Earth Systems

The only planet to support life, Earth has a lot going for it. Think you know everything there is to know about our home planet? Think again. Discover more about the blue planet we call home.

The Alcazar station has been attacked! Project Ibex, under the command of former teammate Irene has begun cutting a bloody path throughout the galaxy, delivering a single message. Humanity has arrived! From Tachyon to Boron and beyond Hrafn squad will pursue the Veles across the galaxy. Alliances will be forged; enemies will be made and the thin red line between hero and villain will be towed in the name of peace.

Delve deeper into the intricate workings of Earth's land-based ecosystems with Dynamics of Terrestrial Ecosystems, the second installment in The Earth's Web series. This volume unravels the complex interactions and processes that shape the balance of life on land, from the water and nutrient cycles to the competition and cooperation that define species relationships.

In the years following her role as the lead author of the international best seller, Limits to Growth - the first book to show the consequences of unchecked growth on a finite planet - Donella Meadows remained a pioneer of environmental and social analysis until her untimely death in 2001. Thinking in Systems is a concise and crucial book offering insight for problem-solving on scales ranging from the personal to the global. Edited by the Sustainability Institute's Diana Wright, this essential primer brings systems thinking out of the realm of computers and equations and into the tangible world....

All Systems Red is the tense first science fiction adventure novella in Martha Wells' series The Murderbot Diaries. For fans of Westworld, Ex Machina, Ann Leckie's Imperial Raadch series, or Iain M. Banks' Culture novels. The main character is a deadly security droid that has bucked its restrictive programming and is balanced between contemplative self-discovery and an idle instinct to kill all humans.

The cabin had always been a special retreat for Isherwood Williams, a haven from the demands of society. But one day while hiking, Ish was bitten by a rattlesnake, and the solitude he had so desired took on dire new significance. Ish headed home when he finally felt himself again—and noticed the strangeness almost immediately. No cars passed him on the road; the gas station not far from his cabin looked abandoned; and he was shocked to see the body of a man on the roadside near a small town. Without a radio or phone, Ish had no idea of humanity’s abrupt demise.

Michael Grunwald, bestselling author of The Swamp and The New New Deal, builds his narrative around a brilliant, relentless, unforgettable food and land expert named Tim Searchinger. He chronicles Searchinger’s uphill battles against bad science and bad politics, both driven by the overwhelming influence of agricultural interests. And he illuminates a path that could save our planetary home for ourselves and future generations—through better policy, technology, and behavior, as well as a new land ethic recognizing that every acre matters.

Volume 3 of The Great Mental Models series focuses on systems and mathematics, simplifying more than twenty-four key concepts from these technical fields into easy-to-understand terms. It provides insights into the unseen mechanisms that influence our environment and teaches you how to apply these principles to benefit your life.

A decade ago, developers built information-sharing software by writing a lot of custom code in a single code base, then adding layers of caching. Now we build information systems: interdependent software and services, data platforms, and event streams. Many of our software-to-systems initiatives fail, though, and when they do, we double down on traditional linear approaches. But linear thinking cannot resolve systems challenges. We need to shift to systems thinking.

Erosion changes Earth's natural features. It breaks down materials and can help make something new. Discover why erosion is an important part of nature!

A compelling new set of interviews on our changing and turbulent times with Noam Chomsky, one of the world's foremost thinkers In this collection of conversations, conducted from 2010 to 2012, Noam Chomsky explores the most immediate and urgent concerns: the future of democracy in the Arab world...

Soil covers most of the land on Earth. It feeds plants and is home to many animals. Discover why soil is an important part of nature!

Mindset is your path to quickly breaking free: to making a small tweak in how you see your world and then using that more accurate vision to get what you’ve always wanted from work, relationships, and health.

A menacing wasteland. A destructive new weapon. A planet on the edge of catastrophe. Sheriff Duke can’t rest. There’s no time to slow down. The threats are unending. The enemy unyielding. If he wants to stop the apocalypse, he’ll have to cross a treacherous wasteland where the cannibals and murderers are the least of his worries, and the creatures infesting the landscape aren’t the most dangerous thing in his path. The race is on, the doomsday clock is counting down, and if he fails it will be more than his wife and child that are caught in the fallout. It’ll be the world.

The energy in our bodies is connected to the unlimited energy of the universe itself. When we are stressed and living with chronic anxiety, our autonomic nervous system (ANS) is usually out of balance, disconnected and stuck in a 'fight or flight' mode. This can cause a range of long-term physical and mental health problems. The harmonic sounds in this premium audiobook are specifically designed to calm the autonomic nervous system and put you on a 'rest, relax and repair' mode where the mind can still and the body can begin to heal.

Devastated by World War III, then an alien invasion coupled with "Danse Macabre", a deadly virus attack, Earth is almost completely depopulated. The land is devastated. The sky is dark with nuclear winter. Despite the swarm's invasion ultimately being defeated, billions of humans were taken on board the Battle Core, infecting it and then wiped out when it plunged into the sun to prevent further infecting the swarm.

Plants and animals from millions of years ago left behind fossils. Fossils can teach people about the past. They are also used for fuel. Discover why fossils are an important part of nature!

All living things need air to survive. Air also protects Earth. Discover why air is an important part of nature!

Most of Earth is covered in water. Water falls from the sky as rain or snow. All living things need water to survive. Discover why water is an important part of nature!

Different kinds of rocks are found on Earth. Many are found deep inside Earth. Discover why rocks are an important part of nature!