Why do you suppose Weisman started the book with an anecdote about the Zápara of Ecuador? What deeper message was he hoping to convey?

If extraterrestrial beings were to visit Earth a million years after the sudden extinction of humans, what evidence might they find of our existence, according to Weisman? Why might he use aliens as a way of thinking about humans’ place in Earth’s history?

In Chapter 9, Weisman writes that “plastic embodies our collective guilt over trashing the environment” (120). What does he mean?