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Hope Dies Last

Science & Nature

One of Heatmap's 18 Climate Books to Read in 2025The award-winning environmental journalist’s extraordinary, long-awaited portrait of hope and resilience as we face a fractured and uncertain futureIn this profoundly human and moving narrative, the bestselling author of The World Without Us returns with a book ten years in the making: a study of what it means to be a human on the front lines of our planet’s existential crisis. His new book, Hope Dies Last, is a literary evocation of our current predicament and the core resolve of our species against the most precarious odds we have ever faced.To write this book, Weisman traveled the globe, witnessing climate upheaval and other devastations, and meeting the people striving to mitigate and undo our past transgressions. From the flooding Marshall Islands to revived wetlands in Iraq, from the Netherlands and Bangladesh to the Korean DMZ and to cities and coastlines in the U.S. and around the world, he has encountered the best of humanity battling heat, hunger, rising tides, and imperiled nature. He profiles the innovations of big thinkers—engineers, scientists, conservationists, economists, architects, and artists—as they conjure wildly creative, imaginative responses to an uncertain, ominous future. At this unprecedented point in history, as our collective exploits on this planet may lead to our own undoing and we could be among the species marching toward extinction, they refuse to accept defeat.Hope Dies Last fills a crucial gap in the global conversation: Having reached a point of no return in our climate confrontation, how do we feel, behave, act, plan, and dream as we approach a future decidedly different from what we had expected?

In a Patch of Fireweed

Science & Nature

Why would a grown man chase hornets with a thermometer, paint whirligig beetles bright red, or track elephants through the night to fill trash bags with their prodigious droppings? Some might say—to advance science. Bernd Heinrich says—because it’s fun.Heinrich, author of the much acclaimed Bumblebee Economics, has been playing in the wilds of one continent or another all his life. In the process, he has become one of the world’s foremost physiological ecologists. With In a Patch of Fireweed, he will undoubtedly become one of our foremost writers of popular science.Part autobiography, part case study in the ways of field biology, In a Patch of Fireweed is an endlessly fascinating account of a scientist’s life and work. For the author, it is an opportunity to report not just his results but the curiosity, humor, error, passion, and competitiveness that feed into the process of discovery. For the reader, it is simply a delight, a rare chance to share the perceptions of an unusual mind fully in tune with the inner workings of nature. Before his years of research in the woodlands and deserts of North America, the New Guinea highlands, and the plains of East Africa, Heinrich had a sense of the wild that few people in this century can know. He tells the whole story, from his refugee childhood hidden in a German forest, eating mice fried in boar fat, to his ongoing research in the woods surrounding his cabin in Maine.

L'attenzione rubata. Perché facciamo fatica a concentrarci

Science & Nature

Secondo recenti ricerche gli studenti universitari riescono a concentrarsi su un’attività per appena venti secondi alla volta e gli impiegati, in media, per soli tre minuti. Come molti di noi, Johann Hari è rimasto disorientato dalla facilità con cui perdiamo l’attenzione. Ha provato di tutto per recuperare la sua capacità di concentrarsi, anche a eliminare il cellulare e internet dalla sua vita per più di tre mesi, ma nulla ha funzionato. Per cercare di risolvere il problema, ma soprattutto per comprenderne le origini, Hari intraprende un viaggio per intervistare i maggiori esperti mondiali di scienze cognitive specializzati sul tema, scoprendo che tutto quello che pensiamo di sapere sull’argomento è clamorosamente sbagliato. Dagli ingegneri della Silicon Valley in grado di catturare e non lasciar andare il focus degli utenti, fino ai cali di attenzione che si sono registrati in quantità apparentemente inspiegabili nelle favelas di Rio de Janeiro, Hari indaga e cerca di capire non solo le cause che mettono a repentaglio la nostra concentrazione ma anche le possibili soluzioni che possiamo adottare. L’attenzione rubata è una guida necessaria per tornare a guardare con attenzione alla nostra vita, ai nostri amici, ai nostri interessi e, soprattutto, a noi stessi, prima che sia troppo tardi.

