Fear/Less

In ancient times, our ancestors begged the gods for mercy as a solar eclipse occurred; they saw it as a sign of divine wrath. In the 19th century, trains and electricity sparked widespread fear of gruesome tragedies. New Yorkers predicted they would drown in manure as transportation by horse became common.

We look back in amusement, but they thought the end was near.

What do we fear today? Climate change, overpopulation, artificial intelligence, nuclear power, depletion of natural resources, the apocalypse as described in the Bible. And that's just the beginning, with myriad other sources of high anxiety coming out of knowledge deficits and conspiracy theories.

Even though humans have solved problem after problem, averting the obliteration of the species, it is still widely believed that catastrophe is almost inevitable. Will there ever come a moment when we stop being unnecessarily afraid and treat successive threats as challenges rather than reasons to fear? What will the future bring? Do we really need to be afraid?

Wojciech Janicki, the editor and chief author of the book, is a Polish scientist and a professor at the University of Maria Curie-Sklodowska in Lublin. His research focuses on contemporary social, demographic and economic processes, with a focus on political geography. He actively popularizes science through handbooks, public lectures, TV & radio interviews and podcasts. He always tries to see that the glass is half full.