- Table View
- List View
What the Dog Knows Young Readers Edition: Scent, Science, and the Amazing Ways Dogs Perceive the World
by Cat WarrenIn this young readers edition of the New York Times bestseller, Cat Warren and her canine companion, Solo, teach readers that the nose knows no bounds when it comes to working together, being persistent, and helping others. <P><P>Solo has a fine nose and knows how to use it, but he’s only one of many thousands of scent-detection dogs all over the United States. That’s a group that includes cadaver dogs, tracking, trailing, and apprehension dogs; dogs that can locate unmarked graves of Civil War soldiers; and even dogs that can find drowning victims more than two hundred feet below the surface of a lake. All these dogs love to use their noses. They think their job is simply the best, most interesting game they’ve ever played! <P><P>What good working dogs can do may seem magical or mysterious, but What the Dog Knows shows the science, the rigorous training, and the skilled handling that underlie these amazing abilities.
What the Ear Hears (And Doesn't): Inside the Extraordinary Everyday World of Frequency
by Richard Mainwaring"You'll never listen to the world the same way again. A truly ear-opening experience!" —Chris Ferrie, award-winning physicist and author of Where Did the Universe Come From? And Other Cosmic QuestionsFor readers of Neil deGrasse Tyson and Bill O'Neill, What the Ear Hears (and Doesn't) is a fascinating science book for adults that explores the physics principle of frequency and the (sometimes weird) role it plays in our everyday lives.What do the world's loneliest whale, a black hole, and twenty-three people doing Tae Bo all have in common?In 2011, a skyscraper in South Korea began to shake uncontrollably without warning and was immediately evacuated. Was it an earthquake? An attack? No one seemed quite sure. The actual cause emerged later and is utterly fascinating: Twenty-three middle-aged folks were having a Tae Bo fitness class in the office gym on the twelfth floor. Their beats had inadvertently matched the building's natural frequency, and this coincidence—harnessing a basic principle of physics—caused the building to shake at an alarming rate for ten minutes. Frequency is all around us, but little understood.Musician, composer, TV presenter, and educator Richard Mainwaring uses the concept of the Infinite Piano to reveal the extraordinary world of frequency in a multitude of arenas—from medicine to religion to the environment to the paranormal—through the universality of music and a range of memorable human (and animal) stories laced with dry humor. Whether you're science curious, musically inclined, or just want to know what a Szechuan pepper has to do with physics, What the Ear Hears (and Doesn't) is an immensely enjoyable read filled with "did you know?" trivia you'll love to share with friends.
What the Eyes Don't See: A Story of Crisis, Resistance, and Hope in an American City
by Mona Hanna-AttishaFlint was already a troubled city in 2014 when the state of Michigan—in the name of austerity—shifted the source of its water supply from Lake Huron to the Flint River. Soon after, citizens began complaining about the water that flowed from their taps—but officials rebuffed them, insisting that the water was fine. Dr. Mona Hanna-Attisha, a pediatrician at the city’s public hospital, took state officials at their word and encouraged the parents and children in her care to continue drinking the water—after all, it was American tap water, blessed with the state’s seal of approval. <p><p> But a conversation at a cookout with an old friend, leaked documents from a rogue environmental inspector, and the activism of a concerned mother raised red flags about lead—a neurotoxin whose irreversible effects fall most heavily on children. Even as circumstantial evidence mounted and protests grew, Dr. Mona knew that the only thing that could stop the lead poisoning was undeniable proof—and that to get it, she’d have to enter the fight of her life. <p> What the Eyes Don’t See is the inspiring story of how Dr. Mona—accompanied by an idiosyncratic team of researchers, parents, friends, and community leaders—proved that Flint’s kids were exposed to lead and then fought her own government and a brutal backlash to expose that truth to the world. Paced like a scientific thriller, this book shows how misguided austerity policies, the withdrawal of democratic government, and callous bureaucratic indifference placed an entire city at risk. And at the center of the story is Dr. Mona herself—an immigrant, doctor, scientist, and mother whose family’s activist roots inspired her pursuit of justice. <p> What the Eyes Don’t See is a riveting, beautifully rendered account of a shameful disaster that became a tale of hope, the story of a city on the ropes that came together to fight for justice, self-determination, and the right to build a better world for their—and all of our—children.
