Have we learnt the lessons of the past - or will we be next?Many of the great ruins that grace the deserts and jungles of the earth are monuments to progress traps, the headstones of civilizations which fell victim to their own success. In the fates of such societies - once mighty, complex, and brilliant - lie the most instructive lessons for our own.The twentieth century's runaway growth in human population, consumption and technology has placed a murderous burden on the planet. In A Short History of Progress, prize-winning novelist and historian RonaldWright argues that this modern predicament is, in fact, as old as civilization, a 10,000- year experiment we unleashed but have seldom controlled. Only by understanding the patterns of progress and disaster that humanity has repeated since the Stone Age can we recognize the experiment's inherent dangers, and, with luck and wisdom, shape its outcome."Rarely have I read a book that is so gripping, so immediate and so important to our times." Robyn Williams"Ronald Wright is a historical philosopher with a profound understanding of other cultures."Jan Morris£12.

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