Introduction: Questions "forever remain" -- A climate fit for civilization -- Climate and capitalism in the Great West and beyond -- In the middle border: Gustavus Hinrichs and his network of volunteer observers -- Fluid geographies: mapping climate change interlude: rainmakers and other "paradoxers" -- Mysterious ecologies -- Technocracy and the mastery of uncertainty -- Conclusion: The meanings of uncertainty.
Summary
"Drawing on the writings of scientists, foresters, surveyors, and settlers, Joseph Giacomelli shows that climate uncertainty infused Gilded Age thinking about economic growth and national development. He details a multivalent discourse on climate that infused both practical concerns and overarching political themes, not least Manifest Destiny. Giacomelli makes it clear that uncertainty drew together concerns about human-induced climate change and cultural worries about the sustainability of capitalist expansionism. A rising belief in scientific positivism was matched by a growing awareness of the illusory nature of scientific certainty; faith in society's power to improve landscapes tussled with persistent fears of environmental catastrophe"-- Provided by publisher.
