Kolbert, Elizabeth

"Over the last half-billion years, there have been five mass extinctions, when the diversity of life on earth suddenly and dramatically contracted. Scientists around the world are monitoring the sixth extinction, predicted to be the most devastating extinction event since the asteroid impact that wiped out the dinosaurs. Adapting from her New York Times-bestselling, Pulitzer Prize-winning adult nonfiction, Elizabeth Kolbert explores the Anthropocene era: the era defined by human impact. This young readers adaptation is made accessible with its additional explanations of scientific concepts. Along with photographs from the original book, the adaptation includes illustrations to help make the past, present, and future of extinction compelling for younger readers"--Provided by publisher.

Describes scientists' efforts to counteract harm to the natural environment by using aggressive measures against problems caused by humans and that sometimes go against the natural world.

Over the last half billion years, there have been five major mass extinctions, when the diversity of life on Earth suddenly and dramatically contracted. Scientists are currently monitoring the sixth extinction, predicted to be the most devastating since the asteroid impact that wiped out the dinosaurs. This time around the cataclysm is us. In this book the author tells us why and how human beings have altered life on the planet in a way no species has before. She provides a moving account of the disappearances of various species occurring all around us and traces the evolution of extinction as concept, from its first articulation by Georges Cuvier in revolutionary Paris up to Lyell and Darwin, and through the present day. The sixth extinction is likely to be mankind's most lasting legacy, compelling us to rethink the fundamental question of what it means to be human.

Elizabeth Kolbert selects twenty-six works of American science and nature writing as the best of the genre from the year 2008, including pieces by Nicholas Carr, Walter Isaacson, Oliver Sacks, and others.

Explores how human beings have altered life on Earth, discussing a dozen species facing extinction or already extinct.

A collection of writing about the North and South Poles, featuring contributions from novelists, explorers, and natural scientists, including Jules Verne, Robert Peary, Jack London, Barry Lopez, and others.

Presents an examination of the build-up of carbon dioxide in the Earth's atmosphere and the effects on climate change and global warming.