|
Nature and Science October 2017
|
|
|
|
| Zapped: From Infrared to X-Rays, The Curious History of Invisible Light by Bob BermanAlthough light is all around us, most of it can't be seen. Confused? Don't worry: science writer Bob Berman will explain. After giving an overview of the physics of light (including historical attempts to explain the phenomenon), Berman delves into the different types of invisible light -- including infrared and ultraviolet, microwaves, X-rays, gamma rays, and radio waves -- and describes how 19th-century scientists discovered and developed applications for them. For more illuminating books on electromagnetic radiation in all its forms, try Bruce Watson's Light: A Radiant History from Creation to the Quantum Age. |
|
| Darwin's Backyard: How Small Experiments Led to a Big Theory by James T. CostaWe tend to think of Charles Darwin as a theorist, yet this book reveals that he was also a keen observer of the natural world (who frequently enlisted friends and acquaintances to collect specimens) and an experimenter who collaborated with his children (on projects ranging from serenading worms to raising carnivorous plants). Interweaving biographical information and descriptions of Darwin's home-based research, this engaging book also includes instructions for 18 DIY experiments aimed at readers who may find themselves inspired to follow in Darwin's footsteps. |
|
| Quakeland: On the Road to America's Next Devastating Earthquake by Kathryn Miles"Earthquakes are everywhere," explains science journalist Kathryn Miles, who knows her natural disasters (she's also the author of Superstorm: Nine Days Inside Hurricane Sandy). Although geological maps of the United States reveal some 2,100 known faults, the nation is ill-prepared should any of them slip. Poor infrastructure and a lack of early warning systems are causes for concern, as is the increasing number of earthquakes in unexpected places such as Oklahoma and North Dakota, where hydraulic fracturing has transformed the landscape. Given that 75 million Americans currently live in "areas of significant seismic risk," this eye-opening book is essential reading. |
|
| Life 3.0: Being Human in the Age of Artificial Intelligence by Max TegmarkAre you ready for the AI revolution? If not, you're hardly alone. Although the issues surrounding artificial intelligence comprise "the most important conversation of our time," according to MIT professor Max Tegmark, we as a society have not devoted much attention to the political, economic, and social consequences of AI. Whether you're worried about automation eliminating your job (it probably will) or robot overlords destroying all humans (they probably won't), you'll want to read this book. |
|
|
Wolf Nation: The Life, Death, and Return of Wild American Wolves
by Brenda Peterson
Telling the 300-year history of wild wolves in America, as well as our own history seen through our relationship with wolves, the author of Sightings, an eloquent voice in the battle to bring them back to the wild, makes the powerful case that, without wolves, not only will America's whole ecology unravel, but Americans will lose much of our national soul.
|
|
| Life in Code: A Personal History of Technology by Ellen UllmanWhen Ellen Ullman once objected to her software engineer colleagues' suggestions of genocide as a means of eradicating a genetic disorder, one replied, "This is how I know you're not a real techie." In this essay collection, the award-winning author of the memoir Close to the Machine and the novel The Bug describes her experiences in the tech industry, beginning in the 1970s and spanning decades. From living in what she calls "mind-time" to dealing with gender-based discrimination, Ullman offers countless insights from a life lived in close proximity to machines. |
|
|
Ripples in Spacetime: Einstein, Gravitational Waves, and the Future of Astronomy
by Govert Schilling
It has already been called the scientific breakthrough of the century: the detection of gravitational waves. Einstein predicted these tiny ripples in the fabric of spacetime nearly a hundred years ago, but they were never perceived directly until now. Decades in the making, this momentous discovery has given scientists a new understanding of the cataclysmic events that shape the universe and a new confirmation of Einstein's theory of general relativity. Ripples in Spacetime is an engaging account of the international effort to complete Einstein's project, capture his elusive ripples, and launch an era of gravitational-wave astronomy that promises to explain, more vividly than ever before, our universe's structure and origin. The quest for gravitational waves involved years of risky research and many personal and professional struggles that threatened to derail one of the world's largest scientific endeavors. Govert Schilling takes readers to sites where these stories unfolded--including Japan's KAGRA detector, Chile's Atacama Cosmology Telescope, the South Pole's BICEP detectors, and the United States' LIGO labs. He explains the seeming impossibility of developing technologies sensitive enough to detect waves from two colliding black holes in the very distant universe, and describes the astounding precision of the LIGO detectors. Along the way Schilling clarifies concepts such as general relativity, neutron stars, and the big bang using language that readers with little scientific background can grasp.
|
|
|
Let Them Eat Dirt: Saving Your Child from an Oversanitized World
by B. Brett Finlay
Drawing on recent scientific findings that suggest that exposure to infectious microbes can actually promote long-term health in children links microbe imbalances to a range of health problems while sharing insights into the pros and cons of such parenting choices as natural childbirth, breastfeeding, antibiotics and having pets.
|
|
Contact your librarian for more great books! |
|
|
|
|
|