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Nature and ScienceJune 2016
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"People are like plants: they grow toward the light. I chose science because science gave me what I needed -- a home as defined in the most literal sense: a safe place to be." ~ from Hope Jahren's Lab Girl
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Welcome to the Nature and Science newsletter. Each month you will read about new works of Nature and Science that have been added to the Lambton County Library's collection. The Library also offers an alerting service to notify you when new materials on authors and topics of interest for you are added to the collection. You may set this service up with assistance from the library staff. Let us know what you think of this service so we can serve you better.
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UPCOMING EVENTS: Sarnia FREE Movie Monday DROP-IN 7:00 p.m. Monday, June 27th Sarnia Library Theatre Back to the Future Part 3 rated PG "They've saved the best trip for last... But this time they may have gone too far." The Start of our summer program. Look for more events on the Lambton County Library Calendar: http://www.lclibrary.ca/index.php?option=com_wrapper&view=wrapper&Itemid=471
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| Are We Smart Enough to Know How Smart Animals Are? by Frans de WaalDo animals plan for the future? Reflect on the past? Regret their decisions? Say goodbye to friends and loved ones? Primatologist Frans de Waal has dedicated his life and career to understanding the inner lives of animals. In this book, he presents an accessible overview of the field of evolutionary cognition, complete with anecdotes and essential concepts (such as Umwelt, German for "surrounding world" and referring to an animal's subjective experience). He also traces the progression of human (mis)understanding of animal intelligence, which, he concludes, is neither superior nor inferior to human intelligence, but rather profoundly different. |
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| Lab Girl by Hope JahrenIn this moving, lyrical account that "transcends both memoir and science writing" (Kirkus Reviews), paleobiologist Hope Jahren vividly portrays her life as a scientist, beginning with her childhood in rural Minnesota, where she became fascinated by the natural world, and continuing through her student days and subsequent field work. In addition to offering glimpses into the daily life of a research scientist, Lab Girl also documents some personal challenges, such as living with bipolar disorder, while celebrating professional milestones, such as building three laboratories from scratch and a decades-long collaboration with her lab partner, Bill, who's, um, quite a character. |
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Black hole blues : and other songs from outer space
by Janna Levin
"In 1916, Einstein became the first to predict the existence of gravitational waves: sounds without a material medium generated by the unfathomably energy-producing collision of black holes. Now, Janna Levin, herself an astrophysicist, recounts the storyof the search, over the last fifty years, for these elusive waves--a quest that has culminated in the creation of the most expensive project ever funded by the National Science Foundation ($1 billion-plus). She makes clear the how the waves are created in the cosmic collision of black holes, and why the waves can never be detected by telescope. And, most revealingly, she delves into the lives and fates of the four scientists currently engaged in--and obsessed with--discerning this soundtrack of the universe's history. Levin's account of the surprises, disappointments, achievements, and risks of this unfolding story provides us with a uniquely compelling and intimate portrait of the people and processes of modern science"
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| The Gene: An Intimate History by Siddhartha MukherjeeAs the atom is to physics, so is the gene the fundamental unit of genetics. Describing the concept of heredity as a form of information transmission, physician and science writer Siddhartha Mukherjee considers the gene, its long and winding road to discovery, and its future in a world where bioengineering is becoming commonplace. From Mendel and Darwin to the Human Genome Project, this sweeping, thought-provoking book by the Pulitzer Prize-winning, bestselling author of The Emperor of Maladies artfully explores both the scientific and cultural significance of genes. |
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| You May Also Like: Taste in an Age of Endless Choice by Tom Vanderbilt"We are faced with an ever-increasing amount of things to figure out whether we like or dislike," says author Tom Vanderbilt. But why do we prefer some things over others? What's the point of having a favorite color, number, or animal? Vanderbilt, who analyzed our driving habits in the bestselling Traffic, now turns his attention to the science of personal preference. If you like accessible and engaging blends of sociology and economics, such as Barry Schwartz's The Paradox of Choice, you'll probably enjoy this book. But then again, there's no accounting for taste. (Or is there?) |
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Passionate minds : the great love affair of the Enlightenment, featuring the scientist Emilie Du Chatelet, the poet Voltaire, sword fights, book burnings, assorted kings, seditious verse, and the birth of the modern world by David BodanisRecounts the tumultuous, decade-long love affair between Voltaire and Emilie du Chatelet, one of the most gifted and radical scientists of the eighteenth century, whose contributions to the world of science have been ignored by history, set against the backdrop of the Enlightenment.
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| Marie Curie and Her Daughters: The Private Lives of Science's First Family by Shelley EmlingThe first person to win two Nobel Prizes (and in two different fields, physics and chemistry), Marie Skłodowska Curie also founded a dynasty of female scientists -- beginning with her older daughter, chemist Irene. Drawing on archival material as well as interviews with members of the Curie-Joliot family, this book examines the influence of Curie's private life on her research. With a special emphasis on the Curie family in the post-World War I era, this biography presents a well-rounded portrait of an iconic and inspiring scientist. |
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| Ada's Algorithm: How Lord Byron's Daughter Ada Lovelace Launched... by James EssingerDuring her brief yet influential life (she died in 1852, aged 36), mathematician Ada Byron, Countess Lovelace, wrote what is widely considered to be the first program for Charles Babbage's proposed Analytical Engine, a forerunner of today's computers. The daughter (and only legitimate child) of English poet Lord Byron, Ada struggled in vain to achieve recognition for her accomplishments during her lifetime. Alas, Ada's disappointment was the world's loss: had her contemporaries recognized the significance of her work, the digital age might have commenced decades sooner according to this intriguing biography by the author of Jacquard's Web: How a Hand Loom Led to the Birth of the Information Age. |
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Harriet Brooks : pioneer nuclear scientist by Marelene F. Rayner-CanhamAfter completing a master's degree at McGill University under Rutherford's tutelage, Brooks continued her post-graduate work at Bryn Mawr College and Cambridge University, eventually returning to McGill to work again with Rutherford. In 1904 she left Canada to work at Barnard College in New York City, and then with Curie in Paris. Brooks had a significant career as a nuclear scientist, but her success was hampered by the fact that she was a woman. She eventually married and left research. Her premature death at age fifty-six was probably related to her work with radiation.
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| Sally Ride: America's First Woman in Space by Lynn SherrPhysicist Sally Ride joined NASA in 1978 when the organization at last relaxed their ban on women and minorities. Beating out some 8,000 other applicants to become an astronaut candidate, Ride ultimately gained international fame as the first American woman to travel to space. It was a milestone that attracted a predictably intense level of media scrutiny, especially for a person who worked hard to keep her personal life separate from her professional identity. Indeed, it wasn't until her death in 2012 that the world learned -- via her obituary -- that Ride was survived by her female partner of some 30 years. In addition to recounting the extraordinary life of an individual who broke barriers, this biography also describes the challenges faced by Ride and others on account of their gender and sexual orientation. |
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Contact your librarian for more great books!
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Lambton County Library 787 Broadway St. Wyoming, Ontario N0N1T0 519-845-3324www.lclibrary.ca |
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