Yolo County Library
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Nature and ScienceApril 2015
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"Eventually, all things merge into one, and a river runs through it. The river was cut by the world's great flood and runs over rocks from the basement of time. On some of the rocks are timeless raindrops. Under the rocks are the words, and some of the words are theirs. I am haunted by rivers." ~ from Norman MacLean's A River Runs Through It and Other Stories
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New and Recently Released!
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| The Interstellar Age: Inside the Forty-Year Voyager Mission by Jim BellIn 1977, NASA scientists took advantage of a rare planetary alignment to launch two unmanned space probes. It was a tremendous technical challenge, as well as a risky (and expensive) endeavor. Fortunately, all that effort paid off, and for the past 40 years, both Voyager spacecraft have surpassed the goals of their original mission (exploring Jupiter) by photographing all of the outer planets and, in the case of Voyager 1, entering interstellar space and leaving the solar system altogether. Planetary Society president Jim Bell, one of many scientists who contributed to making Voyager a reality, provides an inside look at the mission as well as the men and women who made it possible. |
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| Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind by Yuval Noah HarariUntil about 10,000 years ago, Earth was home to at least six species of human; now it boasts just one. So what happened? Drawing on current research from multiple disciplines (including evolutionary biology and anthropology), Israeli historian Yuval Noah Harari traces the natural history of humans from marginal mammals to the planet's dominant species, while weighing in on still-unresolved debates concerning interbreeding versus genocide. Focusing on three distinct periods, The Cognitive Revolution (70,000 years ago), the Agricultural Revolution (12,000 years ago), and the Scientific Revolution (500 years ago), Harari details the evolutionary leaps our species made in order to master our environment and ensure our survival. |
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| The Internet is Not the Answer by Andrew KeenThe Internet is unquestionably shaping our society, but not necessarily for the better, argues Silicon Valley entrepreneur-turned-journalist Andrew Keen in this impassioned, thought-provoking book. He asserts that despite promises of greater freedom and transparency for ordinary citizens, digital technologies are instead contributing to "deepening inequality of wealth and opportunity" by consolidating resources and influence in the hands of a select few. Readers who enjoyed Astra Taylor's The People's Platform or Jaron Lanier's You Are Not a Gadget will want to read The Internet is Not the Answer. |
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| Elixir: A History of Water and Humankind by Brian FaganAccording to anthropologist Brian Fagan, water is "an integral part of our lives that we never think about," which (he adds) is a huge mistake on our part, as it's perhaps the most influential force to ever shape human civilization. In this narrative history, Fagan covers important milestones in the relationship between humans and water, one that spans millennia -- from approximately 10,000 BCE to the present. Whether discussing aquifers or aqueducts, hydroelectric power or hydroponics systems, Elixir brings together the historical, cultural, religious, scientific, and philosophical dimensions of water. |
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| The Swamp: The Everglades, Florida, and the Politics of Paradise by Michael GrunwaldFrom sea of grass to dismal swamp to World Heritage Site, Washington Post reporter Michael Grunwald traces the history of the Everglades, demonstrating its profound ecological importance while describing its uncertain future. Originally encompassing an area of more than 4,000 square miles, stretching from modern-day Orlando to the Florida Keys, the Everglades have dramatically dwindled in size due to concerted efforts by the United States government and American corporations to drain the wetlands and convert the space to farmland, residential suburbs, and industrial hubs. Only recently have conservationists, politicians, business leaders, and ordinary citizens banded together to save this precious natural resource. Can the Everglades be saved, if not restored? Time will tell. |
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| Your Water Footprint: The Shocking Facts About How Much Water We Use to Make Everyday Products by Stephen LeahyWhether anyone realizes it or not, sustaining the average American lifestyle demands 2,000 gallons of water each day. How? Well, for starters, the amount of H2O needed to make a cheeseburger would easily fill a tanker truck. (And lest vegetarians start to feel smug, a single apple is the result of 33 gallons of water.) Distribute the three percent of Earth's total potable water among a global population of more than seven billion individuals and it's easy to see that the numbers just don't add up. Fortunately for readers who don't like math, the book's visual aids, including a wealth of charts and infographics, reveal the hidden costs of everyday items, from food and clothing to cars and computers. For more environmental auditing, check out Mike Berners-Lee's How Bad is a Banana? The Carbon Footprint of Everything. |
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Walden warming : climate change comes to Thoreau's woods
by Richard B. Primack
In his meticulous notes on the natural history of Concord, Massachusetts, Henry David Thoreau records the first open flowers of highbush blueberry on May 11, 1853. If he were to look for the first blueberry flowers in Concord today, mid-May would be too late. In the 160 years since Thoreau's writings, warming temperatures have pushed blueberry flowering three weeks earlier, and in 2012, following a winter and spring of record-breaking warmth, blueberries began flowering on April 1st., six weeks earlier than in Thoreau's time. The climate around Thoreau's beloved Walden Pond is changing, with visible ecological consequences. The author urges us each to heed the advice Thoreau offers in Walden: to "live simply and wisely." In the process, we can each minimize our own contributions to our warming climate.
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Contact your librarian for more great books!
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Yolo County Library
226 Buckeye St. Woodland, California 95695 530-666-8005
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