Uncovering Student Ideas in Science, Volume 3

Science & Nature

Because you demanded it! Since publication of Volume 1 of this series, thousands of teachers are using these innovative classroom tools to improve student learning in science. Following in the footsteps of earlier volumes in the Uncovering Student Ideas in Science series, this all-new book provides short, easy-to-administer probes that determine what misconceptions students bring to the classroom about the nature of science and about physical, life, Earth, and space sciences. This new volume in our bestselling series provides more topic areas for classroom use as well as guidance on how teachers can use the probes for their own learning. As outlined in previous volumes, teachers—like their students—can have misconceptions that come to the fore when administering the probes. Volume 3 provides 10 detailed suggestions for teachers on how to use the probes to uncover, accurately assess, and correct their own preconceptions as well as their students’ (e.g., do the probes yourself, examine student responses with other teachers, embed the probes into existing professional development programs, select specific areas to focus on, examine student thinking across grade spans, categorize ideas, and crunch data to create classroom profiles). Volume 3 offers five life science probes, seven Earth and space science probes, ten physical science probes, and three nature of science probes. This volume is an invaluable resource for classroom teachers, preservice teachers, professional developers, and college science and preservice faculty.

Marx

Science & Nature

En esta breve introducción el renombrado filósofo Peter Singer expone la visión central que unifica el pensamiento de Marx y nos permite entender su punto de vista como un todo. Presentándolo como un filósofo principalmente preocupado por la libertad humana, en lugar de como un economista o un científico social, Singer consigue explicar ideas clave de Marx, como la alienación, el materialismo histórico o la teoría económica del capital, en un lenguaje sencillo. En estas páginas, Singer explora si las concepciones de Marx siguen siendo relevantes en el siglo XXI. ¿El hecho de que las ocho personas más ricas del planeta posean tanto como la mitad de la población mundial vendría a confirmar la óptica marxista? ¿La facilidad con que los políticos conservadores pueden ganarse los votos de la clase trabajadora apelando al nacionalismo socavaría su visión de la lucha de clases y la inevitable victoria final del proletariado? Singer reflexiona aquí sobre cuestiones cruciales como estas y analiza también el papel de internet en nuestra sociedad en tanto que “fuerza productiva”. El libro concluye con una evaluación del legado de Marx y la pregunta de hasta qué punto resulta realista en la actualidad la propuesta de reemplazar el capitalismo por un sistema de producción mejor.

Why People Believe Weird Things

Science & Nature

"This sparkling book romps over the range of science and anti-science." --Jared Diamond, author of Guns, Germs, and Steel Revised and Expanded Edition.In this age of supposed scientific enlightenment, many people still believe in mind reading, past-life regression theory, New Age hokum, and alien abduction. A no-holds-barred assault on popular superstitions and prejudices, with more than 80,000 copies in print, Why People Believe Weird Things debunks these nonsensical claims and explores the very human reasons people find otherworldly phenomena, conspiracy theories, and cults so appealing. In an entirely new chapter, "Why Smart People Believe in Weird Things," Michael Shermer takes on science luminaries like physicist Frank Tippler and others, who hide their spiritual beliefs behind the trappings of science.Shermer, science historian and true crusader, also reveals the more dangerous side of such illogical thinking, including Holocaust denial, the recovered-memory movement, the satanic ritual abuse scare, and other modern crazes. Why People Believe Strange Things is an eye-opening resource for the most gullible among us and those who want to protect them.

Hasta el final del tiempo

Science & Nature

Hasta el final del tiempo es la nueva e impresionante exploración que Brian Greene hace del cosmos y nuestra búsqueda para llegar a comprenderlo. Partiendo de que los humanos somos las únicas criaturas con conciencia de nuestra finitud, y de que también el universo morirá algún día, el autor traza un viaje que nos lleva desde nuestro conocimiento más exacto sobre cómo empezó el universo hasta el final del tiempo, explorando cómo se formaron las estructuras duraderas, cómo del caos inicial surgió la vida y cómo nuestras mentes, al llegar a comprender su propia temporalidad, han buscado diferentes maneras dar sentido a la experiencia a través de la historia, el mito, la religión, la expresión creativa o la ciencia.A través de una serie de historias entretejidas que explican distintas capas de realidad, Greene nos proporciona una idea más clara de cómo llegamos a ser, una imagen más precisa de dónde estamos ahora y una comprensión más firme de hacia dónde nos dirigimos. Desde las partículas hasta los planetas, desde la conciencia hasta la creatividad, desde la materia hasta el significado, Brian Greene nos permite comprender y apreciar nuestro fugaz pero absolutamente exquisito momento en el cosmos.

