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Darwin's Most Wonderful Plants
For many people, the story of Charles Darwin goes like this: he ventured to the Galapagos Islands on the Beagle, was inspired by the biodiversity of the birds he saw there, and immediately returned home to write his theory of evolution. But this simplified narrative is inaccurate and lacking: it leaves out a major part of Darwin’s legacy. He published On the Origin of Species nearly thirty years after his voyages. And much of his life was spent experimenting with and observing plants. Darwin was a brilliant and revolutionary botanist whose observations and theories were far ahead of his time. With Darwin’s Most Wonderful Plants, biologist and gardening expert Ken Thompson restores this i...
Where Do Camels Belong?
Where do camels belong? In the Arab world may seem the obvious answer, but they are relative newcomers there. They evolved in North America, retain their greatest diversity in South America, and the only remaining wild dromedaries are in Australia. This is a classic example of the contradictions of 'native' and 'invasive' species, a hot issue right now, as the flip-side of biodiversity. We have all heard the horror stories of invasives, from Japanese knotweed that puts fear into the heart of gardeners to brown tree snakes that have taken over the island of Guam. But do we need to fear invaders? And indeed, can we control them, and do we choose the right targets? Ken Thompson puts forward a fascinating array of narratives to explore what he sees as the crucial question - why only a minority of introduced species succeed, and why so few of them go on to cause trouble. He discusses, too, whether our fears could be getting in the way of conserving biodiversity, and responding to the threat of climate change.
Coders at Work
Peter Seibel interviews 15 of the most interesting computer programmers alive today in Coders at Work, offering a companion volume to Apress’s highly acclaimed best-seller Founders at Work by Jessica Livingston. As the words “at work” suggest, Peter Seibel focuses on how his interviewees tackle the day-to-day work of programming, while revealing much more, like how they became great programmers, how they recognize programming talent in others, and what kinds of problems they find most interesting. Hundreds of people have suggested names of programmers to interview on the Coders at Work web site: www.codersatwork.com. The complete list was 284 names. Having digested everyone’s feedbac...
Do We Need Pandas?
How much do we really know about the species that make up the natural world? All over the world, biodiversity is gravely threatened – by overfishing, habitat destruction, pollution and climate change. Yet life on Earth has previously experienced five episodes of mass extinction, and nature has repeatedly proved itself to be a resilient, regenerative force. In this fascinating book, ecologist Dr. Ken Thompson surveys the Earth's biodiversity, its origins and some of the threats it currently faces. Thought-provoking and deeply engaging, Do We Need Pandas? offers a non-technical overview of our ecosystems and expands on the causes and consequences of biodiversity loss. Importantly, it also examines what we should be doing to secure the survival not only of the species with which we share the planet, but of ourselves – and whether we need to be more concerned about ecosystems as a whole than about iconic species such as the orangutan and giant Panda.
The Book of Weeds
Weeds are plants growing in the wrong place. Here's how to recognize, prevent , eradicate-- or learn to live with-- your unwelcome guests.
The Art of Control Engineering
The Art of Control Engineering provides a refreshingly new and practical treatment of the study of control systems. The opening chapters assume no prior knowledge of the subject and are suitable for use in introductory courses. The material then progresses smoothly to more advanced topics such as nonlinear systems, Kalman filtering, robust control, multivariable systems and discrete event controllers. Taking a practical perspective, the text demonstrates how the various techniques fit into the overall picture of control and stresses the ingenuity required in choosing the best tool for each job and deciding how to apply it. The most important topics are revisited at appropriate levels throughout the book, building up progressively deeper layers of knowledge. The Art of Control Engineering is an essential core text for undergraduate degree courses in control, electrical and electronic, systems and mechanical engineering. Its broad, practical coverage will also be very useful to postgraduate students and practising engineers.
An Ear to the Ground
How did plants get to be the way they are? Why do they have pretty flowers? How different would things have been if the wrong kind of pollinators had got the upper hand? Why are Latin names so complicated, and why Latin anyway? Why is a weed-free lawn an ecological impossibility? This entertaining book gives the answers to these questions and many more. It shows how a little botanical knowledge can bring not just better results but peace of mind, and that losing sleep over such traditional gardening bogeys as weeds, pests and pruning is not necessarily the best course. In this new edition Ken Thompson grabs the opportunity to explain why any old plant will do for companion planting - but also that it can do as much harm as good - and why planting by the moon is complete and utter nonsense.
The Sceptical Gardener
How are birds linked to house prices? How can a gardener improve the flavour of their vegetables? Do wildflowers really thrive in poor soil? In this collection of articles from The Telegraph, biologist and gardening columnist Ken Thompson takes a scientific look at some of the greater – and lesser – questions faced by gardeners everywhere in a bid to sort the genuine wisdom from the hokum. What is the ideal temperature for a compost heap? What do bees do that improves strawberries? Why are gardeners in literature always such dummies? This is an expert's gardening miscellany, aimed at making you not necessarily a better gardener, but probably a far more thoughtful one.
Pioneering Social Research
Presenting the landmark Pioneers life stories project, this one-of-a-kind book documents how modern social research in the UK was shaped. It combines a fascinating history of the generations who built outstanding and influential social research with a valuable resource for future research and teaching on methods.
Race to Judgment
Fast paced legal thriller and powerful urban drama from Frederic Block, the Brooklyn based federal judge who sentenced Peter Gotti of the Gambino crime family. Based partly on fact and seething racial tensions and political corruption, it doesn't get any more "New York" than Race to Judgment! Race to Judgment is a "reality-fiction" debut novel loosely based on a number of high-profile cases handled by its author, a federal trial court judge, over his 23 years on the federal bench in Brooklyn-such as the Crown Heights riots and the Peter Gotti trial. It tracks the rise of the fictional African-American civil rights protagonist Ken Williams (in real life, the recently deceased Brooklyn DA Ken ...
