Tag Archives: reference

Science Matters – Robert M. Hazen & James Trefil

READ GREEN WITH E-BOOKS

Science Matters

Achieving Scientific Literacy

Robert M. Hazen & James Trefil

Genre: Reference

Price: $2.99

Publish Date: December 1, 1990

Publisher: Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group

Seller: Penguin Random House LLC


Knowledge of the basic ideas and principles of science is fundamental to cultural literacy. But most books on science are often too obscure or too specialized to do the general reader much good. Science Matters is a rare exception-a science book for the general reader that is informative enough to be a popular textbook for introductory courses in high school and college, and yet well-written enough to appeal to general readers uncomfortable with scientific jargon and complicated mathematics. And now, revised and expanded for the first time in nearly two decades, it is up-to-date, so that readers can enjoy Hazen and Trefil's refreshingly accessible explanations of the most recent developments in science, from particle physics to biotechnology.

Visit site: 

Science Matters – Robert M. Hazen & James Trefil

Posted in alo, Anchor, FF, GE, Knopf, LAI, LG, ONA, oven, PUR, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Science Matters – Robert M. Hazen & James Trefil

The Canon – Natalie Angier

READ GREEN WITH E-BOOKS

The Canon

A Whirligig Tour of the Beautiful Basics of Science

Natalie Angier

Genre: Reference

Price: $2.99

Publish Date: April 3, 2008

Publisher: Mariner Books

Seller: OpenRoad Integrated Media, LLC


The New York Times bestseller that makes scientific subjects both understandable and fun: “Every sentence sparkles with wit and charm.” —Richard Dawkins   From the Pulitzer Prize–winning New York Times science journalist and bestselling author of Woman , this is a playful, passionate guide to the science all around us (and inside us)—from physics to chemistry, biology, geology, astronomy, and more.   Drawing on conversations with hundreds of the world’s top scientists, Natalie Angier creates a thoroughly entertaining guide to scientific literacy. For those who want a fuller understanding of some of the great issues of our time, The Canon offers insights on stem cells, bird flu, evolution, and global warming. For students—or parents whose kids ask a lot of questions about how the world works—it brings to life such topics as how the earth was formed, or what electricity is. Also included are clear, fascinating explanations of how to think scientifically and grasp the tricky subject of probability.   The Canon is a joyride through the major scientific disciplines that reignites our childhood delight and sense of wonder—and along the way, tells us what is actually happening when our ice cream melts or our coffee gets cold, what our liver cells do when we eat a caramel, why the horse is an example of evolution at work, and how we’re all really made of stardust. NATALIE ANGIER is a Pulitzer-Prize winning science columnist for the New York Times . She is the author of The Canon , The Beauty of the Beastly , and Natural Obsessions . She lives outside Washington, DC. “Every sentence sparkles with wit and charm . . . it all adds up to an intoxicating cocktail of fine science writing.” —Richard Dawkins   “Natalie Angier provides a masterful, authoritative synthesis of the state of knowledge across the entire scientific landscape.” —Howard Gardner, Harvard University, author of Five Minds for the Future and Frames of Mind   “An essential experience . . . How dare she write so artfully, explain so brilliantly, rendering us scientists simultaneously proud and inarticulate!” —Leon Lederman, Nobel laureate   “Every single sentence . . . sparkles with enough intelligence and wit to delight science-phobes and science-philes alike. I loved it!” —Barbara Ehrenreich, author of Bait and Switch and Nickel and Dimed   “Natalie Angier makes planets and particles sexy . . . She turns guys with lab coats and pocket protectors into Daniel Craig.” —Sylvia Nasar, author of A Beautiful Mind   “Exuberant . . . She writes with such verve, humor, and warmth.” — Library Journal (starred)   “This bestselling author’s love of words is writ large here . . . the excitement and challenge of science [is] masterfully conveyed.” — Kirkus Reviews (starred)   “Angier is a nimble stylist with a playful sense of alliteration and consonance.” —Ben Dickinson, Elle   “An excellent introduction (or refresher) to the beautiful basics of science, and I hope it is widely read.” —Steven Pinker, The New York Times Book Review

Credit:  

