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- presents an engaging and accessible examination of the role of systematic biology in species exploration and biodiversity conservation -…
clarifies misconceptions about systematic biology, reimagining it for the 21st Century - proposes an ambitious, planetary-scale project to inventory and make known every kind of plant, animal, and microbe on Earth - challenges the next and present generations of taxonomists to allow molecular data to assume it’s proper place alongside traditional data, to reembrace the fundamentally important mission of systematics - will be of great interest to those researching and working in systematics in botany and zoology, as well as professionals working in taxonomy and biodiversity conservation.Eclipse: Our Sky's Most Dazzling Phenomenon
Par Kelsey Oseid. 2024
Discover the ancient myths and fascinating science of the world&’s most striking celestial phenomena—eclipses—in this educational, beautifully illustrated guide by…
the acclaimed author of What We See in the Stars.Awe-inspiring, majestic, and always a little otherworldly, eclipses have captivated our imaginations for thousands of years. Whether plunged into darkness as the sun disappears in the middle of the day or enchanted by the moon&’s blood red glow as a vast shadow creeps across its surface, our ancestors both feared and revered eclipses, seeking to understand these striking celestial events through both storytelling and science.In Eclipse, celebrated artist and author Kelsey Oseid explores the science and mystique of lunar and solar eclipses, from the myths of our ancestors to today. Did you know that in Chinese legends, solar eclipses were caused by dragons eating the sun? Or that the Norse people believed that a sky wolf chased away the moon? Oseid presents these rich historical stories alongside informative, accessible science to enrich your understanding: a solar eclipse only occurs during a new moon; a selenelion is when you can see the lunar eclipse in front of you and the sunset behind you; and the Mars Rovers have even taken photographs of eclipses from Mars.Filled with captivating information and vivid, colorful illustrations, Eclipse will delight and inspire astronomy lovers of all ages.Polly Bee Makes Honey (Follow My Food)
Par Deborah Chancellor. 2021
Follow Polly Bee as she flies to flowers, finds pollen and nectar, and helps make sticky honey in this stylish…
and fact-filled picture book, part of the new &“Follow My Food&” series that looks at the ways different foods are made.How is honey produced? And how does it get from the farm to the kitchen table? This simple story provides young readers a glimpse into a day in the life of a worker bee. From flower to hive to table, this engaging story will help kids understand where their food comes from, and it&’s ideal for teaching them about sustainability and the environment. Featuring attractive collage-style art and rich vocabulary, the book also includes information on beekeeping, fun facts about bees, and a simple recipe.Lincoln's Political Generals
Par David Work. 2012
At the beginning of the Civil War, President Abraham Lincoln sought to bind important political leaders to the Union by…
appointing them as generals. The task was formidable: he had to find enough qualified officers to command a military that would fight along a front that stretched halfway across the continent. West Point hadn't graduated enough officers, and many of its best chose to fight for the Confederacy. Lincoln needed loyal men accustomed to organization, administration, and command. He also needed soldiers, and political generals brought with them their constituents and patronage power. As the war proceeded, the value of the political generals became a matter of serious dispute. Could politicians make the shift from a political campaign to a military one? Could they be trusted to fight? Could they avoid destructive jealousies and the temptations of corruption? And with several of the generals being Irish or German immigrants, what effect would ethnic prejudices have on their success or failure? In this book, David Work examines Lincoln's policy of appointing political generals to build a national coalition to fight and win the Civil War. Work follows the careers of sixteen generals through the war to assess their contributions and to ascertain how Lincoln assessed them as commander-in-chief. Eight of the generals began the war as Republicans and eight as Democrats. Some commanded armies, some regiments. Among them were some of the most famous generals of the Union--such as Francis P. Blair Jr., John A. Dix, John A. Logan, James S. Wadsworth--and others whose importance has been obscured by more dramatic personalities. Work finds that Lincoln's policy was ultimately successful, as these generals provided effective political support and made important contributions in military administration and on the battlefield. Although several of them proved to be poor commanders, others were effective in exercising influence on military administration and recruitment, slavery policy, and national politics.Countdown: The Blinding Future of Nuclear Weapons
