The Earth After Us: What Legacy Will Humans Leave in the Rocks?

Very excited about the topic, but lost enthusiasm after plodding through myriad details. Would've benefited from some graphics to put eons/eras et al into some kind of more accessible format. Lost much of its steam by the time it eventually got around to what would be left of current humanity -- expected more detail here or a better narrative to explain what might plausibly be found. Also expected a bit more on the impact of nuclear testing and nuclear power and what might be found from searching for radioactive decay. And only touched on lunar remains of humanity, probes and satellites which, while rare, might be expected to be the most durable of humanity's legacies. Tons of detailed geology that might be off-putting to some readers.

While there are speculations on just how (and how many) artifacts of our technical civilization will survive through 100 million years, Zalasiewicz's book excels beyond that.It is one of the clearest introductions to the principles of sedimentary geology this outsider to the field has encountered. The reader will have clear mental animations of turbid mudflows offshore river deltas, sea levels rising and falling relative to nearby land masses (and why), sedimentary beds thrust up via the tectonic "up-escalator", only to be sheared off at the erosional plane near sea-level. We see only the edges of an invisible (and ghostly past) world, and many of the mechanisms are explained herein.While the title suggests that the book is a successor of sorts to Weisman's "The World Without Us" (that book being a something of meditation on the fragility of human engineering), it is really something else entirely. Highly recommend for budding geologists to provide a paradigmatic framework for the other elements of the discipline.

Wasnt what I expected. Thought it would be fun and easy. But started in on paleo-tectonics and things I had never thought of. Turned out I really liked it.

I liked this book although I had to skip over the first few chapters, because I already know a great deal about geology and plate tectonics. The rest was interesting to read, but it pretty much told me everything I had already made educated guesses at. The illustrations are sparse and poorly done, leaving much to the imagination of the average reader I guess. However, I would recommend it for the beginner or early intermediate geology hobbyist, you may find it riveting.

This is dense, very inteligent book, by an author who obviously knows the subject very well,explaning how the geological machinery of the earth will all but eliminate the products of human civilization after the human race is extinct. This book may not be really appreciated by someone who has no previous basic knowledge of geological processes. For those who do, it provides a marvelous, fascinating and mind-expanding journey into the far future of geological time. After reading the book you realize how insignificant we humans are in the grand scheme of things. I hope this book will reach the right people to inspire ideas for a TV science documentary or maybe even a scifi film!

I wasn't sure if the science was too advanced for me. My knowledge of geology is superficial at best, though at the same time I don't want it dumbed down to something no longer specific enough to be informative. I feel he did a good job of introducing and defining the terms and elements of geology as he needed them. I found this book to be thought provoking, sobering, entertaining and informative, though a little depressing as well. I don't think the last one is entirely his fault; I suspect any honest appraisal of this subject will have that effect. The title of the review sums up my feelings nicely: thoroughly enjoyed.

It's a neat concept to write a book about what humanity will leave behind in the rocks in 100,000,000 years. However, the author could have excluded 60% of the text in the book and you would still understand exactly what he was talking about. Not until 2/3 of the way through the book does he even begin to mention anything about what humans will leave behind.Also, if you skip every single aside (everything in parentheses), you won't be missing anything.

Very informative and fascinating exploration of the geological traces we might leave for intelligent aliens to discover were they to arrive on earth in 100 million years. This author is easy for the lay reader to understand but doesn't oversimplify. I plan on reading his other book as well. I highly recommend it for any one interested in geology.

I have not as yet completed this book, but having read a previous book by Jan Zalasiewick, A Planet in a Pebble, which I admit to having read 3 times to date, and being half way through this one, I have no hesitation in awarding it 5 stars. The author has a knowledge and writing style which makes one reluctant to put the book down. As far as archaeology is concerned I am one of the uninitiated but this and his other book will make the reader I am sure look at the world around us in a totally different way.

This is the very first book on geology I have ever read and I was amazed that I was able to stick with it - indeed enjoy it throughly - throughout. Cleary written for the general reader, rather than the specialist, it's an engaging read but honestly, it does make me wonder what will be the legacy of the human race? One day we won't even be history...

I loved this book. It really drives home how insignificant humans are in the context of life on earth. Regardless of what we do, life will go on.

A wide range of readers with some scientific knowledge and anyone concerned about the effects of climate change should find interest and stimulation from this well written book.The presently short span of life on earth of our species and the record of the changes we are responsible for are put into the geological context.I bought this book as a geology student but found it very much more thought provoking than any text book.Never before have I felt moved to give 5 stars to a book on Amazon but this is the one I would recommend.

Its is a tough one to review this book because personally I found it slightly superficial but in the other hand the writing style, the pace, or the clear thinking of the author is of a very good quality.I am no geology expert and I would have found this book amazing a few years ago when I had no knowledge.I can see this book being a 5 start for a wide range of people but I would only put 4 as I found it a bit superficial but also because I was expecting a bit more on the subject that the title intended to develop. Maybe after all, the small size of the book left me hungry. I found the same amount of detail and information in larger books that were not only dealing with "after us" scenarii.I personally think the author should have focused really on the title and try to shorten the background parts given at the start on sedimentation, tectonics, or basic palaeontology. It is understandable that he is setting up the scene but I found these initial chapters far too lengthy. Nevertheless, everything is well and clearly explained.The idea of the alien race discovering earth is not new, other writers have used it and it is definitely a good way to present such a subject.Overall a book of a high quality in his writing style, pedagogy and pace but readers with a bit of knowledge on geology, climatology or palaeontology should maybe look for a more detailed account.I will probably buy other book from this author as I really liked his style but will look for more in depths studies.