{"product_id":"x-events-9780062088291","title":"X-Events","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eA necessary and thought-provoking read for the age of coronavirus, exploring eleven scenarios that may trigger the collapse of the modern world -- from pandemics to nuclear apocalypse to robot uprisings -- and what we can do to prevent and survive them. \u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eIn the twenty first century, our world has become impossibly complicated, relying on ever more advanced technology that is developing at an exponential rate. Yet it is a fact of mathematical life that higher and higher levels of complexity lead to systems that are increasingly fragile and susceptible to sudden, spectacular collapse.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eIn this highly provocative and grippingly readable book, John Casti brilliantly argues that today's advanced, overly complex societies have grown highly vulnerable to extreme events that will ultimately topple civilization like a house of cards. Like Nassim Taleb's \u003ci\u003eThe Black Swan \u003c\/i\u003emeets Jared Diamond's \u003ci\u003eCollapse\u003c\/i\u003e, Casti's book provides a much-needed wake-up call, sounding a fascinating and frightening warning about civilized society's inability to recover from a global catastrophe.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eAn eye-opening and necessary read, \u003ci\u003eX-Events\u003c\/i\u003e is a shocking look at a world teetering on the brink of collapse, and a population under constant threat from pandemic viruses, worldwide communication breakdowns, nuclear winter, or any number of unforeseeable \"X-Events.\" Fascinating and chilling, \u003ci\u003eX-Events\u003c\/i\u003e provides a provocative tour of the catastrophic outlier scenarios that could quickly send us crashing back to the preindustrial age - and shows that they may not be as far-fetched as they seem. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThis book unpacks the theory of surprise and answers the critical questions of our time: \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cb\u003eComplexity Overload: \u003c\/b\u003e Why our hyper-connected, technologically advanced civilization is more fragile than ever, and how even small shocks can trigger a total system meltdown.\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cb\u003eA Theory of Surprise: \u003c\/b\u003e An accessible framework for understanding \"unknown unknowns\" and anticipating the high-impact, low-probability X-Events that traditional forecasting models miss.\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cb\u003eEleven Paths to Collapse: \u003c\/b\u003e A chilling tour of potential doomsdays, from the failure of the global food supply and a continent-wide electromagnetic pulse (EMP) to a new world disorder.\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cb\u003eSystems Thinking for Survival: \u003c\/b\u003e Practical insights from systems theory into how societies can build resilience, manage complexity, and prepare for the inevitable shocks that lie ahead.\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAuthor:\u003c\/b\u003e John L. Casti\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/b\u003e William Morrow \u0026amp; Company\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublished:\u003c\/b\u003e 03\/12\/2013\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePages:\u003c\/b\u003e 336\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eBinding Type:\u003c\/b\u003e Paperback\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eWeight:\u003c\/b\u003e 0.54lbs\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eSize:\u003c\/b\u003e 8.00h x 5.34w x 0.86d\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN:\u003c\/b\u003e 9780062088291\u003cbr\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eAbout the Author\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eCasti, John L.:\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e - \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eAmerican complexity scientist and systems theoristJohn Casti, is cofounder of The X-Center, a Viennabasedresearch institute focusing on human-causedextreme events and how to anticipate them. Casti haspublished nearly twenty volumes of academic and popularscience and received his Ph.D. in mathematics from theUniversity of Southern California. He lives in Vienna, Austria.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"William Morrow \u0026 Company","offers":[{"title":"Paperback","offer_id":44449878802547,"sku":"9780062088291","price":18.95,"currency_code":"EUR","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0555\/9255\/0515\/files\/img_405a325c-6c9e-4842-8d70-dc9f36e909d0.jpg?v=1773520075","url":"https:\/\/bookstorenmore.com\/en-de\/products\/x-events-9780062088291","provider":"Bookstore N More","version":"1.0","type":"link"}