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INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER “One of the most important books I’ve ever read—an indispensable guide to thinking clearly about the world.” – Bill Gates “Hans Rosling tells the story of ‘the secret silent miracle of human progress’ as only he can. But Factfulness does much more than that. It also explains why progress is so often secret and silent and teaches readers how to see it clearly.” — Melinda Gates " Factfulness by Hans Rosling, an outstanding international public health expert, is a hopeful book about the potential for human progress when we work off facts rather than our inherent biases." - Former U.S. President Barack Obama Factfulnes s: The stress-reducing habit of only carrying opinions for which you have strong supporting facts. When asked simple questions about global trends— what percentage of the world’s population live in poverty; why the world’s population is increasing; how many girls finish school —we systematically get the answers wrong. So wrong that a chimpanzee choosing answers at random will consistently outguess teachers, journalists, Nobel laureates, and investment bankers. In Factfulness , Professor of International Health and global TED phenomenon Hans Rosling, together with his two long-time collaborators, Anna and Ola, offers a radical new explanation of why this happens . They reveal the ten instincts that distort our perspective —from our tendency to divide the world into two camps (usually some version of us and them ) to the way we consume media (where fear rules) to how we perceive progress (believing that most things are getting worse). Our problem is that we don’t know what we don’t know, and even our guesses are informed by unconscious and predictable biases. It turns out that the world, for all its imperfections, is in a much better state than we might think. That doesn’t mean there aren’t real concerns. But when we worry about everything all the time instead of embracing a worldview based on facts, we can lose our ability to focus on the things that threaten us most. Inspiring and revelatory, filled with lively anecdotes and moving stories, Factfulness is an urgent and essential book that will change the way you see the world and empower you to respond to the crises and opportunities of the future. --- “This book is my last battle in my life-long mission to fight devastating ignorance…Previously I armed myself with huge data sets, eye-opening software, an energetic learning style and a Swedish bayonet for sword-swallowing. It wasn’t enough. But I hope this book will be.” Hans Rosling, February 2017. |
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Twelve birds. One country. A wild Ireland waiting to be discovered. In Ireland Through Birds, Conor O’Brien takes the reader on an ornithological adventure around Ireland in search of twelve of our rarest and most elusive birds. Along the journey the author explores every kind of landscape and habitat our island has to offer across all four seasons, from the remote isles of Donegal to the rugged mountains of Kerry and urban parks of Dublin. Through it all, O’Brien is enchanted by calling corncrakes, mesmerised by hunting harriers, and chased by angry skuas. It’s a journey through a staggering array of landscapes that’ll bring the reader face to face with the rich history and stunning wildlife to be savoured right on our doorstep. It explores the stories of the remarkable birds that live here: the genius of the jay, the sublime mimicry of the cuckoo, the nocturnal prowess of the barn owl, while paying a moving,poetic tribute to our natural heritage – and a warning about the threats that face it. Ireland Through Birds is a unique blend of natural history and travelogue, making it a great read for anyone with an interest in Ireland’s natural world. |
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"A glorious book . . . A spirited defense of science . . . From the first page to the last, this book is a manifesto for clear thought." *Los Angeles Times "POWERFUL . . . A stirring defense of informed rationality. . . Rich in surprising information and beautiful writing." *The Washington Post Book World How can we make intelligent decisions about our increasingly technology-driven lives if we don't understand the difference between the myths of pseudoscience and the testable hypotheses of science? Pulitzer Prize-winning author and distinguished astronomer Carl Sagan argues that scientific thinking is critical not only to the pursuit of truth but to the very well-being of our democratic institutions. Casting a wide net through history and culture, Sagan examines and authoritatively debunks such celebrated fallacies of the past as witchcraft, faith healing, demons, and UFOs. And yet, disturbingly, in today's so-called information age, pseudoscience is burgeoning with stories of alien abduction, channeling past lives, and communal hallucinations commanding growing attention and respect. As Sagan demonstrates with lucid eloquence, the siren song of unreason is not just a cultural wrong turn but a dangerous plunge into darkness that threatens our most basic freedoms. "COMPELLING." *USA Today "A clear vision of what good science means and why it makes a difference. . . . A testimonial to the power of science and a warning of the dangers of unrestrained credulity." *The Sciences "PASSIONATE." *San Francisco Examiner-Chronicle From the Trade Paperback edition. |
