Between climate change, killer germs, and rampant obesity, it’s no wonder we feel out of sync with the global ecosystem. But how do we re-sync? Nathanael Johnson, author of “All Natural,” says this ecological anxiety has pushed us into two disparate coping camps: one betting on natural solutions and organic lifestyles, the other on technological fixes and industrial efficiencies.
But neither orthodoxy delivers completely: Sometimes higher-tech means higher-risk, and sometimes “all natural” is not good for us, or even natural. As Johnson uncovers the paradoxes at the heart of our ecological condition (Why, even as medicine improves, are we becoming less healthy? Why do we grow fatter the more we diet?), he cuts a middle path that might assuage frustrated environmentalists, perplexed parents, and confused consumers alike.
Johnson discussed his book on Feb. 6 at Town Hall as part of The Seattle Science Lectures, sponsored by Microsoft. Series media sponsorship provided by KPLU.
NSWA had a members-only get-together with Johnson after his talk.