What the F: What Swearing Reveals About Our Language, Our Brains, And Ourselves
by Benjamin K. BergenIt may be starred, beeped, and censored--yet profanity is so appealing that we can't stop using it. In the funniest, clearest study to date, Benjamin Bergen explains why, and what that tells us about our language and brains.Nearly everyone swears-whether it's over a few too many drinks, in reaction to a stubbed toe, or in flagrante delicto. And yet, we sit idly by as words are banned from television and censored in books. We insist that people excise profanity from their vocabularies and we punish children for yelling the very same dirty words that we'll mutter in relief seconds after they fall asleep. Swearing, it seems, is an intimate part of us that we have decided to selectively deny.That's a damn shame. Swearing is useful. It can be funny, cathartic, or emotionally arousing. As linguist and cognitive scientist Benjamin K. Bergen shows us, it also opens a new window onto how our brains process language and why languages vary around the world and over time.In this groundbreaking yet ebullient romp through the linguistic muck, Bergen answers intriguing questions: How can patients left otherwise speechless after a stroke still shout Goddamn! when they get upset? When did a cock grow to be more than merely a rooster? Why is crap vulgar when poo is just childish? Do slurs make you treat people differently? Why is the first word that Samoan children say not mommy but eat shit? And why do we extend a middle finger to flip someone the bird?Smart as hell and funny as fuck, What the F is mandatory reading for anyone who wants to know how and why we swear.
What the F*ck is 5G? (What the *&%^)
by Kit EatonWhat the f*ck is 5G, and how does it even work?The world loves 4G phones, tablets and other gizmos and we take the tech for granted...but when that 4 grew up into the next-gen 5, it seems everyone perked up and started caring about phone networking tech. Journalists journaled, politicians, er, politicked, and tin-foil hat wearers reached for the extra-thick reinforced foil. Why all this fuss? Believe it or not, 5G could change the way you live. Because though it seems like smartphones are only good for tiktok and texting, 5G has the power to revolutionise how we interact with public spaces - from concerts and gigs to coffee shops, paving the way for foundational tech like virtual and augmented reality. This book will explain this missing radio link that will propel us into the future of self-driving cars and VR. Oh, and along the way we'll explore why 5G and coronavirus are very definitely and completely, utterly, not the same thing
What the F*ck is 5G? (WTF Series)
by Kit EatonWhat the f*ck is 5G, and how does it even work?The world loves 4G phones, tablets and other gizmos and we take the tech for granted...but when that 4 grew up into the next-gen 5, it seems everyone perked up and started caring about phone networking tech. Journalists journaled, politicians, er, politicked, and tin-foil hat wearers reached for the extra-thick reinforced foil. Why all this fuss? Believe it or not, 5G could change the way you live. Because though it seems like smartphones are only good for tiktok and texting, 5G has the power to revolutionise how we interact with public spaces - from concerts and gigs to coffee shops, paving the way for foundational tech like virtual and augmented reality. This book will explain this missing radio link that will propel us into the future of self-driving cars and VR. Oh, and along the way we'll explore why 5G and coronavirus are very definitely and completely, utterly, not the same thing
What the F*ck is 5G? (What the *&%^)
by Kit EatonWhat the f*ck is 5G and how does it work?The world loves 4G phones, tablets and other gizmos and we take the tech for granted...but when that 4 grew up into the next-gen 5, it seems everyone perked up and started caring about phone networking tech. Journalists journaled, politicians, er, politicked, and tin-foil hat wearers reached for the extra-thick reinforced foil. Why all this fuss? Believe it or not, 5G could change the way you live. Because though it seems like smartphones are only good for tiktok and texting, 5G has the power to revolutionise how we interact with public spaces - from concerts and gigs to coffee shops, paving the way for foundational tech like virtual and augmented reality. This book will explain this missing radio link that will propel us into the future of self-driving cars and VR. Oh, and along the way we'll explore why 5G and coronavirus are very definitely and completely, utterly, not the same thing.(P) 2021 Hodder & Stoughton Ltd
What the F*ck is The Cloud? (WTF Series)
by Kit EatonWhat the f*ck is the Cloud, and how does it even work?Ah, The Cloud. It's such a useful bit of tech jargon isn't it? The kind that's casually thrown around in work meetings by bosses who (kind of) understand and maybe even at the nerdier type of dinner or drinks parties. People joke about the cloud while others take it for granted and some worry about this mysterious entity where all of our data is stored, accessible at the touch of a screen from anywhere on Earth. But what even is the cloud, and for that matter, where is the cloud?Join us on a journey from the very first iterations of the internet that we know and (sometimes) love, all the way through thorny issues of data collection and storage (weren't we all fooled by the 'ten years on' social media trend, even as we rely on cloud-stored photos of cats to cheer us up?) and discover the mysterious place where The Cloud ominously hovers.
