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This will be the landmark book on the threats threatening our survival as a species that introduces an entirely new ethical way of thinking, in the same vein as Rachel Carson's Silent SpringToby Ord is one of the most prolific academics of his generation and has a huge profile on the international stage. His work has been cited hundreds of time in international mediaDrawing on disciplines including physics, earth and computer science, history, anthropology, economics, international relations and moral philosophy, The Precipice will appeal to readers of Nick Bostrom's Superintelligence, David Wallace-Wells's The Uninhabitable Earth, Naomi Klein's This Changes Everything, Max Tegmark's Life 3.0, and readers of Yuval Noah Harari and Steven PinkerToby Ord is a moral philosopher focusing on the big picture questions facing humanity. Born in Australia, he is a Senior Research Fellow at the Future of Humanity Institute at Oxford University. He is the founder of Giving What We Can and co-founder of the Effective Altruism movement, which has raised more than a hundred million pounds for some of the world's most deserving causes. In 2020, alongside Shonda Rimes, Kanye West and JK Rowling, he was included on the Financial Times's 'the good list', which highlights the work of the world's ten most inspiring philanthropists. He has also advised DeepMind, the World Health Organisation, the World Bank, the World Economic Forum, the US National Intelligence Council and the UK Prime Minister's Office, among others. He lives in Oxford.What existential threats does humanity face? And how can we secure our future?
'The Precipice is a powerful book . . . Ord's love for humanity and hope for its future is infectious' Spectator
'Ord's analysis of the science is exemplary . . . Thrillingly written' Sunday Times
We live during the most important era of human history. In the twentieth century, we developed the means to destroy ourselves - without developing the moral framework to ensure we won't. This is the Precipice, and how we respond to it will be the most crucial decision of our time.
Oxford moral philosopher Toby Ord explores the risks to humanity's future, from the familiar man-made threats of climate change and nuclear war, to the potentially greater, more unfamiliar threats from engineered pandemics and advanced artificial intelligence.
With clear and rigorous thinking, Ord calculates the various risk levels, and shows how our own time fits within the larger story of human history. We can say with certainty that the novel coronavirus does not pose such a risk. But could the next pandemic? And what can we do, in our present moment, to face the risks head on?
A major work that brings together the disciplines of physics, biology, earth and computer science, history, anthropology, statistics, international relations, political science and moral philosophy, The Precipice is a call for a new understanding of our age: a major reorientation in the way we see the world, our history, and the role we play in it.From a leading moral philosopher, a landmark narrative spanning thousands of generations of human history that explores the biggest threats facing humanity, and what must be done to protect our futureToby Ord is today's Carl Sagan. Clear and inspiring, this book leaves us hopeful for a flourishing human futureA powerfully argued book that alerts us to what is perhaps the most important - and yet also most neglected - problem we will ever faceThe Precipice separates science from hype and will remain the definitive work on existential risk for a long time to comeA fascinating and persuasive guide to the most important topic of all: how our species will survive the risks we pose to our continued existenceThis book is a wake-up call to the existential threats of nuclear and biological weapons and the urgent need for action. A must-read that galvanises us to play a role in addressing these risksHumanity has never been more vulnerable - there's now a one-in-six chance that civilisation won't make it to the end of the century, argues a highly influential philosopher . . . Ord's analysis of the science is exemplary . . . Thrillingly writtenMany people have recently found that they want to read books offering the grandest perspectives possible on human existence, such as Sapiens . . . Toby Ord's new book is a startling and rigorous contribution to this genre that deserves to be just as widely readSplendid . . . The Precipice is a powerful book, written with a philosopher's eye . . . Ord's love for humanity and hope for its future is infectiousUrgent and vaguely prophetic . . . In a year in which our everyday lives were upended by the unexpected (or rather the expected yet neglected), The Precipice is a good way to put everything in perspectiveThe Precipice is a fascinating book, one that showcases both the knowledge of its author and his humanityA book that seems made for the present momentA story of the greatest risks to humanity's future, from the climate crisis and nuclear war to pandemics and artificial intelligence
Product Details
Title: | ThePrecipice |
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Author: | Toby Ord |
SKU: | BK0451368 |
EAN: | 9781526600233 |
About Author
Toby Ord is a moral philosopher focusing on the big picture questions facing humanity. Born in Australia, he is a Senior Research Fellow at the Future of Humanity Institute at Oxford University. He is the founder of Giving What We Can and co-founder of the Effective Altruism movement, which has raised more than a hundred million pounds for some of the world's most deserving causes. In 2020, alongside Shonda Rimes, Kanye West and JK Rowling, he was included on the Financial Times's 'the good list', which highlights the work of the world's ten most inspiring philanthropists. He has also advised DeepMind, the World Health Organisation, the World Bank, the World Economic Forum, the US National Intelligence Council and the UK Prime Minister's Office, among others. He lives in Oxford.