Human Extinction: Routledge Studies in the History of Science, Technology and Medicine

In this fascinating book, Émile Torres surveys the surprisingly rich history of apocalyptic thought in earlier centuries; this forms the backdrop to a comprehensive survey and critique of modern discourses on this compelling issue which confronts us—and does so with ever-increasing urgency. The book is fascinating, thought-provoking, and deserving of wide readership.
Lord Martin Rees, Astronomer Royal and author of Our Final Hour
Torres uncovers and analyzes, in novel ways, remarkable developments in philosophy and science, new thinking that undermines everything preceding. We have hardly begun to grasp the meaning of this upheaval in how people perceive humanity’s future. Torres’s engagingly written book, admirably thorough, is a good start for facing our awesome responsibilities.
Spencer Weart, former director of the Center for History of Physics of the American Institute of Physics and author of Nuclear Fear: A History of Images and The Discovery of Global Warming

Émile P. Torres is a philosopher whose research focuses on existential threats to civilization and humanity. They have published widely in the popular press and scholarly journals, with articles appearing in the Washington Post, Aeon, Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, Metaphilosophy, Inquiry, Erkenntnis, and Futures.

1. An Apocalypse Without Kingdom  Part 1: Existential Moods  2. Beginnings of "The End"  3. ‘Till Entropy Death Do Us Part  4. The Invention of Omnicide  5. Nature Wants to Kill Us  6. The Perfection of Evil  Part 2: Existential Ethics  7. What Is Human Extinction?  8. Early Ruminations  9. Ethical Innovations of the Postwar Era  10. Astronomical Value and the Harm of Existence  11. Recent Developments  12. Looking Forward to the Future