Then, in 2005, astronomer Mike Brown made the discovery of a lifetime: a tenth planet, Eris, slightly bigger than Pluto. But instead of its resulting in one more planet being added to our solar system, Brown’s find ignited a firestorm of controversy that riled the usually sedate world of astronomy and launched him into the public eye. The debate culminated in the demotion of Pluto from real planet to the newly coined category of “dwarf” planet. Suddenly Brown was receiving hate mail from schoolchildren and being bombarded by TV reporters—all because of the discovery he had spent years searching for and a lifetime dreaming about.Filled with both humor and drama, How I Killed Pluto and Why It Had It Coming is Mike Brown’s engaging first-person account of the most tumultuous year in modern astronomy—which he inadvertently caused. As it guides readers through important scientific concepts and inspires us to think more deeply about our place in the cosmos, it is also an entertaining and enlightening personal story: While Brown sought to expand our understanding of the vast nature of space, his own life was changed in the most immediate, human ways by love, birth, and death. A heartfelt and personal perspective on the demotion of everyone’s favorite farflung planet, How I Killed Pluto and Why It Had It Coming is the book for anyone, young or old, who has ever dreamed of exploring the universe—and who among us hasn’t?

    But how many of us appreciate the ways our bodies also depend on phosphorous, say, to hold our DNA together, or potassium to power our optic nerves so that we can see? In The Human Elements, physicist and award-winning author Anja Røyne takes us on an astonishing journey through chemistry and physics, introducing the building blocks from which we humans—and the world—are made. Not only does Røyne explain why our bodies need iron, phosphorus, silicon, potassium, and many more elements in just the right amounts in order to function properly; she also takes us on a tour around the world to where these precious elements are found (some of them in ever-shrinking quantities). Røyne makes us understand how precarious the balance that keeps us and our environment alive really is, how there are finite amounts of our life-giving elements available to us, and how, from the smallest to the grandest scale, the world and everything that lives in it are wonderfully interconnected. The Human Elements will make you look at the world and your place in it in an entirely new way.

    You may find it for free on the web. Purchase of the Kindle edition includes wireless delivery.

    No graduate student of quantum theory should leave it unread"--W.C Schieve, University of Texas

    Greene, who recently launched World Science U, which offers free online science courses, explains what it is that's so "elegant" about string theory while lamenting the possible limits of what dogs (and by implication humans) can ever hope to understand about the universe. The interview was conducted by Rivka Galchen, an acclaimed fiction writer and journalist, named by The New Yorker as one of 20 Writers Under 40. Cover design by Adil Dara Kim.

    Pays special attention to such topics of modern interest as nonlinear oscillators, central force motion, collisions in CMCS, and horizontal wind circulation. For physicists and astronomers.

    We are not alone, nor have we been creating life experiences on our own. There is a co-creative Universal Intelligence who is very much involved and continually seeking a dialogue. The problem is not so much the life challenges, but our own individual lack of communication with our co-creator. A conversation is happening all of the time, but we must open our eyes and ears to it. When we do, an opportunity to reconnect with the lighter side of life ensues. We do not have to get wrapped up in the heaviness. Instead of becoming overwhelmed by the issues at hand, we can become aware of the answers and solutions constantly presenting themselves. The Universe wants us to be joyful, have fun, and let go. The synchronicities, symbols, and messages are always intended to guide us. They are there to make us smile, to stop to remember there is more to life than the current object of our perceptions. Instead of having to work things out, we can play them out, yielding more aligned outcomes and a greater experience. When we are able to remember the vast connection that exists, the illusions we live become more and more apparent. Greater awareness of the messages and engagement in the dialogue allows us to laugh with the heavens at ourselves at life and our seriousness.

    joyfully shows you how to make nature's numbers dance."--Bill Nye (the science guy)The Magic of Math is the math book you wish you had in school. Using a delightful assortment of examples-from ice-cream scoops and poker hands to measuring mountains and making magic squares-this book revels in key mathematical fields including arithmetic, algebra, geometry, and calculus, plus Fibonacci numbers, infinity, and, of course, mathematical magic tricks. Known throughout the world as the "mathemagician," Arthur Benjamin mixes mathematics and magic to make the subject fun, attractive, and easy to understand for math fan and math-phobic alike."A positively joyful exploration of mathematics."-Publishers Weekly, starred review"Each [trick] is more dazzling than the last."-Physics World

    Its broad appeal lies in its interactive environment with hundreds of built-in functions for technical computation, graphics, and animation. In addition, it provides easy extensibility with its own high-level programming language. Enhanced by fun and appealing illustrations, Getting Started with MATLAB 7: A Quick Introduction for Scientists and Engineers employs a casual, accessible writing style that shows users how to enjoy using MATLAB.

