Search results for ""planet!""

The essential and defining new collection of the best British nature writing‘Tim Dee has brought together a wonderous array of talent for this life-affirming, often magical anthology’ ObserverWe are living in the anthropocene – an epoch where everything is being determined by the activities of just one soft-skinned, warm-blooded, short-lived, pedestrian species. How do we make our way through the ruins that we have made? This anthology tries to answer this as it explores new and enduring cultural landscapes, in a celebration of local distinctiveness that includes new work from some of our finest writers. We have memories of childhood homes from Adam Thorpe, Marina Warner and Sean O’Brien; we journey with John Burnside to the Arizona desert, with Hugh Brody to the Canadian Arctic; going from Tessa Hadley’s hymn to her London garden to caving in the Mendips with Sean Borodale to shell-collecting on a Suffolk beach with Julia Blackburn.Helen Macdonald, in her remarkable piece on growing up in a 50-acre walled estate, reflects on our failed stewardship of the planet: ‘I take stock.’ she says, ‘During this sixth extinction, we who may not have time to do anything else must write now what we can, to take stock.’ This is an important, necessary book.

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'He effectively combines the genre of travel writing with investigative journalism, and brings to light little-known conflicts and events from around the world.' - Perceptive TravelIn Journeys to Impossible Places, best-selling author and presenter Simon Reeve reveals the inside story of his most astonishing adventures and experiences, around the planet and close to home.Journeys to Impossible Places continues the story Simon started in his phenomenal Sunday Times bestseller Step by Step, which traced the first decades of his life from depressed and unemployed teenager through to his early TV programmes.Now Simon takes us on the epic and thrilling adventures that followed, in beautiful, tricky and downright dangerous corners of the world, as he travelled through the Tropics, to remote paradise islands, jungles dripping with heat and life, and on nerve-wracking secret missions. Simon shares what his unique experiences and encounters have taught him, and the deeper lessons he draws from joy and raw grief in his personal life, from desperate struggles with his own fertility and head health, from wise friends, fatherhood, inspiring villagers, brave fighters, his beloved dogs, and a thoughtful Indian sadhu.Journeys to Impossible Places inspires and encourages all of us to battle fear and negativity, and embrace life, risk, opportunities and the glory of our world.

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'AN ORIGINAL AND TIMELY ODYSSEY INTO OUR MYSTERIOUS UNDERWORLD . . . THRILLING PROOF THAT SCIENCE AND IMAGINATION SHARE THE GROUND BENEATH OUR FEET' Nicholas Crane, presenter of BBC2's Coast and Great British JourneysIf you were to peel back the Earth's surface like an orange, then take a sly peek underneath, what extraordinary things would you see?Subterranea is where the world's remaining mysteries are yet to be found. For millennia, across nations and cultures, it has been a hotbed of fantastical stories. It's where humans have kept their most sacred treasures and their darkest secrets. It's where we have found evidence of our past and may, at some point, find an escape route for our uncertain future. But what would we find there today? From the underground cities of Cappadocia to smuggling tunnels on the US-Mexico border, caves full of tiny blind dragons and a seed vault located 1300km inside the Arctic circle, Subterranea demonstrates that the world below our feet is every bit as vivid and evocative as the world we see around us. Lavishly illustrated and replete with maps and photographs of little-explored locations, Subterranea is the unique, untold and utterly unforgettable story of our planet from the inside.

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Sir Hubert Wilkins is one of the most remarkable Australians who ever lived.The son of pioneer pastoralists in South Australia, Hubert studied engineering before moving on to photography. In 1908 he sailed for England and a job producing films with the Gaumont Film Co. Brave and bold, he became a polar expeditioner, a brilliant war photographer, a spy in the Soviet Union, a pioneering aviator-navigator, a death-defying submariner - all while being an explorer and chronicler of the planet and its life forms that would do Vasco da Gama and Sir David Attenborough proud. As a WW1 photographer he was twice awarded the Military Cross for bravery under fire, the only Australian photographer in any war to be decorated. He explored the Antarctic with Sir Ernest Shackleton, led a groundbreaking ornithological study in Australia and was knighted in 1928 for his aviation exploits, but many more astounding achievements would follow. Wilkins' quest for knowledge and polar explorations were lifelong passions and his missions to polar regions aboard the submarine Nautilus the stuff of legend.With masterful storytelling skill, Peter FitzSimons illuminates the life of Hubert Wilkins and his incredible achievements. Thrills and spills, derring-do, new worlds discovered - this is the most unforgettable tale of the most extraordinary life lived by any Australian.

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Magical Places is for armchair-voyagers and pilgrimage-makers alike. This beautiful volume will take readers on a charmed journey around the world, dipping into some of the most storied destinations in the farthest flung corners of the globe. With chapters like Places of Healing, Haunted Places, Magic in Nature, Fairy Tale Locales, The Past in the Present, and Ley Lines -- the arcing lines that traverse the planet, where magical phenomena frequently occur -- wanderlust is sure to be stoked for frequent travelers and the magic curious alike. With an eye towards the mystical, Magical Places will explore well-known sites like Stonehenge and Uluru, as well as lesser-known destinations like The Knucker Hole in England, Angkor Wat in Cambodia, the Fairy Glen on the Isle of Skye, and the pink lakes Retba in Senegal and Hillier in Australia. Many of these sites will be accompanied by sacred rituals, mystical incantations, and more inspired by the energy and history of these magical locations. Featuring beautiful illustrations with a smattering of lush, full-color photography, this book will entice readers who long for adventure and enchantment in the world, who want to visit or at least learn about places where magic is real -- or once was.

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'The Patron Saint of Conservation' Sir David Attenborough'Peter Scott was a huge influence on my childhood...Later on in life I had the good fortune both to meet and to interview him, and he remains, for me, a hero. His knowledge, his kindness to me and his generosity of spirit have remained an influence in my own sphere of natural history....To meet one's heroes can sometimes be a let-down. That was most certainly not the case with Peter Scott.' Alan TitchmarshA Life In Nature is a portrait of Peter Scott collected from his own conversations, articles and broadcasts including thoughts on expeditions to Lapland, Conservation and Africa, his travels in Europe and much more. Illustrated by Peter's own beautiful illustrations. Sir Peter Scott had a truly incredible life. He was the only son of legendary explorer Captain Scott. His godfather was JM Barrie and he was married to Elizabeth Jane Howard. He also represented Great Britain and Northern Ireland at sailing in the 1936 Berlin Olympic Games, winning a bronze medal. He founded the Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust and also helped to found the Worldwide Fund for Nature.This is a beautiful and timely re-discovered book, perfect for those who are interested in preserving our planet.