Astroguide : Guide complet de l'astronome amateur

Science & Nature

Ce guide pratique dresse un panorama complet de l'astronomie. Il offre tous les conseils nécessaires pour :- observer le ciel à l'oeil nu, aux jumelles ou au moyen d'une lunette- sélectionner un instrument et ses accessoires, et les utiliser au mieux- réussir ses images, de la simple photo du ciel sur pied à l'astrophotographieCette seconde édition augmentée est totalement mise à jour avec les cartes du ciel (pour montrer le ciel aux différentes saisons), la pratique de l'astrophoto à l'aide d'un smartphone, une mise à jour des dernières nouveautés sur le matériel, les nouveaux logiciels Sequator et ICE pour faire de la photo sans instrument, un topo sur les timelapses, le remplacement des tutos sur Autostakkert et Registax par Astrosurface et le remplacement du logiciel Depp Sky Stacker par Siril (en version simplifiée).

The Birds of America: Vol. 6

Science & Nature

This groundbreaking work features hand-colored, life-sized prints of North American birds based on field drawings made by famous wildlife artist John James Audubon. The work includes images of six now-extinct birds. This is the sixth of seven volumes.

Memristor-Based Nanoelectronic Computing Circuits and Architectures

Science & Nature

This book considers the design and development of nanoelectronic computing circuits, systems and architectures focusing particularly on memristors, which represent one of today’s latest technology breakthroughs in nanoelectronics. The book studies, explores, and addresses the related challenges and proposes solutions for the smooth transition from conventional circuit technologies to emerging computing memristive nanotechnologies. Its content spans from fundamental device modeling to emerging storage system architectures and novel circuit design methodologies, targeting advanced non-conventional analog/digital massively parallel computational structures. Several new results on memristor modeling, memristive interconnections, logic circuit design, memory circuit architectures, computer arithmetic systems, simulation software tools, and applications of memristors in computing are presented. High-density memristive data storage combined with memristive circuit-design paradigms and computational tools applied to solve NP-hard artificial intelligence problems, as well as memristive arithmetic-logic units, certainly pave the way for a very promising memristive era in future electronic systems. Furthermore, these graph-based NP-hard problems are solved on memristive networks, and coupled with Cellular Automata (CA)-inspired computational schemes that enable computation within memory. All chapters are written in an accessible manner and are lavishly illustrated. The book constitutesan informative cornerstone for young scientists and a comprehensive reference to the experienced reader, hoping to stimulate further research on memristive devices, circuits, and systems.

The Hidden Half

Science & Nature

Why does one smoker die of lung cancer but another live to 100? The answer is "The Hidden Half"—those random, unknowable variables that mess up our attempts to comprehend the world. We humans are very clever creatures—but we're idiots about how clever we really are. This entertaining and ingenious book reveals how in our quest to make the world more understandable, we lose sight of how unexplainable it often is. The result, from GDP figures to medicine, is that experts know a lot less than they think. Filled with compelling stories from economics, genetics, business, and science, The Hidden Half is a warning that an explanation which works in one arena may not work in another. Entertaining and provocative, it will change how you view the world.

Conceptualizing Environmental Citizenship for 21st Century Education

Science & Nature

This open access book is about the development of a common understanding of environmental citizenship. It conceptualizes and frames environmental citizenship taking an educational perspective. Organized in four complementary parts, the book first explains the political, economic and societal dimensions of the concept. Next, it examines environmental citizenship as a psychological concept with a specific focus on knowledge, values, beliefs and attitudes. It then explores environmental citizenship within the context of environmental education and education for sustainability. It elaborates responsible environmental behaviour, youth activism and education for sustainability through the lens of environmental citizenship. Finally, it discusses the concept within the context of different educational levels, such as primary and secondary education in formal and non-formal settings.Environmental citizenship is a key factor in sustainability, green and cycle economy, and low-carbon society, and an important aspect in addressing global environmental problems. It has been an influential concept in many different arenas such as economy, policy, philosophy, and organizational marketing. In the field of education, the concept could be better exploited and established, however. Education and, especially, environmental discourses in science education have a great deal to contribute to the adoption and promotion of environmental citizenship.

Bioreactor Engineering Research and Industrial Applications II

Science & Nature

This book review series presents current trends in modern biotechnology. The aim is to cover all aspects of this interdisciplinary technology where knowledge, methods and expertise are required from chemistry, biochemistry, microbiology, genetics, chemical engineering and computer science.Volumes are organized topically and provide a comprehensive discussion of developments in the respective field over the past 3-5 years. The series also discusses new discoveries and applications. Special volumes are dedicated to selected topics which focus on new biotechnological products and new processes for their synthesis and purification.In general, special volumes are edited by well-known guest editors. The series editor and publisher will however always be pleased to receive suggestions and supplementary information. Manuscripts are accepted in English.

