Natural Science

Deputy Marshal Zeb Clemens usually goes out looking for trouble—but sometimes, it finds him first. The town of Silver Mesa seemed ideal for him: not too large, not too small, neither too remote nor too close to civilization… and even a woman he fancies. It’s the perfect hometown for a man who cannot die.

Botany was the darling and the powerhouse of the 18th century. As European ships ventured across the Atlantic, Indian and Pacific oceans, discovery bloomed. Bounties of new plants were brought back, and their arrival meant much more than improved flowerbeds - it offered a new scientific frontier that would transform Europe’s industry, medicine, eating and drinking habits, and even fashion.

The shift from the Paleolithic to Neolithic periods represents a watershed moment in human history. While many may consider the humans of both stone ages to be unintelligent barbarians, this brief history proves that the humans of yesteryear were just as smart as we are today. Between 10,000 BC and 2,000 BC, they instituted revolutionary changes in human life. All over the globe, formerly nomadic people began settling into villages, farming, and creating high-tech stone inventions.

Sound interesting? The author thinks so too! Listen to Bully for Brontosaurus and learn about natural history.

Bottled & Sold shows how water went from being a free natural resource to one of the most successful commercial products of the last 100 years - and why we are poorer for it. It's a big story and water is big business. Every second of every day in the United States, a thousand people buy a plastic bottle of water, and every second of every day a thousand more throw one of those bottles away. That adds up to more than 30 billion bottles a year and tens of billions of dollars of sales. Are there legitimate reasons to buy all those bottles?

Most people associate storms and other big weather with death - with the kind of force that makes each of us wonder about life, time, and the nature of our surroundings. Some people go out looking for bad weather or go to places where they're likely to encounter it. Others have the misfortune of being at the wrong place at the wrong time. Still, the stories in Storm have more to say than that.

After a chance meeting in the pub, Roger Morgan-Grenville and his friend Duncan decide to take up beekeeping. Their enthusiasm matched only by their ignorance, they are pitched into an arcane world of unexpected challenges. Coping with many setbacks along the way, they manage to create a colony of beehives, finishing two years later with more honey than anyone knows what to do with. By standing back from their normal lives and working with the cycle of the seasons, they emerge with a new-found understanding of nature and a respect for the honeybee and the threats it faces.

Norman MacLean spent the last 14 years of his life determined to sift through grief and controversy in search of the truth behind the Mann Gulch tragedy, one of the worst disasters in the history of the Forest Service. Young Men and Fire is the culmination of his investigations. It is a story about honor, death, compassion, and the human spirit.

Ofelia Archer is the top witch in New Orlean’s French Quarter, who also owns the premiere supernatural speakeasy in the state, and she’s not to be trifled with. Zach Sully is one of the top detectives with the police department…and one of only a handful of law enforcement representatives in the city who is in on the big paranormal secret. Of course, as a panther-shifter, he’s part of that secret. Together, they make a fearsome duo...who have to learn to trust one another if they’re going to keep the monsters in the Big Easy in check.

Does a bear shift in the woods? Well, partially. That was what got grizzly-shifter Ted Farnsworth into trouble. He wasn’t trying to break the Secrecy Pact. He just wants people to see the real him. So he signs up with the mate-matching service Supernatural Selection - which guarantees marriage to a perfect partner. Not only will Ted never be lonely again, but once his new beaver-shifter husband arrives, they’ll build Ted’s dream wilderness retreat together. Win-win.

Through explorations of a rich and varied urban landscape, Brenner reveals the complex micro-habitats and surprising nature found in the middle of a city. In her hometown of Seattle, which has plowed down hills, cut through the land to connect fresh- and saltwater, and paved over much of the rest, she exposes a diverse range of strange and unknown creatures.

In this accessible, absorbing overview, Mancuso considers how plants convince animals to transport them around the world, and how some plants need particular animals to spread; how they have been able to grow in places so inaccessible and inhospitable as to remain isolated; how they resisted the atomic bomb and the Chernobyl disaster; how they are able to bring life to sterile islands; how they can travel through the ages, as they sail around the world.

More than any other modern scientists, Stephen Jay Gould has opened up to millions the wonders of evolutionary biology. His genius as an essayist lies in his unmatched ability to use his knowledge of the world, including popular culture, to illuminate the realm of science.

Elena Cortez lives in the best neighborhood ever, filled with all manner of sexy supernatural women. Though she has no idea about the paranormal powers of her soon-to-be paramours. Or how they'll make her the biggest supernatural slut in history! Will Elena give in to Cassia, the beautiful witch who wants to stick her wand in places that will give Elena witch-tastic orgasms? Or will she choose sensual and curvy vampire Juliana, who has persuasive powers to make Elena do whatever submissive thing she wants? Or maybe Kaia, the muscular and sexy werewolf?

T'Chezz is upping the effort with the war and unleashing an unbound demon on San Diego while Katie/Pandora and Calvin happen to be in town. However, to save Calvin, Katie is going to have to divulge more abilities that could get back to Korbin. With the special weapons taking a toll on his plans, T'Chezz finds out he isn't the only one who has new capabilities. So, he decides to increase the burn. Katie and Pandora are having to learn how to work together...and yet make sure that Korbin believes Katie isn't being taken on a ride by a demon with centuries of guile under her belt.

In Europe: A Natural History, world-renowned scientist, explorer, and conservationist Tim Flannery applies the eloquent interdisciplinary approach he used in his ecological histories of Australia and North America to the story of Europe. He begins 100 million years ago, when the continents of Asia, North America, and Africa interacted to create an island archipelago that would later become the Europe we know today. It was on these ancient tropical lands that the first distinctly European organisms evolved.

Do you love rocks, gems, and fossils? Have you ever thought about where they come from and how they form? Do you want to learn more about rock hunting and collecting but are unsure where to start? If you answered yes to any of these questions, get ready because Rockhounding is exactly what you need. Whether a novice or a seasoned rockhound, this audiobook contains all the knowledge and tools you need to get started.

The ways of magic are revealed in nature.... The secrets are written in meandering streams and drifting clouds, whispered by the roaring ocean and cooling breeze, echoed through caves and rocks and forests. When you draw a heart in the sand, call on the four winds for assistance, or ask the rain to wash away a bad habit, you are practicing Earth magic. By working in harmony with nature, we can transform ourselves, our lives, and our world. This tried-and-true guide offers more than 100 spells, rites, and simple rituals you can perform using the powerful energy of the Earth.

From the historical roots of the concept of risk to the latest digital anxieties, each chapter unfolds a captivating narrative, weaving together major historical incidents and topical news events. Explore the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina and witness the transformative power of risk perception. Travel to Fukushima and learn how a nuclear disaster shapes our approach to designing critical infrastructure. Dive into the digital realm with the Cambridge Analytica scandal, revealing a new era of digital risk and anxiety.

An American epic of science, politics, race, honor, high society, and the Mississippi River, Rising Tide tells the riveting and nearly forgotten story of the greatest natural disaster this country has ever known, the Mississippi flood of 1927. The river inundated the homes of nearly one million people, helped elect Huey Long governor and made Herbert Hoover president, drove hundreds of thousands of blacks north, and transformed American society and politics forever.