Burrows (Deep Black) provides a catalogue of catastrophes that might destroy civilization as we know it. His list is long and includes the usual suspects; a devastating impact by an asteroid or comet, nuclear holocaust, famine, earthquakes, hurricanes. The impact of all of these potential catastrophes might be mitigated, he argues, if we intelligently develop a program for humans to colonize space. This should become the prime goal of NASA, which, he says in an insightful analysis, has lacked a well-defined mission since the goal of landing on the moon was reached. If we remain localized on a single planet, we are susceptible to extinction. While his writing is lively, Burrows, director of the graduate Science and Environmental Reporting Program at NYU, is not fully successful because the book is fragmented, jumping from an analysis of the risks of nuclear attack during the Cold War to the probabilities of a massive asteroid hitting the Earth and then shifting to a discussion of the need for a human presence on the moon, with asides on the nature of modern terrorism. Although there's much of interest, it doesn't come together into a coherent package. (Aug.)
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DOWNLOAD THE SURVIVAL IMPERATIVE: USING SPACE TO PROTECT EARTH - WILLIAM E. BURROWS
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