We are living through a period that is unique in human history. For the first time in more than ten thousand years, the rate of human population growth is slowing down. In the middle of this century population growth will stop, and the number of people on Earth will start to decline - fast.

As Gee demonstrates, our population has peaked, and is declining; our environment is becoming inimical to human life in many locations; our core resources of water, arable land, and air are diminishing; and new diseases, simmering conflicts, and ambiguous technologies threaten our collective health. Can we still change our course? Or is our own extinction inevitable?

There could be a way out, but the launch window is narrow.

Unless Homo sapiens establishes successful colonies in space within the next two centuries, our species is likely to stay earthbound and will have vanished entirely within another ten thousand years, bringing the seven-million-year story of the human lineage to an end.

To look at our escape options, we are joined by Henry Gee, author of “The Decline and Fall of the Human Empire.” He envisions new opportunities for the future of humanity—a future that will reward facing challenges with ingenuity, foresight, and cooperation.

We are living through a period that is unique in human history. For the first time in more than ten thousand years, the rate of human population growth is slowing down. In the middle of this century population growth will stop,&nbsp;and&nbsp;the number of people on Earth will start to&nbsp;decline&nbsp;- fast. As Gee demonstrates, our population has peaked,&nbsp;and&nbsp;is&nbsp;declining; our environment is becoming inimical to human life in many locations; our core resources of water, arable land,&nbsp;and&nbsp;air are diminishing;&nbsp;and&nbsp;new diseases, simmering conflicts,&nbsp;and&nbsp;ambiguous technologies threaten our collective health. Can we still change our course?&nbsp;Or&nbsp;is our own extinction inevitable? There could be a way out, but the launch window is narrow. Unless&nbsp;Homo sapiens&nbsp;establishes successful colonies in space within the next two centuries, our species is likely to stay earthbound&nbsp;and&nbsp;will have vanished entirely within another ten thousand years, bringing the seven-million-year story of the human lineage to an end.
To look at our escape options, we are joined by Henry Gee, author of &ldquo;The Decline and Fall of the Human Empire.&rdquo; He envisions new opportunities for the future of humanity&mdash;a future that will reward facing challenges with ingenuity, foresight,&nbsp;and&nbsp;cooperation.

For history lovers who listen to podcasts, History Unplugged is the most comprehensive show of its kind. It's the only show that dedicates episodes to both interviewing experts and answering questions from its audience. First, it features a call-in show where you can ask our resident historian (Scott Rank, PhD) absolutely anything (What was it like to be a Turkish sultan with four wives and twelve concubines? If you were sent back in time, how would you kill Hitler?). Second, it features long-form interviews with best-selling authors who have written about everything. Topics include gruff World War II generals who flew with airmen on bombing raids, a war horse who gained the rank of sergeant, and presidents who gave their best speeches while drunk.

A show about American history, world history, World Wars 1 & 2, the Civil War, and much more.

History Unplugged Podcast

For history lovers who listen to podcasts, History Unplugged is the most comprehensive show of its kind. It's the only show that dedicates episodes to both interviewing experts and answering questions from its audience. First, it features a call-in show where you can ask our resident historian (Scott Rank, PhD) absolutely anything (What was it like to be a Turkish sultan with four wives and twelve concubines? If you were sent back in time, how would you kill Hitler?). Second, it features long-form interviews with best-selling authors who have written about everything. Topics include gruff World War II generals who flew with airmen on bombing raids, a war horse who gained the rank of sergeant, and presidents who gave their best speeches while drunk.

History Unplugged

Humanity’s Past Suggests We Only Have 10,000 Years to Change or Go Extinct

The determined attempt to thwart Ottoman dominance was fought by Muslims and Christians across five theaters from the Balkans to the Mediterranean and the Indian Ocean, from Persia to Russia. 

But this is not merely the story of a clash of civilizations between East and West. Europe was not united against the Turks; the scandal of the age was the alliance between King Francis I of France and Sultan Suleiman the Magnificent. Meanwhile, the resistance of the Saadi dynasty of Morocco to Ottoman encroachment played a critical role in denying Constantinople direct access to the Atlantic Ocean. By the same token, though religious imperatives were critic al to the motivations of all the key actors involved, these in no way fell neatly along the Christian Muslim divide. 

