Have we built our way to ruin? Is your desire for that beach house or cabin in the woods part of the environmental crisis? Do you really need a bigger home? Why donrsquo;t multiple generations still live under one roof? In The Housing Bomb; leading environmental researchers M. Nils Peterson; Tarla Rai Peterson; and Jianguo Liu sound the alarm; explaining how and why our growing addiction to houses has taken the humble American dream and twisted it into an environmental and societal nightmare. Without realizing how much a contemporary home already contributes to environmental destruction; most of us want bigger and bigger houses and dream of the day when we own not just one dwelling but at least the two our neighbor does. We push our children to "get out on their own" long before they need to; creating a second household where previously one existed. We pave and build; demolishing habitat needed by threatened and endangered species; adding to the mounting burden of global climate change; and sucking away resources much better applied to pressing societal needs. "Reduce; reuse; recycle" is seldom evoked in the housing world; where economists predict financial disasters when "new housing starts" decline and the idea of renovating inner city residences is regarded as merely a good cause. Presenting irrefutable evidence; this book cries out for America and the world to intervene by making simple changes in our household energy and water usage and by supporting municipal; state; national; and international policies to counter this devastation and overuse of resources. It offers a way out of the mess we are creating and envisions a future where we all live comfortable; nondestructive lives. The "housing bomb" is ticking; and our choice is clearmdash;change our approach or feel the blast.
#1047794 in eBooks 2012-10-25 2014-02-07File Name: B00FF76XTA
Review
8 of 8 people found the following review helpful. Its a fantastic (big! ) book of Johns photos with informative ...By Ryan K. HamiltonIm a long time fan of Johns macro photography. Hes a world-leader in high magnification insect photography; and has really pushed the envelope of whats possible. I make my own attempts at this kind of photography and I look to Johns work as the gold standard.Ive been eagerly awaiting the english translation of this book since it was first announced. Its a fantastic (big!) book of Johns photos with informative captions provided by an entomologist.Johns got incredible skill at capturing amazing close ups of live insects in the field. You can check out his flickr account (user name johnhallmen). If you like that kind of photography; or are just a fan of how what amazing little machines insects are; then you cant go wrong with this book.9 of 9 people found the following review helpful. Delightful photographic essay on bugs and macro photographyBy PCThis book; now available as an e-book via ; is one of the richest and most enjoyable books about bugs and macro photography that I have read. Each macro photograph is unusually expressive as a photograph and the accompanying text is delightfully informative. It is also a great introduction to macro photography and/or entomology. Reading the book to young children would be lots of fun and educational. For those who enjoy macro photography and/or entomology as a hobby or special interest; this book is nothing short of inspirational.0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. Book given for encouragementBy 1mercuryThis was purchased for another student I had who has a keen interest in insects. It was a wonderful book; large; and had amazing photos. My only reservation was it was about insects in Scandinavia. But he was thrilled when he got the book and was very enthralled with the photos. I hope this gift will help him to continue his quest to learn all things insect. Again; another student who has a clear future.