Weisman should have left this as a long article. It was repetitive and what seemed interesting in the first few chapters became extremely tiresome by the end. Names of scholars, name of plants and animals, names of places-all thrown around as if to prove he'd done his research rather than actually furthering the story (in my opinion). So many names, of course I couldn't keep half of them straight. And it was the same over and over...when we leave, nature will come storming back in, despite the conditions we leave the earth.

I did get a better perspective on plastics and the havoc they have wreaked everywhere. I gained an appreciation for Weisman's apparent dislike of felines- "Long after we're gone, songbirds must deal with the progeny of these opportunists (cats) that trained us to feed and harbor them, disdaining our hapless apeals to come when we call, bestowing just enough attention so we feed them again." (also probably true) Mostly I learned that we don't really know what will happen if we went extinct. Everything was so speculative. If this, then this, then this, then this, followed by these other 20 events in a very specific order X will happen. It was too ridiculous for me and I was over it about halfway through. The last half was painful. And the last chapter (uploading our minds to computers and cloning/building humanoid forms on other planets with lasers and then uploading our minds to them was so outrageous I would have quit listening then and there if it wasn't already the end.