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The key to personal choice, and even happiness, is to gain control of our attention—our mental lives. Matthew Crawford is the author of Shop Class as Soulcraft, which challenged our notions about what we do and how it affects our sense of self (and our happiness). This new book addresses the crisis of attention: where we focus -- or cannot focus--equally affects our sense of self. As our mental lives become more fragmented, what is at stake often seems to be nothing less than the question of whether one can maintain a coherent self.  The key to a better life then is to get command not just of one’s physical environment, but of one’s mental life, too. Like Shop Class as Soulcraft, Crawford uses case studies as well as entertaining musings from his own personal observations to describe the fundamental shift surrounding attention that is happening in our culture. From making a surfboard, to parenting, to anxiously navigating the inside of an airport—all provide clues to a phenomenon that we increasingly experience, but could not put into words, until now. An accessible and food for thought kind of look at what our difficulties with attention mean for us as free thinking people. |
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 “Makes the science of plant processes accessible to home gardeners.” — The American Gardener Why do container plants wilt even when they’ve been regularly watered? Why did the hydrangea that thrived last year never bloom this year? Plant physiology—the study of how living things function—can solve these and most other problems gardeners regularly encounter. In  How Plants Work,  horticulture expert Linda Chalker-Scott brings the stranger-than-fiction science of the plant world to vivid life. She uncovers the mysteries of how and why plants do the things they do, and arms you with fascinating knowledge that will change the way you garden. |
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Every year, millions of people travel to grizzly country, hoping for a glimpse of the Great Bear. And every year, somebody is attacked. The power of the grizzly is almost mythical and has become the stuff of legend.Mark of the Grizzly relies on neither myth nor legend. Rather, it relies on the true accounts of dozens of attacks, from Yellowstone National Park to Alaska, from 1977 to 2010. Author Scott McMillion examines each attack and its aftermath, interviewing victims, survivors, and investigators. Hikers, photographers, hunters, scientists, and others tell their stories here, offering what they have learned and the lessons that others should know.Neither mysteries nor tales of horror, these stories create a world of wonder, respect, and fear that make for a book you’ll find hard to put down. In the thirteen years since Mark of the Grizzly first appeared, DNA science has revolutionized how people study bears and how they investigate attacks. Growing populations of grizzlies and people have led to more bear/human encounters—some fatal—and grizzlies now wander parts of the West where they hadn’t been seen for decades. This new edition includes a thorough update of existing material and new or expanded chapters that cover: The recent attacks around Yellowstone National Park and Anchorage, Alaska, which have generated national headlines.The increased popularity of mountain biking and trail running in grizzly country. Are such sports advisable there?Bear populations expanding into the prairies of Montana and Wyoming, far from the expected mountain locales.“Bear Men.” People who get too close to bears, and sometimes die in their jaws. The book includes a profile of Timothy Treadwell, subject of the movie Grizzly Man.The continuing phenomenon of “dinner bell” grizzlies. |
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A handy guide identifying over 170 types of the world’s gemstones with beautiful colour photography taken from the Smithsonian Institution’s archives. ‘Gem Gemstones’ is an indispensable guide for amateurs and enthusiasts alike. This pocket-sized book explores the fascinating history of ornamental stones, discussing their different social and cultural meanings and monetary values through the ages. Each page features specific details about the crystal system, hardness, composition, lustre and gemstone ‘family’ of each gem. Full colour photography for each specimen with cut and uncut examples from the Smithsonian Institution’s archives are included throughout, as well as up-to-date information on where to go to view such gems. Simple illustrations show the crystal structure of each stone for ease of identification and a complete glossary and bibliography show where to go for further information. About the author Cally Oldershaw has an international reputation as a leading gemmologist. She has written a large number of books on gems and precious stones for a wide-ranging audience. |
