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The sirens of Mars : searching for life on another world / by Johnson, Sarah Stewart,author.;
Includes bibliographical references and index."A young planetary scientist intimately details the search for life on Mars, tracing our centuries-old obsession with this seemingly desolate planet. Mars was once similar to Earth, but today there are no rivers, no lakes, no oceans. Coated in red dust, the terrain is bewilderingly empty. And yet multiple spacecraft are circling Mars, sweeping over Terra Sabaea, Syrtis Major, the dunes of Elysium, and Mare Sirenum--on the brink, perhaps, of a staggering find, one that would inspire humankind as much as any discovery in the history of modern science. In this beautifully observed, deeply personal book, Georgetown scientist Sarah Stewart Johnson tells the story of how she and other researchers have scoured Mars for signs of life, transforming the planet from a distant point of light into a world of its own. Johnson's fascination with Mars began as a child in Kentucky, turning over rocks with her father and looking at planets in the night sky. She now conducts fieldwork in some of Earth's most hostile environments, such as the Dry Valleys of Antarctica and the salt flats of Western Australia, developing methods for detecting life on other worlds. Here, with poetic precision, she interlaces her own personal journey--as a female scientist and a mother--with tales of other seekers, from Percival Lowell, who was convinced that a utopian society existed on Mars, to Audouin Dollfus, who tried to carry out astronomical observations from a stratospheric balloon. In the process, she shows how the story of Mars is also a story about Earth: This other world has been our mirror, our foil, a telltale reflection of our own anxieties and yearnings. Empathetic and evocative, The Sirens of Mars offers an unlikely natural history of a place where no human has ever set foot, while providing a vivid portrait of our quest to defy our isolation in the cosmos"--
Subjects: Johnson, Sarah Stewart.; Life on other planets.;
Available copies: 1 / Total copies: 1
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Pieces of blue / by Sloan, Holly Goldberg,1958-author.;
"From New York Times bestselling author Holly Goldberg Sloan, a hilarious and heartfelt novel for fans of Maria Semple and Emma Straub about a family trying to restore a ramshackle beachside motel-and their own lives. What good was thinking the future only held cloudy skies? Wasn't the reality that pieces of blue were always there, waiting to break through? When Paul Hill drowns in a surfing accident, he leaves his wife, Lindsey, and their three children with broken hearts and a mountain of debt. Once Paul's life insurance finally comes through, Lindsey impulsively uses the money to buy a charmingly ramshackle motel in Hawai'i, hoping for a fresh start. Teenage Olivia quickly develops a crush on a handsome but monosyllabic skateboarder. Twelve-year-old Carlos reinvents himself as a popular kid named Carl. And Sena, the youngest, will do whatever it takes to protect her beloved motel chickens. But while the kids adjust, Lindsey is flailing, trying to pretend she knows how to bring a motel-and herself-back to life. Then a handsome stranger rolls into the motel parking lot, and she's surprised to feel a long-dormant part of herself stirring. She accepts his offer to help, unaware that he may have secrets of his own. And all the while, out in the Pacific, the trade winds are fiercely blowing. Funny and tender, full of twists and turns and heart, Pieces of Blue is a portrait of an irresistible family learning to start over"--
Subjects: Domestic fiction.; Novels.; Families; Man-woman relationships; Motels; Mother and child; Widows;
Available copies: 1 / Total copies: 1
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Dirty work : my gruelling, glorious, life-changing summer in the wilderness / by Maxymiw, Anna,author.;
"Wild meets Priestdaddy in this humorous, affecting, keenly observed memoir about daring to go outside of what's comfortable--and being open and ready for all the possibilities. When Anna Maxymiw accepts a summer job as a housekeeper at a fishing lodge in Northern Ontario, she has little idea what to expect. As a child, she goes fishing with her father and brother in Toronto's High Park; as a teenager on a family fishing trip, following the death of her uncle, she finds herself indelibly altered by the thrill of bringing a pike to the surface. At 23, when she decides to leave behind her masters degree and city life, and board a floatplane bound for the remote boreal forest near James Bay, new challenges and unexpected joy await. For 67 days, Anna is one of a group of young women and men who will keep the lodge running. While the male dockhands and fishing guides head out on the water with the fishermen who are the lodge's guests, the women housekeep and serve. Against the backdrop of a vast lake; wild storms; and hot days and eerily still nights, friendships develop, and Anna encounters bears, bugs, and the lore surrounding the lake's legendary pike. As the summer progresses, and the ownership of the lodge changes hands, tensions build to a breaking point. Warm, funny, vulnerable, and wise, Anna Maxymiw gives us a singular perspective on an age-old impulse. She shows us what it's really like to let go of yourself, your insecurities and fears--all the things that hold us back--and move through a summer welcoming all the surprises and possibilities, both good and bad, with open arms and a willingness to be changed by them. An unforgettable memoir, Dirty Work is for anyone who's ever felt the urge to feel uncomfortable and wondered how they'd fare and who they'd be when they came out on the other side."--Provided by publisher.
