Nature and Science October 2025 |
|
|
|
|
|
Super natural : how life thrives in impossible places
by Alex Riley
From scorching deserts to frozen seabeds, from the highest peaks of the Himalaya to the hadal depths of the oceans, there are habitats on this Earth that appear inimical to life--yet in which it flourishes nevertheless. During the midday heat of the Sahara, silvery ants sprint from their nests to feed. In North American forests, wood frogs awaken each spring from solid blocks of ice. At the site of the Chernobyl disaster, fungi harness radiation to thrive. Transporting readers to far-flung environments we could never call home, this book paints an awe-inspiring portrait of life's resilience and ingenuity under the harshest circumstances. Alex Riley shows how, at nature's extremes, the rules of life as we know them are rewritten--and how, here, we can find hope for the future of life on Earth, and beyond.
|
|
|
|
When Everyone Knows That Everyone Knows . . . : Common Knowledge and the Mysteries of Money, Power, and Everyday Life
by Steven Pinker
Explores the concept of common knowledge, revealing how shared awareness shapes coordination, social behavior, and communication, using examples from politics, culture, and everyday life to explain phenomena such as awkward silences, veiled speech, viral outrage and why saying everything outright would be unbearable.
|
|
|
|
Cancer is complicated : and other unexpected lessons I've learned
by Clea Shearer
The co-founder of The Home Edit company shares a heartfelt and practical guide blending personal experience and hard-earned wisdom, offering emotional support, advocacy tips, and everyday advice to help others navigate the complexities of a breast cancer diagnosis.
|
|
|
|
The happiness files : insights on work and life
by Arthur C. Brooks
Harvard professor and bestselling author Arthur C. Brooks offers science-based insights on work and life in this curated collection from his "How to Build a Life" column in The Atlantic. Imagine if your life were a startup. How would you lead it and shape it to be most successful? That's the question behind The Happiness Files, a rich selection of enlightening and instructive essays by Arthur C. Brooks, known worldwide for his inspiring yet practical wisdom and advice in his weekly column for The Atlantic and in his bestselling books, From Strength to Strength and Build the Life You Want (coauthored with Oprah Winfrey). The simple answer, as Brooks wisely explains, is to manage your life in a way that leads to truly valuable rewards: love, enjoyment, satisfaction, and meaning--in other words, happiness. Building on his popular Harvard Business School course "Leadership and Happiness," Brooks begins each essay with sharp observations and behavioral science research that shed light on how happiness really works, then offers experiential wisdom and practical advice. Beautifully written, the essays range from ancient philosophy to literature, pop culture, and the contemporary world of work. They explore topics and challenges such as "Procrastinate This, Not That," "Why Success Can Feel So Bitter," and "Five Pillars of a Good Life." Readers will find the chapters helpfully grouped by theme: "On Managing Yourself," "On Jobs, Money, and Building Your Career," "On Balancing Work, Life, and Relationships," and more. We all need more happiness in our work and in our lives. In The Happiness Files you'll find enlightenment, inspiration, and useful guidance for leading a happier, more successful, and more fulfilling life and career.
|
|
|
|
Mayo Clinic on Alzheimer's disease and other dementias : a guide for people with dementia and those who care for them
by Jonathan Graff-Radford
Dementia is a serious health challenge, and by some estimates the number of people living with dementia could more than double by 2050. While Alzheimer's disease is the most common type of dementia, other types also affect adults worldwide, causing lossof cognitive functions such as memory, reasoning and judgment. The diseases that cause dementia have long been considered difficult and unrelenting, but recent advances offer hope. Are there ways you can lower your risk of Alzheimer's Disease and other dementias? Can they be prevented? Can you live well with dementia? If so, how? This fully revised and updated third edition of Mayo Clinic on Alzheimer's Disease and Other Dementias provides answers to these important questions and more: How do sleeplessness, hearing loss, social isolation, and other risk factors contribute to cognitive decline? How can exercise and healthy foods preserve brain function? What are the neurological changes that can occur in the brain, and how is normal aging different from aging with dementia? How are blood and genetic biomarker tests breaking new ground in diagnosing dementia? Why is it increasingly important to identify dementia in its early stages? What are the unique signs and symptoms of Lewy body dementia, frontotemporal degeneration, vascular cognitive impairment, and other dementias? What are the stages of Alzheimer's disease? Can new and emerging medications slow the progression of Alzheimer's disease? What day-to-day coping strategies can help people live well with dementia? How can caregivers care for themselves?
|
|
Nature in Your Own Backyard |
|
| Close to Home: The Wonders of Nature Just Outside Your Door by Thor HansonConservation biologist Thor Hanson empowers readers to observe their environment with new eyes, showing us that poking around literally just outside one’s door (city or country, no matter) reveals a surprising diversity of wildlife waiting to be discovered. Hanson gives clues as to where to look while pushing the idea of “citizen science.” If you like this, try Never Home Alone by Rob Dunn. |
|
|
|
48 peaks : hiking and healing in the White Mountains
by Cheryl Suchors
Floundering in her second career, the one she's always wanted, forty-eight year old Cheryl Suchors resolves that midlife success depends on hiking the highest of the grueling White Mountains in New Hampshire. All forty-eight of them. Never mind her fear of heights. In the ten years it ultimately takes her to achieve this goal, she endures injuries, novice mistakes, and the heartbreaking loss of a best friend. When breast cancer threatens her own life, she seeks solace and recovery in the wild, redefining success as she learns that mastery of climbing is not enough. In nature she discovers spiritual nourishment, spaces powerful enough to absorb grief, and the persistence of hope and beauty. Her journey inspires us all to believe that no matter what obstacles we face, we too can attain our summits.
|
|
|
|
The comfort of crows : a backyard year
by Margaret Renkl
The beloved New York Times opinion writer and best-selling author presents this stunning literary devotional that follows the creatures and plants in her backyard over the course of the year, tracing the passing of the seasons, personal and natural.
|
|
Contact your librarian for more great books!
|
|
|