Physician, researcher, and award-winning science writer, Siddhartha Mukherjee examines cancer with a cellular biologist’s precision, a historian’s perspective, and a biographer’s passion. The result is an astonishingly lucid and eloquent chronicle of a disease humans have lived with - and perished from - for more than five thousand years. The story of cancer is a story of human ingenuity, resilience, and perseverance, but also of hubris, paternalism, and misperception. Mukherjee recounts centuries of discoveries, setbacks, victories, and deaths, told through the eyes of his predecessors and peers, training their wits against an infinitely resourceful adversary that, just three decades ago, was thought to be easily vanquished in an all-out “war against cancer.” The book reads like a literary thriller with cancer as the protagonist. From the Persian Queen Atossa, whose Greek slave cut off her malignant breast, to the nineteenth-century recipients of primitive radiation and chemotherapy to Mukherjee’s own leukemia patient, Carla, The Emperor of All Maladies is about the people who have soldiered through fiercely demanding regimens in order to survive—and to increase our understanding of this iconic disease. Riveting, urgent, and surprising, The Emperor of All Maladies provides a fascinating glimpse into the future of cancer treatments. It is an illuminating book that provides hope and clarity to those seeking to demystify cancer.

    Giving a clear overview of the classification of our natural world-over 6,000 species-Natural History looks at every kingdom of life, from bacteria, minerals, and rocks to fossils to plants and animals. Featuring a remarkable array of specially commissioned photographs, Natural History looks at thousands of specimens and species displayed in visual galleries that take the reader on an incredible journey from the most fundamental building blocks of the world's landscapes, through the simplest of life forms, to plants, fungi, and animals.

    With a text suitable for both a lay and a scientific audience, the book provides an unforgettable tour of Earth's most evolved animal societies. Each colony of leafcutters contains as many as five million workers, all the daughters of a single queen that can live over a decade. A gigantic nest can stretch thirty feet across, rise five feet or more above the ground, and consist of hundreds of chambers that reach twenty-five feet below the ground surface. Indeed, the leafcutters have parlayed their instinctive civilization into a virtual domination of forest, grassland, and cropland—from Louisiana to Patagonia. Inspired by a section of the authors' acclaimed The Superorganism, this brilliantly illustrated work provides the ultimate explanation of what a social order with a half-billion years of animal evolution has achieved.

    Some parts of it are still mysteries to science and much is a mystery to the average person on the street. But we've come a long way from the sketches and diagrams drawn by the first anatomists in Ancient Greece. New medical procedures and imaging techniques have allowed "access all areas", revealing incredible detail and providing a much deeper understanding of how our bodies work. Making full use of all the latest knowledge, The Complete Human Body is the definitive guide to the development, form, function, and disorders of the human body, illustrated withunprecedented clarity by new computer-generated artworks and the latest medical and microscopic imaging.The Complete Human Body consists of five chapters. The first provides an overview of the human as an organism, covering human evolution, genetics, and the composition of the body. The second chapter explores human anatomy, looking at the body region by region (head and neck; thorax; abdomen and pelvis; upper arm; forearm and hand; hip and thigh; lower leg). The third chapter explores and explains how the body works, from individual organs to whole systems. Chapters four and five trace the human life cycle from zygote to old age, and profile the major diseases and disorders that can affect us.ContentsPRELIMS (5pp)1. INTEGRATED BODY (20pp)Human evolution - from our primate ancestors to modern humans.The human genome - our unique genetic makeup.Body composition - what the body is made up of.The complete human - how body systems work together to maintain health and equilibrium.2. ANATOMY (240pp)Body Systems - an overview of the anatomy of the body systems:Skin, hair, and nailsSkeletal systemMuscular systemNervous systemCardiovascular systemLymphatic systemEndocrine systemRespiratory systemDigestive systemUrinary systemReproductive systemAnatomy atlas - a detailed look at the anatomy of the human body, organized by body regions:Head and neckTorso (divided into thorax and abdomen)Shoulder and arm (divided into upper and lower)Hip and leg (divided into upper and lower)3. HOW THE BODY WORKS (120pp)Skin, hair, and nails: includes skin functions,skin renewal, skin healing, hair growth.Skeletal system: includes bone functions, bone growth, making blood vessels, different types of joint, cartilages and ligaments, functions of the skull, functions of the spine, ribs, sternum, and pelvis.Muscular system: includes muscle functions, different types of muscle, how muscles work.Nervous system: includes nerve impulses, nerve regeneration, central nervous system, brain functions, the limbic system, the hypothalamus, peripheral nervous system, autonomic nervous system, voluntary and involuntary responses, reflexes, the senses.Cardiovascular system: includes blood functions, blood formation, how the heart works, circulation, arteries and veins.Endocrine system: includes gland functions, hormone secretion, how hormones work, triggers,controls, feedback.Lymphatic and immune system: includes body defenses, non-specific and specific responses, types and functions of white cells, fighting infections, spleen functions.Respiratory system: includes breathing, how the lungs work, gas exchange, vocalization, sneezing and coughing.Digestive system: includes teeth and chewing, production and function of saliva, swallowing, how the stomach works, function of the intestines, how the liver works, processing nutrients.Urinary system: includes blood filtration, blood volume and pressure regulation, producing urine, urine removal.Reproductive system: includes production of sperm and seminal fluid, female reproductive system, sexual intercourse, milk production.4. LIFE CYCLE (46pp) - covers our development from conception to old age.Includes life cycle overview, inheritance and genes, conception and embryo development,fetal development, changes in the mother during pregnancy, labor and birth, newborn babies, childhood, puberty and adolescence, the aging process and death.5. DISEASES AND DISORDERS (60pp) - profiles the major diseases and disorders; organized by system.INDEX (12pp)GLOSSARY (7pp)ACKNOWLEDGMENTS (2pp)

    Stress is an inherent aspect of life that can have tremendous negative effects on your mental and physical health. This makes coping with stress a critical part of how well we live. Once you understand the inner workings of your stress response system, you'll possess powerful knowledge that will help you understand and better deal with this common aspect of your busy life. Now, from one of the world's foremost researchers on stress and neurobiology, comes a fascinating series of 24 lectures that guide you through the psychological and psychosocial stress that is a central part of everyday life in Western society. You'll learn how the stress-response system is actually a natural survival system-giving, for example, a zebra the best chance to escape from a pursuing lion - that can change from a safety mechanism into a real problem for our physical and mental well-being. You'll see it coming into play against situations it wasn't designed to combat, such as traffic, troublesome thoughts and memories, and concerns over the economy, environment, and international events. And you'll gain valuable insights into how and why stress can affect every part of your body-including your cardiovascular, digestive, and immune systems - and learn about its relationship to important disorders and behaviors, like depression, anxiety, and even addiction.

    How to approach complex normal and abnormal behaviors through biology. How to integrate disciplines including sociobiology, ethology, neuroscience, and endocrinology to examine behaviors such as aggression, sexual behavior, language use, and mental illness.36 hours lectures

    The Archaeology of Mind presents an affective neuroscience approach which takes into consideration basic mental processes, brain functions, and emotional behaviors that all mammals share to locate the neural mechanisms of emotional expression. It reveals for the first time the deep neural sources of our values and basic emotional feelings.This book elaborates on the seven emotional systems that explain how we live and behave. These systems originate in deep areas of the brain that are remarkably similar across all mammalian species. When they are disrupted, we find the origins of emotional disorders:- SEEKING: how the brain generates a euphoric and expectant response- FEAR: how the brain responds to the threat of physical danger and death- RAGE: sources of irritation and fury in the brain- LUST: how sexual desire and attachments are elaborated in the brain- CARE: sources of maternal nurturance- GRIEF: sources of non-sexual attachments- PLAY: how the brain generates joyous, rough-and-tumble interactions- SELF: a hypothesis explaining how affects might be elaborated in the brainThe book offers an evidence-based evolutionary taxonomy of emotions and affects and, as such, a brand-new clinical paradigm for treating psychiatric disorders in clinical practice.

