1491: New Revelations of the Americas before Columbus by Charles C. Mann

1491: New Revelations of the Americas before Columbus by Charles C. Mann

anthropology archeology history native americans nonfiction

Summary (Amazon):
In this groundbreaking work of science, history, and archaeology, Charles C. Mann radically alters our understanding of the Americas before the arrival of Columbus in 1492.

Contrary to what so many Americans learn in school, the pre-Columbian Indians were not sparsely settled in a pristine wilderness; rather, there were huge numbers of Indians who actively molded and influenced the land around them. The astonishing Aztec capital of Tenochtitlan had running water and immaculately clean streets, and was larger than any contemporary European city. Mexican cultures created corn in a specialized breeding process that it has been called man’s first feat of genetic engineering. Indeed, Indians were not living lightly on the land but were landscaping and manipulating their world in ways that we are only now beginning to understand. Challenging and surprising, this a transformative new look at a rich and fascinating world we only thought we knew.

(Wikipedia)

Reviews:
New York Times: '1491' Vanished Americans https://www.nytimes.com/2005/10/09/books/review/1491-vanished-americans.html

Kirkus Review: https://www.kirkusreviews.com/book-reviews/charles-c-mann/1491/

The Guardian: https://www.theguardian.com/books/2011/nov/04/1493-americas-charles-mann-review

Washington Post: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/08/04/AR2005080401609.html

Interviews:
NPR: https://www.npr.org/2005/08/21/4805434/1491-explores-the-americas-before-columbus
HCTV: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nhncJH4UFQI

Author's Website: http://www.charlesmann.org/

Author's Article in The Atlantic:
https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2002/03/1491/302445/

Series on Vimeo based on the book: https://vimeo.com/ondemand/1491channel;
Free overview: https://vimeo.com/246849321

Penguin Random House's Reading Guide (2nd Edition):
https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/107178/1491-second-edition-by-charles-c-mann/9781400032051/readers-guide/

Discussion Questions: (John will be leading the discussion with his following questions)

1. What are some of the most important misconceptions about the Americas before Europeans? How did these misconceptions come about?

2. Describe the author’s depiction of the new world and how it was developed by its original inhabitants?

3. What were some of the accomplishments of Native Americans that equal or surpassed those of Europeans?

4. What were some of the most memorable, and catastrophic, initial encounters between Europeans and Native Americans, and what were common factors between them? Could we become vulnerable like the Native Americans in our global society today?  Could the tragic outcomes been avoided?

5. How has our understanding of the history of Native Americans and how they settled these continents changed during our lifetimes?

6. Infectious diseases perhaps played the most important role in the devastation of Native American populations. What were some of these diseases and their effects? What would have happened if Native Americans had also harbored infectious diseases unknown to Europeans?

7. An important goal for modern environmentalists is to preserve and restore the Amazonian forests.  How does this impact the native peoples of this region?  Could this also be seen as a modern version of foreigners imposing their wills upon indigenous peoples?

8. Do you think the world is a better place for what happened?

(Patheos.com)

The World Without Us by Alan Weisman

The World Without Us by Alan Weisman

endangered environment extinction future history nonfiction science

Summary: (Selection from Amazon):
"Alan Weisman offers an utterly original approach to questions of humanity's impact on the planet: he asks us to envision our Earth, without us. In this far-reaching narrative, Weisman explains how our massive infrastructure would collapse and finally vanish without human presence; which everyday items may become immortalized as fossils; how copper pipes and wiring would be crushed into mere seams of reddish rock; why some of our earliest buildings might be the last architecture left; and how plastic, bronze sculpture, radio waves, and some man-made molecules may be our most lasting gifts to the universe."

Reviews:
NY Times: "Starting Over" by Jennifer Schuessler:
https://www.nytimes.com/2007/09/02/books/review/Schuessler-t.html
The Guardian:
https://www.theguardian.com/books/2008/may/03/society1

Book and Author Website:
http://www.worldwithoutus.com/about_author.html

Author Interviews:
1. NPR: https://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=14194915
2. Jon Stewart: http://www.cc.com/video-clips/0xoqg1/the-daily-show-with-jon-stewart-alan-weisman
3. NOVA: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m8CsBMCfu0s
4. YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pQxBYoGNmO0

Related Articles:
1. "Should it be Saved: Proposals to focus resources on some endangered species and let others go extinct are stirring fierce debate", Warren Corwall, Science, Sept. 7, 2018.
http://science.sciencemag.org/content/361/6406/962

2. "Florence engulfs hog farms and chicken houses, thrashing NC agriculture", Dan Charles, NPR, September 18, 2018.
https://www.npr.org/sections/thesalt/2018/09/18/649132289/florence-engulfs-hog-farms-and-chicken-houses-thrashing-north-carolina-agricultu

Eleven Fun Facts from the Book: Mother Earth News:
https://www.motherearthnews.com/nature-and-environment/nature/world-without-us-alan-weisman

Discussion Questions: 

1.     What are some of the things that you found surprising or not, that would survive a world without humans?

2.     When considering common household items you use (such as a computer, cell phone, lawnmower, etc.), reflect on its origins, how it’s manufactured, its’ uses and lifespan, etc. How might such self-reflection inform your future choices that you make to buy, use or store something?