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This ebook edition does not include illustrations. ‘In Richard Fortey’s capable hands the humble grey trilobite has been transformed into the E.T. of the Lower Palaeozoic – a remarkable and fascinating book.’ SIMON WINCHESTER Richard Fortey is one of Britain’s leading popular scientists. Life: An Unauthorised Biography, was short-listed for the Rhone Poulenc prize and has been reprinted five times. In all he writes, Fortey displays extraordinary range, delight and descriptive gifts which make complicated scientific facts and concepts not only easy to understand but a delight to absorb. Trilobite! is an unashamedly trilobito-centric view of the world unravelling the history of the exotic, crustacean-like animals which dominated the seas for three hundred million years. These arthropods witnessed continents move, mountain chains elevated and eroded; they survived ice ages and volcanic eruptions, evolving and adapting exquisitely to their environment. They watched through their crystal eyes whilst life evolved. Their own evolution calibrated geological time itself. Structured like a detective story, this is a light, but highly informative account of the wonders of scientific discovery and an engaging, quirky and fascinating introduction to evolution. Note that it has not been possible to include the same picture content that appeared in the original print version. Reviews Praise for ‘Dry Store Room No 1’: ‘This book is worthy of the place it tells us about, and that is a pretty lofty chunk of praise.’ The Times ‘In this loving survey of his life at the museum, Fortey…is never less than enthused by all the museum's collections.’ Financial Times ‘Fortey…in his affectionate portrayal of the institution in which he spent his working life … sneaks us behind the scenes with all the glee of a small child seeing for the first time the museum's iconic Diplodocus skeleton … always authoritative … the beauty of the book is that - just like a museum - you can visit the different sections in any order you choose, lingering in the places that most take your fancy … and there is plenty of solid science to enjoy, elucidated with brilliant flair.’ Sunday Times About the author Richard Fortey is senior palaeontologist at the Natural History Museum. His previous books include the critically acclaimed LIFE: AN UNAUTHORISED BIOGRAPHY and the prize-winning THE HIDDEN LANDSCAPE. He lives in London. |
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'A very well written book about geology and geological history' Sir David Attenborough, The Times 'I travelled to Haverfordwest to get to the past. From Paddington Station a Great Western locomotive took me on a journey westwards from London further and further back into geological time, from the age of mammals to the age of trilobites...' So begins this enthralling exploration of time and place in which Richard Fortey peels away the top layer of the land to reveal the hidden landscape - the rocks which contain the story of distant events, which dictate not only the personality of the landscape, but the nature of the soil, the plants that grow in it and the regional characteristics of the buildings. We travel with him as our guide throughout the British Isles and as the rocks change so we learn to read the clues they contain: that Britain was once divided into two parts separated by an ocean, that Scottish malt whisky, Harris tweed, slate roofs and thatched cottages can be traced back to tumultuous events which took place many millions of years ago. The Hidden Landscape has become a classic in popular geology since its first publication in 1993. This new edition is fully updated and beautifully illustrated. |
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The harrowing story of the most destructive American wildfire in a century. There is no precedent in postwar American history for the destruction of the town of Paradise, California. On November 8, 2018, the community of 27,000 people was swallowed by the ferocious Camp Fire, which razed virtually every home and killed at least 85 people. The catastrophe seared the American imagination, taking the front page of every major national newspaper and top billing on the news networks. It displaced tens of thousands of people, yielding a refugee crisis that continues to unfold. Fire in Paradise is a dramatic and moving narrative of the disaster based on hundreds of in-depth interviews with residents, firefighters and