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'Funny, wise and mock heroic . . . The funniest and best crafted book I have read all year' Sunday ExpressThe Discworld is very much like our own - if our own were to consist of a flat planet balanced on the back of four elephants which stand on the back of a giant turtle, that is . . .__________________'What's so hard about pulling a sword out of a stone? The real work's already been done. You ought to make yourself useful and find the man who put the sword in the stone in the first place.'The City Watch needs MEN! But what it's got includes Corporal Carrot (technically a dwarf), Lance-constable Cuddy (really a dwarf), Lance-constable Detritus (a troll), Lance-constable Angua (a woman... most of the time) and Corporal Nobbs (disqualified from the human race for shoving).And they need all the help they can get, because someone in Ankh-Morpork has been getting dangerous ideas - about crowns and legendary swords, and destiny.And the problem with destiny is, of course, that she is not always careful where she points her finger. One minute you might be minding your own business on a normal if not spectacular career path, the next you might be in the frame for the big job, like saving the world . . .

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'Josiah Bancroft is a magician. His books are that rare alchemy: gracefully written, deliriously imaginative, action-packed, warm, witty and thought-provoking' Madeline Miller, author of Circe'Like its predecessor, it is a brilliant piece of work . . . these two books are genius. I just love them. The story, characters and imagination shine' Mark LawrenceForced by necessity into a life of piracy, Senlin and his eclectic crew struggle to survive aboard their stolen airship as the hunt for his lost wife continues. But the Tower of Babel is proving to be as difficult to re-enter as it was to escape.Hopeless and desolate, they turn to a legend of the tower, the mysterious Sphinx. But help from the sphinx doesn't come cheaply and, as Senlin knows, debts aren't always what they seem in the Tower of Babel.Praise for the series:'Brilliant' - Publishers Weekly'I loved it' - Django Wexler'An engrossing intoxicating delight' - Forbidden Planet 'An extraordinary debut that is well worthy of the hype. A beautifully written, highly engaging page-turning masterpiece' - Fantasy Book Review 'Thomas Senlin is the most unlikely yet likeable hero since a certain hobbit rushed out of Bag End leaving his second breakfast half-finished and entirely unwashed-up' - Fantasy Faction

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Before The Matrix, before Star Wars, before Ender's Game and Neuromancer, there was Dune: winner of the prestigious Hugo and Nebula awards, and widely considered one of the greatest science fiction novels ever written. Melange, or 'spice', is the most valuable - and rarest - element in the universe; a drug that does everything from increasing a person's life-span to making intersteller travel possible. And it can only be found on a single planet: the inhospitable desert world Arrakis. Whoever controls Arrakis controls the spice. And whoever controls the spice controls the universe.When the Emperor transfers stewardship of Arrakis from the noble House Harkonnen to House Atreides, the Harkonnens fight back, murdering Duke Leto Atreides. Paul, his son, and Lady Jessica, his concubine, flee into the desert. On the point of death, they are rescued by a band for Fremen, the native people of Arrakis, who control Arrakis' second great resource: the giant worms that burrow beneath the burning desert sands. In order to avenge his father and retake Arrakis from the Harkonnens, Paul must earn the trust of the Fremen and lead a tiny army against the innumerable forces aligned against them. And his journey will change the universe.

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Finance is widely seen as an obstacle to a better world. Principles of Sustainable Finance explains how the financial sector can be mobilized to counter this. Using finance as a means to achieve social goals, we can divert the planet and its economy from its current path to a world that is sustainable for all. Written for undergraduate, graduate, and executive students of finance, economics, business, and sustainability, this textbook combines theory, empirical data, and policy to explain the sustainability challenges for corporate investment. It shows how finance can steer funding to certain companies and projects without sacrificing return and thus speed up the transition to a sustainable economy. It analyses the Sustainable Development Goals as a strategy for a better world and provides evidence that environmental, social, and governance factors matter, explaining in detail how to incorporate these factors in the corporate and financial sectors. Tailored for students, Principles of Sustainable Finance starts each chapter with an overview and learning objectives to support study. It includes suggestions for further reading, lists and definitions of key concepts, and extensive uses of figures, boxes, and tables to enhance educational goals and clarify concepts. Principles of Sustainable Finance is also supported by an online resource that includes teaching materials and cases.

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In Tiger x 4, Tiger tries to fix the ship's fabricator, accidently creating three copies of himself! Can the micro-friends turn the disaster to their advantage when the Krools attack? Our heroes land on Planet Akwa and meet some of the local aliens but not all of them are friendly. Find out what happens in The Sands of Akwa. In Holo-board Havoc, Cat saves Tiger from a holo-board disaster, but there is yet more trouble waiting for them when they land! In Ant's Pact, Ant makes a deal with the Akwans. But will the micro-friends be able to keep their side of the bargain? Will Max, Ant and Nok be able to save a baby Raptiss and strike a deal with the terrifying creatures? Find out in The Screams of the Raptiss. In The Secret Whirlpool, Max, Ant and Nok go deep inside a huge crater to find the first fragment of Exis. But will they be able to get it? Each book comes with notes on the inside front and back covers for teachers, TAs and parents/carers, which give question prompts and points for discussion, challenge words, and additional activities that children can do.

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'A great guide to the many things you can do to reduce your plastic footprint.' - Craig Reucassel, ABC TV's War on Waste Where do you start if you want to reduce the plastic in your life? Especially when most of us are wearing it, eating and drinking from it, sitting on it, walking on it, and probably even ingesting it. Anywhere you go, plastic is within easy reach - even in Antarctica and the North Pole. We didn't quit plastic overnight. In fact, it's still a work in progress. But along the way, we have learnt a lot by researching the issue from the grass roots up, speaking to people, and finding out what works and what doesn't. We answer the tricky questions, like 'How will I wash my hair?', 'Do I have to give up crackers?', 'What about my bin liner?' and 'Is this going to be expensive?' As we continue to remove throw-away plastics from our daily lives, we've discovered we're friendlier with our local communities, we're eating healthier food, and de-cluttering happens by itself. It feels great!'The simple, practical tips in this inspiring guide will help you reduce plastic in your daily life and help the planet too - every little bit counts!' - Rebecca Prince-Ruiz, Plastic Free July Foundation

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Christina Strutt of Cabbages & Roses reveals how to have a calmer, healthier, eco-friendly home. Saving the planet for future generations is a laudable aim, but what about the current populace? Why wait when even quite small lifestyle changes can make a big difference now? Green Housekeeping is full of advice and information to help you take a more sustainable path. Recycling, reusing and shopping at farmers’ markets are a good start, but cutting down on the use of poisonous chemicals is just as important – it’s perfectly possible to clean a house using nothing more than lemons, bicarbonate of soda, vinegar and plain water. Here old-fashioned methods are complemented by newer ideas and innovations, and applied not only to cleaning but also to caring for clothes, furniture, and even silver and glassware. Growing some of your own vegetables, fruit and herbs can be very satisfying, and you can use any extras to make jams, oils and chutneys using the handy tips and delicious recipes. Make beauty preparations and bath oils, too, for soothing, effective treatments to enhance everyday health and wellbeing. To become eco-friendly doesn’t require self-sacrifice – just some readjustment; and by following the advice in this invaluable guide you will find yourself living a calmer, greener life.