The Holy Roman Emperor Charles V desired nothing more than to eradicate the Protestant heresy metastasizing throughout his domains, but the threat of Turkish invasion forced him to stay his hand and indulge his Lutheran subjects to ensure a common defense. Nevertheless, the collective effort to constrain the expansion of the Ottoman superpower did succeed with the ultimate victory in 1571 the tipping point in reordering the trajectory of history.

To explore these facets of medieval and early modern European history is today’s guest, Si Sheppard, author of “Crescent Dawn: The Rise of the Ottoman Empire and the Making of the Modern Age.”

The determined attempt to thwart Ottoman dominance was fought by Muslims and Christians across five theaters from the Balkans to the Mediterranean and the Indian Ocean, from Persia to Russia. But this is not merely the story of a clash of civilizations between East and West. Europe was not united against the Turks; the scandal of the age was the alliance between King Francis I of France and Sultan Suleiman the Magnificent. Meanwhile, the resistance of the Saadi dynasty of Morocco to Ottoman encroachment played a critical role in denying Constantinople direct access to the Atlantic Ocean. By the same token, though religious imperatives were critic al to the motivations of all the key actors involved, these in no way fell neatly along the Christian Muslim divide.&nbsp;
The Holy Roman Emperor Charles V desired nothing more than to eradicate the Protestant heresy metastasizing throughout his domains, but the threat of Turkish invasion forced him to stay his hand and indulge his Lutheran subjects to ensure a common defense. Nevertheless, the collective effort to constrain the expansion of the Ottoman superpower did succeed with the ultimate victory in 1571 the tipping point in reordering the trajectory of history.
To explore these facets of medieval and early modern European history is today&rsquo;s guest, Si Sheppard, author of &ldquo;Crescent&nbsp;Dawn:&nbsp;The Rise of the Ottoman Empire and the Making of the Modern Age.&rdquo;

The 16th Century Ottomans Nearly Conquered Europe. Why Did European Kingdoms Make So Many Alliances With Them?

After a series of military defeats over the winter of 1776–1777, British military leaders developed a bold plan to gain control of the Hudson River and divide New England from the rest of the colonies. Three armies would converge on Albany: one under Lieutenant General John Burgoyne moving south from Quebec, one under General William Howe moving north from New York City, and a third under Lieutenant Colonel Barrimore St. Leger cutting east from Lake Ontario along the Mohawk River

Fort Stanwix lay directly on the path of St. Leger's force, making it a key defensive position for the Continental Army. By delaying St. Leger's troops and forcing a retreat, the garrison's stand at Fort Stanwix contributed to Burgoyne's surrender at the Battles of Saratoga a month later, a major turning point in the course of the war.

To look at this battle, we are joined by today’s guest William Kidder, author of Defending Fort Stanwix: A Story of the New York Frontier in the American Revolution. He offers an account of life in and around the fort in the months leading up to the siege, detailing the lives of soldiers and their families, civilians, and the Haudenosaunee peoples with a focus on both the mundane aspects of military life and the courageous actions that earned distinction. 

We discuss the stories of local men and women, both white and Indian, who helped with the fort's defense before, during, and after the siege and showcases an overlooked story of bravery and cooperation on New York's frontier during the American Revolution.

