In a recital of the history of mankind, we learn of raging floods, rampaging tornadoes, earth shattering quakes that have wiped out entire cities. We know of volcanoes, and that their fiery fury has buried whole civilizations, and turned their inhabitants into cinders. What lessons have we learned, if any, from these disasters? Professor Joshua Neal is one of the few men in the world who has dedicated himself to the studies of these catastrophes. It is the 1960s, a time of student unrest on many a campus. At this moment, Professor Neal is concluding his first session with a group of graduate students.