1493: How Europe's Discovery of the Americas Revolutionized Trade, Ecology and Life on Earth

摘要

Journalist Charles Mann chronicles how Christopher Columbus' second New World expedition in 1493 triggered a global upheaval. European vessels left sheep, rats and lethal viruses in the New World and carried tomatoes, tobacco and maize (corn) to the Old. Millions of people died from introduced diseases and ecosystems convulsed. A world economy emerged, propelled by trade in commodities from silk to slaves. Drawing on new research, Mann reframes the past 500 years to riveting effect.