Audiobook7 hours
The Big Ratchet: How Humanity Thrives in the Face of Natural Crisis
Written by Ruth DeFries
Narrated by Pam Ward
Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars
3.5/5
()
About this audiobook
The Big Ratchet is the story of the ratchets: the technologies and innovations, big and small, that propelled our species from hunters and gatherers on the savannahs of Africa to shoppers in the aisles of the supermarket.Our species long lived on the edge of starvation. Now we produce enough food for all 7 billion of us to eat nearly 3,000 calories every day. This is such an astonishing thing in the history of life as to verge on the miraculous. The Big Ratchet is the story of how it happened.The Big Ratchet itself came in the twentieth century, when a range of technologies-from fossil fuels to scientific plant breeding to nitrogen fertilizers-combined to nearly quadruple our population in a century, and to grow our food supply even faster. To some, these technologies are a sign of our greatness; to others, of our hubris. MacArthur fellow and Columbia University professor Ruth DeFries argues that the debate is the wrong one to have. Limits do exist, but every limit that has confronted us, we have surpassed. That cycle of crisis and growth is the story of our history; indeed, it is the essence of The Big Ratchet. Understanding it will reveal not just how we reached this point in our history, but how we might survive it.
Related to The Big Ratchet
Related audiobooks
Curious Species: How Animals Made Natural History Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsWhy We Hate: Understanding the Roots of Human Conflict Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Sixth Extinction Tenth Anniversary Edition Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Making Eden: How Plants Transformed a Barren Planet Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Social Instinct: How Cooperation Shaped the World Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Sediments Of Time: My Lifelong Search for the Past Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Hidden World: How Insects Sustain Life on Earth Today and Will Shape Our Lives Tomorrow Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Endless Forms: The Secret World of Wasps Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Empire of Ants: The Hidden Worlds and Extraordinary Lives of Earth's Tiny Conquerors Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Delusions Of Crowds: Why People Go Mad in Groups Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Knowledge Machine: How Irrationality Created Modern Science Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Mind of a Bee Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Plagues upon the Earth: Disease and the Course of Human History Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Losing the Nobel Prize: A Story of Cosmology, Ambition, and the Perils of Science's Highest Honor Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Transcendence: How Humans Evolved Through Fire, Language, Beauty, and Time Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Mosquito: The Story of Man's Deadliest Foe Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Murder of Professor Schlick: The Rise and Fall of the Vienna Circle Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5As Gods Among Men: A History of the Rich in the West Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Great Fossil Enigma: The Search for the Conodont Animal Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Next Great Migration: The Beauty and Terror of Life on the Move Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Different: Gender and Our Primate Heritage Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Fewer, Richer, Greener: Prospects for Humanity in an Age of Abundance Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5The Great Leveler: Violence and the History of Inequality from the Stone Age to the Twenty-First Century Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5High on God: How Megachurches Won the Heart of America Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Social Conquest of Earth Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Carl Zimmer: Planet of Viruses Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Ever Since Darwin: Reflections in Natural History Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5What Evolution Is Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5
Biology For You
All That Remains: A Renowned Forensic Scientist on Death, Mortality, and Solving Crimes Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Why We Sleep: Unlocking the Power of Sleep and Dreams Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Stiff: The Curious Lives of Human Cadavers Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge and the Teachings of Plants Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Radiolab: Journey Through The Human Body Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Bonk: The Curious Coupling of Science and Sex Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Code Breaker: Jennifer Doudna, Gene Editing, and the Future of the Human Race Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Lifespan: Why We Age—and Why We Don't Have To Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Second Nature: A Gardener's Education Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Hot Zone Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Grieving Brain: The Surprising Science of How We Learn from Love and Loss Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Longevity Paradox: How to Die Young at a Ripe Old Age Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Autistic Brain: Thinking Across the Spectrum Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Elephant in the Brain: Hidden Motives in Everyday Life Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Confident Mind: A Battle-Tested Guide to Unshakable Performance Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The End of Gender: Debunking the Myths about Sex and Identity in Our Society Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Uncertain Sea: Fear is everywhere. Embrace it. Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Neuroscientist Who Lost Her Mind: My Tale of Madness and Recovery Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5How the Mind Works Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Endure: Mind, Body, and the Curiously Elastic Limits of Human Performance Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Grunt: The Curious Science of Humans at War Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Womb: The Inside Story of Where We All Began Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Inner Life of Animals: Love, Grief, and Compassion: Surprising Observations of a Hidden World Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Homo Deus: A Brief History of Tomorrow Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Magic of Reality: How We Know What's Really True Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Genius Foods: Become Smarter, Happier, and More Productive While Protecting Your Brain for Life Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Buddha's Brain: The Practical Neuroscience of Happiness, Love & Wisdom Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5I Contain Multitudes: The Microbes Within Us and a Grander View of Life Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5
Reviews for The Big Ratchet
Rating: 3.6666666666666665 out of 5 stars
3.5/5
3 ratings0 reviews