    Moffett, “the Indiana Jones of entomology,” takes us around the globe on a strange and colorful journey in search of the hidden world of ants. In tales from Nigeria, Indonesia, the Amazon, Australia, California, and elsewhere, Moffett recounts his entomological exploits and provides fascinating details on how ants live and how they dominate their ecosystems through strikingly human behaviors, yet at a different scale and a faster tempo. Moffett’s spectacular close-up photographs shrink us down to size, so that we can observe ants in familiar roles; warriors, builders, big-game hunters, and slave owners. We find them creating marketplaces and assembly lines and dealing with issues we think of as uniquely human—including hygiene, recycling, and warfare. Adventures among Ants introduces some of the world’s most awe-inspiring species and offers a startling new perspective on the limits of our own perception.• Ants are world-class road builders, handling traffic problems on thoroughfares that dwarf our highway systems in their complexity• Ants with the largest societies often deploy complicated military tactics• Some ants have evolved from hunter-gatherers into farmers, domesticating other insects and growing crops for food

    Every year, faced with the life-or-death problem of choosing and traveling to a new home, honeybees stake everything on a process that includes collective fact-finding, vigorous debate, and consensus building. In fact, as world-renowned animal behaviorist Thomas Seeley reveals, these incredible insects have much to teach us when it comes to collective wisdom and effective decision making. A remarkable and richly illustrated account of scientific discovery, Honeybee Democracy brings together, for the first time, decades of Seeley's pioneering research to tell the amazing story of house hunting and democratic debate among the honeybees.In the late spring and early summer, as a bee colony becomes overcrowded, a third of the hive stays behind and rears a new queen, while a swarm of thousands departs with the old queen to produce a daughter colony. Seeley describes how these bees evaluate potential nest sites, advertise their discoveries to one another, engage in open deliberation, choose a final site, and navigate together--as a swirling cloud of bees--to their new home. Seeley investigates how evolution has honed the decision-making methods of honeybees over millions of years, and he considers similarities between the ways that bee swarms and primate brains process information. He concludes that what works well for bees can also work well for people: any decision-making group should consist of individuals with shared interests and mutual respect, a leader's influence should be minimized, debate should be relied upon, diverse solutions should be sought, and the majority should be counted on for a dependable resolution.An impressive exploration of animal behavior, Honeybee Democracy shows that decision-making groups, whether honeybee or human, can be smarter than even the smartest individuals in them.

    In these pages you’ll also meet Maya and Zuni, two orphaned baby hummingbirds who hatched from eggs the size of navy beans, and who are little more than air bubbles fringed with feathers. Their lives hang precariously in the balance—but with human help, they may one day conquer the sky. Snowball is a cockatoo whose dance video went viral on YouTube and who’s now teaching schoolchildren how to dance. You’ll meet Harris’s hawks named Fire and Smoke. And you’ll come to know and love a host of other avian characters who will change your mind forever about who birds really are. Each of these birds shows a different and utterly surprising aspect of what makes a bird a bird—and these are the lessons of Birdology: that birds are far stranger, more wondrous, and at the same time more like us than we might have dared to imagine. In Birdology, beloved author of The Good Good Pig Sy Montgomery explores the essence of the otherworldly creatures we see every day. By way of her adventures with seven birds—wild, tame, exotic, and common—she weaves new scientific insights and narrative to reveal seven kernels of bird wisdom. The first lesson of Birdology is that, no matter how common they are, Birds Are Individuals, as each of Montgomery’s distinctive Ladies clearly shows. In the leech-infested rain forest of Queensland, you’ll come face to face with a cassowary—a 150-pound, man-tall, flightless bird with a helmet of bone on its head and a slashing razor-like toenail with which it (occasionally) eviscerates people—proof that Birds Are Dinosaurs. You’ll learn from hawks that Birds Are Fierce; from pigeons, how Birds Find Their Way Home; from parrots, what it means that Birds Can Talk; and from 50,000 crows who moved into a small city’s downtown, that Birds Are Everywhere. They are the winged aliens who surround us. Birdology explains just how very "other" birds are: Their hearts look like those of crocodiles. They are covered with modified scales, which are called feathers. Their bones are hollow. Their bodies are permeated with extensive air sacs. They have no hands. They give birth to eggs. Yet despite birds’ and humans’ disparate evolutionary paths, we share emotional and intellectual abilities that allow us to communicate and even form deep bonds. When we begin to comprehend who birds really are, we deepen our capacity to approach, understand, and love these otherworldly creatures. And this, ultimately, is the priceless lesson of Birdology: it communicates a heartfelt fascination and awe for birds and restores our connection to these complex, mysterious fellow creatures.

    These black-and-white and vibrantly colored images, many resembling abstract art, are employed daily by scientists around the world, but most have never before been seen by the general public. Each chapter addresses a different set of techniques for studying the brain as revealed through the images, and each is introduced by a leading scientist in that field of study. Author Carl Schoonover’s captions provide detailed explanations of each image as well as the major insights gained by scientists over the course of the past 20 years. Accessible to a wide audience, this book reveals the elegant methods applied to study the mind, giving readers a peek at its innermost workings, helping us to understand them, and offering clues about what may lie ahead. Praise for Portraits of the Mind: "An odyssey through the brain, illuminated by a rainbow" --New York Times "Stunning images" --Scientific American "The collection of images in the new book Portraits of the Mind is truly impressive . . . The mix of history, science and art is terrific." -Wired.com "History, science, and art come together to provide a unique perspective on what's going on upstairs." --New Yorker.com "No knowledge of the source or subject matter of these images is necessary; the book is justified by their beauty alone." --Science "A remarkable new book"- -Discover.com "John Keats's insistence that truth is beauty is exemplified by Carl Schoonover's wonderful book Portraits of the Mind. Since one cannot understand the present without examining the past, this book offers a delightful and instructive way of accomplishing just that. I enthusiastically recommend this beautiful book both to students of brain science and to lovers of art." -Eric R. Kandel, MD, Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine, 2000; University Professor at Columbia; Fred Kavli Professor and Director, Kavli Institute for Brain Science; Senior Investigator at the Howard Hughes Medical Institute; and author of In Search of Memory: The Emergence of a New Science of Mind "Portraits of the Mind achieves a rare combination of beauty and knowledge. Its images of the brain are mesmerizing, from medieval engravings to modern visualizations as gorgeously abstract as anything by Rothko or de Kooning. And in explaining the nature of these images, this book also delivers an enlightening, up-to-date history of neuroscience." -Carl Zimmer, author of Soul Made Flesh: The Discovery of the Brain-and How It Changed the World and The Mind's Eye Goes Blind: Fifteen Journeys Through the Brain "Portraits of the Mind is a remarkable book that combines beautifully reproduced illustrations of the nervous system as it has been visualized over the centuries, as well as lively and authoritative commentaries by some of today's leading neuroscientists. It will be enjoyed by professionals and general readers alike." --Dale Purves, MD, Professor of Neurobiology, Psychology and Neuroscience; and Philosophy at Duke University

    Young readers will learn how a British naturalist named Charles Darwin studied nature and developed his now-famous concepts of natural selection and survival of the fittest. And how modern-day science has added to our understanding of the theory of evolution. Can something as complex and wondrous as the natural world be explained by a simple theory? The answer is yes, and now Evolution explains how in a way that makes it easy to understand.

    World-renowned dinosaur illustrator and researcher Gregory Paul provides comprehensive visual and textual coverage of the great Mesozoic animals that gave rise to the living dinosaurs, the birds. Incorporating the new discoveries and research that are radically transforming what we know about dinosaurs, this book is distinguished both by its scientific accuracy and the quality and quantity of its illustrations. It presents thorough descriptions of more than 735 dinosaur species and features more than 600 color and black-and-white images, including unique skeletal drawings, life studies, and scenic views--illustrations that depict the full range of dinosaurs, from small, feathered creatures to whale-sized supersauropods.Heavily illustrated species accounts of the major dinosaur groups are preceded by an extensive introduction that covers dinosaur history and biology, the extinction of nonavian dinosaurs, the origin of birds, and the history of dinosaur paleontology--and that also gives a taste of what it might be like to travel back to the time of the dinosaurs.The Princeton Field Guide to Dinosaurs is a must-have for anyone who loves dinosaurs, from the amateur enthusiast to the professional paleontologist.The first authoritative field guide to dinosaursCovers more than 735 speciesBeautiful, large-format volumeLavishly illustrated throughout, with more than 600 color and black-and-white drawings and figures, including: More than 130 color life studies, including scenic views Close to 450 skeletal, skull, head, and muscle drawings 8 color paleo-distribution maps Color timelineDescribes anatomy, physiology, locomotion, reproduction, and growth of dinosaurs, as well as the origin of birds and the extinction of nonavian dinosaurs

    But even residents on this idyllic California coast may not realize its full history. Monterey began as a natural paradise, but became the poster child for industrial devastation in John Steinbeck’s Cannery Row,and is now one of the most celebrated shorelines in the world.   It is a remarkable story of life, death, and revival—told here for the first time in all its stunning color and bleak grays. The Death and Life of Monterey Bay begins in the eighteenth century when Spanish and French explorers encountered a rocky shoreline brimming with life—raucous sea birds, abundant sea otters, barking sea lions, halibut the size of wagon wheels,waters thick with whales. A century and a half later, many of the sea creatures had disappeared, replaced by sardine canneries that sickened residents with their stench but kept the money flowing. When the fish ran out and the climate turned,the factories emptied and the community crumbled. But today,both Monterey’s economy and wildlife are resplendent. How did it happen?   The answer is deceptively simple: through the extraordinary acts of ordinary people. The Death and Life of Monterey Bay is the biography of a place, but also of the residents who reclaimed it. Monterey is thriving because of an eccentric mayor who wasn’t afraid to use pistols, axes, or the force of law to protect her coasts. It is because of fishermen who love their livelihood, scientists who are fascinated by the sea’s mysteries, and philanthropists and community leaders willing to invest in a world-class aquarium. The shores of Monterey Bay revived because of human passion—passion that enlivens every page of this hopeful book.

