Wednesday, August 01, 2012

Browsing Books for August--Modern Science Books of Note

How the Hippies Saved Physics by David Kaiser. Library Call Number: QC15.K26 2011.
     The story of the Fundamental Fysiks Group, a band of 1970's UC-Berkeley physics teachers and students who began looking into quantum theory and Bell's Therorem and approached quantum entanglement by way of Zen, hot tubs, drugs and psychic studies to spin physics into new directions.    

 
The Shallows: What the Internet is Doing to our Brains, by Nicholas Carr. Call Number: QP360.C667 2010.

     Human thought has been shaped through the centuries by "tools of the mind"…The printed book focused our attention. The Internet encourages rapid, distracted sampling of small bits of information. Carr asks, as we become more adept at scanning and skimming, are we losing our capacity for concentration, contemplation, and reflection?



Epigenetics by Richard C. Francis.                                   Call Number QH450.F73 2011.

     Francis' book is the first book for general readers to explore epigenetics--a term that means "on the gene." New discoveries in the field of genetics, indicate that a link exists between between the stress of the environment on an individual and the seemingly inherited traits of his or her subsequent generations. Trauma, smoking, addiction could all lead to increased chances of significant problems like obesity, cancer, even Alzheimer's


 Hot X: Algebra Exposed by Danica McKellar. Call Number: QA159.M34 2010.
     Author McKellar, a former television star of The Wonder Years, also happens to be a math whiz who is trying very hard to get young women to overcome their math phobia. Here, she continues her string of best-selling books, enticing young women into the wonderful world of mathematics using testimonials, real-life examples and a pop-mag style, while illuminating the mysteries of algebra.

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