Paul Roberts - The Impulse Society: America in the Age of Instant Gratification

All books are collaborations, but this one was more than most. The many subjects covered here were complicated and often controversial, and I benefited enormously from long conversations with dozens of experts who were willing not only to share their knowledge, but to consider how it might fit into the big picture I wanted to describe. Special thanks goes to Dean Baker, Bill Bishop, Robert Bixby, Robert Boyd, Ralph Brown, Keith Campbell, Daniel Callahan, Hilarie Cash, Amitabh Chandra, Jonathan Cohen, Tyler Cowen, Richard Curtain, Richard Davies, Michael X. Delli Carpini, Jake Dunagan, Judith Feder, Andrew Haldane, Dacher Keltner, Bill Lazonick, George Loewenstein, Michael Mandel, Sam McClure, Todd Miller, Manoj Narang, Paul Piff, Clyde Prestowitz, Peter Richerson, Judy Samuelson, Walker Smith, Evan Soltas, Dilip Soman, Kenneth Stone, Richard Thaler, and Eric Tymoigne. Thanks as well to those hardy souls who read and commented on early draftsincluding Matt Roberts, Molly Roberts, Karen Dickinson, Nina Miller, Claire Dederer, Fred Moody, Paul Bravmann, Susan Kucera, Ralph Brown, Bill Lazonick, and Johann Harias well as to those who shared their personal stories from the front lines of the Impulse Society, notably, Brett Walker and Marcie.

Above all, thanks to the crew at Bloomsbury Publishing: George Gibson, Laura Keefe, Nikki Baldauf, Rachel Mannheimer, Summer Smithand, especially, my editor, Anton Mueller, without whose ideas, curiosity, and (mainly) cheerful willingness to work late and on weekends this book wouldnt have been possible.

Finally, I want to acknowledge those who provided encouragement, support, and/or meals and drinks while the book was being written (and rewritten), among them: the entire Dickinson tribe; Chris and Andrea Brixey; Eric and Ben at Eurosports; Luke, Colin, and Luis; Stephen Sharpe and A Book For All Seasons; Linda and Jake at Homefires, Damian and Susie at Schocolat; Susan at Sage Mountain; Kurt and Nadine at Good Mood Food; Roy Gumpel; Susan Garner; the tandem cyclist; and, last and certainly best, Hannah and Isaac, the two points of my hearts compass.

Paul Roberts is the author of The End of Oil and The End of Food . As a journalist, his writing has appeared in the Los Angeles Times , the Washington Post , the New Republic, Newsweek, Rolling Stone , and elsewhere. He lives with his family in Washington State.

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