Other books that might interest you

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  Eight Bears - Mythic Past and...

  Gloria Dickie

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  A global exploration of the eight remaining species of bears—and the dangers they face. 
   
   
   
  Bears have always held a central place in our collective memory, from Indigenous folklore and Greek mythology to nineteenth-century fairytales and the modern toy shop. But as humans and bears come into ever-closer contact, our relationship nears a tipping point. Today, most of the eight remaining bear species are threatened with extinction. Some, such as the panda bear and the polar bear, are icons of the natural world; others, such as the spectacled bear and the sloth bear, are far less known. 
   
   
   
  In Eight Bears, journalist Gloria Dickie embarks on a globe-trotting journey to explore each bear's story, whisking listeners from the cloud forests of the Andes to the ice floes of the Arctic; from the jungles of India to the backwoods of the Rocky Mountain West. She meets with key figures on the frontlines of modern conservation efforts—the head of a rescue center for sun and moon bears freed from bile farms, a biologist known as Papa Panda, who has led China's panda-breeding efforts for almost four decades, a conservationist retraining a military radar system to detect and track polar bears near towns—to reveal the unparalleled challenges bears face as they contend with a rapidly changing climate and encroaching human populations.

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  Optics - Principles and...

  Mark Hedges

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  Optics is the branch of physics that deals with the study of light and its interaction with matter. It encompasses a wide range of phenomena, including reflection, refraction, diffraction, and the formation of images. Light, as an electromagnetic wave, plays a central role in our everyday lives, enabling us to see the world around us and facilitating numerous technological advancements. The study of optics is essential not only for understanding the behavior of light but also for developing applications in fields such as medicine, telecommunications, photography, and astronomy. 
  The nature of light has been a subject of fascination and research for centuries. Early thinkers, such as ancient Greek philosophers, speculated about the properties of light and its role in vision. However, it was not until the work of scientists like Isaac Newton and Thomas Young in the 17th and 18th centuries that light began to be studied in a more rigorous and scientific manner. Newton’s particle theory of light and Young’s double-slit experiment, which demonstrated the wave nature of light, were crucial milestones in the development of optics. These contributions laid the groundwork for the modern understanding of light as an electromagnetic wave, described by Maxwell’s equations. 
  At the heart of optics is the study of how light behaves as it interacts with different materials. This behavior is governed by the fundamental principles of reflection, where light bounces off surfaces, and refraction, where light bends as it passes through different media. These principles are described by laws such as the Law of Reflection and Snell’s Law of Refraction. The interaction of light with materials also leads to phenomena such as dispersion, where different colors of light separate due to their varying wavelengths, and absorption, where light energy is transferred to the material, often converting to heat.

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  Footprint of a Heart - 18000...

  Shayla Paradeis

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  *This Recording Includes Five Original Songs* 
  Imagine having all of you needs reduced to the things you can't live without; food, water, and shelter. 
  In Footprint of a Heart, Shayla Paradeis, whose trail name is Kiddo, ventures off the path of musical theater at age 21 and moves from Manhattan to Montana. Trading tap shoes for hiking boots, she sculpts a life outdoors as a long-distance hiker. By age 34, she hiked the Appalachian, Pacific Crest, and Continental Divide Trails, the Haute Route in the Alps, and the Te Araroa across New Zealand. As well as thousands of joyful miles running across the land of her dreams, Glacier National Park. All without a smart phone. 
  Kiddo shares the trailside moments of five long journeys, including barren deserts, windy ridges above tree line, ocean tides in estuaries, narrow spaces between the painted lines of highways and guardrails, and countless peaks, passes, meadows, and valleys. Her ventures take her through swarms of bugs, knee-deep mud, every kind of precipitation imaginable, and the threat of rattlesnakes, bears, charging bulls, and one angry mama turkey. 
  Journeys are often more internal than external. As she walks, she learns that counting miles can be a self-measurement as dangerous as body-image or money. The need to connect is the true north. With an openness taught through the trees, she experiences a fulfillment she never dreamed possible. Trails are no longer a thing to do, they're a place to be.

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  Ever Green - Saving Big Forests...

  John W. Reid, Thomas E. Lovejoy

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  Five stunningly large forests remain on Earth: the Taiga, extending from the Pacific Ocean across all of Russia and far-northern Europe; the North American boreal, ranging from Alaska's Bering seacoast to Canada's Atlantic shore; the Amazon, covering almost the entirety of South America's bulge; the Congo, occupying parts of six nations in Africa's wet equatorial middle; and the island forest of New Guinea, twice the size of California. 
   
   
   
  These megaforests are vital to preserving global biodiversity, thousands of cultures, and a stable climate, as John W. Reid and Thomas E. Lovejoy argue convincingly in Ever Green. Megaforests serve an essential role in decarbonizing the atmosphere—the boreal alone holds 1.8 trillion metric tons of carbon in its deep soils and peat layers, 190 years' worth of global emissions at 2019 levels—and saving them is the most immediate and affordable large-scale solution to our planet's most formidable ongoing crisis. 
   
   
   
  Reid and Lovejoy offer practical solutions to address the biggest challenges these forests face, from vastly expanding protected areas, to supporting Indigenous forest stewards, to planning smarter road networks. In gorgeous prose that evokes the majesty of these ancient forests along with the people and animals who inhabit them, Reid and Lovejoy take us on an exhilarating global journey.

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  Distributed Databases - Design...

  May Sherry

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  In an era where data is generated at unprecedented speeds and volumes, understanding how to efficiently manage and distribute this data is crucial. Distributed Databases: Design, Implementation, and Management in Modern Systems provides a comprehensive guide to mastering the complex world of distributed databases, equipping readers with the knowledge and tools needed to navigate and excel in this dynamic field. 
  This book offers a deep dive into the core principles and practices that underpin distributed database systems, blending theoretical insights with practical applications. It begins with an exploration of fundamental concepts and architectural considerations, laying the groundwork for a detailed examination of data distribution, replication, and consistency. 
  Distributed Databases: Design, Implementation, and Management in Modern Systems empowers you to build robust, efficient, and scalable data systems for today’s data-driven world. 
   

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  The Shortest History of Migration

  Ian Goldin

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  From the Silk Roads to the Berlin Wall, discover the globe-turning history of human migration 
   
   
   
  We are a species in motion—from the first steps of Homo sapiens across Africa to America's "melting pot." And when we move—in search of better things, or against our will—our beliefs and skills clash and combine, reshaping society time and again. 
   
   
   
  In this visionary Shortest History of Migration, Ian Goldin uncovers key moments of cultural exchange while carefully examining empire, slavery, and war. Throughout, we meet famous explorers (Zheng He), exiles (Pablo Neruda), and everyday people in extraordinary circumstances: a Jewish man saved by the Kindertransport, a Japanese gardener who blossomed in Mexico City. 
   
   
   
  Today, freedom of movement is being curtailed, even as climate change and conflict mobilize people everywhere around the world. Goldin reminds us that passports at every border are a modern invention (he traces the "birth of big brother" to World War I), revealing the folly of trying to halt migration—and proposing commonsense policy instead. 
   
   
   
  A gripping chronicle of want and wanderlust, this is a moving portrait of humanity—in every sense of the word.

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