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Nature and Science February 2018
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| The Telescope in the Ice: Inventing a New Astronomy at the South Pole by Mark BowenWhat it is: A physicist's book-length tour of the South Pole's IceCube Observatory, which contains a telescope that searches not for stars but for high-energy neutrinos -- sub-atomic particles that originate in places like supernovae and black holes.
Try this next: Interested in cutting-edge astronomy? You might like Govert Schilling's Ripples in Spacetime: Einstein, Gravitational Waves, and the Future of Astronomy. |
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| Immune: How Your Body Defends and Protects You by Catherine CarverWhat it's about: The "hidden army" that protects us from disease, better known as the human immune system.
Did you know? One kiss can transfer 80 million bacteria. (Happy Valentine's Day!)
Why you should read it: lt's flu season, the perfect time to dive into this comprehensive survey of the immune system, which presents serious science in an entertaining style that should appeal to Mary Roach fans. |
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Exact thinking in demented times : the Vienna Circle and the epic quest for the foundations of science
by Karl Sigmund
What it's about: A group portrait of the early 20th-century intellectuals who transformed the way the world regarded math and science examines the collective stories of such forefront minds as Kurt Gödel, Rudolph Carnap, Ludwig Wittgenstein and Karl Popper.
Why you should read it: Exact Thinking in Demented Times tells the often outrageous, sometimes tragic, and never boring stories of the men who transformed scientific thought. A revealing work of history, this landmark book pays tribute to those who dared to reinvent knowledge from the ground up.
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| Reading the Rocks: How Victorian Geologists Discovered the Secret of Life by Brenda MaddoxWhat it is: In brief but informative vignettes, biographer and science writer Brenda Maddox profiles the Victorian geologists who revolutionized our understanding of Earth's history and human evolution.
Contains: biographical portraits of notable figures such as Charles Lyell, Mary Anning, James Hutton, and Louis Agassiz, as well as historical context that puts their discoveries in perspective. |
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| The Last Man Who Knew Everything: The Life and Times of Enrico Fermi... by David N. SchwartzWhat it is: the first English-language biography of Italian-born physicist Enrico Fermi to be published in nearly 50 years.
Why you should read it: Despite impressive accomplishments in experimental and theoretical physics, Fermi hasn't received nearly as much attention as some of his Manhattan Project peers.
Reviewers say: In a starred review, Publishers Weekly praises this "scrupulously researched and lovingly crafted portrait" of a brilliant scientist. |
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The Wild Life of Our Bodies: Predators, Parasites, and Partners that Shape Who We...
by Rob Dunn
What it's about: Biologist Rob Dunn argues that human evolution is intimately connected to that of other species and the environment.
Why You Should Read it: Dunn examines how our species' interactions with the natural world influenced our genetic code. However, there's a downside: as human survival becomes easier, human susceptibility to disease increases.
Reviewers Say: In a starred review, Booklist says " Nothing less than an every-person's handbook for understanding life, great and small, on planet Earth.--Chavez, Donn. Copyright 2010 Booklist
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Missing Microbes: How the Overuse of Antibiotics is Fueling Our Modern Plagues
by Martin J. Blaser
What it's about: Citing an assortment of "modern plagues," including diabetes, asthma, celiac disease, and eczema, Dr. Martin Blaser, the director of New York University's Human Microbiome Program, argues that our over-reliance on antibiotics may cure our ailments in the short-term while compromising the overall health of our immune systems.
Why you should read it: The average American child receives at least one course of antibiotics every year, which Blaser claims severely damages the "invisible zoo within," devastating the diverse populations of bacteria that live in our bodies and keep us healthy.
You might also like: Rob Dunn's The Wild Life of Our Bodies, Jessica Sachs' Good Germs, Bad Germs, or Carl Zimmer's Microcosm.
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Good Germs, Bad Germs : Health and Survival in a Bacterial World
by Jessica Snyder Sachs
What it is:Public sanitation and antibiotic drugs have brought about historic increases in the human life span; they have also unintentionally produced new health crises by disrupting the intimate, age-old balance between humans and the microorganisms that inhabit our bodies and our environment.
Why you should read it: Antibiotic resistance now ranks among the gravest medical problems of modern times. This books tells the story of what went terribly wrong in our war on germs.
Reviewers say: Publisher Weekly says: "Montgomery and Biklé present an enjoyable summary of the history of microbiology, a thoughtful discussion of immunology, and a survey of agricultural practices. Illus. (Nov.) © Copyright PWxyz, LLC."
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| The Hidden Half of Nature: The Microbial Roots of Life and Health by David R. Montgomery and Anne BikléWhat it is: An engaging blend of science writing and memoir, written by a geologist and a biologist as they explore the roles played by complex microbial communities in everything from agriculture to human health.
Why you might like it: From vivid descriptions of the authors' quest to turn their barren Seattle backyard into a lush garden to reflections on Biklé's cancer diagnosis, The Hidden Half of Nature illuminates the intimate connections between humans and their environment. |
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| I Contain Multitudes: The Microbes Within Us and a Grander View of Life by Ed YongIntroducing: the microbiome, a complex ecosystem of commensal, symbiotic, and pathogenic microscopic organisms living in and on our bodies.
Why you should read it: Science writer Ed Yong's accessible field guide to microorganisms reveals that they're more than just germs to be wiped out -- they form communities that help our bodies function, making them a promising subject for medical research.
You might also like: Rob Dunn's The Wildlife of Our Bodies or Rodney Dietert's The Human Super-Organism. |
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Contact your librarian for more great books!
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Carrollton Public Library 1700 Keller Springs Road, Carrollton Texas 75006 4220 North Josey Lane, Carrollton Texas 75010 |
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