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A City on Mars: Science and Absurdities of Space Settlement

with Kelly and Zach Weinersmith

Join scientist Kelly & cartoonist Zach Weinersmith, authors of A City on Mars, for an out-of-this-world conversation about the science, challenges, & absurdities of settling space. Please register.

Join New York Times bestselling authors Kelly and Zach Weinersmith for a lively virtual discussion of their acclaimed book, A City on Mars: Can We Settle Space, Should We Settle Space, and Have We Really Thought This Through? Drawing on years of research, science, and humor, they explore what it would really take for humans to live beyond Earth—and whether we should.

Earth is not well. The promise of starting life anew somewhere far, far away—no climate change, no war, no doomscrolling—beckons, and settling the stars finally seems within our grasp. Or is it? Critically acclaimed, bestselling authors Kelly and Zach Weinersmith set out to write the essential guide to a glorious future of space settlements, but after years of research, they aren’t so sure it’s a good idea.

In a world hurtling toward human expansion into space, A City on Mars investigates whether the dream of new worlds won’t create nightmares, both for settlers and the people they leave behind. In the process, the Weinersmiths answer every question about space you’ve ever wondered about, and many you’ve never considered: 

With deep expertise, a winning sense of humor, and art from the beloved creator of Saturday Morning Breakfast Cereal, the Weinersmiths investigate perhaps the biggest questions humanity will ever ask itself—whether and how to become multiplanetary.

Register today to be a part of the discussion!


About the Authors: 

Zach Weinersmith is best known as the cartoonist of the comic Saturday Morning Breakfast Cereal. He also co-wrote the bestselling science books Soonish and A City on Mars with his wife, and worked with the artist Boulet to create a children's retelling of the story of Beowulf called Bea Wolf. 

Dr. Kelly Weinersmith is an adjunct faculty member at Rice University, and is currently President of the Helminthological Society of Washington and the American Society of Parasitologists. Her research on animal behavior and parasites has been featured in The Atlantic, National Geographic, BBC World, Science, Nature, and more. Kelly co-wrote the New York Times bestsellers Soonish: Ten Emerging Technologies That'll Improve And/Or Ruin Everything and A City on Mars: Can We Settle Space, Should We Settle Space, and Have We Really Thought This Through?. In 2024, she and her co-author/husband Zach received a Hugo Award and the Royal Society Trivedi Book Prize for A City on Mars. Kelly is also co-host of the podcast Daniel and Kelly’s Extraordinary Universe. 


Please Register for link to program.

Live Virtual Author Talks - This new series through Library Speakers Consortium offers live online talks by bestselling authors of books in a variety of genres. Participants receive a link to the program when they register. Please see https://libraryc.org/gailborden to register and also view recorded videos of past speakers.

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