Asimov Isaac, Pohl Frederik. Our Angry Earth

Tor Books, 2018 — 480 p. — ISBN 978-0765399762, 0765399768«A lucid overview of [environmental] problems and a compelling call to action.» ―Publishers WeeklyFrom two of science fiction’s most celebrated and brilliant minds―Isaac Asimov and Frederik Pohl―comes the second edition of Our Angry Earth, a comprehensive analysis of today's environmental threats and a guide on how we can heal our planet, with an introduction and afterword from New York Times bestselling author Kim Stanley Robinson.
Our Angry Earth provides a candid picture of the present and many possibilities for a better, cleaner future. From the greenhouse effect and depletion of our ozone layer to nuclear waste and species extinction, Asimov and Pohl not only present accessible explanations of complex scientific processes but ways we can improve our behavior and relationship with the planet, whether it be involvement in social activism or individual lifestyle changes.
Kim Stanley Robinson, author of New York Times bestsellers and the internationally renowned Mars trilogy, brings his decades-spanning expertise in climate change to Our Angry Earth’s introduction and afterword.
Our Angry Earth: A Ticking Ecological Bomb (1991) is a non-fiction book and polemic against the effects humankind is having on the environment by the science fiction writers Isaac Asimov and Frederik Pohl. In his last non-fiction book, Asimov co-writes with his long-time friend science fiction author Frederik Pohl, and deals with elements of the environmental crisis such as overpopulation, oil dependence, war, global warming and the destruction of the ozone layer. (First edition (publ. Tor Books)
It suggests monumental disasters are threatening to destroy humankind and argues that «it is too late to save our planet from harm». The book has four sections: «The Background», «The Problems», «The Technocures» and «The Way to Go».
«The coming of doom is because of deeds that do not seem evil on the face of it. Because we are concerned with the improving of the health of mankind and its security, our population has increased markedly, especially in the last hundred years, to the point where the Earth cannot support us all. Because we have industrialised ourselves in order to lift the curse of physical labour from our backs we have poured the poisons produced by the internal combustion engine into our atmosphere and dirtied it to the point where we can scarcely breathe it. Because we have learned to make new materials for the greater convenience of mankind, we have produced chemical toxins that have saturated our soil and water. Because we have found a new source of energy, and destruction, in the atomic nucleus, we face the threat of nuclear war or, even if we avoid that, the permeation of our environment with dangerous radiation and nuclear wastes.»
A 2018 edition (after both authors had died) includes a new introduction and afterword by Kim Stanley Robinson.Introduction by Kim Stanley Robinson
Introduction by Isaac Asimov
Introduction by Frederik Pohl
The Background
The Environmental War
Gaia and Other Hopes
Inventing the Future
Rationing Destruction
Where We Go from Here
The Problems
Warming Up
Question Period
Poisoning the Air
Sunburn
The Water We Drink
Trashing the World
The Pollution of Space
The Technocures
What Can We Do About It All?
Power
How the Bookkeepers Can Save the World
Getting There: Cars, Trains, and Planes
Fixing the Home and Farm
How Hard Will It Be?
The Way to Go
How Far Do You Want to Go?
Missionary Work
Leverage
Organization and Action
Politicians
Green Politics
Is It All Worthwhile?
Appendixes
Sources and Resources
Constitutions, By-laws, and Other Parlor Games
Afterword by Frederik Pohl
Afterword by Kim Stanley Robinson
About the Authors