In this astounding session, two authors will each tell a very different but equally incredible story about the natural world. Kathryn Miles’s latest, Quakeland: On the Road to America’s Next Devastating Earthquake, was referred to by Time magazine as the “the fall book that will take your mind off politics.” She travelled across the country to investigate the risk of seismic disasters. Her conclusions? We’ll let her tell you herself. Ben Mezrich has an even weirder story to tell. His latest, already snapped up by Hollywood and coming to a screen near you in the not-too-distant future, is Woolly: The True Story of the De-Extinction of One of History’s Most Iconic Creatures. Mezrich’s tale focuses on two scientists, Harvard Medical School’s Dr. George Church, who is attempting to genetically engineer synthetically sequenced woolly mammoth genes, and Dr. Sergey Zimov, a Russian scientist who studies the Arctic permafrost. The scientists hope to recreate the ecology of the late Pleistocene and help save the world from ecological disaster. These presentations will keep you on the edge of your seat. The session will be emceed by Vicki Croke, cohost of The Wild Life on WBUR and author of the bestseller Elephant Company.
