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Lessons from the past assimilated into a modern global view. Collapse takes on the incredibly complex subject of why certain human societies have perished in the past and extracts lessons we can apply to our current globalized society. Diamond analyzes extinct societies by applying a set of five criteria (natural climate change, human exploitation of resources, allies, enemies, and the society's response when faced with collapse). These societies don't include Rome, Egypt, the Ottoman Empire, the Soviet Union, etc. - after all, descendents of these societies are still around. The peoples that Diamond discusses have by and large disappeared because they overextended themselves beyond the resources available to them. Diamond then examines four modern societies - China, Australia, Rwanda, and Haiti - which face dire environmental challenges and their prospects for overcoming them. It may not be for everyone, but I like the way he provides a lot of numbers and statistics to quantify the impact of modern societies on our resources. The information he uses is similar to that found in Guns, Germs, and Steel (a book I enjoyed immensely), but Collapse is less of a history and more of a reality check - as our global society aspires to First World living standards, we must realize that we're going to push the limits of our planet's resources sooner than we think. This book is a great starting point for discussions on how to cope with this dilemma.