The Wizard and the Prophet: Two Remarkable Scientists and Their Dueling Visions to Shape Tomorrow's World
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The Wizard and the Prophet: Two Remarkable Scientists and Their Dueling Visions to Shape Tomorrow's World Audible Audiobook – Unabridged

Charles C. Mann (Author), Bronson Pinchot (Narrator), Random House Audio (Publisher)
4.6 4.6 out of 5 stars 809 ratings
Editors' pick Best History
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From the best-selling, award-winning author of 1491 and 1493 - an incisive portrait of the two little-known 20th-century scientists, Norman Borlaug and William Vogt, whose diametrically opposed views shaped our ideas about the environment, laying the groundwork for how people in the 21st century will choose to live in tomorrow's world.

In 40 years, Earth's population will reach 10 billion. Can our world support that? What kind of world will it be? Those answering these questions generally fall into two deeply divided groups - Wizards and Prophets, as Charles Mann calls them in this balanced, authoritative, nonpolemical new book. The Prophets, he explains, follow William Vogt, a founding environmentalist who believed that in using more than our planet has to give, our prosperity will lead us to ruin. Cut back! was his mantra. Otherwise everyone will lose! The Wizards are the heirs of Norman Borlaug, whose research, in effect, wrangled the world in service to our species to produce modern high-yield crops that then saved millions from starvation. Innovate! was Borlaug's cry. Only in that way can everyone win! Mann delves into these diverging viewpoints to assess the four great challenges humanity faces - food, water, energy, climate change - grounding each in historical context and weighing the options for the future. With our civilization on the line, the author's insightful analysis is an essential addition to the urgent conversation about how our children will fare on an increasingly crowded Earth.

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  1. Listening Length
    18 hours and 56 minutes
  2. Author
    Charles C. Mann
  3. Narrator
    Bronson Pinchot
  4. Audible release date
    January 9, 2018
  5. Language
    English
  6. Publisher
    Random House Audio
  7. ASIN
    B075DKPQDX
  8. Version
    Unabridged
  9. Program Type
    Audiobook
  10. See all details
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Product details

Listening Length 18 hours and 56 minutes
Author Charles C. Mann
Narrator Bronson Pinchot
Whispersync for Voice Ready
Audible.com Release Date January 09, 2018
Publisher Random House Audio
Program Type Audiobook
Version Unabridged
Language English
ASIN B075DKPQDX
Best Sellers Rank #22,721 in Audible Books & Originals (See Top 100 in Audible Books & Originals)
#52 in Biographies of Science & Technology Leaders
#70 in 20th Century History
#79 in Environment

Customer reviews

4.6 out of 5 stars
4.6 out of 5
809 global ratings
Balanced, detailed, informed, fascinating, encouraging
5 Stars
Balanced, detailed, informed, fascinating, encouraging
A book that opens with bat guano environmentalism and Mexican wheat breeding in the 1950s shouldn't be this enthralling. It lays out the philosophies of both techno-optimists and environmentalists, yet the author doesn't pick a side; instead he focuses on the origins and benefits of both approaches to solving present issues in food, water, energy, and climate.
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Top reviews from the United States

Wm. P.
5.0 out of 5 stars Remarkable tour de force of history
Reviewed in the United States on March 23, 2019
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Charles Mann's book is nothing short of a brilliant, comprehensive tour de force of the global social, cultural, economic, philosophical and scientific history of the rise of the debates within the concepts of natural/human ecology and the green revolution as purveyed through the eyes of two of the most prominent characters responsible for the growth of the fields : Nobel prize winning plant geneticist Norman Borlaug (The Wizard) and ecologist William Vogt (The Prophet). Mann's research is impeccable and references well documented in the story that he weaves as he temporally interweaves the growth of the movements that have shaped our modern world and current debates through the remarkable wellspring of global interdisciplinary occurrences that shaped the 20th century. As examples, he cites the explosion of crop growth created by the recognition of nitrogen in bird poop as a potent nutrient for fertilizer and then again with the invention of the ability to artificially fix nitrogen to add to resource poor commercially produced fertilizer decades later. The remarkable tedium and resilience of Borlaug in his belief and development of seed hybridization to meet the agricultural needs of varying climates throughout the Americas. The implications for hybridization with the discovery of the C4 photosynthesis mechanism. The dark twists and turns of Vogt's preaching for the necessity of conservation of resources for the species survival in the wake of the rise of Darwinism and by extension social Darwinism, and Vogt's association with the movement. I picked up the book when it was first released in February and given the density of some of the concepts, took my time and finished reading in a month. Undoubtedly, I'll be revisiting it again ... and again as the debate continues to evolve in the 21st century. There is a sense of urgency with this topic but the fundamental question in addressing today's issues regarding climate, food, water and environment remains .... Can humankind shape it's environment and future or is it necessary that we adapt to the natural world we have been placed in ??
6 people found this helpful
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DaveF
5.0 out of 5 stars A book for our time - highly recommended!
Reviewed in the United States on May 16, 2018
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For me, Charles Mann has another home run with 'The Wizard and the Profit', 5+ stars! Mann is also the author of (among other books) '1491' and '1493', extraordinary nonfiction/history works. He is on my short list of very fine historians/nonfiction authors.
In this book, Mann tells the story of the lives and works of two largely forgotten but extremely influential mid-twentieth century scientists. In 1948, William Vogt (the 'Phophet') wrote 'Road to Survival'. A hugely influential book, it foresaw the planet's and man's doom if we continued to populate (over-populate) the earth and ravage its resources unchecked. He espoused among other things population control and severe conservation. Norman Borlaug (the 'Wizard') won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1970 as the father of the "Green Revolution". Borlaug saw hunger and he tried to overcome it through plant breeding and science. Essentially, the two men perceived the same problem (the land's human carrying capacity was being exceeded) and attempted to solve it in opposite directions.
Charles Mann uses the story of these two passionate, brilliant, and hard-working men to address our dilemma as a species and inhabiters of earth. We will approach 10 billion strong in this century. Are we headed for catastrophe or are we capable of solving approaching major problems (hunger, climate change, resource depletion, etc.)? This is a wonderfully written, even-handed, thoughtful, calm examination of our most important questions.
Highly recommended!
61 people found this helpful
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Angie Boyter
4.0 out of 5 stars An enjoyable read but a flawed book
Reviewed in the United States on August 13, 2023
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Our book group discussion was fairly unanimous on this book (which is rare!). It was interesting, with a nice writing style, but it had several problems. It raised a lot of interesting topics but did not provide enough information on subjects that the reader does not know well. The biograhical elements and the science were intertwined a bit too much, and there were a lot of tidbits, especially the biographical ones, that made people wonder, "Why is this in here?" Also, the title is a bit misleading. Vogt and Borlaug, the title characters, are the symbols of the two major points of view but are not really the focus of the book.
I do recommend the book but think it is best enjoyed a chapter or so at a time.
One person found this helpful
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Yehezkel Dror
5.0 out of 5 stars GOOD SCIENCE, GOOD STORY
Reviewed in the United States on May 13, 2019
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This is an outstanding book. It presents two outstanding scientists as two ‘ideal types’, in the sense of Max Weber, one a true believer in science and technology fixes (Norman Borlaug) and the second (William Vogt) exhorting humanity to be very careful not to disrupt nature.