police, and scientific experts. Alastair Gee and Dani Anguiano are California-based journalists who have reported on Paradise since the day the fire began. Together they reveal the heroics of the first responders, the miraculous escapes of those who got out of Paradise, and the horrors experienced by those who were trapped. Their accounts are intimate and unforgettable, including the local who left her home on foot as fire approached while her 82-year-old father stayed to battle it; the firefighter who drove into the heart of the inferno in his bulldozer; the police officer who switched on his body camera to record what he thought would be his final moments as the flames closed in; and the mother who, less than 12 hours after giving birth in the local hospital, thought she would die in the chaotic evacuation with her baby in her lap. Gee and Anguiano also explain the science of wildfires, write powerfully about the role of the power company PG&E in the blaze, and describe the poignant efforts to raise Paradise from the ruins. This is the story of a town at the forefront of a devastating global shift—of a remarkable landscape sucked ever drier of moisture and becoming inhospitable even to trees, now dying in their tens of millions and turning to kindling. It is also the story of a lost community, one that epitomized a provincial, affordable kind of Californian existence that is increasingly unattainable. It is, finally, a story of a new kind of fire behavior that firefighters have never witnessed before and barely know how to handle. What happened in Paradise was unprecedented in America. Yet according to climate scientists and fire experts, it will surely happen again. |
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Aujourd’hui, la filière vitivinicole s’organise en définissant d’abord la demande en vins puis en choisissant des pratiques adaptées aux potentialités du terroir. Elle doit faire face à l’évolution profonde des marchés et des attentes des consommateurs, et aux défis du changement climatique. Cet ouvrage aborde l’ensemble des étapes allant de l’environnement de la vigne à l’élaboration du vin, jusqu’à sa dégustation et ses effets sur la santé : climats, sols, terroirs, cépages, santé de la vigne, méthodes de culture, tailles, viticulture durable, appellations, vinification, composition du vin, innovations techniques, qualités organoleptiques, recherche sur les polyphénols et les arômes, dégustation sensorielle... Ce livre, largement illustré, concilie les explications scientifiques des processus et la pédagogie des savoir-faire grâce à l’expérience des auteurs. Il s’adresse à tout lecteur intéressé par le monde du vin, qu’il soit viticulteur, œnologue, consommateur éclairé ou étudiant. |
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The Earth is home to hidden gems, rocks and other natural wonders. This workbook will showcase some of them in the hopes of inspiring the young to learn. By making this book very attractive, a child will learn to love and reap the benefits of reading. Secure a copy today! |
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No matter what you eat, how much you exercise, how skinny or young or wise you are, none of it matters if you’re not breathing properly. There is nothing more essential to our health and well-being than breathing: take air in, let it out, repeat 25,000 times a day. Yet, as a species, humans have lost the ability to breathe correctly, with grave consequences. Journalist James Nestor travels the world to figure out what went wrong and how to fix it. The answers aren’t found in pulmonology labs, as we might expect, but in the muddy digs of ancient burial sites, secret Soviet facilities, New Jersey choir schools, and the smoggy streets of São Paulo. Nestor tracks down men and women exploring the hidden science behind ancient breathing practices like Pranayama, Sudarshan Kriya, and Tummo and teams up with pulmonary tinkerers to scientifically test long-held beliefs about how we breathe. Modern research is showing us that making even slight adjustments to the way we inhale and exhale can jump-start athletic performance; rejuvenate internal organs; halt snoring, asthma, and autoimmune disease; and even straighten scoliotic spines. None of this should be possible, and yet it is. Drawing on thousands of years of medical texts and recent cutting-edge studies in pulmonology, psychology, biochemistry, and human physiology, Breath turns the conventional wisdom of what we thought we knew about our most basic biological function on its head. You will never breathe the same again. |