Como o mundo funciona

Science & Nature

Cientista renomado faz análise fundamental sobre o que a ciência e a tecnologia modernas — que tornam possível a vida no século XXI — são ou não capazes de fazer.Nunca tivemos tanta informação na palma da mão, e, ainda assim, a maioria de nós não faz ideia de como as coisas realmente funcionam. Este livro explica sete das realidades fundamentais para nossa sobrevivência e prosperidade. Da produção de energia à de alimentos, passando pelo mundo material e sua globalização, até os riscos que enfrentam o meio ambiente e seu futuro, Como o mundo funciona é um necessário choque de realidade — porque, para que possamos lidar bem com nossos problemas, precisamos estar cientes dos fatos.Neste livro ambicioso e provocante, vemos, por exemplo, que a globalização não é inevitável — em 2020, ficou evidente que era uma ingenuidade permitir que 70% das luvas de borracha do mundo inteiro viessem de uma única fábrica — e que nossas sociedades têm sido cada vez mais dependentes de combustíveis fósseis, a ponto de qualquer promessa de descarbonização até 2050 não passar de um conto de fadas. Por exemplo, cada tomate cultivado em estufa e comprado em supermercado tem o equivalente a cinco colheres de diesel embutidas em sua produção, e ainda não conseguimos fabricar aço, cimento ou plástico em escala sem grandes emissões de carbono.Com base nos mais recentes dados científicos, Smil responde à pergunta mais profunda de nossa época: estamos condenados ou há luz no fim do túnel? Este guia interdisciplinar aponta as falhas nessas duas teorias e, dotado de um olhar quantitativo para o mundo, revela as verdades ocultas que mudam nosso jeito de enxergar o passado, o presente e o futuro incerto.“Um livro acessível que nos oferece as bases necessárias para lidarmos com nossos desafios mais complexos.” — Bill Gates

L'invisibile

Science & Nature

«Verso il 1680 lo scrittore inglese John Aubrey mise per iscritto un incantesimo di invisibilità che sembra tirato fuori da una fiaba, e per giunta una particolarmente macabra. Un mercoledí mattina, prima del sorgere del sole, bisogna sotterrare la testa recisa di un suicida insieme a sette fagioli neri. Dopo aver annaffiato i fagioli per sette giorni con un buon brandy, apparirà uno spirito che baderà a essi e alla testa sepolta. Il giorno successivo i fagioli germoglieranno e bisognerà convincere una bambina a coglierli e a toglierli dai baccelli. Uno di questi fagioli, messo in bocca, renderà invisibili. Aubrey racconta che due mercanti ebrei di Londra, non riuscendo a procurarsi la testa di un suicida, ci provarono con quella di un povero gatto ucciso ritualmente. La sotterrarono insieme ai fagioli nel giardino di un tal Wyld Clark, col suo permesso. Il modo in cui Aubrey assapora senza commento il finale quasi comico ci fa pensare che fin dall'inizio fosse scettico sull'esito, perché ci spiega che il gallo di Clark disseppellí i fagioli e li mangiò senza conseguenze. Nonostante il rischio di questi contrattempi prosaici, i testi magici dal Medioevo fino all'inizio dell'Illuminismo danno mostra di una gran sicurezza di sé, per quanto bizzarre possano essere le loro ricette. Certo che la magia funzionerà, se saremo arditi a sufficienza da correre il rischio. Non era solo una trovata «pubblicitaria»: all'epoca c'era una fiducia universale nell'efficacia della magia. Il popolino la temeva e la bramava, il clero la condannava, gli intellettuali e i filosofi, come anche numerosi ciarlatani e truffatori, davano a intendere di conoscerla. È tra queste ricette fantasiose che inizia la ricerca delle origini dell'invisibilità, sia come possibilità teorica che come tecnologia concreta nel mondo reale. Rendere qualcosa invisibile era un tipo di magia, ma che cosa significava di preciso?»

Top-Down Causation and Emergence

Science & Nature

This book presents the latest research, conducted by leading philosophers and scientists from various fields, on the topic of top-down causation. The chapters combine to form a unique, interdisciplinary perspective, drawing upon George Ellis's extensive research and novel perspectives on topics including downwards causation, weak and strong emergence, mental causation, biological relativity, effective field theory and levels in nature. The collection also serves as a Festschrift in honour of George Ellis' 80th birthday. The extensive and interdisciplinary scope of this book makes it vital reading for anyone interested in the work of George Ellis and current research on the topics of causation and emergence.

