
A Philosopher Looks at the Weather
Benjamin Hale(Author)
Cambridge University Press
Will be published approx. on 30. April 2026
Book
Paperback/Softback
249 pages
978-1-009-40268-2 (ISBN)
Description
From barometers to the famous BBC shipping forecast, we have - over the centuries - developed the means to predict, harness, and shield ourselves from what is happening in the atmosphere. Attitudes about the planet's weather, as well as about human identity, have thereby taken on new meanings. In an era of climatic anxiety, what weather is and how weather behaves have taken on additional currency. Benjamin Hale weaves together philosophy and anecdote into a many-faceted exploration of this powerful force that shapes who we are and how we think about our place in the world. He argues that in our drive to 'scientize' weather, with all the technological advances in managing, anticipating, and understanding it, we also risk distancing ourselves from weather and losing a complete sense of what it is. This entertaining book reminds us that the weather is and always will be in some sense outside our control, and that consequently we are and forever will be learning to live alongside it.
More details
Series
Language
English
Place of publication
Cambridge
United Kingdom
Product notice
Paperback (trade)
Illustrations
Worked examples or Exercises
Dimensions
Height: 198 mm
Width: 129 mm
Thickness: 15 mm
Weight
276 gr
ISBN-13
978-1-009-40268-2 (9781009402682)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Person
Benjamin Hale is Professor in the Departments of Environmental Studies and Philosophy at the University of Colorado, Boulder. He is author of The Wild and the Wicked: On Nature and Human Nature (2016), co-editor of the journal Ethics, Policy and Environment, and former President of the International Society for Environmental Ethics.
Content
Introduction; 1. Neither rain, nor snow, nor sleet, nor hail: what is weather?; 2. Of rain and parades: how weather affects us; 3. Battening the hatches: living with weather; 4. Seeing through the fog: predicting the weather; 5. Catching a cloud: controlling the weather; Conclusion: silver linings; Notes; Bibliography; Index.