The Resilient Earth: Science, Global Warming and the Future of Humanity [Paperback]

Dr. Doug L. Hoffman (Author), Allen Simmons (Author)

Book Description

Release date: October 29, 2008

A million years after the birth of our sun, the violent explosion of a nearby supernova nearly ended life on Earth before it began. Over the next four and a half billion years, forces of nature shaped our planet and the life it harbored. Barely surviving the traumatic birth of the Moon, buffeted by supernovae, and bombarded by asteroids, the resilient Earth endured. And despite planet-freezing ice ages, devastating mass extinctions, and ever changing climate, life not only survived, it thrived. Today, we are told all life on Earth is threatened by a new peril--human-caused global warming. The Resilient Earth presents the science behind global warming for a general audience, separating fact from fiction and truth from exaggeration.

Editorial Reviews

From the Inside Flap

The Resilient Earth had its genesis in a number of events spanning several years. The authors have been friends and colleagues for more than three decades and, while they have often discussed writing a book together, the timing never seemed quite right. Then, at the start of 2007, the debate surrounding human-caused global warming reached a crescendo. Those who questioned the extent and causes of global warming, other than human CO2 emissions, were labeled "climate criminals," "industry stooges," and "traitors" by ecological activists. Those on the other side of the issue used terms like "hoax" and "scam."

The shrill level of the "debate" was driven home when Hoffman attended a business meeting. A co-worker asked a seemingly innocent question: "Doug, you're a scientist, what do you think about this global warming thing?" Hoffman framed a fairly neutral reply--"I don't think it's as bad as portrayed in the media, certainly we shouldn't ruin our economy in a panic." Hearing this, the senior executive present made a sarcastic, scatological remark regarding the offered opinion and stormed out of the room. Taken aback by this emotional reaction, Hoffman resolved to look more deeply into the subject of global warming.

In a matter of days, Hoffman was on the phone to Simmons suggesting that the time to write that often talked about book had arrived, and the topic should be the science of global warming--the real science, not the pseudo-science being reported in the popular media. Simmons immediately agreed and a long distance collaboration, linking coastal Texas and a log cabin in Arkansas, began. The more deeply we delved into the "facts" portrayed in the media the more concerned we became--not from fear of impending ecological disaster, but from the total lack of scientific objectivity, rationality and detachment exhibited by those on both sides of the global warming issue.

About the Author

Authors Doug L. Hoffman and Allen Simmons both have strong backgrounds in science and computer modeling. Hoffman has a PhD in Computer Science from the U. of North Carolina where he did research in Molecular Dynamics Simulations and high-speed comparison methods for RNA, DNA and protein sequences. Currently he serves as senior grid architect for a major IP company and as an adjunct Professor of Computer Science at U. of Central Arkansas and Hendrix College. Simmons has a BSEE from U. of Miami and wrote the computer systems software for the world¿s first weather satellites-TIROS-Television/Infra-Red Observation Satellite. After TIROS, he spent 12 years working with scientists and engineers on NIMBUS weather satellites which collected meteorological, atmospheric, geological, and oceanographic data. NIMBUS had a profound impact on knowledge of Earth¿s dynamic behavior. On the island of St. Croix, USVI, Simmons and Hoffman developed a computer system to track objects at great ocean depths.

Product Details

• Paperback: 404 pages
• Publisher: BookSurge Publishing; 1 edition (October 29, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 143921154X
• ISBN-13: 978-1439211540
• Product Dimensions: 6 x 9 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (15 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #769,041 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Doug L. Hoffman has worked professionally as a mathematician, a computer programmer, an engineer, a computer salesman, a scientist, and a college professor. Dr. Hoffman earned his undergraduate degree, a BS in Applied Mathematics, from the Florida Institute of Technology. There he cut his teeth on computer models of heat flow and urban traffic simulations. After graduating, he performed hydro-acoustic work for the U.S. Navy in the Virgin Islands, where he first met Allen Simmons. Later projects included engineering work on the Carrier Automatic Landing System and cockpit field of view simulations, and environmental models for the Saudi Arabian government.

