The Unthinkable: Who Survives When Disaster Strikes - And Why

Discover how human beings react to danger-and what makes the difference between life and death

Today, nine out of ten Americans live in places at significant risk of earthquakes, hurricanes, tornadoes, terrorism, or other disasters. Tomorrow, some of us will have to make split-second choices to save ourselves and our families. How will we react? What will it feel like? Will we be heroes or victims?

In her quest to answer these questions, award-winning journalist Amanda Ripley traces human responses to some of recent historys epic disasters, from the explosion of the Mont Blanc munitions ship in 1917-one of the biggest explosions before the invention of the atomic bomb-to the journeys of the 15,000 people who found their way out of the World Trade Center on September 11, 2001. To understand the science behind the stories, Ripley turns to leading brain scientists, trauma psychologists, and other disaster experts. She even has her own brain examined by military researchers and experiences, through realistic simulations, what it might be like to survive a plane crash into the ocean or to escape a raging fire.

Ripley comes back with precious wisdom about the surprising humanity of crowds, the elegance of the brains fear circuits, and the stunning inadequacy of many of our evolutionary responses. Most unexpectedly, she discovers the brains ability to do much, much better-with just a little help.

In her quest to discern how people may react in the face of emergency or disaster, Ripley traces human responses to some of recent history's epic disasters, turns to leading brain scientists, and even steps into the dark corners of her own imagination.

Today, nine out of ten Americans live in places at significant risk of earthquakes, hurricanes, tornadoes, terrorism, or other disasters. Tomorrow, some of us will have to make split-second choices to save ourselves and our families. How will we react? What will it feel like? Will we be heroes or victims?

In her quest to answer these questions, Amanda Ripley traces human responses to some of recent history’s epic disasters, turns to leading brain scientists, and even steps into the dark corners of her own imagination.

The Unthinkable escorts us into the bleakest regions of our nightmares, flicks on a flashlight, and takes a steady look around. Then it leads us home, smarter and stronger than we were before.

“Fascinating and useful…[shows that] the most important variable in an emergency is your own behavior.”—New York Times

"Engrossing and lucid...facing the truth about the human capacity for risk and disaster turns out to be a lot less scary than staying in the dark."—Oprah Magazine

"This book might save your life." —Bloomberg News

AMANDA RIPLEY is a senior writer for Time magazine.