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Schoolgirl reporter Rani Ramgoolam and her badly behaved grandmother set out to solve a mystery in this first book in a fun, illustrated new series for fans of Anisha Accidental Detective and Planet Omar A Times Children's Book of the Year ‘With amusing characters and an unpredictable, entertaining plot that keeps you guessing till the end, this is the perfect middle-grade adventure.' The Times 'News flash! Rani Reports is a total delight! Full of intrigue, humour and heart' - Abi Elphinstone, author of The Dreamsnatcher trilogy I’m Rani Ramgoolam – roving reporter. And I think I’ve found the perfect story for the junior journalism competition run by the local paper. An eccentric millionaire has created a treasure hunt with a reward for the first person who figures out the clues. Luckily, my mischievous Nani is visiting from Mauritius. She’s promised to help me work out what a priceless painting, a minotaur and a glass eye have in common. “Murder, murder! Call the cops!” Oh, and that’s Cookie, my parrot. I’m not sure he’ll be much use. But the race is on and I’ll need all the help I can get. Especially when some people are resorting to sneaky tricks to get their hands on the prize…

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Explore the animal kingdom like you've never known before with this children's encyclopedia perfect for young animal lovers. Forming part of a fantastic series of kid's educational books, this bold and brilliant kid's encyclopedia uses ground-breaking CGI imagery to reveal the world as you've never seen it before. Informative, diverse in subject matter, easy-to-read and brimming with beautiful graphics, young learners can explore the incredibly detailed cross-sections and cutaways that reveal the inner workings of the animal planet. This charming children's encyclopedia opens the world in new ways, with: -Packed with facts, charts, timelines, and illustrations that cover a vast range of topics. -Encompassing a visual approach with illustrations, photographs and extremely detailed 3D CGI images.-Crystal clear text distills the key information.-DK's encyclopedias are fact-checked by subject experts to offer accuracy beyond online sources of information.This fully-updated edition of Knowledge Encyclopedia Animal! is the perfect encyclopedia for children aged 9-12, and introduces children to the major animal groups along with how they fit into the tree of life. Covering invertebrates, fish, reptiles, amphibians, birds, mammals and more, this amazing animal book for kids is jam-packed with fun facts about your favourite animals and lesser-known species as well as insightful infographics and data boxes so that every topic is covered in depth and detail while remaining easy to understand at a glance. Explore, Discover And Learn!DK's Knowledge Encyclopedia Animal! uncovers the marvels of the animal kingdom in unprecedented detail and with stunning realism, so you can spend quality time exploring the diversity of the animal world with your children, accompanied by impressive visuals to engage their senses. A must-have volume for curious kids with a thirst for knowledge, this enthralling animal encyclopedia is structured in such a way that your child can read a bit at a time, and feel comfortable to pause and ask questions. Doubling up as the perfect gift for young readers, who are always asking questions about our planet! At DK, we believe in the power of discovery. This thrilling kid's encyclopedia is part of the Knowledge Encyclopedia educational series. Celebrate your child's curiosity as they complete the collection and discover diverse facts about the world around them. Dive into the deep blue with Knowledge Encyclopedia Ocean! Travel back in time to when dinosaurs roamed the earth with Knowledge Encyclopedia Dinosaur! And hone your knowledge on how the human body works with Knowledge Encyclopedia Human Body! Whatever topic takes their fancy, there's an encyclopedia for everyone!

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A DROID AND HIS BOY, ON A SEARCH FOR A LEGENDARY WEAPON Daslakh is an AI with a problem. Its favorite human, a young man named Zee, is in love with a woman who never existed — and he will scour the Solar System to find her. But in the Tenth Millennium a billion worlds circle the Sun—everything from terraformed planets to artificial habitats, home to a quadrillion beings. Daslakh's nicely settled life gets more complicated when Zee helps a woman named Adya escape a gang of crooks. This gets the pair caught up in the hunt for the Godel Trigger, a legendary weapon left over from an ancient war between humans and machines—which could spell the end of civilization. In their search, they face a criminal cat and her henchmen, a paranoid supermind with a giant laser, the greatest thief in history, and a woman who might actually be Zee's lost love. It's up to Daslakh to save civilization, keep Zee's love life on the right track—and make sure that nobody discovers the real secret of the Godel Trigger. Praise for Arkad's World: “Far-flung adventure . . . Cambias offers up an entertaining coming-of-age novel filled with action and surprises. His aliens are suitably non-human in mannerisms, attitudes, and objectives, and his worldbuilding suggests a vast universe ready for further exploration. Readers . . . will find this hits the spot.”—Publishers Weekly “. . . a classic quest story, a well-paced series of encounters with different folk along the way, building momentum toward a final confrontation with Arkad's past . . . [with] a delicious twist to the end.”—ALA Booklist “Cambias has achieved a feat of world-building: an expansive, believable setting with fascinating aliens, compelling mysteries, and a rich sense of history.”—Bookpage “Drop a teenage boy into a distant planet chock full of colorful aliens—with troubles all their own. Stir, flavor, apply heat. A tour de force in the field, and great, quick fun.”—Gregory Benford Praise for the work of James L. Cambias: “Beautifully written, with a story that captures the imagination the way SF should.”—Booklist, starred review “An engaging nail-biter that is exciting, fun and a satisfying read.”—The Qwillery '“An impressive debut by a gifted writer.”—Publishers Weekly, starred review “An exceptionally thoughtful, searching and intriguing debut.”—Kirkus, starred review “James Cambias will be one of the century's major names in hard science fiction.”—Robert J. Sawyer, Hugo Award–winning author of Red Planet Blues “Fast-paced, pure quill hard science fiction. . . . Cambias delivers adroit plot pivots that keep the suspense coming.”—Gregory Benford, Nebula Award-winning author of Timescape

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'A lively study of the Big C, which makes the case that cancer is the price we pay for our marvellously complicated bodies.' The Times, best books of 2020'This book is packed with big ideas about life. Every chapter has something in it which made me think wow. Having worked in a major cancer charity for many years, Arney writes with genuine in-depth understanding and is a perfect guide.' Daniel M. Davis, author of The Beautiful Cure'Rebel Cell is a bright, engaging read, fizzing with energy and metaphor. Kat Arney is a science writer for all of us - a powerful and talented story teller.' Stephen McGann'Kat's book is Dynamite. A crystal clear reappraisal of the story behind that word we fear to mention.' Dallas Campbell, author of Ad Astra: An Illustrated Guide to Leaving the PlanetCancer has always been with us. It killed our hominid ancestors, the mammals they evolved from and the dinosaurs that trampled the ground before that. Tumours grow in pets, livestock and wild animals. Even tiny jelly-like Hydra - creatures that are little more than a tube full of water - can get cancer. Paradoxically, many of us think of cancer as a contemporary killer, a disease of our own making caused by our modern lifestyles. But that's not true. Although it might be rare in many species, cancer is the enemy lurking within almost every living creature. Why? Because cancer is a bug in the system of life. We get cancer because we can't not get it.Cancer starts when cells revolt, throwing off their molecular shackles, and growing and dividing out of control in a shambolic mockery of normal life. This is why we can't avoid cancer: because the very genes that drive it are essential for life itself. The revolution has raged, on and off, for millions of years. But it was only in the twentieth century that doctors and scientists made any significant progress in understanding and treating cancer, and it's only in the past few decades that we've finally begun to kick the mob's malignant arse. Now the game is changing. Scientists have infiltrated cancer's cellular rebellion and are finally learning its secrets.Geneticist and science writer Kat Arney takes the reader back to the dawn of life on planet earth right up to the present day to get to the heart of what cancer really is and how by better understanding it we might one day overcome it.

