Natural Science

I’m Tempest Corentine—21, single, and already dreading the next 21 years. Except one month ago, the impossible happened. I formed a magical bond with someone I’ve never met. The link appeared in my darkest moment, and finding this person is my sole purpose.

Evolutionary theory in the theme that binds together these essays on such seemingly disparate topics as the feeding habits of flamingos, flowers and snails that change from male to female and sometimes back again, and the extinction from baseball of the .400 hitter.

At 5:12 a.m. on the morning of April 18, 1906, San Francisco was struck by one of the worst earthquakes in history, instantly killing hundreds. This watershed event in American history has never before been told with the richness of historical detail and insight that our foremost historian of fire, Dennis Smith, brings to it in San Francisco Is Burning. Smith cinematically recounts this terrible tragedy through the stories of the people who lived through those terrible days...

My name is Silver Spell Solange. No, I didn't plan for my initials to be the same rank needed to enter the spy academy. But I would do anything to get into the one of a kind school. I have the magical capability of an Elemental Witch, the strength to kick anyone's ass, and quick problem-solving skills to get my teammates out of any jam. There’s only one small problem - the other "S" I’m missing.

In Sightlines, Kathleen Jamie reports from the field - from her native Scottish "byways and hills" to the frigid Arctic in 14 enthralling essays. She dissects whatever her gaze falls upon - vistas of cells beneath a hospital microscope, orcas rounding a headland, the aurora borealis lighting up the frozen sea. In so doing, she questions what, exactly, constitutes "nature", and upends the idea that it is always picturesque. Written with precision, subtlety, and wry humor, Sightlines urges the listener: "Keep looking, even when there's nothing much to see."

A fascinating look at the most destructive wildfires in American history, the impact of climate change, and what we're doing right and wrong to manage forest fire, from a National Book Award finalist. Perfect for young fans of disaster stories and national history. Wildfires have been part of...

"Lively writing about science and nature depends less on the offering of good answers, I think, than on the offering of good questions," said David Quammen in the original introduction to Natural Acts. For more than two decades, he has stuck to that credo. In this updated version of Natural Acts, curiosity leads him from New Mexico to Romania, from the Congo to the Amazon, asking questions about mosquitoes (what are their redeeming merits?), dinosaurs (how did they change the life of a dyslexic Vietnam vet?), and cloning (can it save endangered species?).

An informative introduction to Darwin's discovery. In his groundbreaking book Natural Selection, Charles Darwin explained his theory that evolution is driven by adaptation of species to their environmental surroundings.

The Carbon Footprint of Everything breaks items down by the amount of carbon they produce, creating a calorie guide for the carbon-conscious. With engaging writing, leading carbon expert Mike Berners-Lee shares new carbon calculations based on recent research. He considers the impact of the pandemic on the carbon battle—especially the embattled global supply chain—and adds items we didn't consider a decade ago, like bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies. With solid research, expert sources, and Berners-Lee's trademark sense of humor, this should be on everyone's bookshelf.

David Hume (1711-1776) remains one of the most stimulating and entertaining writers in the English essay tradition. Though primarily known for long-form writings, he was adept at taking one subject and looking at it in a more concise but accessible manner.

A collection of transdisciplinary essays by scholars and designers which explore humanity’s relationship with the planet, its ecosystems and inhabitants, now and in the future. Global challenges like climate change and ecosystem degradation are proving that a singular disciplinary approach is inadequate to respond to issues where societal behaviours, individual choices, political decisions, economic, technological and scientific developments are so densely entangled - not least in design. But what happens when we turn things around and decentre “the human” to look at our relationship with...

Otros mundos devuelve a la vida dieciséis ecosistemas de un pasado inimaginablemente remoto y nos muestra continentes en movimiento, arrecifes de cristal, hongos de tres metros de altura, pingüinos gigantes, reptiles emplumados y muchas otras criaturas asombrosas de un atractivo casi mitológico. A medida que viajamos hacia atrás en el tiempo, redescubrimos nuestro propio hogar de formas irreconocibles, y nos sobrecogen los ecosistemas que se transforman y los devastadores escenarios que han causado el fin de incontables especies.

The Reindeer Chronicles takes listeners on a global tour of Earth repair, with visits to unsung heroes who are pushing the boundaries of ecological restoration to show how even the world’s most wounded places can be revived. The book begins in China’s Loess Plateau, where a landmark project successfully restored a blighted region the size of Belgium, lifting millions of people out of poverty.

If we are, in part, a product of our genes, can free will exist? Incisive and engaging, this indispensable tour of evolutionary biology runs the gamut of contemporary debates, from science and religion to our place in the universe.

The truth is, a lot of the body’s functions are dependent on this gland and if one wrong thing happens, it could wreak havoc in the entire body system. That means that understanding this essential body part is important to ensure you protect yourself and your loved ones from a potentially severe, irreversible health dangers, or to heal existing ones naturally - to improve or save your life or that of those around you.

For decades, coal has been crucial to America's culture, society, and environment, an essential ingredient in driving out winter's cold, cooking meals, and lighting the dark. In the coalfields and beyond, Bob Wyss describes how this magical elixir sparked the Industrial Revolution, powered railroads, and built urban skylines, while providing home comforts for families.

David Christian is renowned for pioneering the emerging discipline of Big History, which surveys the whole of the past. With Future Stories, he casts his sharp analytical eye forward, offering an introduction to the strange world of the future, and a guide to what we think we know about it at all scales, from the individual to the cosmological. Christian consults theologians, philosophers, scientists, statisticians, and scholars as he explores how we prepare for uncertain futures, including the future of human evolution, artificial intelligence, interstellar travel, and more.

Nines Lives is a multivoiced biography of a dazzling, surreal, and imperiled city, told through the lives of nine unforgettable characters and bracketed by two epic storms: Hurricane Betsy, which transformed New Orleans in the 1960s, and Hurricane Katrina, which nearly destroyed it. Dan Baum brings this kaleidoscopic portrait to life, showing us what was lost in the storm and what remains to be saved.

Learn all about the science of everything supernatural from aliens and the origin of monsters to the truth about the paranormal in The Seeker Supernatural Science Collection! Includes The Truth Is Out There, Is There Anything Normal About the Paranormal?, and Monster Science.

An astonishing transformation over the last 20,000 years has seen our planet changed from a frigid wasteland into the temperate world within which our civilization has grown and thrived. This dynamic episode in our planet's history, right at the close of the Ice Age, saw not only a huge temperature hike but also the Earth's crust bouncing and bending in response to the melting of the great ice sheets and the filling of the ocean basins - dramatic geophysical events that triggered earthquakes, spawned tsunamis, and provoked a series of eruptions from the world's volcanoes.