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SCEE Books: 1493: Uncovering the New World Columbus Created

The second in our new series of roundtable book discussions. In the post-Columbian era, it seems completely natural to find tomatoes in Italy, oranges in Florida, chocolates in Switzerland, potatoes in Ireland, chili peppers in Thailand. Yet none are native to those places. In a much-heralded sequel to his 1491, an account of the world before Columbus, historian Charles C. Mann calls Columbus's voyage the most momentous biological event since the death of the dinosaurs.  In Columbus's wake, earthworms, mosquitoes, and cockroaches; honeybees, dandelions, and African grasses; bacteria, fungi, and viruses; and, of course, rats, rushed into new lands, changing lives and landscapes planet-wide.

Mike Weilbacher leads a lively discussion of the book with esteemed guests Paul Meyer, director of the Morris Arboretum, Carol Franklin, principal of the ecological design firm Andropogon Associates, and Joanne Donohue, SCEE's own restoration manager.

Buy the book at SCEE's gift shop, and join us for a freewheeling conversation.

short version:

In this much-heralded sequel to his 1491, an account of the world before Columbus, historian Charles C. Mann calls Columbus' voyage the most momentous biological event since the death of the dinosaurs.  In Columbus's wake, earthworms and mosquitoes; honeybees and African grasses; bacteria, fungi, and viruses; and, of course, rats, rushed into new lands, changing lives and landscapes planet-wide. Join us and our guests, Morris Arboretum's Paul Meyer and Andropogon Associates Carol Franklin, for a freewheeling discussion of the book and its implications.

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