Reason in Revolt

Science & Nature

The achievements of science and technology during the past century are unparalleled in history. They provide the potential for the solution to all the problems faced by the planet, and equally for its total destruction. Allegedly scientific theories are being used to "prove" that criminality is caused, not by social conditions, but by a "criminal gene". Black people are alleged to be disadvantaged, not because of discrimination, but because of their genetic make-up. Of course, such "science" is highly convenient to right-wing politicians intent on ruthlessly cutting welfare.In the field of theoretical physics and cosmology there is a growing tendency towards mysticism. The "Big Bang" theory of the origin of the universe is being used to justify the existence of a Creator, as in the book of Genesis . For the first time in centuries, science appears to lend credence to religious obscurantism. Yet this is only one side of the story.A growing number of scientists are becoming discontented with the old outlook. The rapid rise of the theory of Chaos and Complexity is one of the most significant developments in science at the turn of the new millennium. Many of the ideas expressed by this new trend are strikingly similar to the theories of dialectical materialism worked out by Marx and Engels over 150 years ago.A significant part of the present work is devoted to an exploration of the relationship between Marxist philosophy and the new theories. Will this encounter provide the basis for a new and exciting breakthrough in the methodology of science?

Nanoengineering of Biomaterials

Science & Nature

A comprehensive discussion of various types of nanoengineered biomaterials and their applications In Nanoengineering of Biomaterials: Drug Delivery & Biomedical Applications, an expert team of chemists delivers a succinct exploration of the synthesis, characterization, in-vitro and in-vivo drug molecule release, pharmacokinetic activity, pharmacodynamic activity, and the biomedical applications of several types of nanoengineered biomaterials. The editors have also included resources to highlight the most current developments in the field. The book is a collection of valuable and accessible reference sources for researchers in materials chemistry and related disciplines. It uses a functions-directed approach to using organic and inorganic source compounds that translate into biological systems as scaffolds, micelles, dendrimers, and other delivery systems. Nanoengineering of Biomaterials offers readers up-to-date chemistry and material science insights that are readily transferrable to biomedical systems. The book also includes: Thorough introductions to alginate nanoparticle delivery of therapeutics and chitosan-based nanomaterials in biological applications Comprehensive explorations of nanostructured carrageenan as a drug carrier, gellan gum nanoparticles in drug delivery, and guar-gum nanoparticles in the delivery of bioactive molecules Practical discussions of protein-based nanoparticles for drug delivery, solid lipid nanoparticles as drug carriers, and pH-responsive nanoparticles in therapy In-depth examinations of stimuli-responsive nano carriers in drug targeting Perfect for pharmaceutical chemists, materials scientists, polymer chemists, life scientists, and medicinal chemists, Nanoengineering of Biomaterials: Drug Delivery and Biomedical Applications is also an indispensable resource for biologists and bioengineers seeking a one-stop reference on the transferability of materials chemistry and nanotechnology to biomedicine.

Towards a New Scientific Realism

Science & Nature

This book presents an argument for a new type of scientific realism beyond naturalism, correlationism and what the author terms 'objective realism'. To achieve this positive philosophical proposal, Jan Voosholz develops a thorough critique of current debates surrounding realism and antirealism in philosophy of science as well as those concerning new and speculative realism. Moreover, in order to provide a new outlook for the philosophy of the natural sciences, this book advances and introduces decisive arguments to that debate from speculative and new realist discussions in ontology and epistemology. Consequently, it develops a unique starting point for a pluralistic philosophy of nature. Any proponent or adversary of new, speculative, perspectival or pragmatic realism, ontic or epistemic structural realism, scientific pluralism, feminist or structural empiricism, selective scepticism, non-reductive or reductive naturalism with an interest in general philosophy of science should take the careful reconstruction of the debates and the novel arguments presented in this book into account. Readers interested in philosophy and the sciences with an interest in these areas of theoretical philosophy will find in this book an informative and comprehensive outline of the state of the art in the epistemology and ontology of the natural sciences.

Impulsive Synchronization of Complex Dynamical Networks

Science & Nature

This book is mainly focused on the global impulsive synchronization of complex dynamical networks with different types of couplings, such as general state coupling, nonlinear state coupling, time-varying delay coupling, derivative state coupling, proportional delay coupling and distributed delay coupling. Studies on impulsive synchronization of complex dynamical networks have attracted engineers and scientists from various disciplines, such as electrical engineering, mechanical engineering, mathematics, network science, system engineering. Pursuing a holistic approach, the book establishes a fundamental framework for this topic, while emphasizing the importance of network synchronization and the significant influence of impulsive control in the design and optimization of complex networks. The primary audience for the book would be the scholars and graduate students whose research topics including the network science, control theory, applied mathematics, system science and so on.

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