Science Human Survival

Two years after the Pulse shut down the nation’s power grid, Darrick, his wife Tonya, and their autistic son Andy, show up on the doorstep of Darrick’s childhood home. Darrick must make peace with his older brother Jimmie and ailing father James, all the while reacquainting himself with the life of a homesteader. Meanwhile, a looming omen hovers over everything he holds dear. A huge murder of crows circles a large, well-equipped, and organized group of aggressive survivors that are about to discover the homestead....

Weaving together findings from a wide range of disciplines, Power traces how four key elements developed to give humans extraordinary power: Tool making ability, language, social complexity, and the ability to harness energy sources - most significantly, fossil fuels. It asks whether we have, at this point, overpowered natural and social systems, and if we have, what we can do about it. Has Homo sapiens - one species among millions - become powerful enough to threaten a mass extinction and disrupt the Earth's climate?

Although it is widely understood that energy and water are the world’s two most critical resources, their vital interconnections and vulnerabilities are less often recognized. This farsighted audiobook offers a new, holistic way of thinking about energy and water - a big picture approach that reveals the interdependence of the two resources, identifies the seriousness of the challenges, and lays out an optimistic approach with an array of solutions to ensure continuing sustainability.

What the heck is life all about? This question is explored in the context of climate change and the aspects of human evolution that make us vulnerable to the consumer trap. A raft of possibilities for a changed social fabric are offered with the aim of making life more enjoyable while protecting our planet.