Subjects: Autobiographies.; Biographies.; Maxymiw, Anna.; Authors, Canadian (English); Fishing lodges; Outdoor life.; Self-actualization (Psychology);
Available copies: 0 / Total copies: 1
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Dexter. [videorecording] / by Benz, Julie,1975-; Carpenter, Jennifer.; Hall, Michael C.,1971-; King, Erik.; Lindsay, Jeffry P.Darkly dreaming Dexter.Videorecording.; Manos, James.; Remar, James.; Velez, Lauren.; Zayas, David.; CBS DVD (Firm); Paramount Home Entertainment (Firm); Showtime Entertainment.;
Disc 1. Dexter -- Crocodile -- Popping cherry -- Let's give the boy a hand.Disc 2. Love American style -- Return to sender -- Circle of friends -- Shrink wrap.Disc 3. Father knows best -- Seeing red -- Truth be told.Disc 4. Born free.Developed for television by James Manos, Jr.Michael C. Hall, Julie Benz, Jennifer Carpenter, Erik King, Lauren Velez, David Zayas, James Remar.Orphaned as a child and adopted by a police officer, Dexter has an insatiable passion for killing. So his father helps him channel this passion into becoming a cop and killing those who slip through the cracks of justice. Includes 12 episodes.Canadian Home Video Rating: 14A.DVD ; widescreen presentation ; Dolby digital.
Subjects: Lindsay, Jeff.; Criminal investigation; Criminals; Forensic scientists; Morgan, Dexter (Fictitious character); Psychopaths; Serial murderers; Serial murders; Television programs.; Video recordings for the hearing impaired.; Vigilantes;
© c2007., CBS DVD : ParamountHome Entertainment,
Available copies: 1 / Total copies: 1
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The nurture revolution : grow your baby's brain and transform their mental health through the art of nurtured parenting / by Kirshenbaum, Greer,author.;
Includes bibliographical references and index."The latest research in neuroscience and parenting come together in this groundbreaking book, which brings to light new realizations about the power of nurture for our children's mental and physical health outcomes. Greer Kirshenbaum, PhD. is a neuroscientist, doula, and parent. Her work began the goal of developing new treatments for poor mental health; she dreamed of creating a new medication to address conditions like anxiety, depression, addiction, and chronic stress. Over time, she realized that science had already uncovered a powerful medicine for alleviating mental health struggles, but the answer wasn't a pill. It was a preventative approach: when babies receive nurturing care in the first three years of life, it builds strong, resilient brains--brains that are less susceptible to poor mental health. How can parents best set their children up for success? In this revelatory book, Kirshenbaum makes plain that nurture is a preventative medicine against mental health issues. She challenges the idea that the way to cultivate independence is through letting babies cry it out or sleep alone; instead, the way to raise a confident, independent child is to lean into your instincts as a parent. Hold your infant as much as you want. Check on them when they cry, share beds with them, maintain skin-to-skin contact--and this is backed-up by science, which shows that nurturing experiences transforms lives, and improves mental health, physical health, and life outcomes. Nurturing is a gift of resilience and health that parents can give the next generation simply by following their instincts to care for their young"--
Subjects: Nurturing behavior.; Parenting.;
Available copies: 1 / Total copies: 1
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Hidden potential : the science of achieving greater things / by Grant, Adam,1981-author.;
Includes bibliographical references and index."The #1 New York Times bestselling author of Think Again illuminates how we can elevate ourselves and others to unexpected heights. We live in a world that's obsessed with talent. We celebrate gifted students in school, natural athletes in sports, and child prodigies in music. But admiring people who start out with innate advantages leads us to overlook the distance we ourselves can travel. We underestimate the range of skills that we can learn and the amount of ground that we can gain. When opportunity doesn't knock, there are ways to to build a door. Hidden Potential offers a new framework for reaching aspirations and exceeding expectations. Realizing potential isn't about being a workaholic or a perfectionist. What matters most is not how hard we work, but how well we learn. It's not about being a genius-growth depends more on developing character skills than cognitive skills. The character skills that propel progress