Genetic Science

Astrobiology is an exciting new subject, and one, arguably, more interdisciplinary than any other. Astrobiologists seek to understand the origin and evolution of life on Earth in order to illuminate and guide the search for life on other planets. In this Very Short Introduction, David C. Catling introduces the subject through our understanding of the factors that allowed life to arise and persist on our own planet, and for the signs we are looking for in the search for extraterrestrial life.

In this epochal book, Immanuel Velikovsky, one of the great scientists of modern times, puts the complete histories of our Earth and of humanity on a new basis. He presents the results of his 10-year-long interdisciplinary research in an easily understandable, even entertaining manner. In spite - or even because - of the disgraceful hostility provoked by his theories, this book keeps being of ardent topicality, which in the light of recent scientific research is even growing.

Alexandra Tashen is a brilliant student, adoring daughter, merry wit, and exuberant prankster. After a blissful childhood on a Texas ranch, she learns the truth: She is a refuse, an illegal refugee smuggled into the Allied Nations as an infant. Everyone from her birth region carries a harmless but detectable bit of viral DNA from a flu vaccine. If detected by the rapid genetic testing at security screens, Alex will be returned to the Federation and a likely death.

In a near-future London, Millie Dack places her hand on her belly to feel her baby kick, resolute in her decision to be a single parent. Across town, her closest friend - a hungover Toni Munroe - steps into the shower and places her hand on a medic console. The diagnosis is devastating. In this stunning, bittersweet family saga, Millie and Toni experience the aftershocks of human progress as their children and grandchildren embrace new ways of making babies.

When cyborg Treeka wakes from an interrupted cryogenic sleep in a genetics lab, she does so in a brave new world, one where immortality is no longer a concept but a construction. Now, the consciousness of a person can live on in a body that can outperform the limits of human ability. This “miracle” soon becomes personal to Treeka: she was once a living woman, and someone has brought her mind back from the dead. As memories of her past life resurface, Treeka realizes she has a sister, put into stasis just like she was.

Damaged beyond repair, Halek Cain turns to the one person who can rebuild him from the ground up. Will it be enough to face the mad general sending a clone army after him? Ultimate victories take ultimate sacrifices, and this time defeat means annihilation. Cain and his friends must find their way to Oroth, locate Elise and her ragtag army of desperate heroes, and face a dark threat no one understands. He has come a long way since death row. This will be his greatest challenge yet.

Wyatt survived the initial destruction, but he’s lost someone important to him. While he fights to distract himself from harsh realities, he ventures for the rendezvous point, eager to reconnect with his past. Blaze and his son, Luke, travel south, deeper into Mexico, in an effort to shut the remaining Rings off at the Nu-En facility. But Alan’s odd behavior and sordid past leave many questions unanswered. Luna discovers just how strong she can be and treks across the deadly country with her new friend. While reluctant to trust anyone, Luna finds she has no choice.

Dean Silver. Wildcard. Kidnapper. The last one hasn’t led me into hot water just yet, but it’s only a matter of time. Capturing the formerly super-powered diva known as Phenomenon has set the clock to ticking. Before it runs out, I need to figure out what to do with her. She has knowledge far beyond anything my team has, and I want her to help me. The question is: will she do it? If she doesn’t, Unity might just find themselves destroyed before they barely had the chance to shine.

In the fascinating new audiobook from the best-selling author of Humanology, Luke O'Neill explores some of the big human questions and tells us what science has to say about topics such as gender, addiction and euthanasia. With his trademark easy wit and clever pop-culture references, Luke is a serious scientist with an amazing knack of making science accessible. If you are curious about us, this bizarre animal called the human being, this is a book for you.

Over the past 20 years, paleontologists have made tremendous fossil discoveries, including fossils that mark the growth of whales, manatees, and seals from land mammals and the origins of elephants, horses, and rhinos. Today there exists an amazing diversity of fossil humans, suggesting we walked upright long before we acquired large brains, and new evidence from molecules that enable scientists to decipher the tree of life as never before.

In Regenesis, George Church and science writer Ed Regis explore the possibilities of the emerging field of synthetic biology. Synthetic biology, in which living organisms are selectively altered by modifying substantial portions of their genomes, allows for the creation of entirely new species of organisms. These technologies - far from the out-of-control nightmare depicted in science fiction - have the power to improve human and animal health, increase our intelligence, enhance our memory, and even extend our life span.

In infancy, Junior Thibodeaux is encoded with a prophesy: a comet will obliterate life on Earth in thirty-six years. Alone in this knowledge, he comes of age in rural Maine grappling with the question: Does anything I do matter? While the voice that has accompanied him since conception appraises...

After an unfortunate accident, Handry is forced to wander a world he doesn't understand, searching for meaning. He soon discovers that the life he thought he knew is far stranger than he could even possibly imagine. Can an unlikely savior provide the answers to the questions he barely comprehends?

The Third World has collapsed, and is dominated by gangsters and pirates. A twenty-year-old tabloid princess, nude sunbathing pictures all over the net and who once ordered a sex bot to her hotel room on a royal embassy, is all that prevents a nuclear war with Russia. In South America, terrorists are torching the Amazon, and decades-old tension between the Americans and the French prevent cooperation to hunt them down. And the Chinese are on top of the world.

Maternal instinct - the all-consuming, utterly selfless love that mothers lavish on their children - has long been assumed to be an innate, indeed defining element of a woman's nature. But is it? In this provocative, groundbreaking audiobook, renowned anthropologist (and mother) Sarah Blaffer Hrdy shares a radical new vision of motherhood and its crucial role in human evolution. Hrdy strips away stereotypes and gender-biased myths to demonstrate that traditional views of maternal behavior are essentially wishful thinking codified as objective observation.

Rob lives by the maxim that there's no such thing as over. And something's certainly not over for him. An unknown, unseen enemy is stalking him, with tragic consequences for his son and ex-wife. As Rob and Mike close ranks to protect their families, they find themselves up against industrial espionage, two warring scientists, and a blood feud that won't end until somebody pays with their life. Their best hope of putting the past to rest forever could lie in the unique genetic skills of a runaway teenager.

In this final installment of Nancy Kress's award-winning Beggars trilogy, it is now 200 years in the future. Regular human beings hate and fear the Sleepless and the SuperSleepless, genetically-modified humans who are immune to disease and hunger and who do not need to sleep. When the Sleepless plot to take over the world and leave regular humans powerless, civilization and the very meaning of the word "human" hang in the balance.

Haleck Cain fights free of a failing life pod only to learn the space station he doesn’t recognize is in a degrading orbit. Battling for basic survival, he quickly realizes nothing is as it should be. He’s alone, damaged, and surrounded by new enemies. Ten years have passed and the civilization he helped build is in ruins. Cain’s search for his friends will take him to the most dangerous parts of Maglan and reveal a secret he never suspected.

>In Journey of the Universe Brian Thomas Swimme and Mary Evelyn Tucker tell the epic story of the universe from an inspired new perspective, weaving the findings of modern science together with enduring wisdom found in the humanistic traditions of the West, China, India, and indigenous peoples. The authors explore cosmic evolution as a profoundly wondrous process based on creativity, connection, and interdependence, and they envision an unprecedented opportunity for the world's people to address the daunting ecological and social challenges of our times.

He’s a genetic experiment. The merging of human and lion DNA his creators call a Breed. And they have no idea just what kind of the creature they brought into being. Callan Lyons wanted only to be left in peace to protect the small group of Breeds he rescued from a New Mexico lab, but those...