Written both for veteran train travelers and those considering their first rail journey, it will make any trip smoother and more enjoyable with its insightful travel trips and information about how railroads operate. With trains attracting new riders in record numbers because of the economy, the price of gasoline, and the delays and crowding that are now the norm when traveling by air, the time is perfect for a new edition of All Aboard. Here you can learn how and why the first railroads came about, the building of America's trans-continental railroad, and how individual trains are operated. The author also offers advice that can only come from a veteran traveler: booking trips, finding the lowest fares, avoiding pitfalls, packing for an overnight trip, what to do on board, whom to tip and how much. All Aboard is the ultimate guide to American train travel and its unique history and culture.

    Accepting the increasingly widespread belief that industrialized culture inevitably erodes the natural world, Endgame sets out to explore how this relationship impels us towards a revolutionary and as-yet undiscovered shift in strategy. Building on a series of simple but increasingly provocative premises, Jensen leaves us hoping for what may be inevitable: a return to agrarian communal life via the disintegration of civilization itself.

    Packed with the same reliable information and breathtaking color photography as our DK Eyewitness Travel Guides, DK Eyewitness Travel Top 10 Guides are fully illustrated, pocket-sized travel guides, with handy pull-out maps marking all the major sights.

    Readers will find excerpts from bestsellers such as Douglas R. Hofstadter's Gödel, Escher, Bach, Francis Crick's Life Itself, Loren Eiseley's The Immense Journey, Daniel Dennett's Darwin's Dangerous Idea, and Rachel Carson's The Sea Around Us. There are classic essays ranging from J.B.S. Haldane's "On Being the Right Size" and Garrett Hardin's "The Tragedy of the Commons" to Alan Turing's "Computing Machinery and Intelligence" and Albert Einstein's famed New York Times article on "Relativity." And readers will also discover lesser-known but engaging pieces such as Lewis Thomas's "Seven Wonders of Science," J. Robert Oppenheimer on "War and Physicists," and Freeman Dyson's memoir of studying under Hans Bethe.A must-read volume for all science buffs, The Oxford Book of Modern Science Writing is a rich and vibrant anthology that captures the poetry and excitement of scientific thought and discovery.One of New Scientist's Editor's Picks for 2008.

    Now Lawrence M. Krauss, an internationally known theoretical physicist and educator, has written the quintessential physics book for Trekkers and non-Trekkers alike.Anyone who has ever wondered, "Could this really happen?" will gain useful insights into the "Star Trek" universe (and, incidentally, the real universe) in this charming and accessible volume. Krauss boldly goes where "Star Trek" has gone -- and beyond. He uses the "Star Trek" future as a launching pad to discuss the forefront of modern physics. From Newton to Hawking, from Einstein to Feynman, from Kirk to Janeway, Krauss leads the reader on a voyage to the world of physics as we now know it and as it might one day be.Featuring the Top 10 biggest physics bloopers in "Star Trek," as selected by Nobel Prize-winning physicists and other dedicated Trekkers!"This book is fun, and Mr. Krauss has a nice touch with a tough subject...Readers drawn by frivolity will be treated to substance." "--New York Times Book Review""Today's science fiction is often tomorrow's science fact. The physics that underlies "Star Trek" is surely worth investigating. To confine our attention to terrestrial matters would be to limit the human spirit."--Stephen Hawking (in the foreword)A

    Rather than nostalgia or folly, the aim is enlightenment, wonder and the pleasure of weirdness." --The Guardian    Based on the widely popular blog that started as a side project in a basement, Retronaut reveals strange yet enlightening photographs from the past that somehow seem to depict another version of now. Martha Stewart as a fashion model, Kim Jong Il in a bumper car, and Ronald Reagan modeling for a sculpture class—this quirky page-turner enriched with author Chris Wild’s unique wit and oddball knowledge is a must-have for collectors of the unusual.    Wild, a former museum archivist, has revolutionized the way we think of dusty photos—turning them into a sensation that has taken the Internet by surprise. He has selected over 300 of the best photographs from the site's most visited eras and themes, mashing up Victoriana with vintage advertising from the ’60s and ’70s and unearthing rare snapshots of evil dictators taking vacations. Page by page, this unconventional, thought-provoking photographic time machine will change what you think you know about history.