    Some bask unseen at the top of trees in London parks; others lurk at the bottom of damp bogs in Scotland. Several are virtually extinct. This book charts the author's quest to find all 59, from the Adonis Blue to the Dingy Skipper.

    Proudly dubbed “an entirely synthetic fish” by fisheries managers, the rainbow trout has been introduced into every state and province in the United States and Canada and to every continent except Antarctica, often with devastating effects on the native fauna. Halverson examines the paradoxes and reveals a range of characters, from nineteenth-century boosters who believed rainbows could be the saviors of democracy to twenty-first-century biologists who now seek to eradicate them from waters around the globe. Ultimately, the story of the rainbow trout is the story of our relationship with the natural world—how it has changed and how it startlingly has not.

    Bird Songs Bible covers the sights and sounds of every single breeding bird in North Americanearly 750 in all. This utterly distinctive package features a state-of-the-art digital audio player that brings to life the birds' songs and calls with the touch of a button. Written by a panel of ornithological experts and produced with the renowned Cornell Lab of Ornithology, this indispensable reference features lavish illustrations of the birds and their habitats, scientifically accurate range maps, and detailed information on distribution, habitat, behavior, and vocalizations. A beautiful keepsake object, Bird Songs Bible is an essential volume for the true bird lover.

    Increasingly, science is concerned with the structure, behavior, and evolution of complex systems ranging from cells to ecosystems. In Networks of the Brain, Olaf Sporns describes how the integrative nature of brain function can be illuminated from a complex network perspective.Highlighting the many emerging points of contact between neuroscience and network science, the book serves to introduce network theory to neuroscientists and neuroscience to those working on theoretical network models. Sporns emphasizes how networks connect levels of organization in the brain and how they link structure to function, offering an informal and nonmathematical treatment of the subject. Networks of the Brain provides a synthesis of the sciences of complex networks and the brain that will be an essential foundation for future research.

    . .· The almost inconceivable number of creatures in the marine world. From the bounty of microbes in one drop of seawater, we can calculate that there are more individuals in the oceans than stars in the universe.· The sophisticated sensory abilities that help these animals survive. For many, the standard five senses are just not enough.· The incredible distances that seabirds and other species cover. Some will feed in both Arctic and Antarctic waters within a single year.· The odd relationships common in the marine world. From a dental hygienist for fish to a walrus's one-night stand, you'll find beauty, practicality, and plenty of eccentricity in sea-life socialization.Brilliantly photographed and written in an easygoing style, Citizens of the Sea will inform and enchant you with close-up documentation of the fascinating facts of life in the ocean realm.

    The coloring book helps you memorize the anatomy content you need to know in both veterinary medicine and veterinary technology and gives you a fun way to review the information you have studied. All illustrations in the book are suitable for coloring and are of the highest quality, created by expert medical illustrators.Organized by body region, the book is divided into sections devoted to the head and neck; neck, back, and vertebral column; thorax; abdomen; pelvis; forlimb; and hindlimb.Numbered lead lines clearly identify structures to be colored and correspond to a numbered list beneath the illustration so you can easily visualize the veterinary anatomy. Plus, you can create your own color code using the numbered boxes provided for each illustration.Comprehensive veterinary anatomy coverage helps you reinforce your understanding of canine, feline, equine, porcine, ruminants, and avian anatomy.High quality illustrations make it easy for you to color in each anatomic region and review anatomic details.Self-study format provides a fun and interactive way to prepare for exams throughout your veterinary courses.Part of Elsevier's complete veterinary anatomy learning system, integrating core anatomy knowledge, engaging review, hands-on practice, and clinical application to give you a solid foundation for success!

    500-page reference detailing 1,600 animals with 2,000 photographs and descriptive text is not only the most comprehensive visual field guide to marine invertebrate life inhabiting the waters from Thailand to Tahiti

    Drawing on new translations of Mutis's nearly forgotten writings, this fascinating story of scientific adventure in eighteenth-century South America retrieves Mutis's contributions from obscurity.In 1760, the 28-year-old Mutis—newly appointed as the personal physician of the Viceroy of the New Kingdom of Granada—embarked on a 48-year exploration of the natural world of northern South America. His thirst for knowledge led Mutis to study the region's flora, become a professor of mathematics, construct the first astronomical observatory in the Western Hemisphere, and amass one of the largest scientific libraries in the world. He translated Newton's writings and penned essays about Copernicus; lectured extensively on astronomy, geography, and meteorology; and eventually became a priest. But, as two-time Pulitzer Prize–winner Edward O. Wilson and Spanish natural history scholar José M. Gómez Durán reveal in this enjoyable and illustrative account, one of Mutis's most magnificent accomplishments involved ants.Acting at the urging of Carl Linnaeus—the father of taxonomy—shortly after he arrived in the New Kingdom of Granada, Mutis began studying the ants that swarmed everywhere. Though he lacked any entomological training, Mutis built his own classification for the species he found and named at a time when New World entomology was largely nonexistent. His unorthodox catalog of army ants, leafcutters, and other six-legged creatures found along the banks of the Magdalena provided a starting point for future study.Wilson and Durán weave a compelling, fast-paced story of ants on the march and the eighteenth-century scientist who followed them. A unique glance into the early world of science exploration, Kingdom of Ants is a delight to read and filled with intriguing information.

    First published in German in 1979, the book is now in its third edition, and has establisheditself as the supreme authority on these fascinating creatures.Containing five hundred new references, this book incorporates the latest research while dispelling many oft-heard myths and misconceptions that surround spiders. Of special interest are chapters on the structure and function of spider webs and silk, as well as those on spider venom. A newsubchapter on tarantulas will appeal especially to tarantula keepers and breeders.The highly accessible text is supplemented by exceptional, high-quality photographs, many of them originals, and detailed diagrams. It will be of interest to arachnologists, entomologists, and zoologists, as well as to academics, students of biology, and the general reader curious about spiders.

    Identification is made to the family level, sometimes to the genus or species. It's an invaluable guide for wildlife professionals, naturalists, students, and insect specialists.Beetles, spiders, ants, flies, butterflies, mayflies, dragonflies, earwigs, crickets, grasshoppers, scorpions, centipedes, millipedes, snails, earthworms, lacewings, wasps, damselflies, slugs, and alderflies

    Useful to medical students, interns and residents, nurses responsible for IV fluid therapy, and first year nephrology fellows.

    Romeo had a playful and loving soul that residents of Juneau, Alaska simply could not ignore and many adopted him as part of their community. Orphaned and alone, Romeo chose his territory below the Mendenhall Glacier close to the town of Juneau, and made his winter home in the Upper-Valley and along the shorelines of the nearby Lakes where he played with his cousins - the dogs that accompanied their owners as they snow-shoed and skied throughout his territory every winter. For John Hyde, Romeo was more than a friend, and much much more than the lone wolf he photographed every winter for nearly a decade along the lake shores, on the flanks of Mount McGinnis, and on the many trails that lead up and down this mountainous and stunningly beautiful area of Alaska. He writes in his Preface to the book: The first time I met Romeo face to face, close enough that we could stare into each other's eyes, I felt I was sitting on the edge of two worlds: one so wild and free I might never be able to comprehend its true significance, the other civilized, which I was driven to escape from on a regular basis. As he recounts Romeo's life from a tragic and violent beginning through to its equally tragic end at the hands of humans for whom he posed no threat, the author writes in the tradition of Aldo Leopold and seeks to describe the kind of redemption and hope that Romeo provided us with as an example of how we humans might recon­sider the baleful and destructive nature of our attitudes toward our wild fellow creatures and the wilderness that is our heritage too. Romeo shared our world to our delight and without malice. We, on the other hand, are often too busy thoughtlessly destroying wilderness habitats in Alaska and elsewhere. Romeo's life, the life of a wild carnivore, as it is described in this book in both clear and  scientific language, was unique. He lived on the edge of the wilder­ness and of our so called civilization, where the two often clashed both in benign and more aggressive ways. When they did it was often his gentle behavior that illuminated our own human igno­rance and latent aggression toward his or any another wild species. Romeo: The Story of an Alaskan Wolf is also the book of a remark­able photographer whose portraits of the wild and of Romeo in particular are as unique as the subject himself. The book is a tribute to an animal whose life came to be treasured by those who knew him and whose life now stands as a challenge to us all in our strug­gle for a better and more sustainable planet.

    This title shows us how to examine, study, and appreciate microbes in the manner of a birdwatcher, by making sightings of microbial activities and thereby identifying particular microbes as well as understanding what they do and how they do it.

