Andrew Y. Glikson Knihy

This book explores a critical moment in history where warlike primates are wreaking havoc on the delicate web of life that Charles Darwin described. Humanity is engaged in a destructive war against nature, leading to the fastest mass extinction ever recorded and rising global temperatures that threaten to incinerate the biosphere within a single lifetime. Despite this awareness, humans continue to release carbon from the Earth's crust into the atmosphere and oceans, resulting in a catastrophic auto-da-fe of the terrestrial biosphere. Amplifying feedbacks from global warming, such as wildfires, methane release, ice melt, and warming oceans, are escalating at an unprecedented rate, while societies divert their remaining resources into warfare, including the potential for nuclear conflict. This poses a grave threat not only to human existence but also to countless other species. Emerging from the ice ages, humans have built advanced civilizations marked by violence and bloodshed, often betraying the innocent. With a mindset shaped by illusions of power, paranoia, aggression towards nature, and a lack of respect for women, humanity finds itself in a tragic struggle between intellect and emotion, leading to dire consequences for all.

The book explores the duality of human advancement amidst the looming threats of global warming and nuclear conflict. It delves into how humanity's technological prowess brings both creativity and destruction, represented by the metaphor of a candle that illuminates yet consumes itself. As environmental crises unfold—such as wildfires, melting ice sheets, and rising sea levels—the narrative underscores the urgent need to confront these challenges that endanger civilization and its agricultural foundations.

This books presents a documentation and resulting perspectives regarding James Lovelock's multidisciplinary evolution theory. It looks at past and current climate changes and their consequences, including detailed accounts of the global warming. The connection between climate trajectories and extreme weather events, including tropical and arctic fronts, cyclones, fire storms, tropical storms, acidification, tsunami, floods, sea level rise, are referred to in connection with recent developments. The book updates earlier accounts regarding extreme weather events and mass extinctions.