    Once a hodgepodge of short, squabbling lines, America’s railways soon exploded into a titanic industry helmed by a pageant of speculators, crooks, and visionaries. The vicious competition between empire builders such as Cornelius Vanderbilt, Jay Gould, J. P. Morgan, and E. H. Harriman sparked stock market frenzies, panics, and crashes; provoked strikes that upended the relationship between management and labor; transformed the nation’s geography; and culminated in a ferocious two-man battle that shook the nation’s financial markets to their foundations and produced dramatic, lasting changes in the interplay of business and government.   Spanning four decades and featuring some of the most iconic figures of the Gilded Age, Iron Empires reveals how the robber barons drove the country into the twentieth century—and almost sent it off the rails.

    Captured in lavish detail and sumptuous color, here are scores of objects dating back to the reigns and tombs of such fabled kings and queens as Akhenaten, Nefertiti, and, of course, Tutankhamun, the richest trove of all. From superbly sculpted life-sized statues to elegantly inlaid furniture to funerary urns and myriad implements that guarantee safe passage to the Afterlife, they offer vivid insights into the skillful workmanship and astonishing sophistication of Egyptian culture in the golden age of the pharaohs. Intricate golden jewelry glitters with precious gems, while bas-relief panels depict great events and religious ceremonies. Each photograph is accompanied by a precise description of materials, subject, and significance.

    Illustrated throughout with detailed photographs and illustrations, and using clear, easy-to-follow text, The Practical Astronomer takes you on a step-by-step journey from the basics of what can be seen with the naked eye, to how you can view more distant objects such as the planets of the solar system, and even galaxies far, far away-all in your own backyard.

    With a stunning, brand-new look, Eyewitness Travel Guides are essential reading for vacation, business, or armchair travel. Consistently chosen over the competition in national consumer market research, Eyewitness Travel Guides include up-to-date information on local customs, currency, medical services, transportation, and much more.

    

    Annotation copyright Book News, Inc. Portland, Or.

    This book can be cut, drawn in, folded into shapes and will even take you to the fourth dimension. So join stand-up mathematician Matt Parker on a journey through narcissistic numbers, optimal dating algorithms, at least two different kinds of infinity and more.

    But for thousands of years, people have done things like this—and things that make radioactive underpants seem downright sensible! In their hit podcast, Sawbones, Sydnee and Justin McElroy breakdown the weird and wonderful way we got to modern healthcare. And some of the terrifying detours along the way.Every week, Dr. Sydnee McElroy and her husband Justin amaze, amuse, and gross out (depending on the week) hundreds of thousands of avid listeners to their podcast, Sawbones. Consistently rated a top podcast on iTunes, with over 15 million total downloads, this rollicking journey through thousands of years of medical mishaps and miracles is not only hilarious but downright educational. While you may never even consider applying  boiled weasel to your forehead (once the height of sophistication when it came to headache cures), you will almost certainly face some questionable medical advice in your everyday life (we’re looking at you, raw water!) and be better able to figure out if this is a miracle cure (it’s not) or a scam. Table of Contents:Part One: The Unnerving The Resurrection Men Fun w Galvanism Weird Weight Loss Miracle Cure: Opium Black Plague Heroes of Misguided Medicine: Pliny the Elder Erectile Dysfunction The Doctor Is In: Listener Questions Answered Don’t Drill a Hole in Your HeadPart Two: The Gross Mummy Medicine The Guthole Bromance The Unkillable Phineas Gage Max Drank Poopy Water Heroes of Misguided Medicine: Robert Liston Golden Showers of Health Miracle Cure-All: Radium Dr. John Romulus Brinkley The Doctor Is In Q&A Just (Four) Humour Me The Camel Dung MiraclePart Three: The Weird The Dancing Plague Bad Medicine: Tobacco for Health The Seasick-Proof Saloon Miracle Cure-All: Vinegar The Doctor Is In Q&A Heroes of Misguided MedicinePart Four: The Awesome The Poison Squad Bad Medicine: Self Experimentation Eat Your Chocolate! Heroes of Misguided Medicine Parrot Fever Miracle Cure-All: Honey The Miraculous Polio Vaccine The Doctor Is In

    The book's unrivaled reproduction of these fascinating and intricate documents provides graphic close-ups and reveals more than just pure geography-it offers insight into the cultures and beliefs of the great civilizations that gave rise to them. From classical cities like Rome and Jerusalem to modern hubs like New York and Tokyo, the stories behind each map are revealed: why it was created, who it was intended for, and how it was achieved. Profiles of key cartographers, planners, and artists give even further insight into the history of each urban masterpiece.With its genuinely unique and superbly illustrated approach to the most celebrated city maps in history and its lavish textured and foiled jacket, Great City Maps is a beautiful piece to add to any collection and a must-have for all history and geography enthusiasts.