What the F*ck is The Cloud? (WTF Series)
by Kit EatonWhat the f*ck is the Cloud, and how does it even work?Ah, The Cloud. It's such a useful bit of tech jargon isn't it? The kind that's casually thrown around in work meetings by bosses who (kind of) understand and maybe even at the nerdier type of dinner or drinks parties. People joke about the cloud while others take it for granted and some worry about this mysterious entity where all of our data is stored, accessible at the touch of a screen from anywhere on Earth. But what even is the cloud, and for that matter, where is the cloud?Join us on a journey from the very first iterations of the internet that we know and (sometimes) love, all the way through thorny issues of data collection and storage (weren't we all fooled by the 'ten years on' social media trend, even as we rely on cloud-stored photos of cats to cheer us up?) and discover the mysterious place where The Cloud ominously hovers.
What the F*ck is The Cloud? (WTF Series)
by Kit EatonWhat the f*ck is the the Cloud and how does it work?Ah, The Cloud. It's such a useful bit of tech jargon isn't it? The kind that's casually thrown around in work meetings by bosses who (kind of) understand and maybe even at the nerdier type of dinner or drinks parties. People joke about the cloud while others take it for granted and some worry about this mysterious entity where all of our data is stored, accessible at the touch of a screen from anywhere on Earth. But what even is the cloud, and for that matter, where is the cloud?Join us on a journey from the very first iterations of the internet that we know and (sometimes) love, all the way through thorny issues of data collection and storage (weren't we all fooled by the 'ten years on' social media trend, even as we rely on cloud-stored photos of cats to cheer us up?) and discover the mysterious place where The Cloud ominously hovers.(P) 2021 Hodder & Stoughton Ltd
What the F*ck is The Dark Web? (WTF Series)
by Kit EatonWhat the f*ck is the Dark Web, and how does it even work?Whether it's from dodgy acronym-titled crime shows to news stories designed to terrify you down to your socks we've all heard about sites like Silk Road and the ways criminals use cryptocurrency online. But did you know that among the various shady corners of the dark web you can also find portals to the BBC and Facebook?The thing is even the way the everyday internet works is a mystery to us and its darkest corners are, of course, more deeply shrouded. So, let's go on a journey from the birth of the Net through the strangest dark services - need a hitman to bump off your superfluous...er...beloved spouse? - to the surprisingly positive uses of dark technology, including dodging the watchful eye of oppressive censors.Over half of us can't remember a time before the internet - and for the rest it's increasingly difficult to imagine life without the damn thing! It's about time we understood more about it and we can start with the question: What The Fuck is The Dark Web?
What the F*ck is The Dark Web? (WTF Series)
by Kit EatonWhat the f*ck is the Dark Web, and how does it even work?Whether it's from dodgy acronym-titled crime shows to news stories designed to terrify you down to your socks we've all heard about sites like Silk Road and the ways criminals use cryptocurrency online. But did you know that among the various shady corners of the dark web you can also find portals to the BBC and Facebook?The thing is even the way the everyday internet works is a mystery to us and its darkest corners are, of course, more deeply shrouded. So, let's go on a journey from the birth of the Net through the strangest dark services - need a hitman to bump off your superfluous...er...beloved spouse? - to the surprisingly positive uses of dark technology, including dodging the watchful eye of oppressive censors.Over half of us can't remember a time before the internet - and for the rest it's increasingly difficult to imagine life without the damn thing! It's about time we understood more about it and we can start with the question: What The Fuck is The Dark Web?