He returned to academia in 1990, earning a Masters degree and a PhD in Computer Science at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. While there he did research in Molecular Dynamics Simulations and, as a member of the BioSCAN team, he helped develop and implement high-speed comparison methods for RNA, DNA, and protein sequences, work funded by the Human Genome Project. After joining the research faculty at UNC, he continued to pursue his thesis work, automated comparison of three dimensional protein molecules.

Since 2000, he has been working in industry, serving as an expert architect for a major information processing company, publishing several papers on modeling the performance of large scale grid computers. With a life long passion for education, he has also continued to teach Computer Science at Hendrix College and the University of Central Arkansas. You can find out more about Doug at DLHoffman.com or TheResilientEarth.com.

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

25 of 30 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars An eye-opener to be read and reread June 17, 2009

By NYC Lady

Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase

Until I read the "The Resilient Earth" by coauthors Hoffman and Simmons, I did not spend much time thinking about the issue of human-caused global warming. I knew there were those who claimed humans were destroying our planet and there were others who did not agree, and challenged that principle. Now, after reading this wonderful book, I do care about our planet, but I have become somewhat skeptical of the idea that humans can change the climate to the point that we are doomed. In Chapter 1, the first lines in the book read: "Scientists observe nature, then develop theories that describe their observations. Science is driven by nature itself, and nature gives us no choice. It is what it is." How beautiful those words are, and they set the tone of the entire book. I have learned how resilient our Earth is - from its very beginning to its present day. The book is a journey of science and scientific discovery. I was amazed how many scientists made discoveries outside their disciplines. As an example, a man named Joseph Fourier discovered that certain gases could trap heat. Fourier, a mathematician and physicist, made that discovery in 1829. The book describes just how complex Earth's atmosphere is, and that it takes almost all scientific disciplines to try and unravel nature's mysteries. I learned how important the roles of geology, paleontology, glaciology, oceanography, physics, chemistry, and many more disciplines play in understanding, not only the complex puzzle called our atmosphere, but also the history of our planet. Most importantly, I learned how Earth warmed and cooled in cycles, long before modern man arrived. Best told was the story of Otzi the Iceman, who died in 3300 BC and his perfectly preserved body was found in 1991, buried in ice on the Italian Alps. Otzi laid in peace during the rise and fall of the Roman Empire, WW II, and the rise of the United States. What I learned from Otzi, made me think of Greenland. Why was that place, now covered in ice, called "Greenland?" This book influenced my life. I now recycle plastic and paper. I raised my thermostat for summer and lowered it for winter. I use less water. But I learned, reading this treasure of information, that it takes 226 million years for our solar system to make one orbit around the center of our galaxy. That puts the whole climate issue in perspective. Who can imagine what we might run into as we porpoise and sashay on our 226 million year journey. The easy style and anecdotes of "The Resilient Earth" are gems. I recommend this book for everyone. It will open the mind and make one think of things never thought of before. Such as, how lucky we humans are to have survived the ebb and flow of ice on this resilient Earth. Imagine New York City buried under ice, a mile high. I wonder how many times that happened, and could it happen again. Nature, with its infinite reach, will decide that for us. Kudos for the authors of "The Resilient Earth."

21 of 28 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Finally available in paperback! December 1, 2008

By Doug L. Hoffman

Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase

Allen and I would like to announce that, after many delays and just in time for the Christmas gift giving season, our book, The Resilient Earth, is now available for purchase on Amazon.com. The Resilient Earth is a book about climate science and global warming but it also includes a wide range of topics, including: the history of global warming, the discovery of ice ages, mass extinctions, the history of science, alternative energy and future energy policy. It is written for a general readership audience with many charts and pictures but very few (almost no) equations. The book is a trade paperback (6x9) with over 400 pages, 161 black & white illustrations, and more than 500 references.

