"The 2004 Massey Lectures series as broadcast on ABC Radio. The twentieth century was a time of runaway growth in human population, consumption and technology, all of which placed tremendous demands on earth, air and water - the very elements of life. The urgent question of the twenty-first century is how, or whether, this can continue. In A Short History of Progress, Ronald Wright explains how our current predicament is as old as civilization - a 10,000 year experiment we have seldom controlled. He argues that only by understanding the patterns of progress and folly that humanity has repeated everywhere from ancient Rome to Easter Island can we learn to change our ways, and, with luck and wisdom, avoid a disastrous outcome."@en
"The runaway growth of the 20th century has placed colossal loads on all natural systems, especially earth, air, and water. The author argues that our modern predicament is as old as civilization. Only by understanding the patterns of triumph and disaster that humanity has repeated, can we recognize the inherent dangers and, with luck and wisdom, shape its outcome."@en
"The Massy Lectures are the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation's equivalent to the ABC's Boyer Lectures. Established in 1961, they are named in honour of Vincent Massey, former governor-general of Canada. In A Short History of Progress, Ronald Wright argues that our modern predicament is as old as civilisation, a ten-thousand year experiment we have ridden but seldom controlled."

A short history of progress