    As Earth's most biodiverse ecosystem-surpassing even the rainforests-they are home to a cooperative network ranging from immense fish to sunlight-capturing algae to invisible microbes. Just how critical the microbes in particular are for coral reef health is finally understood thanks to recent discoveries. Coral Reefs in the Microbial Seas is the first book to unveil the complete story of how these relationships uphold coral reef health and what impact human activity has on this delicate balance.

    Designed by two sisters-one a doctor, one a lawyer-and drawing on their decades of experience, the five-step Compassion Protocol outlined in A Better Way of Dying offers a simple and effective framework for leaving caretakers concrete, unambiguous, and legally binding instructions about your wishes for your last days. Meant for people in every walk of life-from the elderly, to those in the early stages of mentally degenerative diseases like Alzheimer's, to healthy young people planning for an unpredictable future-this book creates space for a discussion we all must have if we wish to ensure comfort and control at the end of our lives..

    

    Beginning as simple sponges more than 635 million years ago, the earliest animals evolved into a diverse marine fauna over the course of 100 million years. In The Cambrian Explosion, Erwin and Valentine synthesize research from many fields to explain why there was such remarkable novelty of animal forms. This is an integrative work of the highest quality, covering one of the most fascinating and transformative periods in life’s history.

    Some have even dived to the depths of the ocean. But most of us are not familiar with the biological origin of shells, their role in explaining evolutionary history, and the incredible variety of forms in which they come.Shells are the external skeletons of mollusks, an ancient and diverse phylum of invertebrates that are in the earliest fossil record of multicellular life over 500 million years ago. There are over 100,000 kinds of recorded mollusks, and some estimate that there are over a million more that have yet to be discovered. Some breathe air, others live in fresh water, but most live in the ocean. They range in size from a grain of sand to a beach ball and in weight from a few grams to several hundred pounds. And in this lavishly illustrated volume, they finally get their full due.The Book of Shells offers a visually stunning and scientifically engaging guide to six hundred of the most intriguing mollusk shells, each chosen to convey the range of shapes and sizes that occur across a range of species. Each shell is reproduced here at its actual size, in full color, and is accompanied by an explanation of the shell’s range, distribution, abundance, habitat, and operculum—the piece that protects the mollusk when it’s in the shell. Brief scientific and historical accounts of each shell and related species include fun-filled facts and anecdotes that broaden its portrait.The Matchless Cone, for instance, or Conus cedonulli, was one of the rarest shells collected during the eighteenth century. So much so, in fact, that a specimen in 1796 was sold for more than six times as much as a painting by Vermeer at the same auction. But since the advent of scuba diving, this shell has become far more accessible to collectors—though not without certain risks. Some species of Conus produce venom that has caused more than thirty known human deaths.The Zebra Nerite, the Heart Cockle, the Indian Babylon, the Junonia, the Atlantic Thorny Oyster—shells from habitats spanning the poles and the tropics, from the highest mountains to the ocean’s deepest recesses, are all on display in this definitive work.

    This guide is designed to help you structure and organize your developing knowledge of biology and create your own personal understanding of the topics covered in the text.

    They attracted followers ranging from Thomas Jefferson, who laid out mastodon bones on the White House floor, to twentieth-century doctors who used their knowledge of new species to conquer epidemic diseases. Acclaimed science writer Richard Conniff brings these daredevil "species seekers" to vivid life. Alongside their globe-spanning tales of adventure, he recounts some of the most dramatic shifts in the history of human thought. At the start, everyone accepted that the Earth had been created for our benefit. We weren't sure where vegetable ended and animal began, we couldn't classify species, and we didn't understand the causes of disease. But all that changed as the species seekers introduced us to the pantheon of life on Earth—and our place within it.

    In addition toall this exploration, your students will enjoy scientific experiments and projects,such as testing the bacteria content around the house, finding their blood type,creating a cell model from Jello and candy, and even building a stethoscope! Inkeeping with the other books in the Apologia elementary science Young ExplorerSeries, the Charlotte Mason methodology is employed with engaging narratives,narration prompts and notebooking projects, all of which reinforce their learningusing proven techniques that strengthen retention.

    Visual Anatomy & Physiology combines a visual approach with a modular organization to deliver an easy-to-use and time-efficient book that uniquely meets the needs of today's students--without sacrificing the coverage of A&P topics required for careers in nursing and other allied health professions.

    For the first time, this inter-disciplinary research programme is brought together within a single volume.Beginning with a complete account of all 36 felid species, there follow 8 comprehensive review chapters that span all the topics most relevant to felid conservation science, including evolution and systematics, felid form and function, genetic applications, behavioural ecology, management of species that come into conflict with people and control of international trade in felid species, conservation tools/techniques, ex situ management, and felid diseases. 19 detailed case studies then delve deeply into syntheses of the very best species investigations worldwide, written by all the leading figures in the field. These chapters portray the unique attributes of the wild felids, describe their fascinating (and conflicting) relationship with humans, and create an unparalleled platform for future research and conservation measures. A final chapter analyses the requirements of, and inter-disciplinary approaches to, practical conservation with cutting-edge examples of conservation science and action that go far beyond the cat family.

    Have you ever wondered how fish breathe underwater, how caterpillars transform into butterflies, why deer grow cumbersome antlers every year, or how snakes slither? How Animals Work explains the structures and systems of animal bodies, using photographs and diagrams to show how animals use their anatomy to move, communicate, hunt, and feed, and how their bodies enhance their chances in the struggle for survival.

    Offered for the first time are the complete full-color illustrations from Gosse’s Entomologia Alabamensis, along with a biographical essay placing Gosse’s work in the context of his long and fruitful life.Born in 1810 in Worcester, England, the young Philip Henry Gosse developed a passion for the natural world. Having learned the basics of miniature portraiture from his father, Gosse quickly took for his artistic subjects the flourishing marine life he discovered along the English coast. In May, 1838, Gosse took a teaching job in Dallas County, Alabama. For the next eight months he collected the insect specimens that he would preserve in the beautifully detailed watercolors of Entomologia Alabamensis. In addition, he composed a highly personalized chronology of his life in a frontier culture, published eventually as Letters from Alabama. Following his return to England, Gosse went on to publish more than 40 books, producing some of the 19th century’s finest illustrations of insects and marine organisms. Today, he is remembered as a popular writer of science for the general public and as a passionate artist whose work in Alabama and elsewhere captured and revealed the beauty and vitality of the natural world. Copublication with the Jule Collins Smith Museum of Fine Art and Auburn University Libraries.

    This comprehensive manual, crafted by the staff of the Tallgrass Prairie Center at the University of Northern Iowa, will be an essential companion for everyone dedicated to planning, developing, and maintaining all types of prairie restorations and reconstructions in the tallgrass prairie region of Iowa, northern Illinois, northwestern Indiana, southwestern Wisconsin, southwestern Minnesota, eastern South Dakota, eastern Nebraska, northwestern Missouri, and northeastern Kansas.Focusing on conservation plantings, prairie recovery, native landscaping in yards and at schools, roadside plantings, and pasture renovations, the authors—who collectively have more than a hundred years of experience with prairie restoration—have created a manual that will be particularly useful to landowners, conservation agency personnel, ecosystem managers, native-seeding contractors, prairie enthusiasts, teachers, and roadside managers. A wealth of color and black-and-white photographs taken in the field as well as checklists and tables support the detailed text, which also includes useful online and print sources and references, a glossary, and lists of common and scientific names of all plant species discussed.The text is divided into five parts. Part I, Reconstruction Planning, provides an overall summary of the entire process, information about securing good-quality seed, and the design of seed mixes. In Part II, Implementing Reconstruction, the authors consider ways to prepare and seed the site, manage the site in its first growing season, identify seedlings, and evaluate success. Part III, Prairie Restoration and Management, deals with identifying and assessing prairie remnants, working toward a predetermined restoration goal, and managing restored prairie remnants and completed reconstructions, including prescribed burning. Chapters in Part IV, Special Cases, discuss the uses of prairie in public spaces, roadside vegetation management, and landscaping on a smaller scale in yards and outdoor classrooms. Part V, Native Seed Production, describes the processes of harvesting, drying, cleaning, and storing native seed as well as propagating and transplanting native seedlings.Although we cannot recreate the original blacksoil prairie, tallgrass prairie restoration offers the opportunity to reverse environmental damage and provide for the recovery of vital aspects of this lost ecosystem. Anyone in the Upper Midwest who wishes to improve water quality, reduce flood damage, support species diversity, preserve animal habitats, and enjoy the changing panorama of grasses and wildflowers will benefit from the clear, careful text and copious illustrations in this authoritative guide.

