|
|
|
|
The Light Eaters: How the Unseen World of Plant Intelligence Offers a New Understanding of Life on Earth by Zoë SchlangerWhat's inside: Zoë Schlanger immerses us in the awe-inspiring and complex world of green life, challenging our very understanding of agency, consciousness and intelligence by examining the latest epiphanies in botanical research and the tremendous biological creativity it takes to be plant.
For readers of: "Planta Sapiens" by Paco Calvo; "Entangled Life" by Merlin Sheldrake and "The Nature of Oaks" by Douglas Tallamy.
What reviews say: “A stunning book . . . will transform how you see not only plants but the nature of all life.” - Scientific American
|
|
Superfoods, Silkworms, and Spandex: Science and Pseudoscience in Everyday Lifeby Joe SchwarczWhat it is: A new collection of bite-size pop science essays that allow curious readers to understand the science behind everything from plastic-wrapped cucumbers to head transplants.
Similar readings: Natalie Angier's "The Canon;" Steven Pinker's "Rationality;" Steven Novella's "The Skeptics' Guide to the Future."
Did you know?: Bee stings smell like bananas because of isoamyl acetate, which is also part of what give bananas their smell.
|
|
|
| When the Ice is Gone: What a Greenland Ice Core Reveals About Earth's Tumultuous History and Perilous Future by Paul BiermanWhat it's about: Changes in Greenland reverberate around the world, with ice melting high in the arctic affecting people everywhere. Bierman explores how losing Greenland’s ice will catalyze devastating events if we don’t change course and address climate change now.
Try these next: "A Wilder Time" by William E. Glassley; "The Last Winter" by Porter Fox; "Chasing Icebergs" by Matthew Birkhold.
Line from the book: "When Edwin Drake struck oil in PA in 1859, he didn't imagine the outcome would be Greenland's ice sheet melting, transferring what had been frozen water on land into the global ocean." - Paul Bierman |
|
Transient and Strange: Notes on the Science of Lifeby Nell GreenfieldboyceWhat's inside: Greenfieldboyce grapples with the weighty dualities of life: birth and death, constancy and impermanence, memory and doubt, love and aging. Inspired throughout by Walt Whitman’s invocation to the “transient and strange,” she remains attuned to the wildest workings of our world, reflecting on the incredible leap of the humble flea or the echoing truth of a fetal heartbeat.
You may also like: "How Far the Light Reaches: A Life in Ten Sea Creatures" by Sabrina Imbler; "The Book of (More) Delights" by Ross Gay; "Lab Girl" by Hope Jahren.
About the author: Nell Greenfieldboyce is an NPR science correspondent with a Masters of Arts degree in science writing. Prior to NPR, Greenfieldboyce spent a decade working in print, mostly magazines including U.S. News & World Report and New Scientist.
|
|
|
| The Secret Life of the Universe: An Astrobiologist's Search for the Origins and Frontiers of Life by Nathalie A. CabrolWhat it is: "The Secret Life of the Universe" is both a comprehensive and authoritative guide to the latest discoveries and an awe-inspiring exploration of what this means for us as humans on Earth today. It’s an exhilarating journey, perfect for anyone who has ever looked up at the stars and wondered what might be out there.
Similar reads: Michael Summers' "Exoplanets;" Mike Brown's "How I Killed Pluto and Why it Had it Coming"; Guido Tonelli's "Genesis."
What reviews say: “Read Cabrol if you want a vivid, fiercely intelligent tour of what may turn out to be our teeming, life-filled solar system.” -Daily Telegraph |
|
Feathered Marvels The Natural History and Extraordinary Lives of Birds
by Dominic F. Sherony
What it's about: A book exploring the emerging science on plant intelligence, uncovering plants' complex and unimaginable capabilities and calling into question what we consider to be conscious agents in the natural world.
For readers of: David Sibley's "What it's Like to be a Bird;" Rebecca Heisman's "Flight Path;" Kenn Kaufman's "The Birds the Audubon Miissed."
Lines from the book: "The leading theory today is that birds evolved from theropod dinosaurs sometime after theropods' origin in the mid- to late Triassic period, and that they continued to evolve a number of physical traits that ultimately enabled flight."
|
|
|
| Dinosaurs at the Dinner Party: How an Eccentric Group of Victorians Discovered Prehistoric Creatures and Accidentally Upended the World by Edward DolnickWhat's inside: Dolnick leads us through a compelling true adventure as the paleontologists of the early 19th century puzzled their way through the fossil record to create the story of dinosaurs we know today.
Similar reads: David Randall's "The Monster's Bones;" Diana Preston's "The Evolution of Charles Darwin;" Kermit Pattison's "Fossil Men."
Why you might like it: Unlike most nonfiction books that gave you a lot of data to consider and absorb, this book reads like a story. It is carries you along through time, telling you of the people and events of history. |
|
The Three Ages of Water: Prehistoric Past, Imperiled Present, and a Hope for the Futureby Peter H. GleickWhat it is: Drawing from the lessons of our past, one of the world's most widely known water experts first guides us through the long, fraught history of our relationship with water, which shaped the course of human life, and then charts a visionary path toward a sustainable future for water and the planet.
You might also like: "Water: A Biography" by Giulio Boccaletti, "Crossings" by Ben Goldfarb and "The World in a Grain" by Vince Beiser.
About the author: Peter Gleick is an environmental scientist and founder of The Pacific Institute. He and The Pacific Institute have won many awards internationally for their work with water and other environmental concerns. Among the issues he has addressed are conflicts over water resources, water and development and human health.
|
|
|
| Impossible Monsters: Dinosaurs, Darwin, and the Battle Between Science and Religion by Michael TaylorWhat's inside: "Impossible Monsters" reveals the central role of dinosaurs and their discovery in toppling traditional religious authority, and in changing perceptions about the Bible, history and mankind’s place in the world.
Try these next: "Evolution" by Edward J. Larson; "Reading the Rocks" by Brenda Maddox; "The Rise and Fall of the Dinosaurs" by Stephen Brusatte.
Did you know?: Ichthyosauria is an order of large marine reptiles that existed from 90 million to 250 million years ago. It is believed they evolved from the same distant ancestor as modern day dolphins and whales. |
|
Dinosaur Behavior: An Illustrated Guide
by M. J. Benton
What it's about: Paleobiology has advanced from a speculative subject to a cutting-edge science. Today, researchers are applying the latest forensic technologies to the fossil record, revealing startling new insights into the lives of dinosaurs.
For readers of: Stephen Brusatte's "The Rise and Reign of the Mammals;" Riley Black's "The Last Days of the Dinosaurs;" Henry Gee's "A (Very) Short History of Life on Earth."
What reviews say: "[This] grippingly illustrated book brilliantly synthesizes science and art."- Andrew Robinson, Nature
|
|
|
Contact your librarian for more great books!
|
|
|
|
|
Forsyth County Public Library
660 W. Fifth St., Winston-Salem, NC 27101
336-703-2665forsythlibrary.org |
|
|
|