‘Wonderful ... so Intricate Is his web of evidence, so seductive his argument, that he doesn't need to preach' Daily Telegraph

  ‘Compelling ... Jammed packed with fascinating "what Ifs"' Guardian

  ‘The results of this huge thought-experiment are both fascinating and surprising' Daily Marl

  ‘Flesh-creeplngly good fun ... an expert-led fantasia of the posthuman planet' Independent

How would the world change if human beings vanished from the earth right now, for good？ What would the planet be like in a day, a week, a month ... a millennium？ Just how long will our greatest acllievements and our biggest mistakes last after we are gone？

To discover the answers, Alan Welsman looks to areas of the world that are currently unoccupied and speaks to experts In fields ranging from nuclear physics to archaeology. He reveals how the natural world would react to our disappearance and wrestles with some of the key concerns of our existence to offer an Intriguing glimpse of the real legacy of our time on the planet.

Prelude: A Monkey Koan

PART I

1 A Lingering Scent of Eden

2 Unbuilding Our Home

3 The City Without Us

4 The World Just Before Us

5 The Lost Menagerie

6 The African Paradox

PART II

7 What Falls Apart

8 What Lasts

9 Polymers Are Forever

10 The Petro Patch

11 The World Without Farms

PART III

12 The Fate of Ancient and Modern Wonders of the World

13 The World Without War

14 Wings Without Us

15 Hot Legacy

16 Our Geologic Record

PART IV

17 Where Do We Go from Here？

18 Art Beyond Us

19 The Sea Cradle

Coda: Our Earth, Our Souls

Acknowledgments

Select Bibliography

Index