include the proactivity to absorb and adapt to new information, the courage to embrace discomfort, and the determination to find the beauty in imperfections. Mastering those skills doesn't require us to find the one perfect mentor or expert coach to guide us. Often we just need to borrow a compass to begin charting our own path. And we can clear the path for more people by building better systems of opportunity in our schools, teams, and workplaces. Many writers have chronicled the habits of superstars who accomplish great things. This book breaks new ground by revealing how anyone can rise to achieve greater things. The true measure of your potential isn't the height of the peak you reach, but how far you climb to get there"--
Subjects: Achievement motivation.; Motivation (Psychology);
Available copies: 0 / Total copies: 1
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Loving you is hurting me : a new approach to healing trauma bonds and creating authentic connection / by Copley, Laura,author.;
Includes bibliographical references and index."Heal your emotional wounds, get unstuck, and get into healthy, loving, intimate relationships. At the core of most toxic relationships is a painful trauma wound desperate to be healed. As a licensed professional counselor and trauma researcher, Dr. Laura Copley often found herself disturbed by the stigma that her profession puts on trauma survivors who are in these toxic bonds, often too quickly labeling them as victims or abusers and blaming them for their troubled relationships. But trauma survivors try to navigate romantic relationships in the only way they know how-fearfully and painfully. Too often, survivors of trauma are left feeling hopeless, exiled from normal social interactions, and destined for heartbreak in any relationship they attract. Through her work with clients, and her own experiences, Dr. Copley developed a roadmap for healing the toxic emotions that come from being bonded by trauma in relationships. In Loving You is Hurting Me, Dr. Copley guides you through your trauma origins and into a life rich with meaning, loving connection, and inspiration. Drawing from groundbreaking science on trauma and its effects on the body, and from her own practice including a decade's worth of research on trauma and intimacy, Dr. Copley presents an experiential and transformative approach unlike any other. Her program transforms your trauma bond into deep connection with the self and safe intimacy with others"--
Subjects: Interpersonal relations; Intimacy (Psychology);
Available copies: 1 / Total copies: 1
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Let it destroy you : a novel / by Lye, Harriet Alida,author.;
"From the acclaimed author of The Honey Farm and Natural Killer comes a tense and enveloping novel inspired by the incredibly true story of the man who invented the atomic bomb, though all he wanted to do was save the world. It is 1945, and Hungarian Jewish physicist August Snow is on trial at the International War Crimes Court for patenting a technology that has been proven capable of destroying the entire world. He instigated humanity's ability to decide its own death and then profited from the inevitable, but the initial reason for his research was to come up with a way to cure his daughter, Leora, of cancer. August's wife June insists she had nothing to do with the bomb--after all, she was forced to give up her career as a doctor when she got pregnant, lost her place in the public sphere, and in the early days of motherhood she almost lost her mind, too. But who is implicated in events of global significance? Who is responsible for the seemingly small decisions that affect the life of a family, of a child? Going back to tell the story of how June and August fell in love and arrived at where they are now, the novel travels across Europe and America during the lead-up to the Second World War, tracing how the rise of antisemitism shaped their lives. Their personal stories parallel August's discovery of nuclear fission, his involvement with the Manhattan Project, and their beloved daughter's radiation treatment. Though the treatment saved Leora from the cancer that would have otherwise killed her, August and June separated when they disagreed about what should be done with the information he had gained from developing her cure. The aftermath of their love, like the fallout of the bomb, destroys everything in its wake. Let It Destroy You is a story of love, morality, creation, and loss, told with great reverence for the natural world while capturing the tragic brilliance of an idealistic mind."--Provided by publisher.
