The Rational Optimist

April 12, 2010
Ideas “have sex,” in Ridley’s schema; they follow a process of natural selection of their own, and as long as they continue to do so, there is reason to retire apocalyptic pessimism about the future of our species. Erstwhile zoologist, conservationist, and journalist, Ridley (The Red Queen
) posits that as long as civilization engages in “exchange and specialization,” we will be able to reinvent ourselves and responsibly use earthly resources ad infinitum. Humanity’s collective intelligence will save the day, just as it has over the centuries. Ridley puts current perceptions about violence, wealth, and the environment into historical perspective, reaching back thousands of years to advocate global free trade, smaller government, and the use of fossil fuels. He confidently takes on the experts, from modern sociologists who fret over the current level of violence in the world to environmentalists who disdain genetically modified crops. An ambitious and sunny paean to human ingenuity, this is an argument for why “ambitious optimism is morally mandatory.”

September 27, 2010
Ridley comes to praise innovation's ability to forestall any number of doom and gloom scenarios, everything from climate change to economic catastrophe. While sounding strikingly similar to narrator Anthony Heald, L.J. Ganser keeps a steady reading pace of Ridley's prose that keeps listeners engaged through the more challenging quantified material (statistics, data, lists) and the more nuanced conceptual material. His escalation, speed, deliberation, and pauses faithfully guide listeners through the text and at times improves upon the dry prose. However, Ganser is prone to over-project, and his forceful overemphasis can wear on the listener's attention. A Harper hardcover (Reviews, Apr. 12).

April 1, 2010
British science writer Ridley ("Genome: The Autobiography of a Species in 23 Chapters") turns his sights to human progress in this historical account of prosperity. He maintains from the evidence he presents that humankind should be optimistic about its future: human intelligence is collective, and specialization continues to increase the standard of living, in both monetary and quality-of-life measures. Trade is not a zero-sum game. Ridley notes that moving past a subsistence lifestyle to create a trade economy has allowed the wealthy to gain riches but has also made luxuries more accessible to the poor. While there have been many theories over the years regarding the time when there would be diminishing returns, meaning that resources would become too scarce or the population would become too large to sustain economic growth, Ridley asserts that technology and innovation will enable human progress well into the future. VERDICT Ridley's accessible style in this well-researched volume makes it an engaging introduction for those interested in a historical view of human progress and prosperity. [See Prepub Alert, "LJ" 2/15/10.]Elizabeth Nelson, UOP Lib., Des Plaines, IL

Copyright 2010 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

May 1, 2010
Science journalist Ridley believes there is a reason to be optimistic about the human race, and he defies the unprecedented economic pessimism he observes. His book is about the rapid and continuous change that human society experiences, unlike any other animal group. Ideas needed to meet and mate for culture to turn cumulative, and there was a point in human pre-history when big-brained, cultural, learning people for the first time began to exchange things with each other and that once they started doing so, culture suddenly became cumulative, and the great headlong experiment of human economic progress began. Participants in the exchanges improved their lives by trading food and tools. Ridley believes it is probable that humanity will be better off in the next century than it is today, and so will the ecology of our planet. He dares the human race to embrace change, be rationally optimistic, and strive for an improved life for all people.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2010, American Library Association.)