The Canon – Natalie Angier

Posted in alo, Anchor, FF, G & F, GE, LAI, Mariner Books, ONA, PUR, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , | Comments Off on The Canon – Natalie Angier

Headstrong – Rachel Swaby

READ GREEN WITH E-BOOKS

Headstrong
52 Women Who Changed Science-and the World
Rachel Swaby

Genre: Reference

Price: $1.99

Publish Date: April 7, 2015

Publisher: Crown/Archetype

Seller: Penguin Random House LLC


Fifty-two inspiring and insightful profiles of history’s brightest female scientists. In 2013, the  New York Times  published an obituary for Yvonne Brill. It began: “She made a mean beef stroganoff, followed her husband from job to job, and took eight years off from work to raise three children.” It wasn’t until the second paragraph that readers discovered why the  Times had devoted several hundred words to her life: Brill was a brilliant rocket scientist who invented a propulsion system to keep communications satellites in orbit, and had recently been awarded the National Medal of Technology and Innovation. Among the questions the obituary—and consequent outcry—prompted were, Who are the role models for today’s female scientists, and where can we find the stories that cast them in their true light?        Headstrong  delivers a powerful, global, and engaging response. Covering Nobel Prize winners and major innovators, as well as lesser-known but hugely significant scientists who influence our every day, Rachel Swaby’s vibrant profiles span centuries of courageous thinkers and illustrate how each one’s ideas developed, from their first moment of scientific engagement through the research and discovery for which they’re best known. This fascinating tour reveals 52 women at their best—while encouraging and inspiring a new generation of girls to put on their lab coats.

Originally posted here – 

Headstrong – Rachel Swaby

Posted in alo, Anchor, Crown, FF, GE, ONA, PUR, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Headstrong – Rachel Swaby

We just hit 400 ppm CO2 in the atmosphere, for a whole month

We just hit 400 ppm CO2 in the atmosphere, for a whole month

By on 6 May 2015commentsShare

I have good news, and I have bad news. First, the bad news: The atmosphere just passed another doom threshold — there are now more than 400 parts per million of CO2 up there.

Actually, we’ve crossed this line before, but that was just for a few hours or days at a handful of observing sites. This time we’re talking the average global concentration of CO2 for a whole month, making March 2015 officially the doomiest month of the millennium so far. From NOAA:

“It was only a matter of time that we would average 400 parts per million globally,” said Pieter Tans, lead scientist of NOAA’s Global Greenhouse Gas Reference Network. “We first reported 400 ppm when all of our Arctic sites reached that value in the spring of 2012. In 2013 the record at NOAA’s Mauna Loa Observatory first crossed the 400 ppm threshold. Reaching 400 parts per million as a global average is a significant milestone.

For reference, the pre-Industrial levels of CO2 were around 280 ppm, and the first measurement made in 1959 at Mauna Loa was 313 ppm. The number has been growing since then, at an average rate of more than 1 ppm per year since 1977 (some years the increase was well above 2 ppm). Scientists think we need to reduce atmospheric CO2 concentration to 350 ppm if we are to avoid the worst of climate chaos — to which pessimists say, fat chance.

The good news is, uh, I didn’t really think this far ahead. I guess the good news is that even though we’ve blundered past yet another bad milestone, there are some positive trends simultaneously at work — like the fact that emissions from energy sources flatlined in 2014 — not enough to end global warming in and of itself, but a good sign that we are at least starting to reverse the crazy emissions spike we’ve been in since the ’70s.

To weigh the pros and cons yourself, check out NOAA’s piece here, and for truly riveting live coverage, you can follow NOAA’s carbon-counting in real time here.

Source:
Greenhouse gas benchmark reached

, NOAA.

Share

Please

enable JavaScript

to view the comments.

sponsored post

Think you could hack it as a farmer? Read this first

Before you go buying a farm, there are a few things you need to consider.

Get Grist in your inbox

View original article:  

We just hit 400 ppm CO2 in the atmosphere, for a whole month

Posted in alo, Anchor, eco-friendly, FF, GE, LG, Mop, ONA, organic, PUR, Radius, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on We just hit 400 ppm CO2 in the atmosphere, for a whole month