|
Nature and Science April 2021
|
|
|
|
| The Mission: or: How a Disciple of Carl Sagan, an Ex-Motocross Racer, a Texas Tea Party... by David W. BrownWhat it is: an "extensively researched, humorous, raucous, dramatic, and pop-culture- and science-fiction-laced" (Booklist) chronicle of NASA’s quest to launch a fly-by mission to Jupiter's moon Europa.
Think: Tom Wolfe's The Right Stuff meets Alan Stern and David Grinspoon's Chasing New Horizons.
Did you know? Author David W. Brown spent seven years interviewing the scientists, engineers, lawmakers, and NASA administrators profiled in this character-driven account. |
|
| The Zoologist's Guide to the Galaxy: What Animals on Earth Reveal about Aliens... by Arik KershenbaumWhat it's about: Cambridge zoologist Arik Kershenbaum draws on Earth's evolutionary history to speculate about what forms extraterrestrial life might take.
You might also like: Imagined Life by James Trefil and Michael Summers, in which a pair of astronomers discuss what chemistry and physics can tell us about the potential for life on other planets. |
|
| An Anatomy of Pain: How the Body and the Mind Experience and Endure Physical Suffering by Dr. Abdul-Ghaaliq LalkhenWhat it is: an anesthesiologist's comprehensive multidisciplinary exploration of the science of pain, from the neurobiological mechanisms of pain, to the history of analgesics, to the pros and cons of current chronic pain treatments.
Food for thought: "With renewed knowledge and understanding, we can become active participants in caring, understanding, and coping with an experience that can become all-consuming." |
|
| Four Lost Cities: A Secret History of the Urban Age by Annalee NewitzWhat it does: explores four so-called "lost" (abandoned) cities and analyzes their "common point of failure" (political instability plus environmental disaster) while exploring the origins of this enduring trope.
Includes: the Neolithic Anatolian settlement of Çatalhöyük; the Roman town of Pompeii; Angkor, the capital of the Khmer Empire; and Cahokia, North America's largest city prior to European invasion.
About the author: Annalee Newitz is a journalist and science fiction writer who co-hosts the podcast Our Opinions Are Correct with novelist Charlie Jane Anders. |
|
| This Is How They Tell Me the World Ends: The Cyberweapons Arms Race by Nicole PerlrothWhat it is: an "intricately detailed, deeply sourced and reported" (New York Times) exposé of the underground cyberarms industry -- and the critical role the United States played in creating it.
About the author: Nicole Perlroth is a journalist who covers cybersecurity for The New York Times.
Try these next: Andy Greenberg's Sandworm; Richard A. Clarke and Robert K. Knake's The Fifth Domain; Kim Zetter's Countdown to Zero Day. |
|
|
Birds
by Brian L. Speer
Describes the species that make the best pets and offers advice on care and feeding, grooming, bonding, and choosing the correct bird.
|
|
|
The invention of medicine : from Homer to Hippocrates
by Robin Lane Fox
A preeminent classics scholar argues that the Epidemics case histories of ancient Greece may have been written earlier by Hippocrates himself, a theory with widespread implications for the evolution of Western medicine.
|
|
|
Make: Mechanical engineering for makers : Mechanical Engineering for Makers
by Brian Bunnell
This practical, user-friendly reference book of common mechanical engineering concepts is geared toward makers who don't have (or want) an engineering degree but need to know the essentials of basic mechanical elements to successfully accomplish their personal projects. The book provides practical mechanical engineering information (supplemented with the applicable math, science, physics, and engineering theory) without being boring like a typical textbook.
|
|
|
The new climate war : the fight to take back the planet
by Michael E. Mann
Explaining how misleading environmental campaigns by major consumers of fossil fuels have primarily served to redirect responsibility to individuals, a leading climate scientist outlines recommendations for compelling governments and businesses to take action on a global level.
|
|
|
What is life? : five great ideas in biology
by Paul Nurse
A Nobel Prize-winning scientist heralds the achievements of forefront innovators while drawing on personal lab expertise to illuminate five major ideas underpinning biology, including the cell, the gene, evolution by natural selection, life as chemistry and life as information.
|
|
|
When Brains Dream: Exploring the Science and Mystery of Sleep
by Antonio Zadra and Robert Stickgold
The big idea: To explain why we dream, sleep scientists Antonio Zadra and Robert Stickgold introduce their NEXTUP (network exploration to understand possibilities) model, a form of "sleep-dependent memory process" that enables our sleeping minds to make connections that may elude us while we're awake.
You might also like: Matthew Walker's Why We Sleep or Alice Robb's Why We Dream.
|
|
Contact your librarian for more great books!
|
|
|
|
|
|