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This run of stories featuring Tom Baker as the Fourth Doctor features four stories, loosely connected as the Doctor finds himself the target of an enemy. This set contains: The Sinestran Kill by Andrew Smith. When the Doctor decides to trace an anomalous energy signature on twentieth century Earth, he stumbles into an assassination attempt. Gangland thugs are trying to murder a seemingly innocent shopkeeper, and it’s only the intervention of the Doctor and Ann Kelso – a WPC who happens to be on the scene – that prevents a tragedy. But why do the gangsters want the shopkeeper dead? And what does this have to do with alien technology? The first stages of a grand conspiracy are about to be revealed. And finding the answers will take Ann Kelso on a journey like no other. Planet of the Drashigs by Phil Mulryne. When the TARDIS lands on an alien planet, the Doctor’s intentions to show Ann Kelso an advanced future society are thrown into disarray. Because they have arrived on DrashigWorld - a park where every known species of the terrifying predators has been gathered together to entertain and thrill the public. The familiar wetland Drashigs, the albino burrowing Drashigs of the desert, and deadliest of all, the tiny Emerald Drashigs of the rain forests. And it’s not the best day to have arrived. The park has been shut down due to a visitor fatality. A Galactic Attractions inspector is on site meaning everyone is extremely tense and under pressure. It’s exactly the right circumstances in which someone might make a mistake. And on Drashigworld, mistakes are deadly. The Enchantress of Numbers by Simon Barnard and Paul Morris. The TARDIS lands in the grounds of Newstead Abbey, Nottinghamshire, in 1850. Mistaken for a medic and his maid, the Doctor and Ann are brought to meet Ada Lovelace - the mother of computing and daughter of Lord Byron - who has recently fallen ill. But the travellers are not here by chance. Something odd is happening on Earth, and they’ve determined that this place is the centre of it. Strange figures are walking the land. Strange figures wearing bird-like masks. What do they want with Ada? And how will it change the future of humanity? The False Guardian by Guy Adams. Ann Kelso doesn’t like mysteries. Keen to investigate the trail of the Sinestrans, she sets the TARDIS on a new course... but flies into danger. Arriving on a desolate world that the Doctor finds somehow familiar, the TARDIS crew discover that something is wrong with time. The inhabitants of an unusual complex are experimenting at the command of their enigmatic director... somebody who has quite a strong grudge against the Doctor.Facing an old foe who was presumed dead, the travellers are soon trapped in a diabolical scheme. But is it just the tip of the iceberg? Planet of the Drashigs features the eponymous flesh-eating monsters for the first time on audio, after their fan favourite debut in the Jon Pertwee story The Carnival of Monsters! CAST: Tom Baker (The Doctor), Jane Slavin (WPC Ann Kelso), John Leeson (K9), Frank Skinner (DCI Scott Neilson), Glynis Barber (Kathy Blake), Finty Williams (Ada Lovelace), Fenella Woolgar (Vanessa Seaborne), Ewan Bailey (Hugo Blake), Nicholas Khan (Jimmy Lynch), Leon Williams (Tony Reynolds), Jeremy Clyde (Lord Braye), Lizzie Roper (Trencher), Andrew Ryan (Titus Wayland), Andrew Havill (Colonel Wildman), Eve Webster (Hettie / Lady Cleverley), Barnaby Edwards (Mr. Hobhouse), Glen McCready (Edvard Scheutz /Lord Byron / Harry), John Shrapnel (Nigel Colloon), Anna Acton (Brox), Blake Ritson (Elmore), Roger May (Mac Foley), Tracy Wiles (Drones). Other parts played by members of the cast.

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WHAT LIES BEYOND THE ELEVENTH GATE . . . Despite economic and territorial tensions, no one wants the city-states of the Eight Worlds to repeat the Terran Collapse by going to war. But when war accidentally happens, everyone seeks ways to exploit it for gain. The Landry and Peregoy ruling dynasties see opportunities to grab territory, increase profits, and settle old scores. Exploited underclasses use war to fuel rebellion. Ambitious heirs can finally topple their elders’ regimes—or try to. But the unexpected key to either victory or peace lies with two persons uninterested in conquest, profits, or power. Philip Anderson seeks only the transcendent meaning of the physics underlying the universe. Tara Landry, spoiled and defiant youngest granddaughter of dynasty head Rachel Landry, accidentally discovers an eleventh star-jump gate, with a fabulous find on the planet behind it. Her discovery, and Philip’s use of it, alter everything for the Eight Worlds. About Nancy Kress: "Nancy Kress at her very best . . . A first-contact novel like no other."—Greg Bear on Tomorrow's Kin "It's a rare and desirable hybrid: a literary, military, hard-SF novel."—Amazon.com on Probability Moon “Nancy Kress is one of the best science-fiction writers working today."—Kim Stanley Robinson

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OUT OF THE BOWELS of the sleepy southern town of Tupelo, Mississippi, the birthplace of Elvis Presley, emerges a darkly-humorous true story of staged terror, occult ritual and mind control. The book reads like a Faulkneresque tall tale but is, unfortunately for the main character and those around him, all-too-true. Author S.K. Bain finds himself caught up in the middle of something bigger and uglier than he can at first fathom. Yet, much to his dismay, he catches on rather quickly to what’s taking place around him—and near-simultaneously elsewhere across the county in places such as Boston, MA and West, TX—because he’s seen this sort of thing before. He wrote the book on it, literally, and he soon realizes just how much danger he and his family are in. The year is 2013, the 50th anniversary of the JFK assassination, and Bain discovers that he is enmeshed in a year-long series of scripted events meticulously planned and brilliantly executed by some of the most ruthless, diabolically-creative, powerful psychopaths on the planet. As the story unfolds, it turns out that Bain has an idea who, specifically, might be behind his woes, and if he’s correct, it’s even less likely that he’s going to get out alive.