What the F*ck is The Dark Web? (WTF Series)
by Kit EatonWhat the f*ck is the dark web and how does it work?Whether it's from dodgy acronym-titled crime shows to news stories designed to terrify you down to your socks we've all heard about sites like Silk Road and the ways criminals use cryptocurrency online. But did you know that among the various shady corners of the dark web you can also find portals to the BBC and Facebook?The thing is even the way the everyday internet works is a mystery to us and its darkest corners are, of course, more deeply shrouded. So, let's go on a journey from the birth of the Net through the strangest dark services - need a hitman to bump off your superfluous...er...beloved spouse? - to the surprisingly positive uses of dark technology, including dodging the watchful eye of oppressive censors.Over half of us can't remember a time before the internet - and for the rest it's increasingly difficult to imagine life without the damn thing! It's about time we understood more about it and we can start with the question: What The Fuck is The Dark Web?
What the Future Looks Like: Scientists Predict the Next Great Discoveries—and Reveal How Today's Breakthroughs Are Already Shaping Our World
by Jim Al-KhaliliScience fact, not science fiction, on the cutting–edge developments that are already changing the course of our future Every day, scientists conduct pioneering experiments with the potential to transform how we live. Yet it isn’t every day you hear from the scientists themselves! Now, award–winning author Jim Al–Khalili and his team of top-notch experts explain how today’s earthshaking discoveries will shape our world tomorrow—and beyond.Pull back the curtain on: genomicsroboticsAIthe “Internet of Things”synthetic biologytranshumanisminterstellar travelcolonization of the solar systemteleportationand much moreAnd find insight into big–picture questions such as:Will we find a cure to all diseases? The answer to climate change? And will bionics one day turn us into superheroes? The scientists in these pages are interested only in the truth—reality–based and speculation–free. The future they conjure is by turns tantalizing and sobering: There’s plenty to look forward to, but also plenty to dread. And undoubtedly the best way to for us to face tomorrow’s greatest challenges is to learn what the future looks like—today.
What the Nose Knows: The Science of Scent in Everyday Life
by Avery GilbertAvery Gilbert is one of only a handful of psychologists in America who study olfaction. There's nowhere to get trained directly in the business; you can't enroll for a PhD in Perfume Studies. With What the Nose Knows, Gilbert takes us inside his work and the realm of smell, giving a fascinating account of the familiar yet mysterious world of scent that is grounded in science but often ends up showing us a reflection of our culture. He sets out to answer the questions he is most often asked: Is the ephemeral nature of odours due to their physical makeup, or to the way our brains process information? Do animals have a keener sense of smell than humans, and how can we tell? How do scents--a mere collection of airborne molecules--become powerful carriers of symbolic meaning? Do odors alter our emotions or behaviour, and is it ethical for companies to try to surreptitiously influence customers with scent? The link between smell and memory is well known--but is it actually an illusion?
What the Nose Knows (Fountas & Pinnell LLI Purple #Level Q)
by Patrick WinterHumans can detect about 10,000 different smells, but most people experience the world only through their eyes and ears, often neglecting smell. By paying attention to the sense of smell and understanding how it works, people can learn more about the world they live in, about themselves, and about their relationships
What to Think About Machines That Think: Today's Leading Thinkers on the Age of Machine Intelligence
by Mr John BrockmanAs the world becomes ever more dominated by technology, John Brockman’s latest addition to the acclaimed and bestselling “Edge Question Series” asks more than 175 leading scientists, philosophers, and artists: What do you think about machines that think? <P><P> The development of artificial intelligence has been a source of fascination and anxiety ever since Alan Turing formalized the concept in 1950. Today, Stephen Hawking believes that AI “could spell the end of the human race.” At the very least, its development raises complicated moral issues with powerful real-world implications—for us and for our machines. <P> In this volume, recording artist Brian Eno proposes that we’re already part of an AI: global civilization, or what TED curator Chris Anderson elsewhere calls the hive mind. And author Pamela McCorduck considers what drives us to pursue AI in the first place. <P> On the existential threat posed by superintelligent machines, Steven Pinker questions the likelihood of a robot uprising. Douglas Coupland traces discomfort with human-programmed AI to deeper fears about what constitutes “humanness.” Martin Rees predicts the end of organic thinking, while Daniel C. Dennett explains why he believes the Singularity might be an urban legend.
