April 9, 2018
Astrophysicist and NPR commentator Frank (The End of the Beginning) explores “the astrobiology of the Anthropocene” in this skillfully written volume. With an evenhanded approach to issues like the possibility of extraterrestrial life and the threat posed by climate change, Frank’s simple, effective narrative interlaces biology, astrophysics, population science, and more to lend a cosmic perspective on the fate of life and earth. “Earth has worn the masks of many worlds” throughout its history of sweeping transformations, he observes, and studying other planets can cast new light on this one’s challenges, such as how Venus reveals the dangers of a runaway greenhouse effect. Big-picture summaries of Fermi’s paradox and philosophical inquiries into “exo-civilizations” lay out how humans have historically grappled with the question of alien life. The Easter Island civilization’s collapse demonstrates “what is true for an isolated island, its ecosystems, and its inhabitants should also be true for planets in the isolation of space.” Coupling a bevy of exoplanet data with his own research, Frank approximates the odds of humanity being the only civilization to ever exist as “one in ten billion trillion.” Engrossing readers start to finish with persuasive, smooth prose, Frank offers a new take on humanity’s place in this “vast and ancient metropolis of stars.”