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Climate change: it is arguably the most urgent and consequential issue humankind has ever faced. How we address it in the next thirty years will determine the kind of world we will live in and will bequeath to our children and to theirs. In The Future We Choose , Christiana Figueres and Tom Rivett-Carnac--who led negotiations for the United Nations during the historic Paris Agreement of 2015--have written a cautionary but optimistic book about the world's changing climate and the fate of humanity. The authors outline two possible scenarios for our planet. In one, they describe what life on Earth will be like by 2050 if we fail to meet the Paris climate targets. In the other, they lay out what it will be like to live in a carbon neutral, regenerative world. They argue for confronting the climate crisis head-on, with determination and optimism. The Future We Choose presents our options and tells us what governments, corporations, and each of us can and must do to fend off disaster. |
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#1  NEW YORK TIMES  BESTSELLER • “The story of modern medicine and bioethics—and, indeed, race relations—is refracted beautifully, and movingly.”— Entertainment Weekly NOW A MAJOR MOTION PICTURE FROM HBO® STARRING OPRAH WINFREY AND ROSE BYRNE • ONE OF THE “MOST INFLUENTIAL” (CNN), “DEFINING” ( LITHUB ), AND “BEST” ( THE PHILADELPHIA INQUIRER ) BOOKS OF THE DECADE • WINNER OF THE CHICAGO TRIBUNE HEARTLAND PRIZE FOR NONFICTION NAMED ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR BY  The New York Times Book Review  •  Entertainment Weekly  •  O: The Oprah Magazine  • NPR •  Financial Times  •  New York  •  Independent  (U.K.) •  Times  (U.K.) •  Publishers Weekly  •  Library Journal  •  Kirkus Reviews  •  Booklist  •  Globe and Mail Her name was Henrietta Lacks, but scientists know her as HeLa. She was a poor Southern tobacco farmer who worked the same land as her slave ancestors, yet her cells—taken without her knowledge—became one of the most important tools in medicine: The first “immortal” human cells grown in culture, which are still alive today, though she has been dead for more than sixty years. HeLa cells were vital for developing the polio vaccine; uncovered secrets of cancer, viruses, and the atom bomb’s effects; helped lead to important advances like in vitro fertilization, cloning, and gene mapping; and have been bought and sold by the billions.  Yet Henrietta Lacks remains virtually unknown, buried in an unmarked grave. Henrietta’s family did not learn of her “immortality” until more than twenty years after her death, when scientists investigating HeLa began using her husband and children in research without informed consent. And though the cells had launched a multimillion-dollar industry that sells human biological materials, her family never saw any of the profits. As Rebecca Skloot so brilliantly shows, the story of the Lacks family—past and present—is inextricably connected to the dark history of experimentation on African Americans, the birth of bioethics, and the legal battles over whether we control the stuff we are made of.  Over the decade it took to uncover this story, Rebecca became enmeshed in the lives of the Lacks family—especially Henrietta’s daughter Deborah. Deborah was consumed with questions: Had scientists cloned her mother? Had they killed her to harvest her cells? And if her mother was so important to medicine, why couldn’t her children afford health insurance?  Intimate in feeling, astonishing in scope, and impossible to put down,  The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks  captures the beauty and drama of scientific discovery, as well as its human consequences. |
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INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER A Science News  favorite science book of 2019 As you read these words, copies of you are being created.   Sean Carroll, theoretical physicist and one of this world’s most celebrated writers on science, rewrites the history of 20th century physics. Already hailed as a masterpiece, Something Deeply Hidden shows for the first time that facing up to the essential puzzle of quantum mechanics utterly transforms how we think about space and time.  His reconciling of quantum mechanics with Einstein’s theory of relativity changes, well, everything. Most physicists haven’t even recognized the uncomfortable truth: physics has been in crisis since 1927. Quantum mechanics  has always had obvious gaps—which have come to be simply ignored. Science popularizers keep telling us how weird it is,  how impossible it is to understand. Academics discourage students from working on the "dead end" of quantum foundations. Putting his professional reputation on the line with this audacious yet entirely reasonable book, Carroll says that the crisis can now come to an end. We just have to accept that there is more than one of us in the universe. There are many, many Sean Carrolls. Many of every one of us.   Copies of you are generated thousands of times per second. The Many Worlds Theory of quantum behavior says that every time there is a quantum event, a world splits off with everything in it the same, except in that other world the quantum event didn't happen. Step-by-step in Carroll's uniquely lucid way, he tackles the major objections to this otherworldly revelation until his case is inescapably established.   Rarely does a book so fully reorganize how we think about our place in the universe. We are on the threshold of a new understanding—of where we are in the cosmos, and what we are made of. |
