The World Without Us: 11 Fun Facts from a Book about Earth without Humans

(Page 2 of 2)

May 21, 2009
By Aubrey Vaughn 
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This short list is interesting, but the book is fun (in a geeky, quirky kind of way) and full of great trivia (who knew about the underground city Derinkuyu beneath Cappadocia, Turkey?). In the grand scheme of things, it may not matter what happens if we all mysteriously, simultaneously vanish – to us, anyway. In any case, if we’re the only thing that goes, it’s almost guaranteed that eventually the Earth will wear away most traces that we were ever here – well, except those pesky radio waves, but they’ll be long gone into space. But in posing and attempting to answer the question, The World Without Us provides an intriguing and informative look at the way we impact the world around us, and the effects and life cycles of that which we create and leave behind.

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You can find The World Without Us at your local library or bookstore, or online at TheWorldWithoutUs.com.

Have you read The World Without Us? Yes or no, what do you think would happen if we vanished? Share your thoughts by posting a comment below.

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  • klohma 5/27/2009 10:23:17 AM

    What pre-human levels are we referring to 100,000 years after we disappear? Currently we are rougly at 0.0360% CO2 in the atmosphere. Past levels have been as high as .5 percent and life flourshied.

  • klohma 5/27/2009 10:22:23 AM

    What pre-human levels are we referring to 100,000 years after we disappear? Currently we are rougly at 0.0360% CO2 in the atmosphere. Past levels have been as high as .5 percent and life flourshied.

  • Juuro 5/26/2009 2:23:14 AM

    "Nuclear reactors will burn or melt."

    Did someone say personal bias? There are a number of things in the nuclear reactors apart from emergency cooling water that keep things controlled. Much before the emergency generator fuel is exhausted, the control rods would have automatically plunged down and rendered the reactor dormant. Radioactive as all heck, but contained in the structures. Three-Mile-Island was an aberration, not the normality.

  • rrvau 5/26/2009 12:17:41 AM

    G'day,
    Point 7: if the CO2 levels return to pre-human levels, that means up to 1500 ppm. Kind of shoots the anthropological influence theory down, doesn't it?

    Best Regards,
    Royce R. Vines


    Neither youth nor old aged should be seen as achievements. The twain has finally met! For seeing is believing.

  • Bethany 5/25/2009 3:40:54 PM

    I have never really thought of the concept of the complete extinction of the human race. Of course, for the evolutionary people, our cousins, the primates, will once again evolve and ta-da, here we are again. Or maybe some other species will take over, reptilian. There are so many ways to speculate and hypothesize about our extinction. I had never thought about the abandonment of all the animals that depend on us for their survival. I would like to think that many would find their way. Just from this article I think this book would be a brain tickler.

  • mij noslo 5/25/2009 12:44:16 PM

    This is just horsefeather nuts. Let the author lead the way by dropping dead. What other stupid subject does Mother "earf" news want to waste ink on. keep sucking up to the socialist thinking and you will eventually abort/euthanize yourself to near extinction. Another liberal horror wish.

  • UncleRice 5/23/2009 6:29:33 PM

    Some of the dams, like Boulder/ Hoover Dam, were built with concrete that will last thousands of years and are firmly attached to the rock around it. So, while it might silt full and over flow, I find the claim that all dams will collapse in 300 years highly suspect and possibly a product of personal bias.

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