on mars. so, it's maybe not such a crazy idea. it would certainly be very, very expensive, but it's not as expensive as when you first think about how much it might cost. >> guest: that's right. there's another element that should be mentioned and that is what some friends of mine and i call an archive. the record of our collective civilization also ought to be preserved. we don't want to happen -- if there is a calamity on earth, we don't want to happen to the planet what happened to the great library of alexandria, when the record of civilization was lost in a fire. so, we need an archive of our civilization, which is constantly updated, and either of the polls and offplanet. again, to make sure that if the

worst happens, and we're on the moon, and on mars, we have not lost the record of our civilization. >> host: we already have the feed library in the arctic, called -- i can't pronounce it -- where we're keeping all the important crop grains and things like that, and the amazing thing is that they at the -- at the polls of the map there are places that are almost absolute zero and they just sit there for a billion years. it's like if you could -- you wanted to store something for somebody a billion years from now, you could actually do that. that's unfathomable you. couldn't do that anywhere. everything on earth changes in a billion years, but -- so, that was a little bit of a tangent.

but -- okay, let's get back to your book. i'm going to give you an opportunity to sort of sum up what you think are the important points we haven't covered here and just convince people they should buy your book. >> guest: covered the important points, but to reiterate again, planetary defense is what is important here, because we have access to space we have the where withal to protect yourselves one way or another. either on the planet or elsewhere. but access to space has given us that, and we ought to use it. >> host: or else. >> guest: or else. >> host: all right. well, thank you, bill burrows. it was -- like the opportunity to read your book and the opportunity to talk to you, and i think i -- >> guest: well, thank you. you asked wonderful questions.

it is appreciated. it's been really fun. now joining us on booktv is clive priddle. when did public affairs get started. >> it's our birth day today.

17. >> host: how did it got started. >> guest: he wanted to set up an independent, nonfiction dedicated list that would be newsy, sharp, edgy, and we have continued in that tradition ever since. >> host: public affairs is the publisher of the c-span book but we wanted to talk to you about some of the upcoming fall 2014 titles that public affairs has. >> guest: well, thank you. very happy to mention a couple of them. so, the first i want to mention was a book called "city of lies." the author is a wonderful british iranian journalist, pulitzer prize-winning filmmaker, and her journey has taken her into the southern part of tehran, very mixed neighborhood, and she is really got a wonderfully revealing portrait of all kinds of different tehranys and the title of the book refers to the fact that in order to survive in a police state, which is a very

repressive environment you have to be very creative with the truth, and hence the title "city of lies." she is a star. her first book. we're thrilled to have it, readsable, the scenery is indelible. so we're looking forward to that. it comes in september. >> host: what else are you publishing this year. >> guest: we're going to jump from tehran to russia where we have a book called "nothing is true and everything is possible." and his parents are russian. he now lives outside of russia, and he is also a filmmaker, two filmmakers, two first books. and his book is a look into the extraordinary nature of modern russia, which he regardses as the first post modern, post moral state in the world. there nor rules in russia. nothing is long-standing. there are no foundations that have to be preserved for the future. everybody is making it up as they go along. so he goes right across the

country from towns run by gangsters in the far east of russia, through to the shenanigans that ripple through moscow, into the schools for young ladies who desire in life is to marry very, very rich man. you can go to other school and learn how to do that. it's important if you want to marry a billionaire is to focus on his left-hand side because that's his emotional side. so sit on the left. >> host: finally, one more, tell us about. >> guest: one more. one more we thought should come back to the states for this one. adam tanner is a journalist of many -- written for reuters and forbes, and he wanted to look at what big data and marketing is doing to mesh business and he has a terrific -- american business and he was a book called "what stays in vegas." and the focus of the book is on the casino industry, which he

uses as a jumping off point to show how much corporations and commercial companies, all kinds, are relying on big data now, and how much they know about us, whether we wish them to know or not. i know nothing about casinos, but i'm excited about the book because what is clear the casinos probably know something about me, and he takes us for a very wild ride of the new universe of big data, who is tapping into your information, who is walking up to the line of legality in terms of what they do with the information and the world it's creating around us as we speak. >> host: how long was he working on the book and did the casino industry cooperate? >> guest: he has been working on its for three years and he has absolutely worked with the access corporation of one particular casino chain, caesar's, or harrah's. so, they know about it. their chief executive has been

interviewed by him many times. they have not asked for approval. they may not like the book but they certainly know about it. >> host: clyde priddle, publisher of public affairs. this is booktv on c-span2. television for serious readers. >> booktv asks what you reading this summer? >> well, i like to read anything that is well-written. right now i'm reading a presidential biography about president wilson, almost 800 pages long. but really goes into that era. much has changed but with biographiesing are always something interesting and he is a president i didn't know that much about so i've enjoyed it. i'm halfway through it. >> what are you reading this summer? tell us what is on your summer reading list. tweet it, post it to our

facebook page or send us an e-mail. ... >> >>