    A CD-ROM with demos, code, compiler, executables, and MATLAB examples has been added to the book. Simplicity and an easy narration style are the hallmarks of the book, which have made its previous seven editions immensely successful. Today s C programmer (still the language of choice in science, engineering, game programming and for handheld devices) has to master the complexities of the language and contend with its usage in environments like Windows, Linux, and for the Internet. This book covers these three aspects of C programming and doesn t assume any programming background. It begins with the basics and steadily builds the pace, so the reader finds it easy to handle more complicated topics later. This popular author has crafted hundreds of excellent programming examples and exercises for every aspect of C programming. ++++Features +Self-study format provides hundreds of step by step examples and exercises + Assumes no programming knowledge; starts with the basics and progresses to more difficult topics +Includes a CD-ROM with demos, code, compiler, executables, and MATLAB examples +Covers the latest programming techniques for Windows, Linux, and the Internet ++++++Selected Topics Traditional C Programming; Pointers; Complete Build Process; Low-level File I/O; Structures, Unions, Bit-fields; Bitwise Operators. C Under Linux; Signals and Signal Handling; Blocking of Signals; Event Driven Programming; Process; PIDs; Zombies; GNOME Programming Using GTK Library. C Under Windows. Windows Programming Model; Windows Messaging Architecture; Mouse Programming; GDI. Internet Programming. CP/ IP model; Windsock Library; Building Time Clients; Whois and HTTP Clients; Sending & Receiving emails

    Yet, there remains a paradox: why is feedback so powerful and why is it so variable? It is this paradox which Visible Learning: Feedback aims to unravel and resolve.Combining research excellence, theory and vast teaching expertise, this book covers the principles and practicalities of feedback, including:the variability of feedback, the importance of surface, deep and transfer contexts, student to teacher feedback, peer to peer feedback, the power of within lesson feedback and manageable post-lesson feedback.With numerous case-studies, examples and engaging anecdotes woven throughout, the authors also shed light on what creates an effective feedback culture and provide the teaching and learning structures which give the best possible framework for feedback. Visible Learning: Feedback brings together two internationally known educators and merges Hattie's world-famous research expertise with Clarke's vast experience of classroom practice and application, making this book an essential resource for teachers in any setting, phase or country.

    students who wanted to put their technical know-how to work.  If you asked these brainiacs what the stakes were that first week of their project, they’d have told you it was all about winning a robotics competition – building the ultimate robot and prevailing in a machine-to-machine contest in front of 25,000 screaming fans at Atlanta’s Georgia Dome. But for their mentor, Amir Abo-Shaeer, much more hung in the balance.  The fact was, Amir had in mind a different vision for education, one based not on rote learning -- on absorbing facts and figures -- but on active creation.  In his mind’s eye, he saw an even more robust academy within Dos Pueblos that would make science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) cool again, and he knew he was poised on the edge of making that dream a reality.  All he needed to get the necessary funding was one flashy win – a triumph that would firmly put his Engineering Academy at Dos Pueblos on the map.  He imagined that one day there would be a nation filled with such academies, and a new popular veneration for STEM – a “new cool” – that would return America to its former innovative glory. It was a dream shared by Dean Kamen, a modern-day inventing wizard – often-called “the Edison of his time” – who’d concocted the very same FIRST Robotics Competition that had lured the kids at Dos Pueblos.  Kamen had created FIRST (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology) nearly twenty years prior.  And now, with a participant alumni base approaching a million strong, he felt that awareness was about to hit critical mass.   But before the Dos Pueblos D’Penguineers could do their part in bringing a new cool to America, they’d have to vanquish an intimidating lineup of “super-teams”– high-school technology goliaths that hailed from engineering hot spots such as Silicon Valley, Massachusetts’ Route 128 technology corridor, and Michigan’s auto-design belt.  Some of these teams were so good that winning wasn’t just hoped for every year, it was expected. In The New Cool, Neal Bascomb manages to make even those who know little about – or are vaguely suspicious of – technology care passionately about a team of kids questing after a different kind of glory.  In these kids’ heartaches and headaches – and yes, high-five triumphs -- we glimpse the path not just to a new way of educating our youth but of honoring the crucial skills a society needs to prosper.  A new cool.

    It has an algebra and trigonometry prerequisite, but calculus is preferred.

    This behavior is very much different from what we humans are used to dealing with in our everyday lives, so naturally this subject is quite hard to comprehend for many. We believed that the best way to introduce the subject reliably is to start at the beginning, presenting the observations, thoughts and conclusions of each of the world’s greatest physicists through their eyes, one at a time. In this way we hope that the reader may take an enjoyable journey through the strange truths of quantum theory and understand why the conclusions of these great minds are what they are. This book starts with the most general view of the world and gradually leads readers to those new, unbelievable but real facts about the very nature of our universe.

    As much as she tries to quell her nerves, she can't shake the feeling she's going to die. She feels as though she's never going to leave the Intrepid alive—and she's right.