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In this adorable chapter book series that School Library Journal said is for “kids who love funny stories but may be too young for books like ­Diary of a Wimpy Kid,” space-school attendee Bob and his alien bestie Beep star in hilarious intergalactic adventures. Astro Elementary is a school near Saturn attended by the bravest, brightest, most elite kids in the galaxy…and Bob. Bob never wanted to go to fourth grade in dark, dangerous space. He even tried to fail the admissions test by bubbling in “C” for every answer—and turned out to be the only kid on Earth to get a perfect score! Bob feels he couldn’t be more misplaced at his school—until he meets Beep. Beep is an alien from the planet Orth who was kicked off his home world for being too small. The instant Bob finds him, Beep adopts Bob as his new mother. Soon Bob can’t turn around without bumping into Beep’s squishy little body. Together, they make the perfect team. And Bob logs their adventures on his space blog, or SPLOG, with Beep providing the illustrations. This stellar boxed set includes: Too Much Space! Party Crashers Take Us to Your Sugar Double Trouble

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For as long as people have known that a smudge of ash rubbed into an opening in the skin would leave a permanent mark, tattoos have been a facet of society. Every people on the planet have had a tradition of tattooing, from the ocean-faring Polynesians that spread their culture from Tahiti to Hawaii and New Zealand, to the ancient Egyptians and the nomadic peoples of Africa, to both North and South America and the ancient peoples of Eurasia and the Middle East. Tattoos have been used to mark rites of passage, offer relief from pain and illness, provide magical protection against evil, or carry an identifying family mark. While the idea of having a tattoo has been, up until recently, considered a risque activity of a certain subsection of the population, the reality is that getting a tattoo has been a fairly ordinary thing for most people to do for thousands of years. Some topics include tattoos and circus performers, tattoo machines, medicinal effects of inking, tattoos in literature and films, and more. The book covers the earliest known examples of tattoos to the more recent innovations in the field, such as ultraviolet ink, and temporary tattoos containing one s personal and financial data.

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We are currently facing significant challenges in environmental management that must be addressed to maintain the health of our planet and our population. While carbon offsetting in its various forms is widespread globally, few countries have fully legislated and put into operation other offset policies. This edited collection aims to fill the gap of knowledge on environmental offsets, from theory to practice.Environmental Offsets addresses four major forms of environmental offsets – biodiversity offsets, carbon offsets, offsetting the depletion of non-renewable resources and offsetting the destruction of built heritage. The authors discuss their research and provide case studies from around Australia and across the developing world. Using examples such as the Sydney Olympics, the Bakossi Forest Reserve in Cameroon and green roof gardens, this book highlights the strengths and weaknesses of environmental offsetting and illustrates how jobs can be created in the offsetting process. Environmental Offsets is both a historical source in our understanding of environmental offsetting and a guide to the way forward. It illustrates what works, what does not and what can be improved for the future. Features: An easy-to-read presentation of the theory and practice of environmental offsetting. Illustrates the approach to estimating the amount of carbon dioxide offset. Includes case studies from Australia and across the developing world.

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Although vast and complex, the universe is orderly in many ways, and conditions at its beginning were right for the eventual evolution of life on this planet. But with life there is death, and with sentient life there is great pain and suffering, often with no apparent justification or purpose. Taking these things together, is it reasonable to conclude that the universe was brought about by God? Moreover, does the magnitude of seemingly pointless suffering square with the idea that God exists, or is it good reason to think there is no God? These questions come up for many people, not just religious believers, and are examined in this engaging and thought-provoking book. Starting out with no pre-disposition to theism, atheism, or agnosticism, God, Evil, and Design takes up these questions in order to see where an impartial investigation leads. To achieve impartiality, the reader is invited to simulate ignorance insofar as his or her own religious preference is concerned. With this approach, God, Evil, and Design provides both a fresh look at important and controversial issues in philosophy and an excellent introduction to the contemporary debates surrounding them. Lively and non-technical, this book will be accessible to anyone with an interest in these topics.

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The recipient of RWA's Lifetime Achievement Award and ITW's ThrillerMaster Award, Heather Graham is at the pinnacle of her career. In Blood Moon, she and USA Today bestselling author Jon Land continue the story of high school seniors Alex Chin and Samantha Dixon that began with The Rising. After winning a major battle against the alien invaders, Alex and Sam's journey to save humanity continues even as their friendship blossoms into something more. Guiding their steps is a mysterious book, written in a language that has never been deciphered . . . until Alex finds himself able to translate it. Soon, the teens are traversing the world, with each new destination holding another key to defeating the aliens. An ageless foe, long the guardian of the secrets his race left behind on Earth, rises to stop them, whatever the cost. At his disposal is a deadly and merciless army that has been awaiting this very war, an army as unstoppable as it is relentless. Over the ruins of the lost Mayan city of El Mirador, a blood moon is about to rise, triggering the end of humanity, unless Alex and Sam can prevail in a struggle that will determine the fate of the planet.

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A master of science fiction introduces a world where everything is large and the problems of survival even larger in this exciting new novel.Hella is a planet where everything is oversized—especially the ambitions of the colonists. The trees are mile-high, the dinosaur herds are huge, and the weather is extreme—so extreme, the colonists have to migrate twice a year to escape the blistering heat of summer and the atmosphere-freezing cold of winter. Kyle is a neuro-atypical young man, emotionally challenged, but with an implant that gives him real-time access to the colony's computer network, making him a very misunderstood savant. When an overburdened starship arrives, he becomes the link between the established colonists and the refugees from a ravaged Earth. The Hella colony is barely self-sufficient. Can it stand the strain of a thousand new arrivals, bringing with them the same kinds of problems they thought they were fleeing? Despite the dangers to himself and his family, Kyle is in the middle of everything—in possession of the most dangerous secret of all. Will he be caught in a growing political conspiracy? Will his reawakened emotions overwhelm his rationality? Or will he be able to use his unique ability to prevent disaster?

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Now in mass market, the second book in a thrilling sci-fi action adventure, set on a treacherous alien planet where corporate threats and dangerous creatures imperil the lives of the planet's colonists.New York Times bestselling author W. Michael Gear returns us to the world he laid out with such sure purpose in Outpost. The struggle for survival sharpens as resources dwindle, technology fails, and the grim reality of life on Donovan unfolds. Supervisor Kalico Aguila has bet everything on a fragile settlement far south of Port Authority. There, she has carved a farm and mine out of wilderness. But Donovan is closing in. When conditions couldn't get worse, a murderous peril descends out of Donovan's sky--one that will leave Kalico bleeding and shattered.Talina Perez gambles her life and reputation in a bid to atone for ruthlessly murdering a woman's husband years ago. Ironically, saving Dya Simonov may save them all.Lieutenant Deb Spiro is losing it, and by killing a little girl's pet alien, she may have precipitated disaster for all. In the end, the only hope will lie with a "lost" colony, and the alien-infested reflexes possessed by Security Officer Talina Perez.On Donovan, only human beings are more terrifying than the wildlife.

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"An engaging, plot-driven thriller . . ." -- Kirkus Reviews, on This Town Is Not All Right"For junior conspiracy theorists everywhere." -- Booklist, on This Town Is Not All RightIn the sequel to This Town Is Not All Right, Beacon, Everleigh, and Arthur think they've left the horror of Driftwood Harbor behind them, but the worst is yet to come.After barely escaping Driftwood Harbor and the wrath of the town, twins Beacon and Everleigh McCullough are on the run with their father and their friend and resident genius Arthur. Only, there's something strange going on with their dad. As they start to unravel what's wrong, Beacon quickly realizes they have much bigger problems on their hands, as the group is drawn back to the very same place they left, in order to prevent a terrifying plot from unfolding. Because this time it's not just their family or the town that's in danger -- this time, it's the planet. This Town Is a Nightmare is the middle-grade horror sequel to M. K. Krys's This Town Is Not All Right. Be prepared for a thrilling page-turner with a major mystery, because the residents of Driftwood Harbor are determined to draw you back in, no matter what it takes.

