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| The Creation: An Appeal to Save Life on Earth | 
| Author: Edward O. Wilson
Publisher: W. W. Norton
Category: Book
List Price: $21.95
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Avg. Customer Rating:  44 reviews
Sales Rank: 706212
Format: Bargain Price
Media: Hardcover
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 160
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.7
Dimensions (in): 8.1 x 5.5 x 0.8
Dewey Decimal Number: 333.9516
ASIN: B001717522
Publication Date: September 5, 2006
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| Customer Reviews:
 Wild nature vs human nature. Wild nature is losing... October 29, 2006
12 out of 12 found this review helpful
+++++
"Pastor, we [that is, humanity] need your help...Scientists estimate that if...destructive human activities continue at their present rates, half the species of plants and animals on Earth could be either gone or at least fated for early extinction by the end of the [twenty-first] century. A full quarter [may] drop to this level during the next half century as a result of climate change alone. The ongoing extinction rate is calculated in the most conservative estimates to be about a hundred times above that prevailing before humans appeared on Earth, and is expected to rise to at least a thousand times greater or more in the next few decades. If this rise continues unabated, the cost to humanity, in wealth, environmental security, and quality of life, will be catastrophic."
The above is taken from the first chapter of this exceptional, easy-to-read, slim book by biologist, former Harvard professor, conservationist, and prolific author Edward O. Wilson.
This book is really one long letter to a Southern Baptist Pastor. In this letter, Wilson has briefed the pastor on a subject of common concern--the creation (that is, living Nature or biodiversity) and how it is in "deep trouble." He focuses on the interaction of three problems that affect all life on Earth:
(1) the decline of the living environment
(2) the inadequacy of scientific education
(3) the moral confusion caused by "exponential growth of biology"
When taken as a whole, Wilson's letter is "an appeal to save life on Earth."
This book is divided into five sections. Each section has a cover page that has a brief description of what each section is about. I will reproduce the descriptions below so as to give the potential reader a "feel" for the entire book:
(I) A call for help and an invitation to visit the embattled natural world in the company of a biologist. (7 chapters).
(II) Blinded by ignorance and self-absorption, humanity is destroying the creation. There is still time to assume the stewardship of the natural world that we owe to future generations. (3 excellent chapters).
(III) Arguments for saving the rest of life are drawn from both religion and science. The relevant principles of biology, the key science in the discourse are explained in this section. (3 chapters).
(IV) The only way to save the diversity of life and come to peace with nature is through a widely shared knowledge of biology and what the findings of that science imply for the human condition. (3 chapters).
(V) Science and religion are the two most powerful forces of society. Together they can save the creation. (1 chapter).
At the beginning of each section and throughout the book are black and white pictures and illustrations. I found these enjoyable and interesting.
I thought because this book was so slim that I would not learn anything new. Was I wrong!! It is one of the most interesting books I have ever read and, to my relief, it was not preachy.
Finally, I did find some minor irritations in this book:
(1) At one point, Wilson seems to come down hard on scientists. I understand that these are his opinions but I felt his negative comments about scientists were not needed and detracted from the book's main message.
(2) He mentions Mars, Europa, & Titan (which he calls "Titanis") and calls them planets. Actually Europa and Titan are moons.
(3) There is a black and white map of the world in the book with the caption "Thirty-four of the most critical biodiversity hot spots on land: geographical areas with large numbers of endangered species." Yet these thirty-four hotspots are not marked on the map!
(4) He says that "Biology is the study of nature." True, but so is chemistry, physics, and other sciences. In fact, science can be basically defined as the systematized knowledge of nature and the physical world.
(5) I felt Wilson was biased too much toward biology (which is understandable) while giving small acknowledgement to other important sciences that could also help us get out of the mess that we're in.
In conclusion, this is an important book that you should read if you agree with the following statement:
"Each [living] species [on Earth], however inconspicuous and humble it may seem to us at this moment, is a masterpiece of biology, and well worth saving."