3.     Which species do you think will adapt, thrive or decline in our changing world?

4.     Many conservation groups and governments (i.e. Endangered Species Act, etc. ) have worked and continue to work to protect and restore species most at risk of disappearing. Which species do you think we should focus on to save? How does one choose?

5.     Are humans a part of the natural world or separate?

6.     We are aware of some of the worst ecological disasters such as Chernobyl, but were some of the author’s examples surprising to you, such as plastics, embalming products, flower industry waste, nuclear waste? (Remember, this book was written in 2007)

7.     Did you find this book depressing? Hopeful? What was your emotional response to this book?

8.     If humans were gone, what would you hope would return, i.e. animals, plants, etc.

9.     What new revelations might you have to help the destiny of the earth now, beyond your own personal actions, which would have a greater, broader, meaningful impact? Perhaps: promoting renewable energies, encouraging businesses to eliminate plastic bags and straws, supporting conservation and environmental groups, other ideas?

Some of the questions were inspired from: https://www.madisonpubliclibrary.org/sites/default/files/bookclubkit/discussions/weisman_world.pdfand http://www.galesburglibrary.org/BookClub/WorldWithoutUs.pdf

The Botany of Desire by Michael Pollan

The Botany of Desire by Michael Pollan

bees gardening history nonfiction pollination potato science

Summary (from Amazon):

"Every schoolchild learns about the mutually beneficial dance of honeybees and flowers: The bee collects nectar and pollen to make honey and, in the process, spreads the flowers’ genes far and wide. In The Botany of Desire, Michael Pollan ingeniously demonstrates how people and domesticated plants have formed a similarly reciprocal relationship. He masterfully links four fundamental human desires—sweetness, beauty, intoxication, and control—with the plants that satisfy them: the apple, the tulip, marijuana, and the potato. In telling the stories of four familiar species, Pollan illustrates how the plants have evolved to satisfy humankind’s most basic yearnings. And just as we’ve benefited from these plants, we have also done well by them. So who is really domesticating whom?"

Reviews:

New York Times, "For the Love of Potatoes":

 http://www.nytimes.com/books/01/06/03/reviews/010603.03bilgert.html

The Guardian: "Power to the Potato":

https://www.theguardian.com/books/2002/jun/01/featuresreviews.guardianreview7

Author's Site: http://michaelpollan.com/interviews/botany-of-desire/

Interviews: 

* NPR: https://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=1126607, (Part 2) https://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?; storyId=1123916; https://www.npr.org/programs/talkingplants/radio/010604.pollan.html

* TED talk: https://www.ted.com/talks/michael_pollan_gives_a_plant_s_eye_view

The Movie by PBS: http://www.pbs.org/thebotanyofdesire/

Study guides:

PBS: https://www-tc.pbs.org/thebotanyofdesire/pdf/BotanyofDesire_RandomHouseTeacherGuide.pdf

Bookrags: http://www.bookrags.com/studyguide-the-botany-of-desire/#gsc.tab=0

(https://s2-ssl.dmcdn.net/H9VPc.jpg)

Discussion Questions: (Donna wrote these questions and will be leading the discussion.)

1. Does this book about domesticated species fit into our nature lover’s book selections, or not?

2. What are a few examples of coevolution right here in our neck of the woods, meadows, or backyards? Or in other books we have read together like “Beak of the Finch” , “Forest Unseen”, etc.?

3. What do you think about Pollan’s premise that we humans are part of the coevolutionary process?  Scientists and farmers have been artificial selectors for hundreds of years, what is the difference between artificial selection and coevolution..? or is there one?  What did Darwin argue?

4. On page xxiii of the introduction Pollan writes “Indeed, even the wild now depends on civilization for survival.”  Let’s talk about how this fits some of our previous discussions.

5. What was your favorite and/or least favorite chapter? Why?

6. Let’s talk about the storied 10,000 year history of Cannabis and the discovery of cannabinoid receptors in the human brain?  How is marijuana different/similar to alcohol, tobacco and other drugs?  Should it be legal?

7. What are some other plants, foods, animals Pollan (or other authors) could use to illustrate his thesis?

8. In your opinion, are GMOs a net plus or minus for our U.S. food system?  What about malnourished countries?  Is spraying chemical insecticides different than putting natural insecticides directly into a plants’ genes? Why or why not?

9. Talk about biodiversity versus monocultures on our farms, on our dinner plates, in lumber tracts, etc.

10.  Do we control plants or do they control us?   On page 187, “Everything affecting everything else” is not a bad description of what happens in a garden, or any ecosystem.  

(http://image.tmdb.org/t/p/w780/bjymCADvSrt4qxC3gfXTW0zc8A1.jpg)