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The slow violence being inflicted on our environment—through everything from carbon emissions to plastic pollution—also represents an impending public health catastrophe. Yet standard health care practices are more concerned with short-term outcomes than long-term sustainability. Every resource used to deliver medical care, from IV tubes to antibiotics to electricity, has a significant environmental impact. This raises an urgent ethical dilemma: in striving to improve the health outcomes of individual patients, are we damaging human health on a global scale? In Dying Green, award-winning educator Christine Vatovec offers an engaging study that asks us to consider the broader environmental sustainability of health care. Through a comparative analysis of the care provided to terminally ill patients in a conventional cancer ward, a palliative care unit, and an acute-care hospice facility, she shows how decisions made at a patient’s bedside govern the environmental footprint of the healthcare industry. Likewise, Dying Green offers insights on the many opportunities that exist for reducing the ecological impacts of medical practices in general, while also enhancing care for the dying in particular. By envisioning a more sustainable approach to care, this book offers a way forward that is better for both patients and the planet.

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Arnold Schwarzenegger – a bodybuilder-turned-real-estate mogul who turned an undefeated streak at the Mr Olympia contest into an astonishing film career and eight years as the governor of California – is, for many people, the embodiment of the American Dream. From humble beginnings in a small village in Austria, Schwarzenegger has come to symbolise the opportunities that exist for anyone willing to work hard – parlaying success and self-confidence into the influence to shape hearts and minds across the globe. Even today, whether he’s campaigning against climate change or fist-bumping fellow strongmen at his self-titled athletic event, he’s one of the few men on the planet who’s recognisable from his first name alone. Arnold. Fiaz Rafiq uses in-depth interviews with Schwarzenegger’s peers to tell the life story of the one-time Governator, featuring exclusive interviews with his personal and close friends, fellow bodybuilders and training partners, Hollywood co-stars, directors, executive producers, political personalities and journalists – all offering first-hand accounts of the man they know. Together, these voices show new dimensions to the Arnold we all think we know – from the driven young man who brought building into the mainstream to the passionate advocate for political change.

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Climate change is an issue in which every human being on the planet is a potential stakeholder. Therefore, equity and ethical considerations have an important role to play in determining a climate change response strategy that will prevent the worst case scenario. In this context, the authors of this important new book attempt to provide a better understanding of the practical and analytical issues surrounding climate change negotiations. Each of the chapters reflects on an issue linked to the concepts of ethics, equity and climate change such as economics, morality, politics, rights and law, philosophy, and atmospheric science. The authors, who come from a diverse range of national, disciplinary and sectoral backgrounds, advance pragmatic policy suggestions to enhance international negotiations on climate change and highlight the value of considering more humanistic aspects in the negotiation process.Greenhouse gas emissions are widely considered to be the ultimate environmental externality and consequently an issue of great contemporary concern. This insightful and original treatment of the important issues will be welcomed by climate change negotiators, policymakers, and economic, environmental and social researchers. It will also be of interest to anyone who believes that the negotiation process may benefit from a more deep-rooted shift in social attitudes and beliefs.

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***The easy, healthy and money-saving plan to make your first 30 vegan days a breeze.***- Do you want to give veganism a go but don't know how to begin? - Maybe you've bought a cookbook to inspire you, but there are just so many recipes to choose from that you don't know how to start?- Maybe you DO start but only manage it for a dinner here, a breakfast there (on the days you remember to check the ingredients list before you head to the supermarket) - before you ultimately give up?If that sounds familiar, then this book is for you!This book is designed to make going vegan as easy as possible, providing 100 plant-based recipes for quick breakfasts, satisfying lunches and hearty dinners, plus snack choices for one month. At the beginning of each week's worth of recipes you'll find a handy meal menu and shopping list of the ingredients you'll need for the seven days ahead, with the recipes tailored around using all these ingredients up - cheaper for you AND mindful of the planet.Written by award-winning and registered dietician Catherine Kidd, you can also rest assured that the recipes are not only delicious but balanced for all your needs. Going vegan has never been so easy!

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The world’s second-largest and second-most populous continent with 1.3 billion inhabitants, Africa offers a diversity of culture and landscape rarely seen elsewhere – ranging from the Ancient Egyptian kingdom of the pharaohs on the banks of the River Nile to the deepest recesses of the Congo rainforest, one of the most biodiverse environments on the planet. Divided into five chapters by region, Africa is a sumptuous introduction to this most vibrant of continents. Be amazed at the spectacular Victoria Falls, which is the world’s largest sheet of falling water from a height of 108 metres (354ft); explore the Congo River, second largest in the world by volume, as it snakes through the ancient forests of central Africa; enjoy the view from Table Mountain, across Cape Town to the Lion’s Head and the South Atlantic; experience the diversity of creatures in the Serengeti National Park, including herds of wild elephants and Cape Buffalo, as well as their primary predators, lions and leopards; and marvel at the 13th century Dejenne Mosque in Mali, made from wooden scaffolding and clay. Presented in a landscape format with more than 180 vivid photographs of Africa, this book offers a pictorial exploration of this great and varied continent in all its majesty.

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For several years after 1968, Herbert Marcuse was one of the most famous philosophers in the world. He became the face of Frankfurt School Critical Theory for a generation in turmoil. His fame rested on two remarkable books, Eros and Civilization and One-Dimensional Man. These two books represent the utopian hopes and dystopian fears of the time. In the 1960s and 70s, young people seeking a theoretical basis for their revolution found it in his work. Marcuse not only supported their struggles against imperialism and race and gender discrimination, he foresaw the far-reaching implications of the destruction of the natural environment. Marcuse's Marxism was influenced by Husserl and Heidegger, Hegel and Freud. These eclectic sources grounded an original critique of advanced capitalism focused on the social construction of subjectivity and technology. Marcuse contrasted the "one-dimensionality" of conformist experience with the "new sensibility" of the New Left. The movement challenged a society that "delivered the goods" but devastated the planet with its destructive science and technology. A socialist revolution would fail if it did not transform these instruments into means of liberation, both of nature and human beings. This aspiration is alive today in the radical struggle over climate change. Marcuse offers theoretical resources for understanding that struggle.