**** 1/2
(first published 2006; 5 parts or 17 chapters; main narrative 170 pages; references and notes; about the author)
+++++
 E.O. Wilson writes this one for Joe and Jane Public... I hope they read it! October 23, 2006
9 out of 10 found this review helpful
E.O. Wilson is a biologist. Biology permeates everything he writes. And he writes with the knowledge and background of one who could (and did) author (or coauthor):
The Theory of Island Biogeography (with Robert MacArthur)
Sociobiology: The New Synthesis
On Human Nature
Biophilia
The Ants
He doesn't need to write another book, ever, to make his place in the halls of esteemed biologists.
Then why did he write The Creation? The subtitle says it all: "An Appeal To Save Life On Earth."
The format for the letter is a series of letters (it is easier to envision this than one long letter with multiple chapters) to an anonymous Southern Baptist Pastor. Wilson assumes the pastor understands high school biology, but no more than that. The letter is an appeal to the pastor that it is in the best interest of his/her congregation, community, nation, and, indeed, humankind, to protect life in its many forms and functions on Earth.
"There are still thinkers around the world, some in commanding political and religious positions, who wish to base moral law on the sacred scripture of Iron Age desert kingdoms while using high technology to conduct tribal wars - of course with the presumed blessing of their respective tribal gods" (p. 28), writes Wilson. But "The power of living Nature lies in sustainability through complexity" (p. 32). Religious and non-religious folk have a moral responsibility to protect this complexity, he argues.
"Nature is a heaven on Earth. Here, Pastor, we surely agree" (p. 61). And if we keep up our destructive tendencies, "We are creating a less stable and interesting place for our descendants to inherit. They will understand and love life more than we, and they will NOT be inclined to honor our memory" (emphasis added, p. 81).
Wilson discusses what science is as a process, the unrealized potential humans will gain through a better understanding of biology, and why life on Earth is at risk. Woven through this is Wilson's own narrative outlining his path to understanding the rewards of understanding and risks of ignoring life on Earth.
This book is written for the non-scientist. It is non-confrontational, thus unlike Sam Harris' Letter To A Christian Nation. At 175 pages, it can't be considered a burden to read. This should be required reading of every high school senior in this country, with a recommendation that their parents take a look at it as well.
 Is Darwinism bad for the environment? October 19, 2006
5 out of 48 found this review helpful
On one level this is an eloquent plea for an environmental awakening sounding the alarm on the destruction of species diversity. But this clarion call is marred by the introduction of Wilson's Darwinian obsessions. The age of environmental exploitation has also been the age of the reign of the false theoretical constructs of Darwin and his misleading and socially destructive theory of natural selection. The book even includes a hectoring section about the laws of biology, which is bad science and concealed propaganda. Wilson should know better. Biologists fancy themselves the sages of nature, but in fact the reductionist positivism of their methodology constitutes a misunderstanding of nature and reflects the concealed ideology of classical liberalism that is responsible for the indifferent ravaging of natural resources and environments. So behind the fine words Wilson is really a spokesman and ideologist for the problem, not the solution.
A Plea for the Religious & the Secular to Work Together for the Biosphere October 7, 2006
46 out of 49 found this review helpful
Thank you Edward O. Wilson for taking this burden on your shoulders; for making the plea to the religious among us to abandon the Dominionist principle that the Earth is here to be bent to humankind's will and save the biodiversity that makes our lives livable.
Wilson, who was brought up southern Baptist, addresses this book to a pastor of the same faith. The book starts out as an open letter to the pastor and a plea that the biosphere, or Creation for the pastor's purposes, is in grave danger and the humans have a lot to do with it...and, can take a hand in saving it. He spends the first part of the book trying to equate the Creation and the Biosphere as one in the same; and, that whether one has faith or not, it is the most important aspect about life on Earth.
