by Alan Weizman
Humankind disappears overnight. What will happen with the earth? How long will our artefacts last? Will it be an earth like the one before the ape with the big brain came along? Or did we already changed it irreversibly?
Weizman, a Tucson based journalist, spoke with many experts on the various matters. Many times he extrapolates from existing situations, e.g an abandoned house in different climates. It is amazing how quick your house would be populated by all sorts of animals and how the roof would collapse very quickly. He takes such examples as the last original frost in Europe shared by Poland and Belarus. The no-go-areas along the borders between North and South Korea, between Greek and Turkish Cyprus. He explores the impact of our nuclear power plants. In fact, it is a book, which explains in large parts our current impact on the environment – like the many plastics we produce. These artificial “hydro-carbonates “ will last almost forever. He enumerates various disturbing facts about the pollution of our oceans. Alone these chapters are worth to read.
But what will last even longer than earth itself are the radio transmissions. This I found really fascinating. I enjoyed reading the book!
Weizman, a Tucson based journalist, spoke with many experts on the various matters. Many times he extrapolates from existing situations, e.g an abandoned house in different climates. It is amazing how quick your house would be populated by all sorts of animals and how the roof would collapse very quickly. He takes such examples as the last original frost in Europe shared by Poland and Belarus. The no-go-areas along the borders between North and South Korea, between Greek and Turkish Cyprus. He explores the impact of our nuclear power plants. In fact, it is a book, which explains in large parts our current impact on the environment – like the many plastics we produce. These artificial “hydro-carbonates “ will last almost forever. He enumerates various disturbing facts about the pollution of our oceans. Alone these chapters are worth to read.
But what will last even longer than earth itself are the radio transmissions. This I found really fascinating. I enjoyed reading the book!
Facts:
English title: The World without us
Original title: The World without us
Published: 2007
