The World Without Us
by Alan Weisman · first published 2007
70% recommend30% neutral
Why HN recommends it
Thought experiment on what happens to cities, infrastructure and nature if humans vanish, showing how fast traces of civilization erode and how durable the planet is; suits readers who like detailed nonfiction.
Summarised by Claude from recommending comments
The World Without Us, an intriguing peek inside the impact homo sapiens have on the world around us and what will be left when we cease to exist. Alan Weisman intelligently intertwines the affect we have on the Earth and its ecosystems and the way we have damaged it, the things nature can't undo. A tremendous report on the ways we have killed the flora and fauna and how we will ultimately exterminate ourselves, bringing all that is left of human civilization with us. ~ Written by an 11 year old
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…Also, the added effect to our planet by having a plane that's going to fly regardless carry 2 additional people (plus the weight of their luggage) is minuscule at worst. I suggest a reading of "The World Without Us" by Alan Weisman for a look at just how durable our planet is. (http://www.amazon.com/World-Without-Us-Alan-Weisman/dp/03124...)
on “Developing a Process for Visualizing the Insanity” ↗…Countdown, by Alan Weisman, for covering (over)population, especially for sharing examples of nations that lowered birthrates without coercion or legislation, yielding greater happiness and prosperity. - The World Without Us, by Alan Weisman, for illustrating our effect on the world colorfully and inspirationally. - The Once and Future World, by J.B. MacKinnon, for illustrating how much more nature there used to be, how…
on “Science Books of 2019” ↗The World without us Its an incredible non-fiction book
on “Ask HN: What is one book you would recommend everyone to read?” ↗…will produce. As was mentioned, even 100% recyclable doesn't mean anywhere close to 100% will be recycled unless it is prioritized by the producers and consumers of the product. I recently finished "The World Without Us" by Alan Weisman, and his discussion about the long-term impacts of our reliance on plastics struck me as a very under-appreciated burden on the environment - a huge amount ends up in the ocean, where…
on “License to Print Money” ↗Even though they look a bit fake, I like these photos. The atmosphere reminds me of Alan Weisman's book "the world without us". The cities appear as ghost cities, everything dark, allowing natural light to be visible again. It's like the early stages after humans deserted it, before the forces of nature (combined with lack of…
on “What Major World Cities Look Like at Night, Minus the Light Pollution” ↗If this comment is interesting to you, you may enjoy the book The World Without Us. https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/248787.The_World_Without...
on “Saturn moon 'able to support life'” ↗Not a wasteland, just sparsely populated like Isaac Asimov's Solaria. Don't worry, the countryside will be just fine without people. Just read The World Without Us. I guess I'll become an agricultural robot repairman like the guy in Interstellar when I grow older.
on “Oil Demand for Cars Is Already Falling” ↗Alan Weisman's "The World Without Us" is an interesting book/thought experiment that highlights just how fast the features and evidence of a civilization might be erased through natural processes. https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/248787.The_World_Without...
on “Was There a Civilization on Earth Before Humans?” ↗…we are mostly ignorant of it doesn't change that we've passed many tipping points. Each extinction, for example, is irreversible and everyone here knows we're causing more than ever. I recommend The World Without Us by Alan Weisman (audiobook free on youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W8z6vsg1OH8) and The Once and Future World by J. B. MacKinnon http://www.jbmackinnon.com/index.html. I recorded a video essay…
on “Nine climate tipping points now 'active,' warn scientists” ↗"The World Without Us" https://www.amazon.com/World-Without-Us-Alan-Weisman-ebook/d... A very detailed look at how long things last.
on “Pushing It Back” ↗There's a good book, The World Without Us that goes into great detail on what would happen if humans disappeared.
on “On the trail of the Denisovans” ↗Alan Weisman's lovely book World Without Us speculates a bit about this, basically saying that more recently built structures would be the first to collapse because they've all be engineered so close to the line. Meanwhile stuff that already been…
on “Doom crash after 2.5 years of real-world runtime confirmed on real hardware” ↗You should read "The World Without Us" by Alan Weisman.
on “Bison return to Illinois' Kane County after 200 years” ↗…often wondered what people might think if they were to return to this place following a catastrophic collapse of civilization. Now I have a visual inkling of what they might see." Check out the book "The World Without Us": http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_World_Without_Us
on “Arcade Fire meets HTML5” ↗I’m a fan of that book too - though hoping I never need it! On a tangential theme, another one I read and liked at the same time was The World Without Us - all about what would happen to the cities and infrastructure if all humans suddenly vanished overnight. Kind of depressing but there’s a lot of interesting and non obvious stuff in there
on “Getting humanity to bounce back faster in a post-apocalyptic world” ↗