In the modern world we’re never more than a glance away from a digital display of today’s date or the time to the nearest second. The use of GPS devices in cars or even in our own pockets with smartphones has all but eroded the art of map-reading and navigation. This is all exceedingly convenient, of course, but I think that many of us in developed nations are feeling increasingly disconnected from the fundamental principles and processes that support our lives, sensing that our basic skills are atrophying and perhaps feeling anxious of being a little too reliant on the magic of modern technology.

So let’s try a thought experiment. If you’re forced back to the absolute basics, how could you use simple observations to tell the time, reconstruct the calendar and work out your location anywhere on planet Earth? Being able to tell the time enables a society to regulate and synchronize its civic activities—marketplace trade or congregation (perhaps for religious purposes) are all choreographed to the beat of the hour. The reason the calendar was devised in the first place was to ensure successful agricultural practices, and thus sufficient food for the population, and accurate navigation is crucial to prevent getting yourself lost in the wilderness.

Read the full article on The Awl website here

Want to read more about the behind-the-scenes fundamentals of how our modern world works, and how you could reboot civilisation if you ever needed to...? Check out The Knowledge - available now in paperback, Kindle and audiobook.

The present-day lust for ruins is nothing new. In fact, it’s nearly as old as any ruins themselves. From a flattened Louvre to Percy Bysshe Shelley, a journey to the dawn of ruin porn.

My feature article on the allure of our wrecked constructions and the history of ruin lust was published by The Morning News today. Read the full article here.

 

Want to read more about the behind-the-scenes fundamentals of how our modern world works, and how you could reboot civilisation if you ever needed to...? Check out The Knowledge - available now in paperback, Kindle and audiobook.

Our modern world is by no means invincible – plenty of civilisations have collapsed and disappeared in the past. So what are the greatest hazards to our way of life, how likely are they to happen – and what chances would survivors have for rebooting humanity?

My double-page spread appeared in The Sun newspaper today, including a run-down of the most likely doomsday events and a quiz on the knowledge post-apocalyptic survivors would need to thrive. You can read it on-line here.

Want to read more about the behind-the-scenes fundamentals of how our modern world works, and how you could reboot civilisation if you ever needed to...? Check out The Knowledge - available now in paperback, Kindle and audiobook.

The Irish Times ran a long-form interview with me by Patrick Freyne, talking about how reliant most of us alive today are on the civilisation that supports us, the role of science in society, and science fiction as a literary genre. Read the full article, “Okay, so the apocalypse is here. Dog-food sandwich, anyone?“, on the Irish Times website.

Want to read more about the behind-the-scenes fundamentals of how our modern world works, and how you could reboot civilisation if you ever needed to...? Check out The Knowledge - available now in paperback, Kindle and audiobook.

If you’re in a hurry, or only have time to read one quick article before the modern world crashes and the internet goes down, make it this one. I wrote a 10 step quick guide for surviving and rebuilding after the apocalypse for UK men’s mag Esquire. Don’t panic, and think like you’re abroad… Read the full article here

Want to read more about the behind-the-scenes fundamentals of how our modern world works, and how you could reboot civilisation if you ever needed to...? Check out The Knowledge - available now in paperback, Kindle and audiobook.

My op-ed for the New York Times appeared on page SR8 of the Sunday print edition. ‘Civilization’s Starter Kit‘ begins with my own incompetence at all things pragmatic, and indeed how useless most people today are when it comes to repairing or maintaining the everyday devices or appliances that we take for granted. How many of us have any real understanding of how the objects in our pocket were made, or even where the food we eat has come from or how to make clothes from scratch. I think that because of this there is a growing feeling of disconnect among all of us in the developed world today from the basic processes and principles that provide for us. But what if this life-support system of modern civilisation were to collapse? What starter kit would you need to rebuild it all from the basics? Read the full feature here.

Want to read more about the behind-the-scenes fundamentals of how our modern world works, and how you could reboot civilisation if you ever needed to...? Check out The Knowledge - available now in paperback, Kindle and audiobook.

The Big Issue printed an interview with me, entitled So You’ve Survived The End Of The World: What Now? It runs through your top priorities after the apocalypse, from how to survive in the immediate aftermath, to reinstate agriculture and smelting your own metals. The illustration here, gives the position of the Svalbard Global Seed Vault, which is located in the Norwegian high arctic and so serves as a natural freezer for the genetic diversity needed to restart farming. Read the full article here.

 

Want to read more about the behind-the-scenes fundamentals of how our modern world works, and how you could reboot civilisation if you ever needed to...? Check out The Knowledge - available now in paperback, Kindle and audiobook.