Par Sarah Scoles. 2024
For fans of Oppenheimer, a riveting investigation into the modern nuclear weapons landscape. Nuclear weapons are, today, as important…
as they were during the Cold War, and some experts say we could be as close to a nuclear catastrophe now as we were at the height of that conflict. Despite that, conversations about these bombs generally often happen in past tense. In Countdown, science journalist Sarah Scoles uncovers a different atomic reality: the nuclear age&’s present. Drawing from years of on-the-ground reporting at the nation's nuclear weapons labs, Scoles interrogates the idea that having nuclear weapons keeps us safe, deterring attacks and preventing radioactive warfare. She deftly assesses the existing nuclear apparatus in the United States, taking readers beyond the news headlines and policy-speak to reveal the state of nuclear-weapons technology, as well as how people currently working within the U.S. nuclear weapons complex have come to think about these bombs and the idea that someone, someday, might use them. Through a sharp, surprising, and undoubtedly urgent narrative, Scoles brings us out of the Cold War and into the twenty-first century, opening readers' eyes to the true nature of nuclear weapons and their caretakers while also giving us the context necessary to understand the consequences of their existence, for worse and for better, for now and for the future.This book offers the first comprehensive study of defence offsets and its economic, security, political and theoretical implications.Originating in the…
second half of the 19th century, defence offsets - additional economic, industrial and technological benefits to states for buying foreign weapons - have since been a key feature of the global arms trade and defence industry. And yet, offsets are an under-researched and under-theorised phenomenon. This book fills this gap in the literature by offering the first general theory of defence offsets, as well as the first systematic analysis of the offset phenomenon. By building on the insights of scholars of defence economics and drawing from the International Relations liberal paradigm, as well as reviving and adapting Robert Putnam’s two-level game framework, the book proposes a liberal-rationalist theory of defence offsets. It then proves the worth of such a theory through Qualitative Comparative Analysis (QCA) of fifty-four fighter aircraft transfers from 1992 to 2021 inclusive, and three in-depth case studies addressing offsets negotiated and agreed to as part of fighter aircraft competitions in Brazil, India, and South Korea.This book will be of interest to students of defence studies, defence economics, security studies and international relations.Little Gardener's First 100 Words
Par Tenisha Bernal. 2024
The perfect primer for budding gardeners, this board book introduces little ones to 100 different items found in the garden!From…
bugs to tools, each page in this unique first words book is filled with things found in the garden—above and below the ground!Little ones can learn about the parts of a plant, the different herbs, fruits, and vegetables that can grow in a garden, and the names of tools that make gardening easier. There is even a page dedicated to urban gardening for those who don't have yards!Detailed illustrations and brightly colored backgrounds are sure to engage even the youngest of nature enthusiasts. This perfect gift for budding gardeners will show them the tools they need to create and care for their very own garden.Turn to the Sun: Your Guide to Release Stress and Cultivate Better Health Through Nature
Par Brittany Gowan. 2024
Turn to the Sun guides you down a nourishing path of uplifting affirmations, soul-refreshing meditations, and lush botanical photography that…
helps you heal in the company of nature. Approach your days with less anxiety, renewed vigor, and a deeper sense of well-being as you become grounded and soak up nature's restorative qualities.Whether you live in an urban jungle, on a suburban cul-de-sac, or at the edge of a national forest, you might find yourself more connected to technology than to nature. In the midst of the pings and rings of a device-dependent life, is getting close to nature even possible—or worth it?Wellness coach and the founder of Pause with Plants Brittany Gowan shows you how slowing down, unplugging, and connecting with the natural world is not only possible and absolutely worth it, but also essential. Brittany creates a reflective experience enhanced by plants that helps you find the calm and tranquility you crave.In these gorgeous, photo-filled pages, you'll find ways to:Cultivate mindfulness as you let go of daily distractionsLet nature guide you into relishing the present momentUse a nature-focused mindset to persist through challengesConnect and ground yourself with nature anywhere, anytimeNourish your relationship with yourself and the world around you Turn to the Sun includes:Affirmations: simple statements that have a positive effect on your thoughts and actionsMeditations: guidance for reflection and contemplation to center your mind and bodyHow-tos: doable exercises to fully engage with the natural worldStunning botanical photography: lush images of plants that pair with affirmations, meditations, and how-tos When in your life have you felt most alive? You can feel that way again. You can flourish, with purpose, whether you are in a waiting season or ready to blossom. It's time to pause. It's time to breathe. It's time to grow.The Avro Arrow: For the Record
