In the run-up to the millennium, in 1997, revised in 1999, prominent American paleontologist Gould (1941-2002) explains why human history cannot be predicted, not merely as a practical limitation, but for scientific and philosophical reasons. Indeed, he points out the imprecision of dating even the historical past, let alone anything before that. He discusses the second millennium and millenarianism throughout history in a seamless and entertaining narrative typical of this great thinker and storyteller. Some of the material here also appears in revised form in Dinosaur in a Haystack. Belknap Press, an imprint of Harvard University Press, is reprinting Gould's books. Annotation ©2012 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)