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An updated edition of the best-selling highly illustrated garden plant reference, featuring more than 8,000 plants and 4,000 photographs. Choose the right plants for your garden and find all the inspiration and guidance you need with the Encyclopedia of Plants & Flowers . Drawing on expert advice from the RHS, this best-selling book features a photographic catalogue of more than 4,000 plants and flowers, all organized by color, size, and type, to help you select the right varieties for your outdoor space. Discover perennials, bulbs, shrubs, and trees, succulents, and ornamental shrubs, all showcased in beautiful, full-color photography. Browse this photographic catalogue to find at-a-glance plant choice inspiration. Or use the extensive plant dictionary to look up more than 8,000 plant varieties and the best growing conditions. This new edition features the latest and most popular cultivars, with more than 1,380 new plants added, as well as updated photography, comprehensive hardiness ratings, and a brand-new introduction. Fully comprehensive yet easy to use, the Encyclopedia of Plants & Flowers is the inspirational, informative guide every gardener needs on their bookshelf. |
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This book explores a group of animals that first appeared on land more than 400 million years ago-insects. A comprehensive introduction places insects in the context of other living things, and an extensive catalog showcases the amazing variety of earth's most abundant-and often bizarre-animals. From butterflies and moths to dragonflies and grasshoppers, from beetles and bees to ants and earwigs, hundreds of individual specimens are profiled in incredible detail, each accompanied by clear, concise text and key data. Conceived from the ground up to take advantage of this amazing new technology, DK Natural History: Insects brings the subject to life like never before, and offers an amazing range of interactive features, including: * Audio * Video * Interactive galleries DK Natural History: Insects includes: * Over 80 interactive and illustrated pages * A comprehensive introduction explaining how insects fit into the natural world, which also explains their anatomy and life cycles * Illustrated profiles of nearly 300 animals * Hundreds of crystal-clear photographs, many specially commissioned * Contextual images DK Natural History: Insects forms part of an ongoing series that is a landmark in illustrated reference publishing and was authenticated by experts at the Smithsonian Institution's National Museum of Natural History. The complete series offers an unrivalled visual survey of Earth's natural history, giving a clear overview of the natural world with over 6,000 species featured. DK - Dorling Kindersley - is an award-winning publisher of distinctive, highly visual products for adults and children. We produce books, ebooks, and apps for consumers in over 100 countries and 60 languages. Founded in London in 1974 we are enormously proud to be the world's leading illustrated reference publisher. Everything we make strives to inform, inspire, and entertain readers of all ages. |
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The blockbuster phenomenon that charts an amazing journey of the mind while revolutionizing our concept of memory An instant bestseller that is poised to become a classic, Moonwalking with Einstein recounts Joshua Foer's yearlong quest to improve his memory under the tutelage of top "mental athletes." He draws on cutting-edge research, a surprising cultural history of remembering, and venerable tricks of the mentalist's trade to transform our understanding of human memory. From the United States Memory Championship to deep within the author's own mind, this is an electrifying work of journalism that reminds us that, in every way that matters, we are the sum of our memories. |
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A riveting and rollicking tour-de-force about the terrifying power of nature's most deadly phenomena — colossal waves — and the scientists and super surfers who are obsessed with them. The New York Times bestselling author of The Devil's Teeth probes the dramatic convergence of baffling gargantuan waves that pummel oil rigs and sink massive ships, the extreme surfers willing to stare down death in order to ride them, and the marine scientists trying to unlock the physics of these waves, the climate changes that are provoking them, and what chaos they might wreak. Susan Casey explores the phenomenon of monster waves and how they have become an obsession for extreme surfers like Laird Hamilton — who serves as the author's guide as she takes the reader into the intense, white-knuckle world of 100-foot waves. |
