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Thanks P.J. I need to read these books. I hope that everyone will read them too.

Zero population growth would be be helpful, but we really need negative population growth because we are already populated over sustainable levels. If we don't bring down the birth rate the death rate will rise.

P.J. wrote: "Zero population growth would be be helpful, but we really need negative population growth because we are already populated over sustainable levels. If we don't bring down the birth rate the death r..."

I sure agree but even to reach zero population growth would be a miracle. I guess eventually some plague will get us. Especially in over crowded areas.

Yes, something will get us. We are on course for a catastrophic die-off. Our population exploded on cheap, abundant energy and resources, which cannot last. There are too many people for the changes coming. We are like the 19th century Irish, who soared to 8 million people when potatoes were cheap and abundant, only to collapse when the potato crop failed.

Are The Population Bomb and The Population Explosion, by Paul Ehrlich, two different books or just different editiions of the same book?

"The Population Explosion" is a different book by the same author, updated to 1991. "The Population Bomb," published in 1968, can be considered outdated now. Many people argue that both books are outdated, as the earth has added more than a billion people since 1991. But "The Population Explosion" is still worth reading for the details it gives and the arguments it makes. Its trajectory is still valid. It is especially recommended to people who deny that overpopulation is a problem. To be up-to-date, there are websites:

http://www.overpopulation.org