Did you know—• It took more than an iceberg to sink the Titanic.• The Challenger disaster was predicted.• Unbreakable glass dinnerware had its origin in railroad lanterns.• A football team cannot lose momentum.• Mercury thermometers are prohibited on airplanes for a crucial reason.• Kryptonite bicycle locks are easily broken.“Things fall apart” is more than a poetic insight—it is a fundamental property of the physical world. Why Things Bre...

From the first spark created by human hands thousands of years ago, mankind has grown dependent on nature’s vast stores of energy to build, explore, and experiment. Our expanding knowledge and technologies have come from the felling of forests to the harnessing of wind and water, from the burning of coal and oil to tapping the energy of the atom. Energy does more than heat our homes and fill our gas tanks; it fuels our imaginations. Our future is inextricably linked to energy, and in this ...

"Climate change is coming. What can we do about it? TV's 'Science Guy' has some answers. . . . An important message delivered in a winning manner." — Kirkus ReviewsJust as World War II called an earlier generation to greatness, so the climate crisis is calling today's rising youth to action: to create a better future.In Unstoppable, Bill Nye expands the message for which he is best known and beloved. That message is that with a combination o...

An "illuminating and important" look at the scientists, engineers, and entrepreneurs who are working to save us from catastrophic climate change ( New York Journal of Books).Nikola Tesla was considered a mad scientist by the society of his time for predicting global warming more than a hundred years ago. Today, we need visionaries like him to find sources of alternative energy and solutions to this looming threat.Mad Like Tesla takes an in...

In clear and accessible language, Generation Us explains the phenomenon of global warming, outlines the threat it presents to future generations and offers a path toward solutions to the problem. The reality of global warming has long been accepted within the scientific community, yet it remains a hotly debated topic at the political and social level. Why is this? Is it the fact that the ultimate effects of global warming will not be felt in our lifetimes? Do we really feel no moral respon...

_______________'When the history of the climate crisis is written, Hansen will be seen as the scientist with the most powerful and consistent voice calling for intelligent action to preserve our planet's environment' - Al Gore'Few people know more about climate change than James Hansen ... This unnerving and fluently written book is the definitive one to read' - BBC Wildlife'Anyone concerne...

“A triumph.”—Steve Weinberg, Boston GlobeThis is “must-have” information for all presidents—and citizens—of the twenty-first century: Is Iran’s nascent nuclear capability a genuine threat to the West? Are biochemical weapons likely to be developed by terrorists? Are there viable alternatives to fossil fuels that should be nurtured and supported by the government? Should nuclear power be encouraged? Can global warming be stopped?

Today, the issue of waste management is as prominent as reactor safety in the controversies surrounding nuclear power and is particularly topical in the US since the 2010 closure of the Yucca Mountain repository project. William M. and Rosemarie Alley provide an engaging and authoritative account of the controversies and possibilities surrounding disposal of nuclear waste in the US, with reference also to other countries around the world. The book tells the full history from the beginnings...

“Persuasive and based on deep research. Atomic Awakening taught me a great deal." —NatureThe American public's introduction to nuclear technology was manifested in destruction and death. With Hiroshima and the Cold War still ringing in our ears, our perception of all things nuclear is seen through the lens of weapons development. Nuclear power is full of mind-bending theories, deep secrets, and the misdirection of public consciousness, some delibe...

“A definitive guide to astronomy’s hottest field.” —The EconomistSince its formation nearly five billion years ago, our planet has been the sole living world in a vast and silent universe. But over the past two decades, astronomers have discovered thousands of “exoplanets,” including some that could be similar to our own world, and the pace of discovery is accelerating.In a fascinating account of this unfolding revolution, Lee Billings draws on int...

“Weird indeed, and not a little wonderful.”—NatureIn the 1980s and 1990s, in places where no one thought it possible, scientists found organisms they called extremophiles: lovers of extremes. There were bacteria in volcanic hydrothermal vents on the ocean floor, single-celled algae in Antarctic ice floes, and fungi in the cooling pools of nuclear reactors.But might there be life stranger than the most extreme extremophile? Might there be, somewhere...

There is a force out there that could destroy our world in minutes. . . .Solar flares—brief bursts of radiation from our sun—have always existed and have never been particularly dangerous. Nature hasn’t changed. But we have. By making our world so dependent on electricity delivered by huge, unprotected power grids we have inadvertently placed humanity at terrible risk. As bestselling author Whitley Strieber explores in this urgent new work, a powerful solar flare could demolish our...