The World Without Us

you know that nature wasn’t fazed

the correct answer to whether this world would go on without us, says the Dalai Lama, is: “Who knows?”

The world has always changed. It’s not a constant place.

the most valuable library yet assembled—a half-million papyrus scrolls in Alexandria, some of them Aristotle’s—was perfectly preserved until a bishop lit a torch to expel paganism.

“By definition, we’re the alien invader. Everywhere except Africa. Every time Homo sapiens went anywhere else, things went extinct.”

Nobility is expensive, nonproductive, and parasitic, siphoning away too much of society’s energy to satisfy its frivolous cravings.

We come to study ancient civilization, but we end up learning about now.

Archaeology isn’t about glittery objects—it’s about their context.

The worst happens, and life still goes on.

The plants, crops, and animal species man has wrought by his own hand would be wiped out in a century or two. Many others would also be gone, but there would still be birds and mammals. They’d just be smaller. The world would mostly look as it did before humanity came along. Like a wilderness.