Thursday, January 31, 2008

An Inconvenient Truth

It's fairly rare to read the book after seeing the movie. But this is one time i did so - and i thoroughly recommend it.

Al Gore (as he did in the movie) outlines the science of global warming and the consequences that are already happening. Through the use of amazing photos and images, he shows the importance and urgency of the situation with stunningly clarity.

The surprise of the book comes in the autobiographical sections. At several points through the book, Al Gore takes a page or two to tell us something of the man behind the mission. The particular circumstances of his sister's death - and almost losing his young son - have been powerful forces of motivation.

Wednesday, January 09, 2008

Carbon Calculator

This nice little book by Mark Lynas is a real gem. Oh, and i do mean "little" - it's the size of your hand, and about 1cm thick.

While it sells itself as a way of calculating your carbon footprint (which it is) it also provides a very compact explanation of the whole climate change situation. While short, it is also quite comprehensive.