After the first few chapters, Wilson really gets into the meat of the plea; he waxes eloquently about the marvels of the natural world only as Edward O. Wilson. Early on, he writes about ants, and his passion for even the smallest life forms is apparent and persuasive. As he progresses through the book, he highlights the remarkable nature of the biosphere and its biodiversity; and, he brings home why this is so important to the comfortable survival of humankind. One bit I learned: ants and termites are more responsible for turning the soil than earthworms.
This is an important book that really needs to reach its target audience. As a member of the secular among us, it only preaches to the choir (though, like I said, I still learned new things from this book!); this book really needs to be put in the hands of the faithful. Unlike Sam Harris' "Letter to a Christian Nation" - which I feel is important, but will be lost on the target audience - "The Creation" has the ability to reach its target audience as it is not trying to dissuade them from their faith, but appeal to their faith in the hope that it will open their eyes to the wonder that is the biospehere, or "creation".
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A Guide to my Book Rating System:
1 star = The wood pulp would have been better utilized as toilet paper.
2 stars = Don't bother, clean your bathroom instead.
3 stars = Wasn't a waste of time, but it was time wasted.
4 stars = Good book, but not life altering.
5 stars = This book changed my world in at least some small way.
One long appeal October 3, 2006
35 out of 37 found this review helpful
When Charles Darwin published "The Origin of Species" he declared it to be "one long argument". Today, less than 150 years later, Edward O. Wilson explains that the one species omitted [except for one sentence] from the "argument" is devastating the life of the planet. In one long appeal to a fictional Baptist pastor, Wilson describes what is clear to all but a few dedicated die-hards - life on this planet is in deep trouble. The die-hards are firmly identified in the opening passages; Christians in the US who regard themselves as "biblical literalists". Such folk expect the Apocalypse soon and saving the environment is of little concern.
Wilson clearly knows his potential audience and addresses it. He understands the opinions his readers hold and addresses them in language familiar to them. "Biology" he contends, "now leads in reconstructing the human self-image". That means that biology can explain what is happening to the life around us and how we are dealing with it. He carefully allows the potential for a deity to have a role, but it isn't one dealing with the current situation. Because it is humanity stripping the rainforests, causing the oceans to warm and destroying life in them, or filling the atmosphere with chemicals it cannot absorb, it is up to people to take the steps necessary to halt these degradations.
In showing his "pastor" the interconnectivity of all life, the author utilises clear, undemanding prose. Whether one believes a god plays a role in this network is immaterial. People and their actions are unweaving that network. Species extinction is forever, and whatever biology can explain, it hasn't had the time or opportunity to assess the impact of what is occurring. The job, he says, is clearly too vast, and the relationships are too intricate. That, however, doesn't mean we shouldn't try. Nor does it mean that lack of knowledge renders the problem something we can dismiss. We ignore the result of our actions at our peril.
Going a step further in his analysis, Wilson notes the planet's rash of environmental "hotspots" that need immediate solutions addressed to them. He's even able to put a price on healing the afflicted areas. He proposes forms of "protective umbrellas" that can be applied to areas like the Amazon and Congolian basins and others. These saving mechanisms would require "one payment of about US$30 billion". That's about 15 weeks of current expenditure on Iraq's occupation at the latest rates. He further shows how the subsidies given the fishing industry in the US alone, if redirected to a programme of oceanic reserves, would allow fish stocks to recover. To ensure the survival of countless threatened species, it's a minimal expence. If humans can set themselves up as gods in destroying the environment, they can act creatively to preserve it.
Wilson's "letter" may seem a bit lengthy at 170 pages, but as "one long appeal" to his audience, it's not overmuch to take up. Take it up and read it. Then have your children read it - they are the ones confronting the future Wilson describes. The offer it to the pastor nearest you. Religious leaders have whole flocks who should hear what Wilson has to say. [stephen a. haines - Ottawa, Canada]
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