Also presented, though not central to the text, is an important evolution researcher (Lynn Margulis), who was of the opinion that the human species is bound by evolution and sure to disappear, never mind what it does.

Still, the following questions arise:

One. Vogt is not a prophet, most of whom promised salvation after deserved suffering. Rather he is a Cassandra, who was cursed to know the future but not to be believed.

Two. The Wizard was careful. He did not engage in dangerous science, though he might have failed in his efforts to overcome the Malthusian loop. It is not clear at all whether he would support risky geoengineering.

Three. The book present very well two contrasting ideologies. Thus, it sharpens the question who shall decide on which one to base action. But it does not pose this critical question as needed.

These and other comments do not impair the quality of the book, which should be pondered by all who are concerned, or should be concerned, about the future of humanity, starting with political leaders.

Professor Yehezkel Dror
The Hebrew University of Jerusalem
24 people found this helpful
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Lightbright
5.0 out of 5 stars Awesome
Reviewed in the United States on September 13, 2023
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Great book. Engaging.
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Top reviews from other countries

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glitchc
5.0 out of 5 stars Simply stunning read!
Reviewed in Canada on February 3, 2021
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If you've ever wondered where statements like "There is only so much we can extract from our planet," "We can only grow so much food, extract so much oil" on the one side and "Technology will fix things" and "We will always be able to find new resources and new uses for old resources" on the other come from, then read this book. Charles Mann lays out the foundation for these statements presents a very objective view of both sides and lets the reader decide on which side they fall based on the evidence presented. By laying bare the underlying assumptions behind those statements, he really forces the reader to question his/her own thinking on the subject. I found myself vacillating back and forth many times, alternating between being a Wizard and a Prophet, as I progressed through the book.

This book is highly recommended for anyone interested in critical thinking on the meaty topic of how best to harness the resources that are available to us. I will not share where I finally landed, or even if I'm going to stay here forever. Let the book guide you through your own personal journey through the stories and evidence presented, so that you may find your own equilibrium.
One person found this helpful
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Bakor Tayar
5.0 out of 5 stars Balanced inquiry on two fundamental approaches to the future
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on November 5, 2022
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This book changed my perception. I was a conservative and idealized an older technique for agrarian living, but the book highlighted the difficulty of that model. I saw how technology has profoundly helped us feed the world and different approaches to global warming. I was moved multiple times and wowed consistently. This book educated and humbled me. It is indeed a necessary read for anyone in the modern world that cares about the future of our biological and environmental future.
2 people found this helpful
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SebHeine
5.0 out of 5 stars Sollte man gelesen haben
Reviewed in Germany on September 3, 2022
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Das Buch ist gut, aber ich habe es bei Amazon als eBook gekauft und darf mich nun mit den damit verbundenen Einschränkungen herumärgern. Tja, selber schuld, nicht wahr?
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Jeff
5.0 out of 5 stars Analisis sin tomar partido
Reviewed in Spain on May 23, 2022
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Muy interesante. Tanto lo con que no coincido come el con que estoy de acuerdo
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Everardo
5.0 out of 5 stars The Wizard and the Prophet
Reviewed in Mexico on February 21, 2020
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It is a compilation of ideas on how the human race has evolved through the use of technology with agriculture as the main actor. The last part of the book is focused on climate change.
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