    Focusing on the ways in which the application of biomedical technologies bring about radical changes to societies at large, cultural anthropologist Margaret Lock and her co-author physician and medical anthropologist Vinh-Kim Nguyen develop and integrate the thesis that the human body in health and illness is the elusive product of nature and culture that refuses to be pinned down.Introduces biomedicine from an anthropological perspective, exploring the entanglement of material bodies with history, environment, culture, and politics Develops and integrates an original theory: that the human body in health and illness is not an ontological given but a moveable, malleable entity Makes extensive use of historical and contemporary ethnographic materials around the globe to illustrate the importance of this methodological approach Integrates key new research data with more classical material, covering the management of epidemics, famines, fertility and birth, by military doctors from colonial times on Uses numerous case studies to illustrate concepts such as the global commodification of human bodies and body parts, modern forms of population, and the extension of biomedical technologies into domestic and intimate domains Winner of the 2010 Prose Award for Archaeology and Anthropology

    Yet, without them we wouldn’t have bread, alcohol, cheese, tofu, or the unique flavors of mushrooms, morels, and truffles. We can’t survive without fungi. The Kingdom Fungi provides a comprehensive look at the biology, structure, and morphological diversity of these necessary organisms. It sheds light on their ecologically important roles in nature, their fascinating relationships with people, plants, and animals, and their practical applications in the manufacture of food, beverages, and pharmaceuticals. The book includes information about “true” fungi, fungus-like creatures (slime molds and water molds), and a group of “composite” organisms (lichens) that are more than just fungi. Particular attention is given to examples of fungi that might be found in the home and encountered in nature. The Kingdom Fungi is a useful introductory text for naturalists, mycologists, and anyone who wants to become more familiar with, and more appreciative of, the fascinating world of fungi.

    The authors describe the trials and triumphs of spiders as they use silk to negotiate an ever-changing environment, and they show how natural selection acts at the genetic level and as individuals struggle for survival.

    This new edition of a classic text offers an accessible but rigorous introduction to the computational approach to understanding biological visual systems. The authors of Seeing, taking as their premise David Marr's statement that "to understand vision by studying only neurons is like trying to understand bird flight by studying only feathers," make use of Marr's three different levels of analysis in the study of vision: the computational level, the algorithmic level, and the hardware implementation level. Each chapter applies this approach to a different topic in vision by examining the problems the visual system encounters in interpreting retinal images and the constraints available to solve these problems; the algorithms that can realize the solution; and the implementation of these algorithms in neurons.Seeing has been thoroughly updated for this edition and expanded to more than three times its original length. It is designed to lead the reader through the problems of vision, from the common (but mistaken) idea that seeing consists just of making pictures in the brain to the minutiae of how neurons collectively encode the visual features that underpin seeing. Although it assumes no prior knowledge of the field, some chapters present advanced material. This makes it the only textbook suitable for both undergraduate and graduate students that takes a consistently computational perspective, offering a firm conceptual basis for tackling the vast literature on vision. It covers a wide range of topics, including aftereffects, the retina, receptive fields, object recognition, brain maps, Bayesian perception, motion, color, and stereopsis. MatLab code is available on the book's website, which includes a simple demonstration of image convolution.

    Richard Mitchell, MD, PhD, Vinay Kumar, MBBS, MD, FRCPath, Nelson Fausto, MD, Abul K. Abbas, MBBS, and Jon Aster, MD assemble all of the key data and principles of pathology in a concise, at-a-glance format and fit them into your pocket for quick reference anytime. The result is a superb source for quick answers and an efficient review tool on any aspect of pathology.

    But traditional presentations of this material are often difficult to penetrate. Statistical Physics of Biomolecules: An Introduction brings "down to earth" some of the most intimidating but important theories of molecular biophysics.With an accessible writing style, the book unifies statistical, dynamic, and thermodynamic descriptions of molecular behavior using probability ideas as a common basis. Numerous examples illustrate how the twin perspectives of dynamics and equilibrium deepen our understanding of essential ideas such as entropy, free energy, and the meaning of rate constants. The author builds on the general principles with specific discussions of water, binding phenomena, and protein conformational changes/folding. The same probabilistic framework used in the introductory chapters is also applied to non-equilibrium phenomena and to computations in later chapters. The book emphasizes basic concepts rather than cataloguing a broad range of phenomena. Focuses on what students need to know now Students build a foundational understanding by initially focusing on probability theory, low-dimensional models, and the simplest molecular systems. The basics are then directly developed for biophysical phenomena, such as water behavior, protein binding, and conformational changes. The book's accessible development of equilibrium and dynamical statistical physics makes this a valuable text for students with limited physics and chemistry backgrounds.

    Without biomedical scientists, the diagnosis of disease, the evaluation of the effectiveness of treatment, and research into the causes and cures of disease would not be possible.The Fundamentals of Biomedical Science series is written to reflect the challenges of practicing biomedical science today. It draws together essential basic science with insights into laboratory practice to show how an understanding of the biology of disease is coupled to the analytical approaches that lead to diagnosis.Assuming only a minimum of prior knowledge, the series reviews the full range of disciplines to which a Biomedical Scientist may be exposed - from microbiology to cytopathology to transfusion science. Alongside volumes exploring specific biomedical themes and related laboratory diagnosis, an overarching Biomedical Science Practice volume gives a grounding in the professional and experimental skills with which any Biomedical Scientist must be equipped.The series DT Understands the complex roles of Biomedical Scientists in the modern practice of medicine. DT Understands the development needs of employers and the Profession. DT Addresses the need for understanding of a range of fundamental sciences in the context of Biomedicine. DT Places the theoretical aspects of Biomedical Science in their practical context.Biomedical Science Practice presents the essential practical and professional skills that every biomedical scientist should master, making it the perfect foundation for the study of each of the key subject specialisms that maybe encountered in the biomedical lab.The book reviews a broad range of professional skills and concepts, including health and safety considerations, personal development, and communication, and also introduces the key experimental and analytical approaches that form the basis of the investigation and diagnosis of clinical conditions.Drawing on the wealth of experience of a range of biomedical science practitioners and educators, Biomedical Science Practice is the ideal companion throughout your biomedical science education and training. Online Resource Centre The Online Resource Centre to accompany Biomedical Science Practice features:For registered adopters of the book: DT Figures from the book, available to downloadFor students: DT An interactive Digital Microscope, encouraging the exploration of tissue samples DT Self-assessment modules to help you to check and reinforce understanding of the basic science introduced in each volume DT Video podcasts including interviews with practicing biomedical scientists, and 'in the lab' footage showing biomedical science in practice

    It appears that no communication system of equivalent power exists elsewhere in the animal kingdom. Any normal human child will learn a language based on rather sparse data in the surrounding world, while even the brightest chimpanzee, exposed to the same environment, will not. Why not? How, and why, did language evolve in our species and not in others? Since Darwin's theory of evolution, questions about the origin of language have generated a rapidly-growing scientific literature, stretched across a number of disciplines, much of it directed at specialist audiences. The diversity of perspectives - from linguistics, anthropology, speech science, genetics, neuroscience and evolutionary biology - can be bewildering. Tecumseh Fitch cuts through this vast literature, bringing together its most important insights to explore one of the biggest unsolved puzzles of human history.

    It's a useful resource and valuable family reference, suitable for use by both adults and students. It's a must for every home library. Discover the intricacies and beauty of the human body in this complete, fully illustrated guide. Designed to help us understand the systems, organs, parts and processes that make our bodies function, The Human Body Atlas reveals the structures and mechanisms behind the human body. The user-friendly text, written by medical experts, demystifies the complexities of the human body. When you need to find out just how an organ works, the role it plays in the overall operation of the body, or what it really looks like?"you can find the answer in this book.

    To date, a comprehensive review of the recent research on the effects of early and later life trauma is lacking. This book fills an obvious gap in academic and clinical literature by providing reviews which summarize and synthesize these findings. Topics considered and discussed include the possible biological and neuropsychological effects of trauma at different epochs and their effect on health. This book will be essential reading for psychiatrists, clinical psychologists, mental health professionals, social workers, pediatricians and specialists in child development.

    It starts with a synthesis of the principles guiding current research in ecophysiology, behavior, and ecology, illustrating each aspect with the detailed results of empirical work on as wide a range of organisms as possible. The integrated story of the flexible phenotype is weaved throughout the book on the basis of the authors' long-term research program on migrant shorebirds and their invertebrate prey. These birds travel vast distances from one environment to another, and the changing nature of their bodies reflects the varied selection pressures experienced in these very different locations. In essence, the authors argue for the existence of direct, measurable, links between phenotype and ecology. Their book outlines a more encompassing approach to evolutionary ecology, based on first principles in physiology, behavior, and ecology. It aspires to encourage a further integration of ecology and physiology, as well as fostering a collaborative research agenda between ecologists and physiologists.

    Discover fascinating facts about Science and learn more about the Scientists who made amazing discoveries.

    It also contains a specimen examination paper for you to try, followed by a set of student's answers for each question, with comments from an examiner.

