How to Hack Like a Ghost takes you deep inside the mind of a hacker as you carry out a fictionalized attack against a tech company, teaching cutting-edge hacking techniques along the way. Go deep into the mind of a master hacker as he breaks into a hostile, cloud-based security environment. Sparc Flow invites you to shadow him every step of the way, from recon to infiltration, as you hack a shady, data-driven political consulting firm. While the target is fictional, the corporation’s vulnerabilities are based on real-life weaknesses in today’s advanced cybersecurity defense systems. You’ll experience all the thrills, frustrations, dead-ends, and eureka moments of his mission first-hand, while picking up practical, cutting-edge techniques for penetrating cloud technologies. There are no do-overs for hackers, so your training starts with basic OpSec procedures, using an ephemeral OS, Tor, bouncing servers, and detailed code to build an anonymous, replaceable hacking infrastructure guaranteed to avoid detection. From there, you’ll examine some effective recon techniques, develop tools from scratch, and deconstruct low-level features in common systems to gain access to the target. Spark Flow’s clever insights, witty reasoning, and stealth maneuvers teach you how to think on your toes and adapt his skills to your own hacking tasks. You'll learn: How to set up and use an array of disposable machines that can renew in a matter of seconds to change your internet footprint How to do effective recon, like harvesting hidden domains and taking advantage of DevOps automation systems to trawl for credentials How to look inside and gain access to AWS’s storage systems How cloud security systems like Kubernetes work, and how to hack them Dynamic techniques for escalating privileges Packed with interesting tricks, ingenious tips, and links to external resources, this fast-paced, hands-on guide to penetrating modern cloud systems will help hackers of all stripes succeed on their next adventure.
A riveting, magical escapade about finding friendship and the courage to set yourself free against all odds. Kidnapped and forced to shovel coal underground, in a half-bombed power station, 12-year-old Luke Smith-Sharma keeps his head down and hopes he can earn his freedom from the evil Tabitha Margate. Then one day he discovers he can see things that others can’t. Ghostly things. A ghostly girl named Alma, who can bend the shape of clouds to her will and rides them through the night sky. With Alma’s help, Luke discovers his own innate powers and uncovers the terrible truth of why Tabatha is kidnapping children and forcing them to shovel coal. Desperate to escape, Luke teams up with Alma, his best friend Ravi, and new girl Jess. Can Luke and his friends get away before they each become victims to a cruel and sinister scheme? Debut author Michael Mann delivers a wildly imaginative middle grade fantasy set in a smoke-stained world that’s sure to entertain readers who are eager for an adventure with paranormal superpowers. A Kirkus Reviews Best Book of the Year
Dreamy Emery loves doodling wild inventions . . . but when a new friend moves in next door with piles of tools and ideas, can they build a real flying machine together? This charming celebration of intergenerational friendship, creativity and the thrill of scientific discovery will delight young inventors and STEM educators alike.
Witty and charming, New York Times-bestselling author Kerstin Gier's contemporary young adult novel A Castle in the Clouds follows a girl as she navigates secrets, romance, and danger in an aging grand hotel. Way up in the Swiss mountains, there's a hotel steeped in tradition and faded splendor. Once a year, when the famous New Year's Eve Ball takes place and guests from all over the world arrive, excitement returns to the vast hallways. Sophie, an intern at the hotel, is tasked with ensuring everything goes as planned. But the unexpected seems to lurk in every corner, and she soon realizes that not all the guests are as they appear to be. As Sophie finds herself embroiled in a thrilling adventure, risking not just her job but her heart, readers will be captivated by this whimsical tale of romance and mystery. Find yourself lost in the winding hallways of our grand Swiss hotel where secrets, romance, and danger coalesce into one unforgettable experience.
Philosopher, entrepreneur, and former National Geographic and New York Times correspondent Zoltan Istvan presents his visionary novel, The Transhumanist Wager, as a seminal statement of our times. Scorned by over 500 publishers and literary agents around the world, his philosophical thriller has been called "revolutionary" and "socially dangerous" by readers, scholars, and religious authorities. The novel debuts a challenging original philosophy, which rebuffs modern civilization by inviting the end of the human species-and declaring the onset of something greater. Set in the present day, the novel tells the story of transhumanist Jethro Knights and his unwavering quest for immortality via science and technology. Fighting against him are fanatical religious groups, economically depressed governments, and mystic Zoe Bach: a dazzling trauma surgeon and the love of his life, whose belief in spirituality and the afterlife is absolute. Exiled from America and reeling from personal tragedy, Knights forges a new nation of willing scientists on the world's largest seasteading project, Transhumania. When the world declares war against the floating city, demanding an end to its renegade and godless transhuman experiments and ambitions, Knights strikes back, leaving the planet forever changed.
