Something New Under The Sun Chapter Summary

Something New Under the Sun, is forthright on the environmental history of the twentieth century. John R. McNeill makes the claim that the human footprint on Earth during the twentieth century is unheard of and hidden from history. It is made clear that in the midst of this time, the human changes on the planet was at its most critical stage. McNeill expresses that humans were very adaptable before, but have become accustomed to a limited supply of cheap resources, which include, power and water. Now humans are unable to conform to scarce conditions. McNeill provides a wide range of valuable information that is up-to-date and restrains from mitigating environmental issues. The book is divided into 12 chapters, each with an introductory paragraph and a concise overview of the proposed topic. The content of the book includes an examination of the Earth’s lithosphere, pedosphere, atmosphere, hydrosphere, and biosphere. McNeill pleasantly displays the historic account

These chapters revolve around two important factors, the scientific word “media,” which essentially means land, air and water, and biological resources, meaning flora and fauna. Certain chapters have generalized descriptions of trends with drawings of how the environment has shifted in different places and regions. The way McNeill organizes his informative research helps the reader to reflect and recognize a different kind of connection among ideas, places, and processes. This can be noted in the chapter, “The Biosphere: Eat and Be Eaten.” Here, McNeill focuses on the correlation between intensive agriculture and public health. He concludes that both components shaped the twentieth century and extended the human lifespan. Yet, McNeill points out that both, food production and health care systems replaced simpler systems with increasingly complex and energy-intensive