Decline and Fall of the Human Empire: Why Our Species Is on the Edge of Extinction

Henry Gee

Book cover for Decline and Fall of the Human Empire: Why Our Species Is on the Edge of Extinction
Book cover for Decline and Fall of the Human Empire: Why Our Species Is on the Edge of Extinction

Decline and Fall of the Human Empire: Why Our Species Is on the Edge of Extinction

Decline and Fall of the Human Empire: Why Our Species Is on the Edge of Extinction

Henry Gee

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Description

By the award-winning author of A (Very) Short History of Life on Earth: a history of humanity on the brink of decline.

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We are living through a period that is unique in human history. For the first time in more than ten thousand years, the rate of human population growth is slowing down. In the middle of this century population growth will stop, and the number of people on Earth will start to decline - fast.

In this provocative book, award-winning science writer Henry Gee offers a concise, brilliantly-told history of our species--and argues that we are on a rapid, one-way trip to extinction. The Decline and Fall of the Human Empire narrates the dramatic rise of humanity, how a scattered range of small groups across several continents eventually inbred, interacted, fought, established stable communities and food supplies, and began the process of dominating the planet. The human story is relatively brief--the oldest fossils of H. Sapiens date to approximately 300,000 years ago--yet the spread of our species has been unstoppable...until recently.

As Gee demonstrates, our population has peaked, and is declining; our environment is becoming inimical to human life in many locations; our core resources of water, arable land, and air are diminishing; and new diseases, simmering conflicts, and ambiguous technologies threaten our collective health. Can we still change our course? Or is our own extinction inevitable?

There could be a way out, but the launch window is narrow.

Unless Homo sapiens establishes successful colonies in space within the next two centuries, our species is likely to stay earthbound and will have vanished entirely within another ten thousand years, bringing the seven-million-year story of the human lineage to an end.

With assured narration, dramatic stories, and his signature sprightly humor, Henry Gee envisions new opportunities for the future of humanity--a future that will reward facing challenges with ingenuity, foresight, and cooperation.

About the Author

HENRY GEE is a senior editor at Nature and the author of several books, including A (Very) Short History of Life on Earth, Jacob's Ladder, In Search of Deep Time, The Science of Middle-earth, and The Accidental Species. He has appeared on BBC television and radio and NPR's All Things Considered, and has written for The Guardian, The Times, and BBC Science Focus. He lives in Cromer, Norfolk, England, with his family and numerous pets.

Critical Reviews

'This is a real corker of a book, beautifully crafted, superbly researched, witty, with lashes of humour, telling the gripping story of why our human species will ultimately go the way of the dinosaurs. Are we all just drug-crazed lemmings willingly racing towards the cliff of extinction? Compulsory reading for all humans, mandatory for politicians. Can we possibly survive? Please tell me, Dr Gee, and tell it to me straight, just how much time have we all got?"
--John Long, Professor in Palaeontology at Flinders University and author of The Secret History of Sharks- the Rise of the Ocean's Most Fearsome Predators

"Wide ranging...enjoyable...A serious but nonetheless entertaining look at the human race's long-term prospects." --Kirkus Reviews

"Henry Gee wrote my favourite book of last year and has now written my favourite book of next year. How he manages to expand my mind, and my knowledge of life on earth. while making me giggle at our own forthcoming extinction, well, t'aint natural. Put this at the head of your reading lists immediately, people. Before it's too late." --Eric Idle

"Exhilarating . . . With the witty and conversational style that won him the Royal Society Science Book prize, Henry Gee tackles the existential question of humanity's future. Measured and enlightening, Henry Gee is a sage." --Steve Brusatte, author of The Rise and Fall of the Dinosaurs

"Like Jared Diamond meets Arthur C. Clarke with a dash of Douglas Adams, this deserves to be widely read and debated." --Philip Ball, author of How Life Works and Critical Mass

"A fascinating, deeply researched study of our evolutionary journey and a wonderfully enjoyable adventure." --Michael Bond, author of Wayfinding

"Splendid...presents a familiar tale in absorbing fashion." - John Gribbin, Literary Review

"The Decline and Fall of the Human Empire is hugely informative and entertaining ... I can't think of another author who could pull off Gee's straight-talking, detached-yet-jovial style. He is such an amiable guide to our doom." - Rowan Hooper, The New Scientist

Publishing Information

Publisher: St. Martin's Press
Pub date: 2025-03-18
Length: 288 pages

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