Contents -- Introduction -- What is catastrophe? -- The organization of this book -- Some useful distinctions -- 1 What are the catastrophic risks, and how catastrophic are they? -- Natural catastrophes -- Scientifc accidents -- Other unintended man-made catastrophes -- Intentional catastrophes -- Catastrophic synergies and lesser-included catastrophes -- 2 Why so little is being done about the catastrophic risks -- Cultural factors -- Psychological factors -- Economic factors -- 3 How to evaluate the catastrophic risks and the possible responses to them -- The difference cost-benefit analysis can make: the case of RHIC -- A modest version of the precautionary principle -- Discounting to present value -- Taxes, subsidies, and options: the case of global warming -- Valuing human lives -- Risk versus uncertainty -- Coping with uncertainty -- Politics, expertise, and neutrality: RHIC revisited -- Summary -- 4 How to reduce the catastrophic risks -- Institutional reforms -- Fiscal tools: a recap -- Some hypothetical regulatory policies -- Conclusion -- Notes -- Index -- A -- B -- C -- D -- E -- F -- G -- H -- I -- J -- K -- L -- M -- N -- O -- P -- Q -- R -- S -- T -- U -- V -- W -- Y -- Z.