    The text sparkles with fact and folklore, illuminating the subject with authority and enthusiasm. Fully updated, it includes all the newest tree varieties and cultivars. A reference section includes a guide to choosing trees for the garden.

    Refugees and armies alike tramped across the landscape foraging for food, shelter, and fuel. Wild plants and animals formed barriers for armies and carried disease, yet also provided medicine and raw materials necessary to implement war, greatly influencing the day-to-day life of soldiers and civilians. Of the thousands of books written about the Civil War, few mention the environment, and none address the topic as a principal theme. In Flora and Fauna of the Civil War, Kelby Ouchley blends traditional and natural history to create a unique text that explores both the impact of the Civil War on the surrounding environment and the reciprocal influence of plants and animals on the war effort. The war generated an abundance of letters, diaries, and journals in which soldiers and civilians penned descriptions of plants and animals, sometimes as a brief comment in passing and other times as part of a noteworthy event in their lives. Ouchley collects and organizes these first-person accounts of the Civil War environment, adding expert analysis and commentary in order to offer an array of fascinating insights on the natural history of the era. After discussing the physical setting of the war and exploring humans' attitudes toward nature during the Civil War period, Ouchley presents the flora and fauna by individual species or closely related group in the words of the participants themselves. From ash trees to willows, from alligators to white-tailed deer, the excerpts provide glimpses of personal encounters with the natural world during the war, revealing how soldiers and civilians thought about and interacted with wild flora and fauna in a time of epic historical events. Collectively, no better sources exist to reveal human attitudes toward the environment in the Civil War era. This one-of-a-kind reference book will spark widespread interest among Civil War scholars, writers, and enthusiasts, as well as environmental historians.

    The shortening of the telomere disrupts vital cellular function and promotes the previously seemingly inevitable onset of aging and various diseases, including cancer and Alzheimer's. Drawing from the groundbreaking discoveries about telomeres that won the 2009 Nobel Prize in Medicine, this book includes a highly prescriptive program that shows you how to live longer by slowing telomere shortening and rejuvenating your cells through relatively simple alterations in nutrition habits and other lifestyle changes.Written by authors with extensive knowledge of genetics, telomeres, and longevityOffers a simple action plan you can start using immediatelyIncludes a revolutionary new eating planRecommends individualized supplement programsShares a diet and exercise approach grounded in solid scientific researchThe exciting recent discoveries about telomeres promise to revolutionize our approach to anti-aging much as antioxidants did ten years ago. Unlike trendy diet and fitness books with no basis in science, The Immortality Edge targets health at its innermost level by laying out a realistic, lifelong plan using easy steps that can fit into any busy schedule-steps that can improve the length and quality of your life.

    This colossal landmark book provides a complete overview of all the major branches of science, illustrated with over 300 stunning large-scale images.

    Edited by Drs. Robert O. Bonow, Douglas L. Mann, Douglas P. Zipes, and Peter Libby, this dynamic, multimedia reference helps you apply the most recent knowledge in molecular biology and genetics, imaging, pharmacology, interventional cardiology, electrophysiology, and much more. Weekly updates online, personally selected by Dr. Braunwald, continuously keep you current on the most important new developments affecting your practice. Enhanced premium online content includes new dynamic cardiac imaging videos, heart sound recordings, and podcasts. With sweeping updates throughout, and contributions from a "who’s who" of global cardiology, Braunwald’s is the cornerstone of effective practice. Continuously access the most important new developments affecting your practice with weekly updates personally selected by Dr. Braunwald, including focused reviews, "hot off the press" commentaries, and late-breaking clinical trials. Practice with confidence and overcome your toughest challenges with advice from the top minds in cardiology today, who synthesize the entire state of current knowledge and summarize all of the most recent ACC/AHA practice guidelines. Locate the answers you need fast thanks to a user-friendly, full-color design with more than 1,200 color illustrations. Stay on top of the latest advances in molecular imaging, intravascular ultrasound, cardiovascular regeneration and tissue engineering, device therapy for advanced heart failure, atrial fibrillation management, structural heart disease, Chagasic heart disease, ethics in cardiovascular medicine, the design and conduct of clinical trials, and many other timely topics.

    Using clear, step-by-step photography and bite-size nuggets of information, RHS Simple Steps: Orchids demonstrates all aspects of how to care for orchids, including where to position, how and when to water and feed, how to encourage reflowering, and how often to repot. A chapter on displaying orchids provides inspirational ideas for how to show off your plants to best effect and use the strikingly beautiful flowers in creative ways. You will also find an A -Z directory of more than 140 popular and easy-to-grow varieties, packed full of stunning photographs and quick-reference growing advice to help you choose what to grow. Also included is a selection of increasingly popular hardy varieties for those looking to plant an outdoor orchid garden. Dispelling the myths and demonstrating how easy it can be to keep your orchids thriving, RHS Simple Steps: Orchids is certain to get you hooked on growing these spectacular and exotic flowering plants.

     Hope Is an Imperative brings together in a single volume Professor Orr’s most important works. These include classics such as “What Is Education For?,” one of the most widely reprinted essays in the environmental literature, “The Campus and the Biosphere,” which helped launch the green campus movement,and “Loving Children: A Design Problem,” which renowned theologian and philosopher Thomas Berry called “the most remarkable essay I’ve read in my whole life.”   The book features thirty-three essays, along with an introductory section that considers the evolution of environmentalism, section introductions that place the essays into a larger context, and a foreword by physicist and author Fritjof Capra.  Hope Is an Imperative is a comprehensive collection of works by one of the most important thinkers and writers of our time. It offers a complete introduction to the writings of David Orr for readers new to the field, and represents a welcome compendium of key essays for longtime fans. The book is a must-have volume for every environmentalist’s bookshelf.

    Instead, ants decide what to do based on the rate, rhythm, and pattern of individual encounters and interactions--resulting in a dynamic network that coordinates the functions of the colony. Ant Encounters provides a revealing and accessible look into ant behavior from this complex systems perspective.Focusing on the moment-to-moment behavior of ant colonies, Deborah Gordon investigates the role of interaction networks in regulating colony behavior and relations among ant colonies. She shows how ant behavior within and between colonies arises from local interactions of individuals, and how interaction networks develop as a colony grows older and larger. The more rapidly ants react to their encounters, the more sensitively the entire colony responds to changing conditions. Gordon explores whether such reactive networks help a colony to survive and reproduce, how natural selection shapes colony networks, and how these structures compare to other analogous complex systems. Ant Encounters sheds light on the organizational behavior, ecology, and evolution of these diverse and ubiquitous social insects.

    29 pages of summaries and analysis on Cod by Mark Kurlansky.This study guide includes the following sections: Plot Summary, Chapter Summaries & Analysis, Characters, Objects/Places, Themes, Style, Quotes, and Topics for Discussion.

    What is known of the chemical and physical conditions of any planetary environment and its history enables us to make educated and plausible speculations about the nature and history of life on that world. Within our Solar System, there is an enormous diversity of planetary environments. On Earth, life evolved on a geologically complex, water-rich world, which today has an oxidizing atmosphere, although this was not always the case. On Mars, the surface is bitterly cold and dry, and the atmosphere very thin. Whether or not life ever existed on the Red Planet is a matter for speculation, but we do know that early in its history, Mars was a warmer, wetter world. Today Venus is a planet with an incredibly hot surface and a dense choking atmosphere, and it seems unlikely, although not impossible, that life could ever evolve here. On the gas giant planets, such as Jupiter and Saturn, it is possible that life might exist in the dense atmospheres of these cloud covered worlds, and might even have evolved on some of their exotic moons such as the sulphur-rich, volcanic world Io, Icy Europa with its possible sub-surface ocean, or Titan with its lakes of liquid petroleum gas on the surface. Discussions of the great variety of life forms that could evolve in these diverse environments have become particularly relevant in recent years with the discovery of around 300 exoplanets in orbit around other stars and the possibilities for the existence of life in these planetary systems.

    With its gentle approach to working with the spine, the skull and its cranial sutures, diaphragms, and fascia, CST has proven equally useful for physical therapists, massage therapists, naturopaths, chiropractors, and osteopaths. One reason for its success has been its underlying theory, as explained by CST pioneer John Upledger. According to Upledger, bodily tissues and cells have individual memories, and traumatic memories can be stored in these cells and tissues. Cell Talk, written for the layperson, explores this concept in depth and shows practitioners how to use it in healing their patients.The book offers simple strategies for treating disease and dysfunction by communicating with these cells to uncover the memories and then follow the healing path they suggest. Upledger blends the scientific aspects of cell biology with insights into the nature of inner consciousness, in the process uncovering the deep links between physiology, energy, health, and healing. Fascinating case studies—from people rescued from serious ailments to “talking” with AIDS cells—show how these ideas can be turned into useful medical treatment. Fascinating anecdotes from the author’s personal and work life add an intimate, human touch to this helpful book.

