sarah
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