What Video Games Have to Teach Us about Learning and Literacy
by James Paul GeeJames Paul Gee talks about his experience of learning and using video games. He looks at major specific cognitive activities - to develop a sense of identity, to grasp meanings, to pick a role model and to perceive the world.
What Was It Before It Got Wet? (What Was It?)
by Kristen McCurrySplash! This photo-guessing game challenges pre-readers to guess what something was before it got wet. The soggy, soaked, and soupy answers may be suprising!
What Was It Before It Melted? (What Was It?)
by Kristen McCurryGuess the melting mess! These photo puzzles challenge pre-readers to determine what items were before they melted. Gooey, oozing science mysteries!
What Was It Before It Was Cut? (What Was It?)
by Kristen McCurryChop, slice, snip! Take a guess to determine what each object was before it got cut. These photo puzzles require mental dissection to solve!
What Was It Before It Was Smashed? (What Was It?)
by Kristen McCurryCrush, crash, smash! Photo puzzles featuring mashed and mangled objects give pre-readers a mystery to solve...what was it before it got smashed?
What Was the Age of the Dinosaurs?
by Gregory Copeland Megan StineTravel back to the time when the mighty dinosaurs ruled the earth.The Age of Dinosaurs began about 250 million years ago. In the beginning they were quite small but over time they evolved into the varied and fascinating creatures that captivate our imaginations today. What we know about dinosaurs is evolving, too! We've learned that some dinosaurs were good parents, that dinosaurs could grow new teeth when old ones fell out, and that most dinosaurs walked on two legs. We've even discovered that birds are modern relatives of dinosaurs!From the Trade Paperback edition.
What Was the Hindenburg?
by Janet Pascal Kevin Mcveigh David GroffAt 800-feet long, the Hindenburg was the largest airship ever built--just slightly smaller than the Titanic! Also of a disastrous end, the zeppelin burst into flame as spectators watched it attempt to land in Lakehurst, New Jersey on May 6, 1937. In under a minute, the Hindenburg was gone, people jumping from windows to escape. However, only 62 of the 97 crew members and passengers onboard survived. The exact cause of the disaster is still unknown and remains a fascinating historical mystery perfect for this series.
What We Are: The Evolutionary Roots of Our Future
by Lonnie AarssenOther animals are driven to spend essentially their whole lives just trying to get fed, stay alive, and get laid. That’s about it. The same was true for our proto-human ancestors. And modern humans of course also require a Survival Drive and a Sex Drive in order to leave descendants. But today we spend most of our lives mainly just trying to convince ourselves that our existence is not absurd. In What We Are, Queen’s University biologist, Lonnie Aarssen, traces how our biocultural evolution has shaped Homo sapiens into the only creature that refuses to be what it is — the only creature preoccupied with a deeply ingrained, and absurd sentiment: I have a distinct ‘mental life’—an ‘inner self’—that exists separately and apart from ‘material life’, and so, unlike the latter, need not come to an end. This delusion conceivably gave our distant ancestors some wishful thinking for finding some measure of relief from the terrifying, uniquely human knowledge of the eventual loss of corporeal survival. But this came with an impulsive, nagging doubt — an obsessive underlying uncertainty: ‘self-impermanence anxiety’. Biocultural evolution, however, was not finished. It also gave us two additional, uniquely human, primal drives, both serving to help quell the burden of this anxiety. Legacy Drive generates delusional cultural domains for ‘extension’ of self; and Leisure Drive generates pleasurable cultural domains for distraction – ‘escape’ – from self. Legacy Drive and Leisure Drive, Aarssen argues, represent two of the most profound consequences of human cognitive and cultural evolution. What We Are advances propositions regarding how a visceral susceptibility to self-impermanence anxiety has — paradoxically — played a pivotal role in rewarding the reproductive success of our ancestors, and has thus been a driving force in shaping fundamental motivations and cultural norms of modern humans. More than any other milestone in the evolution of human minds, self-impermanence anxiety, and its mitigating Drives for Legacy and Leisure, account for not just the advance of civilization over the past many thousands of years, but also now, its impending collapse. Effective management of this crisis, Aarssen insists, will require a deeper and more broadly public understanding of its Darwinian evolutionary roots — as laid out in What We Are.