Par Palmiro Campagna. 2003
“No one has done more than Palmiro Campagna to document the story of Canada’s extraordinary Avro Arrow ... This latest…
work sheds new light on the Arrow’s fascinating saga.” — ANDREW CHAIKIN, author of A Man on the MoonAn expanded edition of the bestselling book, including newly discovered American records that shed further light on the disastrous cancellation of the Avro Arrow. The controversial cancellation of the Avro Arrow — an extraordinary achievement of Canadian military aviation — continues to inspire debate today. When the program was scrapped in 1959, all completed aircraft and those awaiting assembly were destroyed, along with tooling and technical information. Was abandoning the program the right decision? Did Canada lose more than it gained?Brimming with information to fill the gaps in the Arrow’s troubled history, this new edition also brings to light recently discovered documents that answer whether the United States government wished Canada to continue the development of what was considered the world’s most advanced interceptor aircraft.Birds of New Guinea: Second Edition (Princeton Field Guides #97)
Par Thane K. Pratt, Bruce M. Beehler. 2015
The definitive field guide to the marvelous birds of New GuineaThis is the completely revised edition of the essential field…
guide to the birds of New Guinea. The world's largest tropical island, New Guinea boasts a spectacular avifauna characterized by cassowaries, megapodes, pigeons, parrots, cuckoos, kingfishers, and owlet-nightjars, as well as an exceptionally diverse assemblage of songbirds such as the iconic birds of paradise and bowerbirds. Birds of New Guinea is the only guide to cover all 780 bird species reported in the area, including 366 endemics. Expanding its coverage with 111 vibrant color plates—twice as many as the first edition—and the addition of 635 range maps, the book also contains updated species accounts with new information about identification, voice, habits, and range. A must-have for everyone from ecotourists to field researchers, Birds of New Guinea remains an indispensable guide to the diverse birds of this remarkable region.780 bird species, including 366 found nowhere else111 stunning color plates, twice the number of the first editionExpanded and updated species accounts provide details on identification, voice, habits, and range635 range mapsRevised classification of birds reflects the latest researchTrees of Panama and Costa Rica (Princeton Field Guides #74)
Par Richard Condit, Rolando Pérez, Nefertaris Daguerre. 2011
This is the first field guide dedicated to the diverse tree species of Panama and Costa Rica. Featuring close to…
500 tropical tree species, Trees of Panama and Costa Rica includes superb color photos, abundant color distribution maps, and concise descriptions of key characteristics, making this guide readily accessible to botanists, biologists, and casual nature lovers alike. The invaluable introductory chapters discuss tree diversity in Central America and the basics of tree identification. Family and species accounts are treated alphabetically and describe family size, number of genera and species, floral characteristics, and relative abundance. Color distribution maps supplement the useful species descriptions, and facing-page photographic plates detail bark, leaf, flower, or fruit of the species featured. Helpful appendices contain a full glossary, a comprehensive guide to leaf forms, and a list of families not covered. The only tree guide to cover both Panama and Costa Rica together Covers almost 500 species 438 high-resolution color photos 480 color distribution maps and two general maps Concise and jargon-free descriptions of key characteristics for every species Full glossary and guide to leaf forms includedHow two charismatic, exceptionally talented physicists came to terms with the nuclear weapons they helped to createIn 1945, the United…