Here is the table of contents listing the titles of the various chapters:

Preface
Chapter 1 Introduction
Chapter 2 Global Warming-The Crisis Defined
Chapter 3 We are in an Ice Age?
Chapter 4 Unprecedented Climate Change?
Chapter 5 Ice Ages
Chapter 6 Ancient Extinctions
Chapter 7 Changing Atmospheric Gases
Chapter 8 Moving Continents & Ocean Currents
Chapter 9 Variations In Earth's Orbit
Chapter 10 Varying Solar Radiation
Chapter 11 Cosmic Rays
Chapter 12 How Science Works
Chapter 13 Experimental Data and Error
Chapter 14 The Limits of Climate Science
Chapter 15 Prophets of Doom
Chapter 16 The Worst That Could Happen
Chapter 17 Mitigation Strategies
Chapter 18 A Plan for the Future
Chapter 19 The Fate of Planet Earth
Afterward
Alphabetical Index
References

This is not just a book about science and the current global warming hysteria, it is a book about the amazing planet we live on and the tenacious life that inhabits it. You will find interesting facts and historical tidbits such as:

* Did you know that there is a submarine canyon as large as the Grand Canyon just off the coast of New York City?
* Did you know that there is a species of extinct mammoth named after an American president and why?
* Do you know the story behind the death of Ötzi the ice man?
* Did you know that more than a billion years before the "atomic age" there was a natural nuclear reactor running in Africa?
* Did you know that there is a society, VHEMT, that wants humanity to stop having children and die out?
* Did you know that for most of the time that complex life has been present on Earth there have been no polar icecaps?

All this and much more awaits you in The Resilient Earth.

Regards,
Doug

15 of 20 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars A Wealth Of Information August 7, 2009

By Crosslands

Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase

The book The Resilient Earth by Allen Simmons and Doug Hoffman is a book about the earth and its climate from its birth. The book consists of a wealth of material and information on the earth and its history. Messrs. Simmons and Hoffman provide a real education. The text is very readable in its explanation of a vast amount of information. There are many stunning illustrations and graphs. The work is very well referenced with numerous references to scientific articles. The book is an impressive work.

Among the topics presented in detail in this book are the earth's time intervals - eons, eras, periods, and epochs of earth`s geological history. Each concept is clearly defined. All the time intervals of the earth are presented in tables with the names and dates. The authors also discuss ice ages, the major time intervals of extinction of earth species such as the end of the Permian period and the end of the Cretaceous period, the changes in the earth's orbit around the sun and the Milankovitch cycles, The tectonic plates at the surface of the earth and how these plates effect the movement of continents over time, and the effect of the solar magnetic field and cosmic rays on the earth's climate. The authors also detail the differences between earth and Venus and how these differences cause abrupt dissimilarity in climate.

Regarding the anthropogenic global warming hypothesis the authors discuss the scientific method and the failure of the IPCC (International Panel on Climate Change) to adhere to it. Specifically the authors detail the unreliability of the IPCC simulated computer climate models. The authors also take to task climate alarmists who publish fallacious pseudo scientific papers based on unreliable or messaged data and/or methodologies. Included among these false reports is the infamous hockey stick of Michael Mann.

Regarding anthropogenic global warming the authors see "no immediate threat" (p. 312). However they believe carbon dioxide could be a major problem in the future. The authors reject as ineffective and harmful such environmentalist proposed solutions as wind power and carbon cap and trade. Instead the authors propose among other solutions certain solar power technologies, a great expansion of nuclear power, more energy efficient homes, and transportation alternatives.

Messrs. Simmons and Hoffman perceive a greater threat from anthropogenic carbon dioxide than I do. The earth's carbon dioxide level in the last millennium is the lowest it has been since the end of the Permian period 251 million years ago. Yet this book is and excellent resource. The book deserves to be widely read.