    Preparing Fido’s food at home may seem daunting, but it’s really not, says Lew Olson in Raw & Natural Nutrition for Dogs. Olson discusses canine nutritional needs and explains the research on how home-prepared foods, particularly raw foods, can meet pets’ needs better than commercial, processed dog food. Step-by-step instructions and recipes make preparation easy. The book includes charts with the recipes, instructions on keeping diets simple and balanced, guidelines on preparation, suggestions for finding ingredients, and how much to feed a dog by body weight. There are recipes for healthy adult dogs as well as guidelines for puppies, senior dogs, and dogs with health conditions including pancreatitis, renal problems, gastric issues, allergies, heart disease, liver disease, and cancer. Pet owners seeking to give their dogs a better coat, better skin, and healthier teeth and gums, as well as longer lives and more stable temperaments, are sure to welcome this book.

    It discusses fundamental principles and circuits for ultra low power electronic design and their applications in biomedical systems. It also discusses how ultra-energy-efficient cellular and neural systems in biology can inspire revolutionary low power architectures in mixed-signal and RF electronics. The book presents a unique, unifying view of ultra low power analog and digital electronics and emphasizes the use of the ultra-energy-efficient subthreshold regime of transistor operation in both. Chapters on batteries, energy harvesting, and the future of energy provide an understanding of fundamental relationships between energy use and energy generation at small scales and at large scales. A wealth of insights and examples from brain implants, cochlear implants, bio-molecular sensing, cardiac devices, and bio-inspired systems make the book useful and engaging for students and practicing engineers.

    Homosexual behavior is common among social animals, and mainly expressed within the context of a bisexual sexual orientation. Exclusive homosexuality is less common, but not unique to humans. Poiani and Dixson invite the reader to embark on a journey through the evolutionary, biological, psychological and sociological aspects of homosexuality, seeking an understanding of both the proximate and evolutionary causes of homosexual behavior and orientation in humans, other mammals and birds. The authors also provide a synthesis of what we know about homosexuality into a biosocial model that links recent advances in reproductive skew theory and various selection mechanisms to produce a comprehensive framework that will be useful for anyone teaching or planning future research in this field.

    DID YOU KNOW?Stinky ear wax has been hanging around in the ear canal for nearly a month before it is 'pickable'!Humans share a third of their DNA with lettuce.Cockroaches fart every fifteen minutes.Giraffes never kneel.The average person spends six months of their life on the loo.Amaze your friends and fascinate your family with this book packed with jaw-dropping, eyebrow-raising facts.

    Wouldn't it be great to have a single source of quick answers to all our questions about how living things work? Now there is.From molecules to animals, cells to ecosystems, Biology For Dummies, 2nd Edition answers all your questions about how living things work.Written in plain English and packed with dozens of illustrations, quick-reference Cheat Sheets, and helpful tables and diagrams, it cuts right to the chase with fast-paced, easy-to-absorb explanations of the life processes common to all organisms. More than 20% new and updated content, including a substantial overhaul to the organization of topics to make it a friendly classroom supplement Coverage of the most recent developments and discoveries in evolutionary, reproductive, and ecological biology Includes practical, up-to-date examples Whether you're currently enrolled in a biology class or just want to know more about this fascinating and ever-evolving field of study, this engaging guide will give you a grip on complex biology concepts and unlock the mysteries of how life works in no time.

    The new edition features 189 species of salamanders, frogs, crocodilians, turtles, lizards, and snakes, with updated color photographs, descriptions, and distribution maps for each species. It is an indispensable guide for zoologists, amateur naturalists, environmentalists, backpackers, campers, hikers, and everyone interested in the outdoors.

    The book is structured to help readers understand the logic of individual component techniques and their relationships to each other.

    This book discusses the emergence of human cognition at a conceptual level, describing it as a process of long adaptive stasis interrupted by short periods of cognitive advance. These advances were not linear and directed, but were acquired indirectly as part of changing human behaviors, in other words through the process of exaptation (acquisition of a function for which it was not originally selected). Based on studies of the modem human brain, certain prerequisites were needed for the development of the early brain and associated cognitive advances. This book documents the energy and nutrient constraints of the modern brain, highlighting the significant role of long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids (LC-PUFA) in brain development and maintenance. Crawford provides further emphasis for the role of essential fatty acids, in particular DHA, in brain development, by discussing the evolution of the eye and neural systems.This is an ideal book for Graduate students, post docs, research scientists in Physical/Biological Anthropology, Human Biology, Archaeology, Nutrition, Cognitive Science, Neurosciences. It is also an excellent selection for a grad student discussion seminar.

    The volume is united by the belief that all aspects of Aristotle's work need to be studied together if any one of the areas of thought is to be fully understood. Many of the papers were contributions to a conference at the University of Pittsburgh entitled 'Being, Nature, and Life in Aristotle', to honor Professor Allan Gotthelf's many contributions to the field of ancient philosophy; a few are contributions from those who were invited but could not attend. The contributors, all longstanding friends of Professor Gotthelf, are among the most accomplished scholars in the field of ancient philosophy today.

    A diver of many years' experience, Rick Harbo presents a brilliant guide to the most notable specimens found in local waters. This durable, water-resistant 8-fold pamphlet identifies more than 50 of the most common species from California to Alaska and is an ideal companion on visits to the sea as well as a beautiful addition to the home library.

    Neither nature nor nurture alone provides the answer. It is nature and nurture in concert that shape developmental pathways and outcomes, from health to behavior to competence. This insight has moved far beyond the assertion that both nature and nurture matter, progressing into the fascinating terrain of how they interact over the course of development. In this volume, students, practitioners, policy analysts, and others with a serious interest in human development will learn what is transpiring in this new paradigm from the developmental scientists working at the cutting edge, from neural mechanisms to population studies, and from basic laboratory science to clinical and community interventions. Early childhood development is the critical focus of this volume, because many of the important nature-nurture interactions occur then, with significant influences on lifelong developmental trajectories.

    From the theological discussion of bodily resurrection to the folkloric use of body parts as remedies, and from the judicial punishment of the corpse to the ceremonial interment of the social elite, this book discusses how seemingly incompatible beliefs about the dead body existed in parallel through this tumultuous period. This study, which is the first to incorporate archaeological evidence of early modern death and burial from across Britain and Ireland, addresses new questions about the materiality of death: what the dead body means, and how its physical substance could be attributed with sentience and even agency. It provides a sophisticated original interpretive framework for the growing quantities of archaeological and historical evidence about mortuary beliefs and practices in early modernity.

    Is the brain something that works the way it is supposed to like a computer or something that works not quite as well as it is supposed to like a Rube Goldberg contraption? Brains have different purposes depending on whether you are a mouse (it's useful to smell well) or a human (you need to walk on two feet) or a whale (you need to know where you are in the ocean) and for all these purposes and others you need a brain. What kind of a brain does a fruit fly have? Do plants need brains or can they get by without one? Does a pea have a brain? What animal had the first brain?  Does brain-size matter and what makes the human brains different from those of other species? Then there are the chemical questions and the electrical questions and how messages are sent around your body from the brain and signals are sent back from the nerve cells to the brain along multi-lane highways full of neurotransmitters which cope with the impulses you have sensed from the outside world.  Wallace and Darwin show you how 21st century science works with CATS (No not cats!) and MRIs and all that Brain Imaging that can explore the brain in action. How we sleep, how we perceive things, how we dream, how we (and other animals) remember things, even how we think! Brain takes a 21st Century Look at the major concepts that will help the reader understand the complex structure and function of the brain, whether plants have brains and what the brains of small animals like flies and worms look like and if size matters. Brain looks at the structure of neural cells and what a synapse looks like and does as well as examine the chemical nature of how nerves work and how some molecules like dopamine work to influence the way our nervous systems work. It also looks at how the brain works and what parts of the brain might control what functions and how FMRI (functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging) looks at the brain. This lavishly illustrated book examines how our brain works when we sleep, see things, perceive and remember things.

    Commentary (novels not included). Pages: 34. Chapters: The Andromeda Strain, State of Fear, Next, Rising Sun, Jurassic Park, The Lost World, Prey, Pirate Latitudes, The Great Train Robbery, Sphere, Airframe, Timeline, The Terminal Man, Congo, Disclosure, Eaters of the Dead, A Case of Need, Binary, The Venom Business, Easy Go, Scratch One, Grave Descend, Zero Cool, Odds On, Dealing: Or the Berkeley-to-Boston Forty-Brick Lost-Bag Blues, Drug of Choice. Excerpt: State of Fear is a 2004 techno-thriller novel by Michael Crichton concerning eco-terrorists who attempt mass murder to support their views. The novel had an initial print run of 1.5 million copies and reached the #1 bestseller position at Amazon.com and #2 on the New York Times Best Seller list for one week in January 2005. The book contains many graphs and footnotes, two appendices, and a twenty-page bibliography. Climate scientists dispute Crichton's science as being error-filled and distorted. State of Fear is, like many of Crichton's works, a fictional work that uses science and speculation for the storyline. The debate over global warming serves as the backdrop for the book. Crichton supplies a personal afterword and two appendices that link the fictional part of the book with real examples of his thesis. The main villains in the plot are environmentalists. Crichton does place blame on "industry" in both the plot line and the appendices. Various assertions appear in the book, for example: Crichton argues for removing politics from science and uses global warming and real-life historical examples in the appendices to make this argument. In a 2003 speech at the California Institute of Technology he expressed his concern about what he considered the "emerging crisis in the whole enterprise of science-namely the increasingly uneasy relationship between hard science and public...

