Catastrophe: Risk and Response

Catastrophe: Risk and Response
ISBN-10
0195346394
ISBN-13
9780195346398
Series
Catastrophe
Category
Science
Pages
336
Language
English
Published
2004-11-11
Publisher
Oxford University Press
Author
Richard A. Posner

Description

Catastrophic risks are much greater than is commonly appreciated. Collision with an asteroid, runaway global warming, voraciously replicating nanomachines, a pandemic of gene-spliced smallpox launched by bioterrorists, and a world-ending accident in a high-energy particle accelerator, are among the possible extinction events that are sufficiently likely to warrant careful study. How should we respond to events that, for a variety of psychological and cultural reasons, we find it hard to wrap our minds around? Posner argues that realism about science and scientists, innovative applications of cost-benefit analysis, a scientifically literate legal profession, unprecedented international cooperation, and a pragmatic attitude toward civil liberties are among the keys to coping effectively with the catastrophic risks.

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