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Nature and Science August 2017
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The songs of trees : stories from nature's great connectors
by David George Haskell
A professor of biology and environmental studies, and Pulitzer Prize finalist for The Forest Unseen, visits twelve trees around the world and discusses the biological relationships that sustain life, including bacterial communities, cooperative animals and fungal partners.
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The greatest story ever told--so far : why are we here? by Lawrence M. KraussAn award-winning theoretical physicist and best-selling author of A Universe from Nothing traces the dramatic discovery of the counterintuitive world of reality, explaining how readers can shift their perspectives to gain greater understandings of our individual roles in the universe.
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| A Crack in Creation: Gene Editing and the Unthinkable Power to Control Evolution by Jennifer A. Doudna and Samuel H. SternbergCRISPR-Cas9 is a genome editing technique that makes possible permanent modifications within an organism's DNA. However, the scientists who discovered this "molecular machine" argue that we shouldn't use it without first addressing the serious bioethical issues involved. This balanced and accessible book describes the research that led to this groundbreaking discovery and examines the potential applications (and implications) of a revolutionary new technology. |
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The great unknown : seven journeys to the frontiers of science
by Marcus Du Sautoy
The award-winning author of The Music of the Primes and popular presenter of Netflix's The Story of Math explores the once-ridiculed theories of history's greatest innovators and the outer reaches of human knowledge to consider what discoveries may lie beyond the predictive powers of science.
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Focus on: Natural Disasters
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Storm kings : the untold history of America's first tornado chasers by Lee SandlinTraces the historical efforts to study and understand super cell tornadoes and the role of storm chasers in shaping meteorology, citing the early experiments of Ben Franklin, the "great storm debates" of the 19th century and the development of the National Weather Service.
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| The Year Without Summer: 1816 and the Volcano that Darkened the World... by William K. Klingaman and Nicholas P. KlingamanWhen Indonesia's Mount Tambora erupted in 1815, locals couldn't help but be aware of the cataclysm, which killed 12,000 people and caused 100 million tons of sulfuric acid to rain down on the archipelago. However, the rest of the world barely noticed until the following year, when global weather patterns changed severely, causing famines and food riots, epidemics and mass emigration. This joint effort by a historian and a meteorologist uses documentary sources to trace the environmental and geopolitical impact of the volcanic eruption, as well as some of the disaster's less obvious consequences, such as Mary Shelley's decision to stay indoors and write Frankenstein. |
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| Fukushima: The Story of a Nuclear Disaster by David A. Lochbaum, Edwin Lyman, Susan Q. Stranahan, and the Union of Concerned ScientistsOn March 11, 2011, a magnitude 9.0 earthquake off the coast of Japan caused a tsunami that flooded the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant, resulting in the worst nuclear disaster since Chernobyl. This suspenseful account vividly recreates the event, offering lessons that could help prevent future catastrophes. Fukushima may interest readers of Sheri Fink's Five Days at Memorial, another disturbing work of long-form investigative reporting that examines how natural disasters can be compounded and exacerbated by human error. |
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Krakatoa : the day the world exploded, August 27, 1883 by Simon WinchesterConsiders the global impact of the 1883 eruption of the Krakatoa volcano, documenting its cause of an immense tsunami that killed some 40,000 people, its impact on the weather for several years, and its role in anti-Western Islamic fundamentalism.
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Isaac's storm : a man, a time, and the deadliest hurricane in history by Erik LarsonProvides an in-depth chronicle of America's deadliest hurricane, which struck the city of Galveston, Texas, in 1900 and killed some ten thousand people, drawing on eyewitness accounts of the catastrophe and the writings of one of America's earliest professional weathermen, Isaac Cline.
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Contact your librarian for more great books!
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Harrison Memorial Library Ocean and Lincoln Carmel, California 93921 831-624-4629www.hm-lib.org/ |
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