    They are highly suitable for processing complex amplitude, composed of amplitude and phase, which is one of the core concepts in physical systems to deal with electromagnetic, light, sonic/ultrasonic waves as well as quantum waves, namely, electron and superconducting waves. This fact is a critical advantage in practical applications in diverse fields of engineering, where signals are routinely analyzed and processed in time/space, frequency, and phase domains.Complex-Valued Neural Networks: Advances and Applications covers cutting-edge topics and applications surrounding this timely subject. Demonstrating advanced theories with a wide range of applications, including communication systems, image processing systems, and brain-computer interfaces, this text offers comprehensive coverage of:Conventional complex-valued neural networks Quaternionic neural networks Clifford-algebraic neural networks Presented by international experts in the field, Complex-Valued Neural Networks: Advances and Applications is ideal for advanced-level computational intelligence theorists, electromagnetic theorists, and mathematicians interested in computational intelligence, artificial intelligence, machine learning theories, and algorithms.

    Rabbits, antelopes, and birds beware! Special adaptations make cheetahs fearsome predators. From long bodies to keen eyesight, these big cats of Africa are born hunters. This colorful book features photographs of these grassland animals as fierce, full-grown hunters and as cute cheetah cubs.

    More than 12,500 species have been described to date, and it is estimated that perhaps as many still await classification.Ant Ecology explores key ecological issues and new developments in myrmecology across a range of scales. The book begins with a global perspective on species diversity in time and space, and examines interactions at the community level before describing the population ecology of these social insects. The final section covers the recent ecological phenomenon of invasive ants: how they move across the globe, invade, affect ecosystems, and are managed by humans. Each chapter links ant ecology to broader ecological principles, provides a succinct summary, and discusses future research directions. Practical aspects of myrmecology, applications of ant ecology, debates, and novel discoveries are highlighted in text boxes throughout the volume. The book concludes with a synthesis of the current state of the field and a look at exciting future research directions. The extensive reference list and full glossary are invaluable for researchers, and those new to the field.

    Covering all 135 known species of these elusive and cryptically plumaged birds, this illustrated guide features more than 580 superb color photographs depicting every species and many subspecies, including numerous images never before published. Photos of museum specimens are provided for birds for which no images in the wild exist, including species not seen since their original discovery. Detailed species accounts describe key identification features, confusion species, vocalizations, distribution, habitat and altitudinal range, breeding season and sites, egg type and clutch size, downy chick, status, and Red List category. This easy-to-use photographic guide also includes a color distribution map for every species as well as sections on plumage, taxonomy, and more.The ultimate identification guide to these elusive birdsCovers all 135 known speciesFeatures more than 580 color photosProvides detailed species accounts and a color distribution map for every speciesIncludes sections on plumage, taxonomy, and more

    Challenging this assumption, this fascinating book shows that rather than having a limited behavioral repertoire, spiders show surprising cognitive abilities, changing their behavior to suit their situational needs. The team of authors unravels the considerable intra-specific as well as intra-individual variability and plasticity in different behaviors ranging from foraging and web building to communication and courtship. An introductory chapter on spider biology, systematics and evolution provides the reader with the necessary background information to understand the discussed behaviors and helps to place them into an evolutionary context. Highlighting an under-explored area of behavior, this book will provide new ideas for behavioral researchers and students unfamiliar with spiders as well as a valuable resource for those already working in this intriguing field.

    What were these creatures like as living animals and how could they reach such uniquely gigantic sizes? A dedicated group of researchers in Germany in disciplines ranging from engineering and materials science to animal nutrition and paleontology went in search of the answers to these questions. Biology of the Sauropod Dinosaurs reports on the latest results from this seemingly disparate group of research fields and integrates them into a coherent theory regarding sauropod gigantism. Covering nutrition, physiology, growth, and skeletal structure and body plans, this volume presents the most up-to-date knowledge about the biology of these enormous dinosaurs.

    Airplane wings that change shape in midair to take advantage of shifts in wind currents. Hypodermic needles that use tiny serrations to render injections virtually pain free.Though they may sound like the stuff of science fiction, in fact such inventions represent only the most recent iterations of natural mechanisms that are billions of years old—the focus of the rapidly growing field of biomimetics. Based on the realization that natural selection has for countless eons been conducting trial-and-error experiments with the laws of physics, chemistry, material science, and engineering, biomimetics takes nature as its laboratory, looking to the most successful developments and strategies of an array of plants and animals as a source of technological innovation and ideas. Thus the lotus flower, with its waxy, water-resistant surface, gives us stainproofing; the feathers of raptors become transformable airplane wings; and the nerve-deadening serrations on a mosquito’s proboscis are adapted to hypodermics.With Bulletproof Feathers, Robert Allen brings together some of the greatest minds in the field of biomimetics to provide a fascinating—at times even jaw-dropping—overview of cutting-edge research in the field. In chapters packed with illustrations, Steven Vogel explains how architects and building engineers are drawing lessons from prairie dogs, termites, and even sand dollars in order to heat and cool buildings more efficiently; Julian Vincent goes to the very building blocks of nature, revealing how different structures and arrangements of molecules have inspired the development of some fascinating new materials, such as waterproof clothing based on shark skin; Tomonari Akamatsu shows how sonar technology has been greatly improved through detailed research into dolphin communication; Yoseph Bar-Cohen delves into the ways that robotics engineers have learned to solve design problems through reference to human musculature; Jeannette Yen explores how marine creatures have inspired a new generation of underwater robots; and Robert Allen shows us how cooperative behavior between birds, fish, and insects has inspired technological innovations in fields ranging from Web hosting to underwater exploration.A readable, yet authoritative introduction to a field that is at the forefront of design and technology—and poised to become even more important in the coming decades as population pressures and climate change make the need for efficient technological solutions more acute—Bulletproof Feathers offers adventurous readers a tantalizing peek into the future, by way of our evolutionary past.

    Assuming only a minimum of prior knowledge, the series reviews the full range of disciplines to which a biomedical scientist may be exposed, from microbiology to cytopathology to transfusion science.A new volume in this exciting series, Clinical Biochemistry places the theoretical foundations of clinical biochemistry in a practical environment, demonstrating how biomedical scientists apply fundamental biochemical principles to key laboratory investigations. The text provides a comprehensive overview of the discipline--as applied to a wide range of diseases and disorders--and also covers laboratory automation and quality control, forging a clear link between science and practice.Clinical Biochemistry is enhanced by numerous case studies, examples, and full color throughout. A Companion Website offers resources for students and instructors, including a fully interactive digital microscope--with a range of cell and tissue images for examination--self-assessment activities, and video podcasts that include interviews with practicing biomedical scientists and "in the lab" footage.

    

    Further, it uses these studies to connect the key themes of the book--the nature of gene action, and the inter-relationship of genetic and environmental influences on behavior-across organisms, highlighting key commonalities and differences.The book also shows the major impact that neurobiology is having on our understanding of the field, to give a true depiction of behavioral genetics in the 21st century. However, care is taken throughout not to overwhelm the reader with scientific detail. Instead, the authors make the book fun to read without sacrificing accuracy or devaluing the complexity of the subject matter: they 'personalize' the science, mixing more standard narrative with biographical details to make the subject come alive. With the media filled with talk of the discovery of genes 'for' an array of human behaviors, there has never been a more pressing need for today's students--tomorrow's researchers--to be equipped with a clear, balanced view of the field. How Genes Influence Behavior is the perfect guide for all students, delivered in the words of three researchers who have witnessed first-hand the emergence of this fascinating field, and whose own investigations have been central to our current understanding of it.

    One of the world's great naturalists and nature writers, Heinrich shows us how the sensual beauty of birds can open our eyes to a hidden evolutionary process. Nesting, as Heinrich explores it here, encompasses what fascinates us most about birds from their delightful songs and spectacular displays to their varied eggs and colorful plumage; from their sex roles and mating rituals to nest parasitism, infanticide, and predation.What moves birds to mate and parent their young in so many different ways is what interests Heinrich and his insights into the nesting behavior of birds has more than a little to say about our own.