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Nature and Science August 2026 |
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| Smog and Sunshine: The Surprising Story of How Los Angeles Cleaned Up Its Air by Ann CarlsonWhen Ann Carlson moved to Los Angeles as a child, the smog was so thick that her mother was unaware of L.A.’s surrounding mountains until an exceptionally windy day revealed them. Carlson, a UCLA environmental law professor, explains how her hometown has dramatically improved its air quality since the ‘70s through persistent collaborative efforts to curb pollution sources. For more solution-centered ideas about climate and the environment, try Purified: How Recycled Sewage Is Transforming Our Water by Peter Annin. |
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| Nightfaring: In Search of the Disappearing Darkness by Megan Eaves-EgenesThere is nothing much simpler, more beautiful, or more terrifying in nature than darkness, yet Earth is increasingly bathed in 24-hour artificial light, disrupting circadian rhythms, invading habitats, and obscuring our view of the stars. Travel writer Megan Eaves-Egenes, following a year marked by personal trauma, journeys to dark-sky locations around the globe, sees the Milky Way in all its glory, learns about Indigenous astronomy, and discovers the healing power of the dark, expressed with “sumptuous, confessional storytelling” (Kirkus Reviews). |
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Lost in Curiosity: Field Notes from Scientists' Adventures Into the Unknown
by Roberta Kwok
Chronicling researchers' struggles and hopes in the field and lab, Kwok documents it all: fending off relentless snowfall on a remote Greenland glacier, desperately searching for an elusive frog in the rainforests of Borneo, and scrambling to capture fleeting signals of a faraway moon outside our solar system. These are the untold stories of devoted young scientists and restless minds who are chasing nature's riddles, without knowing what they'll uncover.
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| In Defense of Sunlight: The Surprising Science of Sun Exposure by Rowan JacobsenThe inherited wisdom concerning sunlight on skin these days is the less the better. Not so, according to science writer Rowan Jacobsen. He argues that while sun exposure has been linked to some skin cancers, the most recent studies indicate that UV rays are less harmful to skin than we thought and, furthermore, moderate daily sun exposure is good for you, triggering production of vitamin D, increasing alertness, and improving mood. The big takeaway: just try not to burn! |
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| A Pox on Fools: The True Believers, Grifters, and Cynics Who Convinced Us to Reject Vaccines by Thomas LevensonEven a glance at the data on vaccines -- increasing life expectancy by 30 years since 1900; an estimated 150+ million lives saved in the last 50 years -- would seem to negate any argument against their use. And yet… Science writer and MIT professor Thomas Levenson’s diatribe against modern-day antivaxxers reveals that the playbook hasn’t changed much since vaccines were introduced, except that today’s influencers often cynically accept payouts from powerful interests. Read-alike: Virus: Vaccinations, The CDC, and the Hijacking of America’s Response to the Pandemic by Nina Burleigh. |
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| The Infinity Machine: Demis Hassabis, Deepmind, and the Quest for Superintelligence by Sebastian MallabyJournalist and author Sebastian Mallaby’s latest is both a rich examination of the innovations in artificial intelligence being created at Google’s DeepMind project and the story of its enigmatic genius co-founder, Demis Hassabis. Mallaby takes readers inside AI laboratories, filled with relentlessly ambitious researchers and investors chasing the exciting (and for some, terrifying) achievement of artificial general intelligence, or machine “superintelligence.” For fans of: Supremacy: AI, ChatGPT, and the Race That Will Change the World by Parmy Olson. |
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Biological War: A Scenario
by Annie Jacobsen
A lab accident, a bio-attack, a global pandemic, and the collapse of human society. In this essential new book, based on dozens of new interviews with experts with high-level political, governmental, medical, and military responsibility, Annie Jacobsen examines this very scenario. It would be only a matter of days from such a global infection before the infrastructure built to handle this gravest of situations would be in a battle for human existence.
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| In Deep Water: A True Story of Sharks, Survival, and Courage by Michael J. TougiasNonfiction author Michael J. Tougias (Fatal Forecast) tells a terrifying cautionary tale of survival on the open ocean. In 2022, three friends in coastal Louisiana embark on a fishing trip on the Gulf of Mexico in a recently purchased boat that suddenly proves un-seaworthy. The vessel sinks so quickly that the fishermen barely have time to don life vests and cling to a cooler for dear life. They spend the next 28 hours facing down stinging jellyfish, circling sharks, and their own exhaustion before being rescued. For fans of: harrowing ocean rescue stories like A Speck in the Sea by John Aldridge. |
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Contact your librarian for more great books!
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