TY  - BOOK
AU  - Weisman,Alan
TI  - The world without us
SN  - 0312347294
AV  - GF75 .W455 2007
U1  - 304.2 22
PY  - 2007///
CY  - New York
PB  - Thomas Dunne Books/St. Martin's Press
KW  - Nature
KW  - Effect of human beings on
KW  - Material culture
KW  - Human-plant relationships
KW  - Human-animal relationships
N1  - Includes bibliographical references (pages 289-311) and index; Prelude : A monkey koan --; pt. 1 --; 1. A; lingering scent of Eden --; 2; Unbuilding our home --; 3. The; city without us --; 4. The; world just before us --; 5. The; lost menagerie --; 6. The; African paradox --; pt. 2 --; 7; What falls apart --; 8; What lasts --; 9; Polymers are forever --; 10. The; petro patch --; 11. The; world without farms --; pt. 3 --; 12. The; fate of ancient and modern wonders of the world --; 13. The; world without war --; 14; Wings without us --; 15; Hot legacy --; 16; Our geologic record --; pt. 4 --; 17; Where do we go from here? --; 18; Art beyond us --; 19. The; sea cradle --; Coda : our earth, our souls --; Acknowledgments --; Select bibliography --; Index
N2  - Journalist Weisman offers an original approach to questions of humanity's impact on the planet. Drawing on the expertise of engineers, atmospheric scientists, art conservators, zoologists, oil refiners, marine biologists, astrophysicists, religious leaders, and paleontologists, he illustrates what the planet might be like today if humans disappeared. He explains how our massive infrastructure would collapse and finally vanish without human presence; which everyday items may become immortalized as fossils; how copper pipes and wiring would be crushed into mere seams of reddish rock; why some of our earliest buildings might be the last architecture left; and how plastic, bronze sculpture, radio waves, and some man-made molecules may be our most lasting gifts to the universe. As he shows which human devastations are indelible, and which examples of our highest art and culture would endure longest, Weisman's narrative ultimately drives toward a radical but persuasive solution that needn't depend on our demise.--From publisher description
UR  - http://www.loc.gov/catdir/enhancements/fy0711/2007011565-b.html
ER  -