States dropped the bomb, and physicists were forced to contemplate disquieting questions about their roles and responsibilities. When the Cold War followed, they were confronted with political demands for their loyalty and McCarthyism's threats to academic freedom. By examining how J. Robert Oppenheimer and Hans A. Bethe—two men with similar backgrounds but divergent aspirations and characters—struggled with these moral dilemmas, one of our foremost historians of physics tells the story of modern physics, the development of atomic weapons, and the Cold War.Oppenheimer and Bethe led parallel lives. Both received liberal educations that emphasized moral as well as intellectual growth. Both were outstanding theoreticians who worked on the atom bomb at Los Alamos. Both advised the government on nuclear issues, and both resisted the development of the hydrogen bomb. Both were, in their youth, sympathetic to liberal causes, and both were later called to defend the United States against Soviet communism and colleagues against anti-Communist crusaders. Finally, both prized scientific community as a salve to the apparent failure of Enlightenment values.Yet their responses to the use of the atom bomb, the testing of the hydrogen bomb, and the treachery of domestic politics differed markedly. Bethe, who drew confidence from scientific achievement and integration into the physics community, preserved a deep integrity. By accepting a modest role, he continued to influence policy and contributed to the nuclear test ban treaty of 1963. In contrast, Oppenheimer first embodied a new scientific persona—the scientist who creates knowledge and technology affecting all humanity and boldly addresses their impact—and then could not carry its burden. His desire to retain insider status, combined with his isolation from creative work and collegial scientific community, led him to compromise principles and, ironically, to lose prestige and fall victim to other insiders.S. S. Schweber draws on his vast knowledge of science and its history—in addition to his unique access to the personalities involved—to tell a tale of two men that will enthrall readers interested in science, history, and the lives and minds of great thinkers.Conus of the Southeastern United States and Caribbean
Par Alan J. Kohn. 2014
Conus is the largest genus of animals in the sea, occurring throughout the world's tropical and subtropical oceans and contributing…
significantly to marine biodiversity. The shells of these marine mollusks are prized for their amazing variety and extraordinary beauty. The neurotoxic venoms they produce—injected by a hollow, harpoon-like tooth into prey animals that are then paralyzed and swallowed whole—have a range of pharmaceutical applications, from painkillers to antidepressants. This beautifully illustrated book identifies 53 valid species of the southeastern United States and the Caribbean, a region that supports a diverse but taxonomically challenging group of Conus. Introductory chapters cover the evolution and phylogeny of the genus, and notes on methodology are provided. Detailed species accounts describe key identification features, taxonomy, distribution, ecology, toxicology, life history, and evolutionary relationships. The book includes more than 2,100 photos of shells on 109 splendid color plates; more than 100 additional photos, many depicting live animals in color; and 35 color distribution maps.Identifies 53 valid species—the first reassessment of western Atlantic Conus in more than seventy yearsFeatures more than 2,100 photos of shells on 109 color platesBlends the traditional shell-character approach to identification with cutting-edge shell and radular tooth morphometrics and molecular genetic analysesIncludes color images of live animals as well as color distribution mapsWar in Social Thought: Hobbes to the Present
Par Hans Joas, Wolfgang Knöbl. 2013
A sweeping history of social theories about war and peace, from Hobbes to the twenty-first centuryThis book, the first of…
its kind, provides a sweeping critical history of social theories about war and peace from Hobbes to the present. Distinguished social theorists Hans Joas and Wolfgang Knöbl present both a broad intellectual history and an original argument as they trace the development of thinking about war over more than 350 years—from the premodern era to the period of German idealism and the Scottish and French enlightenments, and then from the birth of sociology in the nineteenth century through the twentieth century. While focusing on social thought, the book draws on many disciplines, including philosophy, anthropology, and political science.Joas and Knöbl demonstrate the profound difficulties most social thinkers—including liberals, socialists, and those intellectuals who could be regarded as the first sociologists—had in coming to terms with the phenomenon of war, the most obvious form of large-scale social violence. With only a few exceptions, these thinkers, who believed deeply in social progress, were unable to account for war because they regarded it as marginal or archaic, and on the verge of disappearing. This overly optimistic picture of the modern world persisted in social theory even in the twentieth century, as most sociologists and social theorists either ignored war and violence in their theoretical work or tried to explain it away. The failure of the social sciences and especially sociology to understand war, Joas and Knöbl argue, must be seen as one of the greatest weaknesses of disciplines that claim to give a convincing diagnosis of our times.The Last of Its Kind: The Search for the Great Auk and the Discovery of Extinction
