World Without Us By Weisman

I read a review and exceprt of this in Scientific American recently, and was intrigued. Even more intriguing is the publicity this book has been getting- the author has appeared on The Daily Show, and any number of other places, and is well-spoken and calm in his presentation. So I have started reading it.

Though I am just in the first half of the book, one thing strikes me which I do not think was the author's intent. The amount of work needed to keep human society from falling into what we would call ruin (if we were still here) is astonishing. Most striking to me is the deconstruction of New York City. Were it not for the constant attention of underground crews, the subways would flood almost immediately. This would be followed by the literal undermining of the city itself, as the tunnels eroded and collapsed, and streets became rivers (some once again, in a return to their pre-Hudson conditions). I wonder if this will be brought up the next time contract negotiations come up. I hope so.

I am not saying that the author is anti-worker, just that this is not the main thrust of his work here. The main thrust is that nature can in many respects- the majority of respects, really- take back what we have been using. And that it would not take all that long.

While reading the description of what (and how) would happen to most modern houses, I was reminded of my trip through some of Detroit's harder-hit areas earlier this year. The houses I saw in a state of decay (with people still living in them) were built using older methods, which is probably what has kept them going even this long. Contrasting these houses, even in their crumbling states, to the newly-built apartment complexes in the area, it was easy to see that the newer buildings would not, even with the best of upkeep, fare as well as the former buildings.

Really, we are seldom building things to last for one human lifetime anymore, let alone something which could stand through the ages.

Anyhoo- I am in the middle of it (well, the early middle).