Say "algae" and most people think of pond scum. What they don't know is that without algae, none of us would exist. There are as many algae on Earth as stars in the universe, and they have been essential to life on our planet for eons. Algae created the Earth we know today, with its oxygen-rich atmosphere, abundant oceans, and coral reefs. Crude oil is made of dead algae, and algae are the ancestors of all plants. Today, seaweed production is a multi-billion...

"What messages do animals send to each other using sound? How can we decipher them? What lessons might these messages offer for understanding the origins and workings of our own communication? Scientists who study bioacoustics try and answer these questions, using physiology, animal behavior, and evolutionary biology to understand how and why animals communicate via sound. In this book, Nicholas Mathevon offers readers an accessible overview of the...

"A must-read for any cat lover, Cat Sense is a revolutionary new account from one of the leading scientific experts on these little-understood animals. As he did in his acclaimed, best-selling Dog Sense, Bradshaw combines the most up-to-date research with fascinating case studies to paint an unprecedentedly detailed portrait of the domestic cat"-- "Cats have been popular household pets for thousands of years, and their numbers only continue to rise....

"A forester's fascinating stories, supported by the latest scientific research, reveal the extraordinary world of forests and illustrate how trees communicate and care for each other"--

"Some low-frequency sounds--such as noise from storms or truck engines--can make you feel dizzy and nauseated. An index finger's light touch can stop people from losing balance. You are more prone to trip when you think someone is watching you. A breakthrough in improving balance as we age might just come through the study of the Achilles tendon. A person gets "falling down drunk" due to a tiny structure in the inner ear that floats when it becomes...

"Locked in the silence and darkness of your skull, your brain fashions the rich narratives of your reality and your identity. Join renowned neuroscientist David Eagleman for a journey into the questions at the mysterious heart of our existence. What is reality? Who are "you"? How do you make decisions? Why does your brain need other people? How is technology poised to change what it means to be human? In the course of his investigations, Eagleman...

The Origin of Species, by Charles Darwin, is part of the Barnes & Noble Classics series, which offers quality editions at affordable prices to the student and the general reader, including new scholarship, thoughtful design, and pages of carefully crafted extras. Here are some of the remarkable features of Barnes & Noble Classics: • New introductions commissioned from todays top writers and scholars • Biographies of the authors • Chronologies...

"Dynamic young Stanford biologist Nathan Wolfe reveals the surprising origins of the world's most deadly viruses, and how we can overcome catastrophic pandemics. In The Viral Storm, award-winning biologist Nathan Wolfe tells the story of how viruses and human beings have evolved side by side through history; how deadly viruses like HIV, swine flu, and bird flu almost wiped us out in the past; and why modern life has made our species vulnerable to...

"Superbugs, born of antibiotic resistance, are a growing global health crisis. Award-winning educator and researcher at Boston University Muhammad Zaman, Ph.D. tells the story about how we got here and what we must do to combat this threat that connects us all"--

"In his new book human paleoanthropologist Ian Tattersall argues that a long tradition of "human exceptionalism" in paleoanthropology has distorted the picture of human evolution. Drawing partly on his own career-- from young scientist in awe of his elders to crotchety elder statesman-- Tattersall offers an idiosyncratic look at the competitive world of paleoanthropology, beginning with Charles Darwin 150 years ago, and continuing through the Leakey...