After a series of military defeats over the winter of 1776&ndash;1777, British military leaders developed a bold plan to gain control of the Hudson River and divide New England from the rest of the colonies. Three armies would converge on Albany: one under Lieutenant General John Burgoyne moving south from Quebec, one under General William Howe moving north from New York City, and a third under Lieutenant Colonel Barrimore St. Leger cutting east from Lake Ontario along the Mohawk River
Fort Stanwix lay directly on the path of St. Leger's force, making it a key defensive position for the Continental Army. By delaying St. Leger's troops and forcing a retreat, the garrison's stand at Fort Stanwix contributed to Burgoyne's surrender at the Battles of Saratoga a month later, a major turning point in the course of the war.
To look at this battle, we are joined by today&rsquo;s guest William Kidder, author of Defending Fort Stanwix: A Story of the New York Frontier in the American Revolution. He offers an account of life in and around the fort in the months leading up to the siege, detailing the lives of soldiers and their families, civilians, and the Haudenosaunee peoples with a focus on both the mundane aspects of military life and the courageous actions that earned distinction.&nbsp;
We discuss the&nbsp;stories of local men and women, both white and Indian, who helped with&nbsp;the&nbsp;fort's defense before, during, and after&nbsp;the&nbsp;siege and showcases an overlooked story of bravery and cooperation on New York's frontier during&nbsp;the&nbsp;American Revolution.

Fort Stanwix and the Forgotten Revolutionary War Siege That Convinced France to Help the US

No language is as inconsistent in spelling and pronunciation as English. Kernel and colonel rhyme, but read changes based on past or present tense. Ough has many pronunciations: ‘aw’ (thought), ‘ow’ (drought), ‘uff’ (tough), ‘off’ (cough), ‘oo’ (through). In response to this orthographic minefield, legions of rebel wordsmiths have died on the hill of spelling reform, risking their reputations to bring English into the realm of the rational: Mark Twain, Ben Franklin, Eliza Burnz, C. S. Lewis, George Bernard Shaw, Charles Darwin, and the innumerable others on both sides of the Atlantic who, for a time in their life, became fanatically occupied with writing thru instead of through, tho for though, laf for laugh (and tried futilely to get everyone around them to do it too). 

This began with the “simplified spelling movement” starting with medieval England and continuing to Revolutionary America, from the birth of standup comedy to contemporary pop music, and lasting influence can still be seen in words like color (without a U), plow (without -ugh), and the iconic ’90s ballad “Nothing Compares 2 U.”

To explore this history is today’s guest, Gabe Henry, author of “Enough is Enuf, Our Failed Attempts to Make English Easier to Spell.” We look at the past and present of the digital age, where the swift pace of online exchanges (from emojis to social media) now pushes us all 2ward simplification. Simplified spelling may, at last, be having its day.

No language is as inconsistent in spelling and pronunciation as English. Kernel and colonel rhyme, but read changes based on past or present tense. Ough has many pronunciations: &lsquo;aw&rsquo; (thought), &lsquo;ow&rsquo; (drought), &lsquo;uff&rsquo; (tough), &lsquo;off&rsquo; (cough), &lsquo;oo&rsquo; (through). In response to this orthographic minefield, legions of rebel wordsmiths have died on the hill of spelling reform, risking their reputations to bring English into the realm of the rational: Mark Twain, Ben Franklin, Eliza Burnz, C. S. Lewis, George Bernard Shaw, Charles Darwin, and the innumerable others on both sides of the Atlantic who, for a time in their life, became fanatically occupied with writing&nbsp;thru&nbsp;instead of&nbsp;through, tho&nbsp;for&nbsp;though, laf&nbsp;for&nbsp;laugh&nbsp;(and tried futilely to get everyone around them to do it too).&nbsp;
This began with the &ldquo;simplified spelling movement&rdquo; starting with medieval England and continuing to Revolutionary America, from the birth of standup comedy to contemporary pop music, and lasting influence can still be seen in words like&nbsp;color&nbsp;(without a&nbsp;U),&nbsp;plow&nbsp;(without&nbsp;-ugh), and the iconic &rsquo;90s ballad &ldquo;Nothing Compares 2 U.&rdquo;
To explore this history is today&rsquo;s guest, Gabe Henry, author of &ldquo;Enough&nbsp;is Enuf, <a href="https://www.harpercollins.com/products/enough-is-enuf-gabe-henry?variant=43016542715938">Our Failed Attempts to Make English Easier to Spell</a>.&rdquo; &nbsp;We look at the past and present of the digital age, where the swift pace of online exchanges (from emojis to social media) now pushes us all 2ward simplification. Simplified spelling may, at last, be having its day.

Humanity’s Past Suggests We Only Have 10,000 Years to Change or Go Extinct

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