Subjects: Historical fiction.; Novels.; Atomic bomb; Ethics; Inventors; Man-woman relationships; Married people; Nuclear weapons; Physicists;
Available copies: 1 / Total copies: 1
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Gambler : secrets from a life at risk / by Walters, Billy,author.; Keteyian, Armen,author.;
Anybody can get lucky. Nobody controls the odds like Billy Walters. Widely regarded as "the Michael Jordan of sports betting," Walters is a living legend in Las Vegas and among sports bettors worldwide. With an unmatched winning streak of thirty-six consecutive years, Walters has become fabulously wealthy by placing hundreds of millions of dollars a year in gross wagers, including one Super Bowl bet of $3.5 million alone. Competitors desperate to crack his betting techniques have tried hacking his phones, cloning his beepers, rifling through his trash, and bribing his employees. Now, after decades of avoiding the spotlight and fiercely protecting the keys to his success, Walters has reached the age where he wants to pass along his wisdom to future generations of sports wagerers. Gambler is more than a traditional autobiography. In addition to sharing his against-all-odds American dream story, Walters reveals in granular detail the secrets of his proprietary betting system, which will serve as a master class for anyone who wants to improve their odds at betting on sports. Walters also breaks his silence about his long and complicated relationship with Hall of Fame professional golfer Phil Mickelson. On a typical weekend gameday packed with college and pro sports, Walters will bet $10 million-a small sum for someone as wealthy as he is today, but an unbelievable fortune for the child who was raised by his grandmother in extreme poverty in rural Kentucky. By the age of nine, Walters became a shark at hustling pool and pitching pennies. As a young adult, he set records as a used-car salesman, hustled golf, and dabbled in bookmaking. He eventually moved to Las Vegas, where he revolutionized sports betting strategy and became a member of the famed Computer Group, the first syndicate to apply sophisticated algorithms and data analysis to sports gambling. He became extraordinarily wealthy while overcoming addictions and outmaneuvering organized crime figures made infamous by Martin Scorsese's film Casino. In Gambler, Walters passes along everything he's learned about sports betting. First, he shows bettors how to mine the information we have at our fingertips to develop a sophisticated betting strategy and handicapping system of our own. He explains how even avid bettors often do not grasp all of the variables that go into making an informed wager -- factors such as home field advantage, individual player values, injuries or illness, weather forecasts, each team's previous schedule (bye weeks, multiple away games in a row, etc.), travel distance/difficulty, stadium quirks, turf types, and more. Not every bettor has access to Walters's team of expert analysts, but every bettor can follow his guidelines on how to measure the detailed information available online and look for unique situations that could affect a game's outcome more than usual. Variable by variable, Walters breaks down the formulas, point systems, and principles that he's developed over decades of improving his craft. A self-made man who's repeatedly won it all, lost it all, and earned it all back again, Walters has lived a singular and wildly appealing American life, of the outlaw variety. Gambler is at once a gripping autobiography, a blistering tell-all, and an indispensable playbook for coming out on top.
Subjects: Biographies.; Autobiographies.; Walters, Billy.; Gamblers; Gambling.; Gambling; Sports betting.; Sports betting;
Available copies: 1 / Total copies: 1
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Dispatches from Ray's planet : a journey through autism / by Finlayson, Claire,1957-author.;
"As a child, Claire's big brother Ray was always bright and inquisitive, and she looked up to him. But as the two became teenagers, Ray struggled to acquire the social skills that came more easily to Claire and their friends. Claire tried to help, pointing out what he should or shouldn't have said or done. Ray insisted that he wasn't the problem--"On my planet ...", he would explain, there were no social climbers, no cocktail parties, no subtle hints or subliminal messages to miss. On his planet, the telling of little white lies would be a capital offence. At sixteen, sitting with him in the high school cafeteria, Claire vowed to find Ray's "planet." After graduation, Ray took a job as a letter carrier with Canada Post, but after thirty-three years on the job he had developed plantar fasciitis, his feet so painful he couldn't walk. Instead of seeking medical help, he began leaving mail in his truck overnight--a serious dereliction of duty. He was fired, blew his appeal, and spiralled into a suicidal depression. Claire didn't know he was in trouble until he reached out to her by email. Thus began a remarkable email correspondence that pulled back the curtain on an inner life Claire couldn't have imagined. Where in-person interactions plunged him into hot water, by email, Ray's writing revealed a compassionate, funny, sad man who showed extraordinary insight into his often self-destructive way of navigating the world. Ray was fifty when Claire realized he might have Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), but by then, having survived without a diagnosis his whole life, Ray was reluctant to have a label pinned on him and resisted Claire's efforts to fix him by trying, in all sincerity, to make him more like her. Dispatches From Ray's Planet draws on Ray and Claire's correspondence to tell the story of two siblings from two very different planets. There are thousands of Rays in our world, hiding in basements or holding up walls at social functions. In this collective memoir, Claire and Ray share their journey with the hope that others can also learn that we all perceive the world in different ways, and that "different" does not necessarily mean dangerous."--
Subjects: Biographies.; Finlayson, Ray.; Finlayson, Claire, 1957-; Finlayson, Ray; Finlayson, Claire, 1957-; Autistic people; Autistic people;
Available copies: 1 / Total copies: 1
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