Par Gísli Pálsson. 2024
How an iconic bird&’s final days exposed the reality of human-caused extinctionThe great auk is one of the most tragic…
and documented examples of extinction. A flightless bird that bred primarily on the remote islands of the North Atlantic, the last of its kind were killed in Iceland in 1844. Gísli Pálsson draws on firsthand accounts from the Icelanders who hunted the last great auks to bring to life a bygone age of Victorian scientific exploration while offering vital insights into the extinction of species.Pálsson vividly recounts how British ornithologists John Wolley and Alfred Newton set out for Iceland to collect specimens only to discover that the great auks were already gone. At the time, the Victorian world viewed extinction as an impossibility or trivialized it as a natural phenomenon. Pálsson chronicles how Wolley and Newton documented the fate of the last birds through interviews with the men who killed them, and how the naturalists&’ Icelandic journey opened their eyes to the disappearance of species as a subject of scientific concern—and as something that could be caused by humans.Blending a richly evocative narrative with rare, unpublished material as well as insights from ornithology, anthropology, and Pálsson&’s own North Atlantic travels, The Last of Its Kind reveals how the saga of the great auk opens a window onto the human causes of mass extinction.Petrels, Albatrosses, and Storm-Petrels of North America: A Photographic Guide
Par Steve N. Howell. 2012
A complete illustrated guide to these enigmatic seabirdsPetrels, albatrosses, and storm-petrels are among the most beautiful yet least known of…
all the world's birds, living their lives at sea far from the sight of most people. Largely colored in shades of gray, black, and white, these enigmatic and fast-flying seabirds can be hard to differentiate, particularly from a moving boat. Useful worldwide, not just in North America, this photographic guide is based on unrivaled field experience and combines insightful text and hundreds of full-color images to help you identify these remarkable birds.The first book of its kind, this guide features an introduction that explains ocean habitats and the latest developments in taxonomy. Detailed species accounts describe key identification features such as flight manner, plumage variation related to age and molt, seasonal occurrence patterns, and migration routes. Species accounts are arranged into groups helpful for field identification, and an overview of unique identification challenges is provided for each group. The guide also includes distribution maps for regularly occurring species as well as a bibliography, glossary, and appendixes.The first state-of-the-art photographic guide to these enigmatic seabirdsIncludes hundreds of full-color photos throughoutFeatures detailed species accounts that describe flight, plumage, distribution, and moreProvides overviews of ocean habitats, taxonomy, and conservationOffers tips on how to observe and identify birds at seaTerns of North America: A Photographic Guide
Par Cameron Cox. 2023
A full-color photographic guide to these captivating and challenging birdsThis is the essential identification guide to the terns, noddies, and…
skimmers of North America. Covering every species and featuring hundreds of high-quality color images, this book is the ideal companion for anyone interested in this charismatic but sometimes challenging group of seabirds. Detailed species accounts describe the size of each bird as it appears in the field along with structure, behavior, flight style, vocalizations, subspecies, and North American and worldwide ranges. An incisive introduction lays out a remarkably simple approach to identification that focuses on key elements and addresses how to avoid getting bogged down in the variability of appearance. This state-of-the-art guide also provides additional in-depth coverage of the two most challenging groups of terns, Sterna terns and crested terns, aiding field identification while also highlighting the beauty and elegance of these marvelous seabirds.Features more than 325 stunning color photos, with side-by-side comparisons of similar species throughoutIncludes detailed captions for each image that describe age and key identification traitsCovers 19 species found in North America, including the most frequent vagrantsPresents a unique, simplified approach to field identificationExplains the fundamentals of molts, plumages, and hybridizationProvides in-depth coverage of Sterna terns and crested ternsPollination and Floral Ecology
Par Pat Willmer. 2011
Pollination and Floral Ecology is the most comprehensive single-volume reference to all aspects of pollination biology--and the first fully up-to-date…