The Death and Life of Charlie St. Cloud tells the haunting story of a young man who narrowly survives a terrible car wreck that kills his little brother. Years later, the brothers’ bond remains so strong that it transcends the normal boundaries separating life and death. Charlie St. Cloud lives in a snug New England fishing village. By day he tends the lawns and monuments of the ancient cemetery where his younger brother, Sam, is buried. Graced with an extraordinary gift after surviving the accident, he can still see, talk, and even play catch with Sam’s spirit. But townsfolk whisper that Charlie has never recovered from his loss. Into his carefully ordered life comes Tess Carroll, a captivating, adventuresome woman training for a solo sailing trip around the globe. Fate steers her boat into a treacherous storm that blows her back to harbor, to a charged encounter with Charlie, and to a surprise more overwhelming than the violent sea itself. Charlie and Tess discover a beautiful and uncommon connection that leads to a race against time and a desperate choice between death and life, between the past and the future, between holding on and letting go. Luminous, soulful, and filled with unforgettable characters, The Death and Life of Charlie St. Cloud is one of those rare, wise books that reveal the mysteries of the unseen world around us, gently transforming the worst pain of loss into hope, healing, and even laughter. Suspenseful and deeply moving, its startling climax reminds us that sometimes tragedies can bring about miracles if we simply open our hearts.
After a close encounter with a bus, Alona Dare goes from homecoming queen to Queen of the Dead. She’s stuck as a ghost in the land of the living with no sign of the big, bright light to take her to a better place. To make matters worse, the only person who might be able to help her is Will Killian, a total loser outcast. More than anything, Will wishes he didn’t have the rare ability to communicate with the dead, especially the former mean girl of Groundsboro High. He’s not filling out any volunteer forms to help her cross to the other side, though it would bring him some welcome peace and quiet. Can they get over their mutual distrust -- and quasi-attraction -- to work together? Readers of this spirited paranormal comedy won't want this odd couple to ever part.
It's 1942: Tomi Itano, 12, is a second-generation Japanese American who lives in California with her family on their strawberry farm. Although her parents came from Japan and her grandparents still live there, Tomi considers herself an American. She doesn't speak Japanese and has never been to Japan. But after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, things change. No Japs Allowed signs hang in store windows and Tomi's family is ostracized. Things get much worse. Suspected as a spy, Tomi's father is taken away. The rest of the Itano family is sent to an internment camp in Colorado. Many other Japanese American families face a similar fate. Tomi becomes bitter, wondering how her country could treat her and her family like the enemy. What does she need to do to prove she is an honorable American? Sandra Dallas shines a light on a dark period of American history in this story of a young Japanese American girl caught up in the prejudices and World War II.
What is the cloud? Discover the secrets of the cloud through simple explanations that use lots of pictures and lots of examples. Why learn about the cloud? It’s the future. The cloud is the future of software, the future of computing, and the future of business. If you’re not up on the cloud the future will move on without you. Don’t miss out. Not a geek? Don’t worry. I wrote this book for you! After reading Explain Cloud Like I'm 10, you will understand the cloud. That’s a promise. How do I deliver on that promise? I’ll let you in on a little secret: the cloud is not that hard to understand. It’s just that nobody has taken the time to explain it properly. take the time. I go slow. You’ll learn step-by-step; one idea at a time. You’ll learn something new no matter if you’re a beginner, someone who knows a little and wants to know more, or someone thinking about a career change. In Explain Cloud Like I'm 10, you’ll discover: • How the cloud got its name. A more interesting story than you might think.An intuitive picture based definition of the cloud. • What it means when someone says a service is in the cloud.If stormy weather affects cloud computing. • How the internet really works. Most people don’t know. You will.The real genius of cloud computing. Hint: it’s not the technology. • The good, the bad, and the ugly of cloud computing. • How cloud computing changed how software is made—forever. • Why Amazon AWS became so popular. Hint: it’s not the technology. • What happens when you press play on Netflix. • Why Kindle is the perfect example of a cloud service. • The radically different approaches Apple and Google take to the cloud. • How Google Maps and Facebook Messenger excel as cloud applications. • Cloud providers are engaging in a winner-take-all war to addict you to their ecosystems. • Key ideas like: VM, serverless, container, IaaS, PaaS, SaaS, virtualization, caching, ISP, OpEx, CapEx, network, AMI, EC2, S3, CDN, elastic computing, datacenter, and cloud-native.And so much more. Sound like gobbledygook? Don’t worry! It will all make sense. I’ve been a programmer and a writer for over 30 years. I’ve been in cloud computing since the beginning, and I’m here to help you on your journey to understand the cloud. Consider me your guide. I’ll be with you every step of the way. Sound fun? Buy Explain Cloud Like I'm 10 and let’s get started learning about the cloud today!