The Definitive Edge Bibliography

Recently it occurred to Chaos that, what with new readers appearing every now and then, it might be useful to spotlight a "reading list" for those unfamiliar with the underpinnings of the tacky comments put forth on the site. (Veteran visitors might want to pick up and read a few of these, too; Chaos can summarize all day long but the value lies in actually reading the work itself). Here, then, is the seminal list:

Arithmetic, Population and Energy: Video Presentation by Dr. Albert Bartlett
Note by Chaos: this is the most important piece of any on this site. If you do nothing else, watch this video in its entirety.

Peak Oil (technical):
Twilight in the Desert, Matthew Simmons
Beyond Oil: The View From Hubbert's Peak, Kenneth Deffeyes
The Oil Drum(Website)

Peak Oil (sociological):
The Long Emergency, James Howard Kunstler
Powerdown: Options and Actions for a Post-Carbon World, Richard Heinberg

Collapse:
Collapse: How Societies Choose to Fail or Succeed, Jared Diamond
The Collapse of Complex Societies, Joseph Tainter
Overshoot: The Ecological Basis of Evolutionary Change, William Catton
How Civilizations Fall: A Theory of Catabolic Collapse, John Michael Greer (web essay)
Energy and Human Evolution, David Price (web essay)

Ecological Destruction:
When the Rivers Run Dry, Fred Pearce
Plan B 2.0: Rescuing a Planet Under Stress and a Civilization in Trouble,
Lester R. Brown (also available as a free download--search)
Beyond the Limits, Donella H. Meadows, Dennis L. Meadows, Jorgen Randers
A Language Older Than Words, Derrick Jensen

American Character/Empire:
Dark Ages America: The Final Phase of Empire, Morris Berman
American Theocracy, Kevin Phillips
Empire of Debt: The Rise of an Epic Financial Crisis, William Bonner, Addison Wiggin
The Sorrows of Empire, Chalmers Johnson
(Kunstler has quite a bit to say on this subject; Joe Bageant is also brilliant and insightful)

Religious Delusions/Atheism:
The God Delusion, Richard Dawkins
Letter to a Christian Nation, Sam Harris
The End of Faith: Religion, Terror and the Future of Reason, Sam Harris

Well that is quite a reading list; perhaps Chaos should teach a class or something. Synthesizing these is what has been taking up Chaos' time recently, to culminate in quite a long upcoming post (soon now). Happy reading, readers (and Chaos uses that in the most complimentary sense).