Today's Hours:
Inventive Geniuses Who Changed the World by
This book describes the life and times of fifty-three great British scientists and engineers - male and female inventive geniuses who changed the world, improving the lives of mankind, and propelling humanity forward. Their stories abound with personal ingenuity, brilliance and scientific or engineering wizardry, and with the ambition to satisfy fundamental human needs. The author aspires to set these individual achievements in the socio-political context of their place in history, sometimes embracing the activities of others to round off the story and scientific contribution. Avoiding overly technical language, he nonetheless succeeds in making complex theories and technologies more comprehensible and accessible to a lay audience. This book is a must for all those interested in the prehistory and history of the steam engine, transport, communication technology, public health services, and many topics from the natural sciences. Many of the inventions described in its pages havehelped shape the modern world.
Dr. Calhoun's Mousery by
"Brilliant. . . . An absorbing read and a potent lesson in moral behavior--both of rodents and of humans."--Deborah Blum, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of The Poison Squad * "A fascinating read about an immensely influential scientist."--Robert M. Sapolsky, author of the New York Times-bestseller Determined * "Stimulating scientific history. . . . Colorful accounts. . . . This fascinates."--Publishers Weekly A bizarre and compelling biography of a scientist and his work, using rodent cities to question the potential catastrophes of human overpopulation. It was the strangest of experiments. What began as a utopian environment, where mice had sumptuous accommodations, had all the food and water they could want, and were free from disease and predators, turned into a mouse hell. Science writer and animal behaviorist Lee Alan Dugatkin introduces readers to the peculiar work of rodent researcher John Bumpass Calhoun. In this enthralling tale, Dugatkin shows how an ecologist-turned-psychologist-turned-futurist became a science rock star embedded in the culture of the 1960s and 1970s. As interest grew in his rodent cities, Calhoun was courted by city planners and his work was reflected in everything from Tom Wolfe's hard-hitting writing to the children's book Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH. He was invited to meetings with the Royal Society and the pope and taken seriously when he proposed a worldwide cybernetic brain--a decade before others made the internet a reality. Readers see how Calhoun's experiments--rodent apartment complexes like "Mouse Universe 25"--led to his concept of "behavioral sinks" with real effects on public policy discussions. Overpopulation in Calhoun's mouse (and rat) complexes led to the loss of sex drive, the absence of maternal care, and a class of automatons that included "the beautiful ones," who spent their time grooming themselves while shunning socialization. Calhoun--and those who followed his work--saw the collapse of this mouse population as a harbinger of the ill effects of an overpopulated human world. Drawing on previously unpublished archival research and interviews with Calhoun's family and former colleagues, Dugatkin offers a riveting account of an intriguing scientific figure. Considering Dr. Calhoun's experiments, he explores the changing nature of scientific research and delves into what the study of animal behavior can teach us about ourselves.
Before They Vanish by
Legendary conservationists show us that we still have the power to prevent critical consequences of the sixth extinction in this game-changing book. Can we save threatened animals and ecosystems in the midst of a mass extinction? The answer is a resounding yes! Before They Vanish shows us how. In this wise and impassioned book, renowned conservation scientists Paul R. Ehrlich, Gerardo Ceballos, and Rodolfo Dirzo urge us to shift our thinking rather than succumb to grief over the losses that humanity faces. This comprehensive look at a crucial but often overlooked aspect of conservation--population extinction, or the loss of a species within a specific geographic location--guides us onto a new, hopeful path. The authors argue that conservationists have placed too much emphasis on the extinction of entire species, which occurs gradually enough that we only detect it in the direst of cases. By that time, meaningful action may be impossible. By shifting our focus to identifying extinction threats at the more localized population level, we can intervene more rapidly and effectively to prevent broader declines before it's too late. This change in perspective represents a critical step in saving these vanishing species; early detection and intervention may be our last, best hope for stemming the tide of this global crisis. Using examples from the worlds of vertebrates, invertebrates, plants, fungi, and microorganisms, the authors explain the concept of population extinction, its causes and consequences, and how to prevent the mass destruction of the amazing and unique creatures with whom we share our planet. This call to action is a must-read for anyone concerned with saving endangered and threatened species, our natural world--and ourselves.