Patricia Barnes-Svarney – författare

A look at the creation and composition of asteroids and the frightening eventuality of a collision with the earth.

DescriptionNamed one of Library Journal's Best Sci-Tech Books in 1991, How the New Technology Works was praised as containing ...a wealth of basic information on the frontiers of high technology. Now, this user-friendly guide has been substantially updated. It explains more than 40 high-tech topics in clear, easy-to-read language. Among the new topics covered in this fascinating reference work are micromachining, nanotechnology, biotechnology, planetary spacecraft, charged-coupled devices (CCD), global positioning systems (GPS), and circuits. The original entries have also been updated to reflect the latest technological developments in fields such as genetic engineering, lasers, networking, optical data storage, robotics, and supercomputers.

Ideal for librarians, instructors, and students, this superior, one-stop reference guide makes finding answers to natural history questions or doing research a breeze. More than just an answer book on natural history, this unique guide provides understanding into the history of science itself. Readers get rare insight into the beginnings of a scientific event, how it evolved, and who were some of the key scientists along the way. Recent scientific controversies also are included. Covering the history of earth and its living creatures, this special reference contains 30 chapters on topics in geology, oceanography, climatology, meteorology, biology, paleontology, and anthropology.

Blood clots on airline flights? Getting a sunburn in only seven minutes? Balls of lightning moving through your window? Waves on the beach as tall as a two-story building? Volcanoes in your own backyard? Shark attacks? Isn't anything safe anymore? A Paranoid's Ultimate Survival Guide is now here to help you decide. This entertaining book enlightens the reader to the hidden (and sometimes not-so-hidden) dangers of our world – from what's lurking at your next picnic or on a kitchen sponge to bad bullfrogs and the dangers of burning backyard barrels. It offers the reader explanations of what we hear on the news, such as Lyme or Legionnaire's diseases; it examines all aspects of our daily lives, from our bathrooms to the places we vacation; and it touches on the bizarre, but scientifically studied, dangers from:dust mites to meteoritestsunamis to tickskiller clouds to jellyfishand solar flares to salmonella.These hazards are scientifically backed with recent research – some well known, some cutting edge. And most of them are not just remote possibilities but things we encounter everyday. The authors do more than just list the possible dangers we all face in and outside our home. They also help the reader judge the severity of these lurking threats and offer suggested remedies and solutions. A concluding chapter is devoted to resources on the Web that will bring you up to date on what is known about each hazard. If you're feeling paranoid, A Paranoid's Ultimate Survival Guide will show you why you have good reason to feel the way you do, and teach you how to cope with the very real threats around us. As your mother warned you, even paranoids have enemies.

Covering 70 percent of the surface area of our globe, the oceans are vast and mysterious and primal and pretty much everywhere you go. The Handy Ocean Answer Book tackles over 1,000 questions on ocean life, waterspouts, whirlpools, ocean shelves, tides and quakes, famous shipwrecks, the effects of pollution and global warming, and more. Plus, you'll find out what the ocean has revealed about the origins and evolution of life on our planet and major climate changes. With 180 photos and illustrations, Handy Ocean will please landlubbers and salty sailors alike.

Answering over 600 interesting questions about dinosaurs, this fun-filled fact-book provides a wealth of information on the lives and habits of these astonishing creatures. From Tyrannosaurs to Stegosaurs, the guide profiles numerous species, chronicling their time on Earth and exploring their roles in archaeological expeditions and museums today. Delightful and intriguing, this comprehensive record includes the debates still surrounding the origins and fate of these creatures that dominated our planet for millions of years.

In an engaging, easy-to-follow, question and answer format, everyday math concepts are tackled and explained in plain English (with a little help from numbers and formulas). From their long history (and hints of the future) to how we use math in our everyday lives, and from refreshers on the basics of algebra, calculus, geometry, and trigonometry to clear and concise explanations of the numbers used daily in financial and market reports, weather forecasts, games, real estate valuations, and measurements, The Handy Math Answer Book is your guide to the world of numbers.

Your fitness, health, and well-being depend on food and proper nutrition. Yet, knowing what is in the foods we eat, understanding the differences between good and bad fat, learning which foods are good sources of vitamins, keeping up on the latest scientific discoveries, or discerning the effectiveness of different diets can be challenging. To help answer these questions there's The Handy Nutrition Answer Book. Additionally, the book scrutinises the pros, cons and effectiveness of the biggest, most popular and trendiest diets on the market today.

Plain and simple answers to more than 1,250 questions about the formulas, history, major personalities, latest developments, milestones, evolution and organisms that make up the world of biology. This major new reference work is a go-to guide for students and the more learned, and is helpfully laid out with numerous black-and-white illustrations. The authors are both scientists and have previously written The Handy Math Answer Book, The Handy Dinosaur Answer Book and The Handy Ocean Answer Book (all Visible ink).

The Handy Anatomy Answer Book covers all the major body systems - integumentary (skin, hair, etc.), skeletal, muscular, nervous, sensory, endocrine, cardiovascular, lymphatic, respiratory, digestive, urinary and reproductive - and, for good measure, adds chapters on growth and development and how science can help and augment the body. It follows the fascinating maze of organ systems and shows how much the body is doing at any one moment just to let you move, breathe, eat and fight off disease. Fascinating trivia plus serious facts answer over 1200 questions about the body.

Looking at the science of law enforcement, how evidence is gathered, processed, analysed, and viewed in the courtroom, and more. From the cause, manner, time of a death, and autopsies to blood, toxicology, DNA typing, fingerprints, ballistics, tool marks, tread impressions, and trace evidence, it takes the reader through the many sides of a death investigation. Arson, accidents, computer crimes, criminal profiling, and much, much more are also addressed.