Search:

Prisms / by Furstinger, Nancy.;
Includes bibliographical references and index.LSC
Subjects: Prisms; Shapes; Geometry, Solid;
© c2014., Child's World,

The genius of trees : how they mastered the elements and shaped the world / by Rix, Harriet,author.;
Includes bibliographical references and index."A mind-expanding exploration of how trees learned to shape our world by manipulating the elements, other species, and even humankind, possessing agency beyond anything we might have imagined. For a supposedly stationary life form, trees have demonstrated an astonishing mastery over the environment around them. They've been using fire since prehistoric times. Some tree species have gone to extraordinary lengths to make sure their fruits reach large primates, who can spread their seeds over vast distances, while poisoning smaller and less useful mammals. Others can split solid rock and create fertile ground in barren landscapes, effectively building entire ecosystems from scratch. In The Genius of Trees, tree scientist Harriet Rix reveals the inventive ways trees sculpt their environment and explains the science of how they achieve these incredible feats. Taking us on an awe-inspiring journey through deep history and across the globe, Rix restores trees to their rightful position not as victims of our negligence, but as ingenious, stunningly inventive agents in a grand ecological narrative. Trees manipulate fundamental elements, other species, and even humankind to achieve their ends, as seen with oaks in Devon, UK, shaping ecosystems through root networks and fungi, those in Amedi, Iraq that can change sex as they get to a certain age, the laurel rainforests of the Canary Islands regulating water cycles, and metasequoias in California influencing microclimates. A recent big surprise has shown that trees have an even greater role in preventing global warming than we thought: trees, which were thought to produce methane, actually consume it. We share one world with trees and one need for survival. This eye-opening journey into the inner lives of nature's most powerful plant is a profoundly new and original way of understanding both the miracles trees perform and the glories of our natural world"--
Subjects: Trees; Trees; Trees;

Seized by uncertainty : the markets, media, and special interests that shaped Canada's response to COVID-19 / by Quigley, Kevin,1971-author.; Lowe, Kaitlynne,illustrator.; Moore, Sarah(Author of Seized by uncertainty),illustrator.; Wolfe, Brianna,illustrator.;
Includes bibliographical references and index."The COVID-19 virus was responsible for the deaths of over thirty-five thousand Canadians in its first two years alone. Described as the biggest public health crisis of the century, it was an uncertain threat, which emerged within complex psychological, social legal, administrative, and economic contexts. Seized by Uncertainty explains how Canadian governments responded to that threat. Despite early warning signs, the governments failed to appreciate the trade-offs required to respond to the pandemic. Their approach, at times intolerant of debate and blind to diversity, served the interests of some over others. Their response prioritized stability and containment, enabling four in ten people to work from home, disproportionately benefiting an educated middle-class, who benefited further with soaring stock markets and housing prices. Mental health issues spiked, racialized people were much more likely to test positive for the virus, those in low-income sectors experienced unstable employment and lacked workplace safety protection, the lives of low-risk youth were in constant suspension, and residents of some care homes were virtually abandoned. Seized by Uncertainty studies the pandemic response through the contexts in which it emerged, exposing how it revealed uncomfortable truths about a fragmented society and governance problems that predated the threat."--
Subjects: COVID-19 (Disease); COVID-19 Pandemic, 2020-;

The great extinctions : what causes them & how they shape life / by MacLeod, Norman,1953-;
Includes bibliographical references and index.LSC
Subjects: Extinction (Biology); Paleontology.; Nature;

Pyramids / by Furstinger, Nancy.;
Includes bibliographical references and index.LSC
Subjects: Pyramid (Geometry); Shapes; Geometry, Solid;

Windblown / by Manceau, Édouard.; Quinn, Sarah.;
Several oddly shaped and colourful scraps of paper are blown by the wind and take the shape of several animals all claiming ownership of the paper.LSC
Subjects: Shapes; Paper; Animals;
© c2013., Owlkids Books,

The big idea : how breakthroughs of the past shape the future / by English, Bridget A.; National Geographic Society (U.S.);
LSC
Subjects: Discoveries in science; Technological innovations;
© c2011., National Geographic Society,

Nature's mutiny : how the little Ice Age of the long seventeenth century transformed the West and shaped the present / by Blom, Philipp,1970-author,translator.; translation of:Blom, Philipp,1970-Welt aus den Angeln.English.;
Includes bibliographical references and index."An illuminating work of environmental history that chronicles the great climate crisis of the 1600s, which transformed the social and political fabric of Europe. Although hints of a crisis appeared as early as the 1570s, the temperature by the end of the sixteenth century plummeted so drastically that Mediterranean harbors were covered with ice, birds literally dropped out of the sky, and "frost fairs" were erected on a frozen Thames--with kiosks, taverns, and even brothels that become a semi-permanent part of the city. Recounting the deep legacy and far-ranging consequences of this "Little Ice Age," acclaimed historian Philipp Blom reveals how the European landscape had suddenly, but ineradicably, changed by the mid-seventeenth century. While apocalyptic weather patterns destroyed entire harvests and incited mass migrations, they gave rise to the growth of European cities, the emergence of early capitalism, and the vigorous stirrings of the Enlightenment. A timely examination of how a society responds to profound and unexpected change, Nature's Mutiny will transform the way we think about climate change in the twenty-first century and beyond."--
Subjects: Climatic changes; Climatic changes; Glacial climates.; Climatic changes;

Goddess : 50 goddesses, spirits, saints, and other female figures who have shaped belief / by Ramirez, Janina,1980-; Walsh, Sarah(Illustrator); British Museum.;
This collection brings together 50 stories of powerful female figures from around the world. There are loving creators, wise leaders, fearsome warriors, gentle healers, and mystical protectors, and they can each inspire you to find strength within yourself . . . Beautifully written by cultural historian and broadcaster, Dr. Janina Ramirez, and stunningly illustrated by Sarah Walsh, this amazing book contains goddesses, guides, spirits, saints, witches, demons, and many more female figures that have played an important role in shaping belief today. Based on original sources and with photographs from the British Museum collection, this incredible introduction to goddesses throughout history will entertain, engage, and empower readers everywhere. Divided into thematic chapters, there are important stories of creation and love, action-packed stories of war and death, and heroic stories of great adventure and strength.
Subjects: Legends.; Biographies.; Goddesses; Goddesses; Women heroes; Women heroes;

A history of the world in six plagues : how contagion, class, and captivity shaped us, from Cholera to COVID-19 / by Bonhomme, Edna,author.;
Includes bibliographical references and index."Epidemic diseases enter the world by chance, but they become catastrophic by human design. With clear-eyed research and lush prose, A History of the World in Six Plagues shows that throughout history, outbreaks of disease have been exacerbated by and gone on to further expand the racial, economic, and sociopolitical divides we allow to fester in times of good health. Princeton-trained historian Edna Bonhomme's examination of humanity's disastrous treatment of pandemic disease takes us across place and time from Port-au-Prince to Tanzania, and from plantation-era America to our modern COVID-19-scarred world to unravel shocking truths about the patterns of discrimination in the face of disease. Based on in-depth research and cultural analysis, Bonhomme explores Cholera, HIV/AIDS, the Spanish Flu, Sleeping Sickness, Ebola, and COVID-19 amidst the backdrop of unequal public policy. But much more than a remarkable history, A History of the World in Six Plagues is also a rising call for change"--
Subjects: Communicable diseases; Diseases and history.; Epidemics; Plague;