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Finalist for the 2011 Pulitzer Prize in General Nonfiction: “Nicholas Carr has written a Silent Spring for the literary mind.”—Michael Agger, Slate “Is Google making us stupid?” When Nicholas Carr posed that question, in a celebrated Atlantic Monthly cover story, he tapped into a well of anxiety about how the Internet is changing us. He also crystallized one of the most important debates of our time: As we enjoy the Net’s bounties, are we sacrificing our ability to read and think deeply? Now, Carr expands his argument into the most compelling exploration of the Internet’s intellectual and cultural consequences yet published. As he describes how human thought has been shaped through the centuries by “tools of the mind”—from the alphabet to maps, to the printing press, the clock, and the computer—Carr interweaves a fascinating account of recent discoveries in neuroscience by such pioneers as Michael Merzenich and Eric Kandel. Our brains, the historical and scientific evidence reveals, change in response to our experiences. The technologies we use to find, store, and share information can literally reroute our neural pathways. Building on the insights of thinkers from Plato to McLuhan, Carr makes a convincing case that every information technology carries an intellectual ethic—a set of assumptions about the nature of knowledge and intelligence. He explains how the printed book served to focus our attention, promoting deep and creative thought. In stark contrast, the Internet encourages the rapid, distracted sampling of small bits of information from many sources. Its ethic is that of the industrialist, an ethic of speed and efficiency, of optimized production and consumption—and now the Net is remaking us in its own image. We are becoming ever more adept at scanning and skimming, but what we are losing is our capacity for concentration, contemplation, and reflection. Part intellectual history, part popular science, and part cultural criticism, The Shallows sparkles with memorable vignettes—Friedrich Nietzsche wrestling with a typewriter, Sigmund Freud dissecting the brains of sea creatures, Nathaniel Hawthorne contemplating the thunderous approach of a steam locomotive—even as it plumbs profound questions about the state of our modern psyche. This is a book that will forever alter the way we think about media and our minds. |
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The acclaimed author of Founding Gardeners reveals the forgotten life of Alexander von Humboldt, the visionary German naturalist whose ideas changed the way we see the natural world—and in the process created modern environmentalism. NATIONAL BEST SELLER One of the  New York Times 10 Best Books of the Year Winner of the Los Angeles Times Book Prize, The James Wright Award for Nature Writing, the  Costa Biography Award, the Royal Geographic Society's Ness Award, the Sigurd F. Olson Nature Writing Award Finalist for the Andrew Carnegie Medal for Excellence in Nonfiction, the  Kirkus  Prize Prize for Nonfiction, the Independent Bookshop Week Book Award A   Best Book of the Year: The New York Times, The Atlantic, The Economist ,  Nature ,  Jezebel ,  Kirkus Reviews ,  Publishers Weekly ,  New Scientist ,  The Independent ,  The Telegraph ,  The Sunday Times, The Evening Standard, The Spectator Alexander von Humboldt (1769–1859) was an intrepid explorer and the most famous scientist of his age. In North America, his name still graces four counties, thirteen towns, a river, parks, bays, lakes, and mountains. His restless life was packed with adventure and discovery, whether he was climbing the highest volcanoes in the world or racing through anthrax-infected Siberia or translating his research into bestselling publications that changed science and thinking. Among Humboldt’s most revolutionary ideas was a radical vision of nature, that it is a complex and interconnected global force that does not exist for the use of humankind alone. Now Andrea Wulf brings the man and his achievements back into focus: his daring expeditions and investigation of wild environments around the world and his discoveries of similarities between climate and vegetation zones on different continents. She also discusses his prediction of human-induced climate change, his remarkable ability to fashion poetic narrative out of scientific observation, and his relationships with iconic figures such as Simón Bolívar and Thomas Jefferson. Wulf examines how Humboldt’s writings inspired other naturalists and poets such as Darwin, Wordsworth, and Goethe, and she makes the compelling case that it was Humboldt’s influence that led John Muir to his ideas of natural preservation and that shaped Thoreau’s Walden . With this brilliantly researched and compellingly written book, Andrea Wulf shows the myriad fundamental ways in which Humboldt created our understanding of the natural world, and she champions a renewed interest in this vital and lost player in environmental history and science. |
