Welcome to Mars! Through the eyes of Curiosity, Opportunity, and the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter spacecraft, this book will introduce you to the geology of Mars and the groundbreaking achievements in the exploration of the Red Planet. Through the use of 3D glasses, you will have the opportunity to explore impact craters, volcanoes, ancient rivers and other geological features on Mars. Although most of us will never have the opportunity to visit Mars, I hope this book will serve as your personal journey to the Red Planet.
The journey to the centre of the earth is a voyage like no other we can imagine. Over 3,000 km below the earth's surface an extraordinary inner world the size of Mars awaits us. Dive through the molten iron of the outer core and eventually you will reach a solid sphere - an iron-clad world held within a metal sea and unattached to anything above. At the earth's core is the history of our planet written in temperature and pressure, crystals and minerals . . . Our planet appears tranquil from outer space. And yet the arcs of volcanoes, the earthquake zones and the auroral glow rippling above our heads are testimony to something remarkable happening inside . . . For thousands of years these phenomena were explained in legend and myth. Only in recent times has the brave new science of seismology emerged. One hundred and fifty years after the extraordinary, imaginative feat of Jules Verne's JOURNEY TO THE CENTRE OF THE EARTH, David Whitehouse embarks on a voyage of scientific discovery into the heart of our world.
“I love maps. I love math. And gosh, do I love this book, which so beautifully and clearly sounds the depths of both.” —Ben Orlin, author of Math with Bad Drawings Explore the surprising connections between math and maps—and the myriad ways they’ve shaped our world and us. Why are coastlines and borders so difficult to measure? How does a UPS driver deliver hundreds of packages in a single day? And where do elusive serial killers hide? The answers lie in the crucial connection between maps and math. In Mapmatics, mathematician Paulina Rowińska leads us on a riveting journey around the globe to discover how maps and math are deeply entwined, and always have been. From a sixteenth-century map, an indispensable navigation tool that exaggerates the size of northern countries, to public transport maps that both guide and confound passengers, to congressional maps that can empower or silence whole communities, she reveals how maps and math have shaped not only our sense of space but our worldview. In her hands, we learn how to read maps like a mathematician—to extract richer information and, just as importantly, to question our conclusions by asking what we don’t see. Written with authority and compassion, wit and unforgettable storytelling, this is math exposition at its best. By unpacking the math behind the maps we depend on, Mapmatics illuminates how our world works and, ultimately, how we can better look after it.
Seventeen wide-ranging essays explore the evolving scientific understanding of Mars, and the relationship between that understanding and the role of Mars in literature, the arts and popular culture. Essays in the first section examine different approaches to Mars by scientists and writers Jules Verne and J.H. Rosny. Section Two covers the uses of Mars in early Bolshevik literature, Wells, Brackett, Burroughs, Bradbury, Heinlein, Dick and Robinson, among others. The third section looks at Mars as a cultural mirror in science fiction. Essayists include prominent writers (e.g., Kim Stanley Robinson), scientists and literary critics from many nations.
Discover the science behind the most popular sci-fi franchise of all time! Capturing the imagination and hearts of crowds worldwide, Star Wars is a fantastic feat of science fiction and fantasy. The Science of Star Wars addresses 50 topics that span the movies’ universe such as battle technology, alien life, space travel, etc. You’ll find fascinating explorations of the physics of Star Wars, its plausibility, and more. The perfect Star Wars gift for fans of the saga, this book addresses many unanswered, burning questions, including: How long before we get a Star Wars speeder off the ground? What exactly is the Force? How could Kylo Ren stop a blaster shot in mid-air? How could we live on a gas giant like Bespin, or a desert planet like Tatooine? Nature versus nurture: How does it play out in the making of Jedi? How much would it cost to build the Death Star? And much more! We marvel at the variety of creatures and technology and the mystery behind the force. But how much of the Star Wars world is rooted in reality? Could we see some of the extraordinary inventions materialize in our world? This uncomplicated, entertaining read makes it easy to understand how advanced physics concepts, such as wormholes and Einstein’s theory of relativity, apply to the Star Wars universe. The Science of Star Wars explains to non-technical readers how physics and fantasy might merge to allow for the possibility of interstellar travel; communication with foreign but intelligent lifeforms; human-like robots; alien planets fit for human life; weapons and spacecraft such as laser guns, light sabers, and the Millennium Falcon; and Force-like psychokinetic powers. In the 21st Century, we’re on the edge of developing much of the technology from “a long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away”… These fantasies aren’t as impossible as you might think! Written for every fan of George Lucas’s films, you don’t need to be a Jedi or an astrophysicist at NASA to appreciate all of Mark Brake and Jon Chase’s fun and informative analysis of this classic series in The Science of Star Wars. Prepare your mind to make the jump to light speed and find out about the facts behind one of our favorite modern epics!
