The Winds of Change; Climate, Weather, and the Destruction of Civilizations

xii, 302, [6] pages. Footnotes. Map. Illustrations. Chronology. Index. There is some staining at the bottom edge, cover and dust jacket. This copy has an author inscription on the title page that reads: "For Sharon, With my best wishes, Eugene Linden 7/27/06". A concise history of significant world events that occurred as a direct result of climate changes describes lost societies in Greenland, central America, and central Africa, in a cautionary account that evaluates the present world's readiness for threatening climate changes. Eugene Linden (born 1947) is an American author of nonfiction books on animal intelligence, popular science, technology, the environment, and humanity's relationship with nature. Linden was educated at Yale University. Besides his books, Linden has published articles and essays in Time, Foreign Affairs, The Wall Street Journal et al. He published a cover story on the demoralization of American forces in Vietnam in Saturday Review, December 1971. Linden was a senior writer at Inc. in 1984, and a senior writer at Time in 1987-1995, followed by a contributor in 1995-2001. His books The Parrot's Lament (1999) and The Octopus and the Orangutan (2002) have been positively reviewed as making a compelling argument for consciousness in animals. He has appeared on television, including The Daily Show and Comedy Central, and on radio, including National Public Radio (NPR). Derived from a Kirkus review: In this cautionary tale, journalist Linden lays out evidence that climate change is the culprit behind the demise of previous civilizations. Linden posits climate change as the "serial killer" responsible for a series of death blows to civilizations both ancient and modern. The effect of climate fluctuation on the planet is a hot topic, with new research pointing to sudden, dramatic shifts: the "switch" model. Drought-induced starvation led the Akkadians of the once-Fertile Crescent to abandon their fabled cities so quickly that walls were left half-finished. Mayan leaders were likewise done in when their water sources failed. Norse colonies in Greenland disappeared during the Little Ice Age; if climate had remained favorable, they might have had the opportunity to overrun the Americas. Linden describes how scientists use ice cores and sediment to determine past climate changes, then considers how the evidence stacks up for each civilization. He moves on to El Niño's impact on more recent history, especially that of India under British rule, when imperial arrogance allowed famine to kill millions. The final chapters are devoted to the disconnection between the scientific consensus and the political debate over global warming. Although whole volumes have been devoted to each of the topics covered, this text provides a sound orientation to a controversial subject.…