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#10 on Amazon Charts,  USA Today  Bestseller “This book is my best attempt to tell the truth about my research, the culture in science today which is hostile to new ideas, and what science can really do if allowed to pursue promising areas of inquiries.”—Dr. Judy Mikovits, PhD This is a story for anybody interested in the peril and promise of science at the very highest levels in our country. On July 22, 2009, a special meeting was held with twenty-four leading scientists at the National Institutes of Health to discuss early findings that a newly discovered retrovirus was linked to chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS), prostate cancer, lymphoma, and eventually neurodevelopmental disorders in children. When Dr. Judy Mikovits finished her presentation, the room was silent for a moment, then one of the scientists said, “Oh my God!” The resulting investigation would be like no other in science. For Dr. Mikovits, a twenty-year veteran of the National Cancer Institute, this was the midpoint of a five-year journey that would start with the founding of the Whittemore-Peterson Institute for Neuro-Immune Disease at the University of Nevada, Reno, and end with her as a witness for the federal government against her former employer, Harvey Whittemore, for illegal campaign contributions to Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid. On this journey Dr. Mikovits would face the scientific prejudices against CFS, wander into the minefield that is autism, and through it all struggle to maintain her faith in God and the profession to which she had dedicated her life. |
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Recommended for viewing on a colour tablet. In Wonders of the Solar System – the book of the acclaimed BBC TV series – Professor Brian Cox will take us on a journey of discovery where alien worlds from your imagination become places we can see, feel and visit. The Wonders of the Solar System – from the giant ice fountains of Enceladus to the liquid methane seas of Titan and from storms twice the size of the Earth to the tortured moon of Io with its giant super-volcanoes – is the Solar System as you have never seen it before. In this series, Professor Brian Cox will introduce us to the planets and moons beyond our world, finding the biggest, most bizarre, most powerful natural phenomena. Using the latest scientific imagery along with cutting edge CGI and some of the most spectacular and extreme locations on Earth, Brian will show us Wonders never thought possible. Employing his trademark clear, authoritative, yet down-to-earth approach, Brian will explore how these previously unseen phenomena have dramatically expanded our horizons with new discoveries about the planets, their moons and how they came to be the way they are. Reviews Praise for Professor Brian Cox’s work: ‘If you didn’t utter a wow watching the TV, you will while reading the book.’ The Times ‘Engaging, ambitious and creative’ Guardian ‘In this book of the acclaimed BBC2 TV series, Professor Cox shows us the cosmos as we have never seen it before – a place full of the most bizarre and powerful natural phenomena.’ Sunday Express ‘Will entertain and delight … what a priceless gift that would be.’ Independent on Sunday About the author Professor Brian Cox, OBE is a particle physicist, a Royal Society research fellow, and a professor at the University of Manchester as well as researcher on one of the most ambitious experiments on Earth, the ATLAS experiment on the Large Hadron Collider in Switzerland. He is best known to the public as a science broadcaster and presenter of the highly popular BBC2 series Wonders of the Solar System. He was also the keyboard player in the UK pop band D:Ream in the 1990s. |
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A great deal has happened since the publication of Jane Goodall: 40 Years at Gombe in 1999. Most recently, endeavors at the Gombe field site have included landmark research related to AIDS progression; establishing programs to improve sanitation, health care, and education in neighboring Tanzanian communities; and partnering with local people to pursue reforestation initiatives. The accomplishments of the past 10 years alone have given the Jane Goodall Institute a great deal to celebrate. In honor of the field site’s 50th anniversary, STC is proud to release Jane Goodall: 50 Years at Gombe, a compelling pictorial tribute to Dr. Goodall’s life, her studies of chimpanzee behavior, and her unflagging efforts to motivate people to make this world a better place. With a new format, a modern design, more than a dozen new photographs, and updated text throughout, this revised edition retraces five decades of compassion and discovery. |