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An international collaboration involving 26 writers and illustrators from 14 different countries have transformed 15 of Cixin Liu's – 'China's answer to Arthur C. Clarke' (New Yorker) – award-winning stories into graphic novels. It was the Ice and Snow Arts Festival that lured the low-temperature artist to Earth. Drawn by the beauty and technical skill of the sculptures displayed, the extraterrestrial visitor longed to collaborate and share its own art. But while humans learnt to craft ice into exquisite ephemera, the low-temperature artist's civilisation mastered the manipulation of whole worlds to create artworks – drawing on the seas and ice caps, and cooling their temperature to beautiful effect. Faced with the inevitable devastation and heat death of their planet, humankind must use their final breaths to fight for existence. But the artist will only speak to one human: Yan Dong, the ice sculptor whose beautiful work first drew its eye. Praise for Cixin Liu: 'Your next favourite sci-fi novel' Wired 'Immense' Barack Obama 'Unique' George R.R. Martin 'SF in the grand style' Guardian 'Mind-altering and immersive' Daily Mail 'A milestone in Chinese science-fiction' New York Times 'China's answer to Arthur C. Clarke' New Yorker Winner of the Hugo and Galaxy Awards for Best Novel

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This book, presented in three volumes, examines �environmental� disciplines in relation to major players in contemporary science: Big Data, artificial intelligence and cloud computing. Today, there is a real sense of urgency regarding the evolution of computer technology, the ever-increasing volume of data, threats to our climate and the sustainable development of our planet. As such, we need to reduce technology just as much as we need to bridge the global socio-economic gap between the North and South; between universal free access to data (open data) and free software (open source). In this book, we pay particular attention to certain environmental subjects, in order to enrich our understanding of cloud computing. These subjects are: erosion; urban air pollution and atmospheric pollution in Southeast Asia; melting permafrost (causing the accelerated release of soil organic carbon in the atmosphere); alert systems of environmental hazards (such as forest fires, prospective modeling of socio-spatial practices and land use); and web fountains of geographical data. Finally, this book asks the question: in order to find a pattern in the data, how do we move from a traditional computing model-based world to pure mathematical research? After thorough examination of this topic, we conclude that this goal is both transdisciplinary and achievable.

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Economic growth, progress, industry and, erm, stuff have all come in for a sharp kicking from the green left and beyond in recent years. Everyone from black-hoodied Starbucks window-smashers to farmers' market heirloom-tomato-mongers to Prince Charles himself seem to be embracing 'degrowth' and anti-consumerism, which is nothing less than a form of ecological austerity. Meanwhile, the back-to-the-land ideology and aesthetic of locally-woven organic carrot-pants, pathogen-encrusted compost toilets and civilisational collapse is hegemonic. Yet modernity is not the cause of climate change and the wider biocrisis. It is indeed capitalism that is the source of our environmental woes, but capitalism as a mode of production, not the fuzzy understanding of capitalism of Naomi Klein, Bill McKibben, Derrick Jensen, Paul Kingsnorth and their anarcho-liberal epigones as a sort of globalist corporate malfeasance. In combative and puckish style, science journalist Leigh Phillips marshals evidence from climate science, ecology, paleoanthropology, agronomy, microbiology, psychology, history, the philosophy of mathematics, and heterodox economics to argue that progressives must rediscover their historic, Promethean ambitions and counter this reactionary neo-Malthusian ideology that not only retards human flourishing, but won't save the planet anyway. We want to take over the machine and run it rationally, not turn the machine off.

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The written history and archaeological records of Central Scotland takes us back to Pictish times some 5,000 years ago. The geology of the area stretches back a further 400 million years. The oldest rocks are found near Lesmahagow and in the Pentland Hills. Known geologically as ‘inliers’– small areas of rocks from an older age, surrounded by younger strata – these strata have yielded some of the oldest fish on earth and are highly prized for what they tell us about early life on the planet. Rocks of the Old Red Sandstone and the succeeding Carboniferous era underlie the rest of Central Scotland in almost equal measure. Explosive volcanic rocks, thick layers of lava, desert sandstones, limestones and productive coal measures make up this bedrock patchwork. Then, sometime later, a covering of ice, some two kilometres thick, blanketed the landscape. It sandpapered and burnished the bedrock into the familiar scenes we see today – our matchless Scottish landscape. The coal and iron ore which lay beneath the ground between Edinburgh and Glasgow provided the raw materials that drove the Industrial Revolution in Scotland, and the early focus on understanding the rocks beneath our feet was unsurprisingly initially concentrated on the most useful minerals resources.

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"My first lessons in spirituality and yoga had nothing to do with a mat, but everything to do with waking up. They included angels, seeing God, and being in Heaven. But, believe me, not the way you might think." So begins Revolution of the Soul. What comes next reads like a riveting memoir filled with uncensored moments of joy, pain, wonder, and humor. Except, this book is so much more than that. Seane's greater purpose is to guide us into a deep, gut-level understanding of our highest Self through yoga philosophy and other tools for emotional healing-not just as abstract ideas but as embodied, fully felt wisdom. Why? To spark a "revolution of the soul" in each of us, so we can awaken to our purpose and become true agents of change. Just a few of the stops along the way include: the everyday "angels" Seane finds in the gritty corners of New York's 1980s East Village; her early struggles as a total yoga class misfit; the profound shadow work and body-based practices that helped her to heal childhood trauma, OCD, unhealthy behaviors, and relationship wounding; hard-earned lessons from some of the most heartbreaking places on the planet; and many other unforgettable teaching stories.

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Dive deep into the world of sharks, the most fascinating and misunderstood marine animals on the planet, in this stunning new edition of The Shark Handbook, written by Shark Week expert, Dr. Greg Skomal.Did you know that a whale shark’s spots are as unique as a fingerprint? Or that sharks can go into a trance when flipped upside down? Or that the Megallodon’s mouth was 6 feet across? With The Shark Handbook, jump into brand new facts about these fierce sea creatures! Explore all of the orders of sharks, such as: Ground sharks Great white sharks Mackerel sharks Carpet sharks and more! Learn about over 400 profiles of every shark in existence, from the first sharks living about 445 million years ago to the ones lurking in the ocean deep today. Starring spectacular, full-color photography that makes these jaw-dropping sharks come to life, this is the perfect gift for the shark enthusiast in your life.Dr. Greg Skomal, PhD is an experienced aquarist and Marine Fisheries Biologist at Martha's Vineyard Fisheries, Division of Marine Fisheries, Massachusetts. He's been keeping saltwater aquariums since childhood and has shared his extensive knowledge with viewers of National Geographic, the Discovery Channel, NBC's Today, and other media.