resource of its kind to appear in decades. This beautifully illustrated book describes how flowers use colors, shapes, and scents to advertise themselves; how they offer pollen and nectar as rewards; and how they share complex interactions with beetles, birds, bats, bees, and other creatures. The ecology of these interactions is covered in depth, including the timing and patterning of flowering, competition among flowering plants to attract certain visitors and deter others, and the many ways plants and animals can cheat each other. Pollination and Floral Ecology pays special attention to the prevalence of specialization and generalization in animal-flower interactions, and examines how a lack of distinction between casual visitors and true pollinators can produce misleading conclusions about flower evolution and animal-flower mutualism. This one-of-a-kind reference also gives insights into the vital pollination services that animals provide to crops and native flora, and sets these issues in the context of today's global pollination crisis. Provides the most up-to-date resource on pollination and floral ecology Describes flower advertising features and rewards, foraging and learning by flower-visiting animals, behaviors of generalist and specialist pollinators--and more Examines the ecology and evolution of animal-flower interactions, from the molecular to macroevolutionary scale Features hundreds of color and black-and-white illustrationsA major revision of our understanding of long-range bombing, this book examines how Anglo-American ideas about "strategic" bombing were formed…
and implemented. It argues that ideas about bombing civilian targets rested on--and gained validity from--widespread but substantially erroneous assumptions about the nature of modern industrial societies and their vulnerability to aerial bombardment. These assumptions were derived from the social and political context of the day and were maintained largely through cognitive error and bias. Tami Davis Biddle explains how air theorists, and those influenced by them, came to believe that strategic bombing would be an especially effective coercive tool and how they responded when their assumptions were challenged. Biddle analyzes how a particular interpretation of the World War I experience, together with airmen's organizational interests, shaped interwar debates about strategic bombing and preserved conceptions of its potentially revolutionary character. This flawed interpretation as well as a failure to anticipate implementation problems were revealed as World War II commenced. By then, the British and Americans had invested heavily in strategic bombing. They saw little choice but to try to solve the problems in real time and make long-range bombing as effective as possible. Combining narrative with analysis, this book presents the first-ever comparative history of British and American strategic bombing from its origins through 1945. In examining the ideas and rhetoric on which strategic bombing depended, it offers critical insights into the validity and robustness of those ideas--not only as they applied to World War II but as they apply to contemporary warfare.Megadisasters: The Science of Predicting the Next Catastrophe
Par Florin Diacu. 2010
The history and science behind efforts to predict major disasters, from tsunamis to stock market crashesCan we predict cataclysmic disasters…
such as earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, or stock market crashes? The Indian Ocean tsunami of 2004 claimed more than 200,000 lives. Hurricane Katrina killed over 1,800 people and devastated the city of New Orleans. The recent global financial crisis has cost corporations and ordinary people around the world billions of dollars. Megadisasters is a book that asks why catastrophes such as these catch us by surprise, and reveals the history and groundbreaking science behind efforts to forecast major disasters and minimize their destruction.Each chapter of this exciting and eye-opening book explores a particular type of cataclysmic event and the research surrounding it, including earthquakes, tsunamis, volcanic eruptions, hurricanes, rapid climate change, collisions with asteroids or comets, pandemics, and financial crashes. Florin Diacu tells the harrowing true stories of people impacted by these terrible events, and of the scientists racing against time to predict when the next big disaster will strike. He describes the mathematical models that are so critical to understanding the laws of nature and foretelling potentially lethal phenomena, the history of modeling and its prospects for success in the future, and the enormous challenges to scientific prediction posed by the chaos phenomenon, which is the high instability that underlies many processes around us.Yielding new insights into the perils that can touch every one of us, Megadisasters shows how the science of predicting disasters holds the promise of a safer and brighter tomorrow.