The Puzzles of Mars is a puzzle book intended for bright or gifted young people in grades 8 through 12. The book is a fictional tale about a mathematician from Earth who travels to the planet Mars to share and exchange puzzles with Martians at the Martian Academy of Sciences. Most of the puzzles appear to be difficult, yet they have simple, ingenious solutions. Some of the puzzles require a little mathematical skill, though not much beyond what is usually taught in American grade schools. The main focus is on puzzles that are based on important mathematical ideas and concepts. Each puzzle is a special instance of deep, important mathematical ideas like symmetry, invariance, parity, and relative motion. A Notes for Teachers section is included with ideas and questions to stimulate classroom discussion of mathematical ideas and concepts.
What does science have to do with science fiction? What does science fiction have to do with scientists? What does religion have to do with science and science fiction? In the spiritual vacuum of our post-Christian West, new mythologies continually arise. The sources of much religious speculation, however, may be surprising. Author James Herrick directs our attention to a wide range of scientists, filmmakers, science fiction writers and religious philosophers and discovers there the role that science and science fiction have played in such mythmaking. From scientists such as Francis Bacon, Francis Crick, Carl Sagan and Freeman Dyson, to filmmakers such as George Lucas and Steven Spielberg, to science fiction writers such as Olaf Stapledon, Sir Arthur C. Clarke, Robert Heinlein and Isaac Asimov, Herrick finds a curious collusion of science with science fiction for promoting and justifying alternative spiritualities. The rise of these new mythologies, he argues, is no longer a curiosity at the edge of Western culture. This alchemy is catalyzing a religious vision of new gods, a new humanity, and alien races with superior intelligence and secret knowledge. This new mythology overshadows the realms of politics, science and religion. Should we follow such visions? Does science endorse these mythologies? Are we being offered a spirituality superior to the Judeo-Christian tradition? This book will help you decide.
While students and general readers typically cannot relate to esoteric definitions of science fiction, they readily understand the genre as a literature that characteristically deals with subjects such as new inventions, space, robot and aliens. This book looks at science fiction in precisely this manner, with twenty-one chapters that each deal with a subject that is repeatedly addressed in science fiction of recent centuries. Based on a packet of original essays that the author assembled for his classes, the book could serve as a supplemental textbook in science fiction classes, but also contains material of interest to science fiction scholars and others devoted to the genre. In some cases, chapters offer thorough surveys of numerous works involving certain subjects, such as imagined vehicles, journeys beneath the Earth and undersea adventures, discovering intriguing patterns in the ways that various writers developed their ideas. When comprehensive coverage of ubiquitous topics such as robots, aliens and the planet Mars is impossible, chapters focus on major themes referencing selected texts. A conclusion discusses other science fiction subjects that were omitted for various reasons, and a bibliography lists additional resources for the study of science fiction in general and the topics of each chapter.
From the reviews: "...I enjoyed the historical descriptions of the contributions of the early rocket pioneers Konstantin Tsiolkovsky, Robert Goddard, and Wernher von Braun, as well as the American and Russian manned programs...The book is aimed at the science-literate public, although the material varies in level of detail." (George D. Nelson, PHYSICS TODAY, June 2005)
