James Lawrence Powell
Autor von Night Comes to the Cretaceous
Über den Autor
James Lawrence Powell earned a PhD in geochemistry from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, has written five other books about earth science, and has several honorary degrees.
Werke von James Lawrence Powell
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Wissenswertes
- Geburtstag
- 1936-07-17
- Geschlecht
- male
- Nationalität
- USA
- Ausbildung
- Berea College (BS|Geology)
Massachusetts Institute of Technology (PhD|Geochemistry) - Berufe
- university professor
geologist - Organisationen
- Oberlin College
Reed College
Los Angeles County Museum of Natural History
Franklin Institute Science Museum
National Physical Science Consortium - Kurzbiographie
- I was born in Berea, Kentucky and graduated from Berea College with a degree in Geology. I have a Ph.D. in Geochemistry from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and several honorary degrees, including Doctor of Science degrees from Berea College and Oberlin College.
I taught Geology at Oberlin College for over 20 years and served as Acting President of Reed College, President of the Franklin Institute Science Museum in Philadelphia, and President and Director of the Los Angeles County Museum of Natural History.
President Reagan and later, President George H. W. Bush, both appointed me to the National Science Board, where I served for 12 years. I am now the Executive Director of the National Physical Science Consortium. Asteroid 1987 SH7 is named for me. [from Rough Winds (2011)]
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This book is "fiction" but reads more like "nonfiction" with a reflection of the past and why things went very wrong. My guess is that most readers picking up this book are informed of the horrors of climate change: the effects of what happens when we run out of water, a possible war, additional forest fires, hurricanes and floods. It's sad to think about what can happen in the eyes of the author. The book has an outline of subjects that are easy to understand taken from someone interviewing people in the year 2084. Those living in the future wonder what happened and why there wasn't a greater priority for climate change in the world. It seems the author wrote a fiction book as no one is listening to the facts - hoping that more people will read it. That's what we all hope. And if we could fast forward in to the future, would we change things now?… (mehr)
Three tales of developing science: how we determined the age of the earth, how continental drift/plate tectonics was discovered, and where the craters on the moon and other planets were formed. Very engaging and interesting look at the messy way science really happens, with real people who are flawed and sometimes dumb or blind.
This is a fictional oral history of our climate change future.
As science, it reads pretty well, though he uses (understandably) an extreme scenario. There were a couple of blips--why so much focus on the loss of hydropower for Phoenix and not a single mention of solar?--but largely good. As history, it's a little weaker, with some of the speculation feeling implausible, even within the constraints of speculative futures.
As fiction.... not so much. The author is a scientist, not a writer. It's cleanly written and compelling, but there isn't really a plot or characters to hang things together. The fictional interviews don't flow into each other, and the interviewees lack distinct voices for the most part.
**spoiler alert -- not that it really matters**
The ending, though, read as a nuclear power rah-rah, which was weird and a little jarring.… (mehr)
As science, it reads pretty well, though he uses (understandably) an extreme scenario. There were a couple of blips--why so much focus on the loss of hydropower for Phoenix and not a single mention of solar?--but largely good. As history, it's a little weaker, with some of the speculation feeling implausible, even within the constraints of speculative futures.
As fiction.... not so much. The author is a scientist, not a writer. It's cleanly written and compelling, but there isn't really a plot or characters to hang things together. The fictional interviews don't flow into each other, and the interviewees lack distinct voices for the most part.
**spoiler alert -- not that it really matters**
The ending, though, read as a nuclear power rah-rah, which was weird and a little jarring.… (mehr)
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- 14
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- 402
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- #60,416
- Bewertung
- 3.8
- Rezensionen
- 11
- ISBNs
- 25
- Sprachen
- 2
My biggest issue with it was that every chapter was written in exactly the same voice. This book was supposed to be interviews with many different characters, but they all read exactly the same. Another big issue was that it was completely centered around the US and I guess I just find that boring. The racialized characters didn't feel any different from the white characters and that didn't sit well. On top of that a racial slur was used repeatedly in one chapter and I thought that for a researcher and professor the author maybe would have considered how to write about a culture respectfully...
I do think this book could still be a tool to promote change around climate issues, but it could have been so much better.… (mehr)