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non-fiction

Planets, The

Exploring the Neighborhood... Author:  Dava Sobel It’s a critical period in the early development of any aspiring young science geek.  Sharing neural space with dinosaur taxonomy, the details of the solar system represent some of the basic building blocks for future geeky success.  Exotically named, each with their own personality, the planets and their numerous enigmatic satellites were a frequent focus of my youthful scientific forays.  In The Planets, science journalist Dava Sobel travels some of this well-trodden ground with her unique flare and imagination. In 1995, Sobel was a key player in the modern transformation of science writing with [...]

2016-12-31T17:56:27-07:00March 7th, 2013|Tags: , , , |

Planet of Viruses, A

Wash Your Hands... Author:  Carl Zimmer What defines life?  The discussion has gone on for millennia, but ever since their discovery just over a century ago the official verdict has been that viruses – composed of only a small amount of genetic material in a tiny capsule – aren’t truly alive.  But over recent decades, it’s becoming clear that any definition of life that doesn’t include viruses may be lacking.  A Planet of Viruses – part of the World of Viruses project funded by the NIH – concisely presents why the scientific view of viruses has been changing. Dividing the [...]

2016-12-31T17:56:45-07:00October 23rd, 2012|Tags: , , , |

Life Everlasting

Turning Death Into Life... Author:  Bernd Heinrich What happens to us when we die?  I’m not talking about heaven, hell or some other kind of afterlife; I’m talking about what happens to our bodies, our flesh and bones.  For millennia, humans have struggled to disrupt the normal decomposition that follows death, whether through embalmment, burial, cremation or mummification.  In recent years, however, there’s been a growing movement in favor of “green” burials that eschew all the technological trappings of mortuary science, allowing one’s body to naturally return to the ecosystem of which we’re all a part.  Prompted by a friend’s [...]

2016-12-31T17:56:54-07:00August 18th, 2012|Tags: , , , |
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