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This book provides a comprehensive and up-to-date account of the information available on the morphological, physiological and evolutionary aspects of specialized cells distributed within the epithelia of the airways in the vertebrates. A lot of work has been done on the cell and molecular biology of these cells which are regarded as as oxygen receptor neuroepithelial cells. These chemoreceptors which were conserved throughout evolution have neuroendocrine functions carrying their signals to the central nervous system.The chemoreceptor cells are sensors which detect the signal changes in the external and internal environments, and play a key role in the survival of various species. Studies addressed to the chemoreceptor cell systems in the airways are of great importance for investigating their response to changes in the oxygen and carbon dioxide concentrations in the environment since the future of the planet earth is being threatened by global warming and climate change.Praise for the book:…This volume would be of special interest to researchers who are curious about the evolution of vertebrate respiratory control in general and the regulation of ventilation in nonmammalian vertebrates in particular. —Wayne L. Silver, Wake Forest University, in The Quarterly Review of Biology, Volume 85, Number 2

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Sort the truth from the lies with the Fact or Fake series packed full of unbelievable, mind-boggling facts!This high-interest series for children aged 9-11 sorts the facts from the fakes. From the human body and dinosaurs to history and science, each statement is proved right or wrong, and accompanied by eye-popping graphics that bring each subject to life! Prepare to be surprised and amazed by these sometimes strange, but always fascinating, truths.In Fact or Fake: The Truth About Space, will you separate the facts from the fakes?:Is it true you can't burp in space without being sick?Is the sun really the colour of a banana?What's the deal with gravity on the moon?Venus is upside down, is that fact or fake?Eye-catching illustration, quirky fonts and clever design treatment make this an appealing and unputdownable high interest leisure read for children aged 9+ Other titles in the series: The Truth about the Human Body The Truth about Science The Truth about History The Truth about Space The Truth about Animals The Truth about Planet Earth The Truth about Dinosaurs The Truth about Sports The Truth about Inventions The Truth about Survival Skills

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Imagine journeying millions of kilometres into deep space!But to really do that you'll need to apply a fair bit of science.This book has twelve scientific investigations to help you understand why the speed of light matters, how to communicate in binary and how dust can turn into a planet. Discover a Martian volcano and what happens when meteorites smash into Earth or the Moon - and lots, lots more!This book is part of the Space Science series; the ultimate series for the astronomers and astronauts of the future. It delves into loads of intriguing 'how', 'what' and 'why' facts about the night sky. The step-by-step instructions are easy to follow and use readily available materials that won't break the bank! Authored by Mark Thompson - a brilliant astronomer and television and radio presenter - who brings a fresh approach to the exploration and understanding of the Solar System ... and beyond!Space Science covers key areas of the science curriculum, such as forces, materials and matter, light, rocks, chemical reactions, recycling and waste, magnets, solar power, gravity, distance, maps and constellations.For readers aged 9+Titles in this series:Science for Exploring Outer SpaceScience for Looking into SpaceScience for Rocketing into Space Science for Surviving in Space

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How afforestation reveals the often-concealed politics between humans and plantsIn Plant Life, Rosetta S. Elkin explores the procedures of afforestation, the large-scale planting of trees in otherwise treeless environments, including grasslands, prairies, and drylands. Elkin reveals that planting a tree can either be one of the ultimate offerings to thriving on this planet, or one of the most extreme perversions of human agency over it. Using three supracontinental case studies—scientific forestry in the American prairies, colonial control in Africa’s Sahelian grasslands, and Chinese efforts to control and administer territory—Elkin explores the political implications of plant life as a tool of environmentalism. By exposing the human tendency to fix or solve environmental matters by exploiting other organisms, this work exposes the relationship between human and plant life, revealing that afforestation is not an ecological act: rather, it is deliberately political and distressingly social. Plant Life ultimately reveals that afforestation cannot offset deforestation, an important distinction that sheds light on current environmental trends that suggest we can plant our way out of climate change. By radicalizing what conservation protects and by framing plants in their total aliveness, Elkin shows that there are many kinds of life—not just our own—to consider when advancing environmental policy.

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RSPB Spotlight: Sparrows is packed with eye-catching, informative colour photos, and features succinct, detailed text written by a knowledgeable naturalist. Sparrows are often considered familiar to the point of invisibility, but the recent steep decline in numbers of both native British species is a reminder that these unassuming chatterboxes deserve a little more attention. Of all the true sparrow species found worldwide, only two occur in the British Isles. Globally, the story of the House Sparrow is one of dramatic expansion: from humble origins in the Middle East where they spread, along with agriculture, to become the most widely distributed bird on the planet. The smaller, more active Tree Sparrow has also spread extensively, following the domestication of rice rather than wheat, and both species have been heavily persecuted in recent years. In Spotlight Sparrows, Amy-Jane Beer examines the causes behind the decline of these familiar species, and explores their biology and life cycle, social behaviour, and the significant role that sparrows play in human culture, from Shakespeare and Edith Piaf to Captain Jack Sparrow. The Spotlight series introduces readers to the lives and behaviour of our favourite animals with eye-catching colour photography and informative expert text.

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'Startlingly original and achingly romantic...nothing short of masterful' Kass Morgan, bestselling author of THE 100 SERIES on DEFY THE STARSHunted and desperate, Abel only has one mission left that matters: save Noemi Vidal at all cost. But to do that, he not only has to escape the rallied forces of Genesis, he also must bargain with the one person in the galaxy who still has the means to destroy him: the daughter of his creator. Alone in the universe, Noemi Vidal never wanted to be special. She only wanted to save her planet, Genesis, and after that, to save Abel. But now Noemi is something else, something more. Not quite mech, not quite human, Noemi must find her place in a universe where she is now utterly unique, all while trying to end Earth's iron grip on the planets of the Loop once and for all.The final battle between Earth and the colony planets is here, and there's no lengths to which Earth won't go preserve its power over the colonies. But Earth doesn't foresee Noemi and Abel coming. And together, the universe's most advanced mech and its first hybrid might just have the power to change the galaxy for good ...

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A.D. 2088. Missionary daughter Abigail Caldwell emerges from the jungle for the first time in her thirty-four years, the sole survivor of a mysterious disease that killed everyone else in her village. After receiving a curious message from her grandfather, Abby goes to America, only to discover a nation that has that has become completely secularized and all religion has died away. A curious message from her grandfather assigns her a surprising mission: re-introduce God to America, no matter how insurmountable the odds.But a larger threat looms. The world's leading artificial intelligence industrialist has perfected a technique for downloading the human brain into a silicon form. Brain transplants have begun, and with them comes the promise of eternal existence. Abby and Professor Creighton Daniels, a historian troubled by the mystery of his father's sudden death, uncover a plot to force the entire planet to convert to this 'transhuman' status--and forever lose all possibility of a connection with God. Together, they begin to unravel the conspiracy, attracting the attention of the powerful and devious men behind it. In a race for their lives, Abby and Creighton search for the truth while humanity's spiritual future hangs in the balance.

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Given the near incomprehensible enormity of the universe, it appears almost inevitable that humankind will one day find a planet that appears to be much like the Earth. This discovery will no doubt reignite the lure of interplanetary travel. Will we be up to the task? And, given our limited resources, biological constraints, and the general hostility of space, what shape should we expect such expeditions to take? In Robots in Space, Roger Launius and Howard McCurdy tackle these seemingly fanciful questions with rigorous scholarship and disciplined imagination, jumping comfortably among the worlds of rocketry, engineering, public policy, and science fantasy to expound upon the possibilities and improbabilities involved in trekking across the Milky Way and beyond. They survey the literature-fictional as well as academic studies; outline the progress of space programs in the United States and other nations; and assess the current state of affairs to offer a conclusion startling only to those who haven't spent time with Asimov, Heinlein, and Clarke: to traverse the cosmos, humans must embrace and entwine themselves with advanced robotic technologies. Their discussion is as entertaining as it is edifying and their assertions are as sound as they are fantastical. Rather than asking us to suspend disbelief, Robots in Space demands that we accept facts as they evolve.

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