[PDF] Remarkable Creatures eBook

Author : Sean B. Carroll
Publisher : HMH
Page : 357 pages
File Size : 41,70 MB
Release : 2014-10-16
Category : Science
ISBN : 0547526148

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National Book Award Finalist: A biologist’s “thoroughly enjoyable” account of the expeditions that unearthed the history of life on our planet (Publishers Weekly). Not so long ago, most of our world was an unexplored wilderness. Our sense of its age was vague and vastly off the mark, and much of the knowledge of our own species’ history was a set of fantastic myths and fairy tales. But scientists were about to embark on an amazing new era of understanding. From the New York Times–bestselling author of The Big Picture, this book leads us on a rousing voyage that recounts the most important discoveries in two centuries of natural history: from Darwin’s trip around the world to Charles Walcott’s discovery of pre-Cambrian life in the Grand Canyon; from Louis and Mary Leakey’s investigation of our deepest past in East Africa to the trailblazers in modern laboratories who have located a time clock in our DNA. Filled with the same sense of adventure that spurred on these extraordinary men and women, Remarkable Creatures is a “stirring introduction to the wonder of evolutionary biology” (Kirkus Reviews). “Charming and enlightening.” —San Francisco Chronicle “As fast-paced as a detective story.” —Nature

Author : Tracy Chevalier
Publisher : Penguin
Page : 206 pages
File Size : 29,95 MB
Release : 2010-01-05
Category : Fiction
ISBN : 1101152451

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From the New York Times bestselling novelist, a stunning historical novel that follows the story of Mary Anning and Elizabeth Philpot, two extraordinary 19th century fossil hunters who changed the scientific world forever. On the windswept, fossil-strewn beaches of the English coast, poor and uneducated Mary learns that she has a unique gift: "the eye" to spot ammonites and other fossils no one else can see. When she uncovers an unusual fossilized skeleton in the cliffs near her home, she sets the religious community on edge, the townspeople to gossip, and the scientific world alight. After enduring bitter cold, thunderstorms, and landslips, her challenges only grow when she falls in love with an impossible man. Mary soon finds an unlikely champion in prickly Elizabeth, a middle-class spinster who shares her passion for scouring the beaches. Their relationship strikes a delicate balance between fierce loyalty, mutual appreciation, and barely suppressed envy, but ultimately turns out to be their greatest asset. From the author of At the Edge of the Orchard and Girl With a Pearl Earring comes this incredible story of two remarkable women and their voyage of discovery.

Author : Jonathan Meiburg
Publisher : Vintage
Page : 384 pages
File Size : 16,57 MB
Release : 2021-03-30
Category : Nature
ISBN : 1101875712

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“Utterly captivating and beautifully written, this book is a hugely entertaining and enlightening exploration of a bird so wickedly smart, curious, and social, it boggles the mind.”—Jennifer Ackerman, author of The Bird Way “A fascinating, entertaining, and totally engrossing story.”—David Sibley, author of What It's Like to Be a Bird An enthralling account of a modern voyage of discovery as we meet the clever, social birds of prey called caracaras, which puzzled Darwin, fascinate modern-day falconers, and carry secrets of our planet's deep past in their family history. “As curious, wide-ranging, gregarious, and intelligent as its subject.”—Charles C. Mann, author of 1491 In 1833, Charles Darwin was astonished by an animal he met in the Falkland Islands: handsome, social, and oddly crow-like falcons that were "tame and inquisitive . . . quarrelsome and passionate," and so insatiably curious that they stole hats, compasses, and other valuables from the crew of the Beagle. Darwin wondered why these birds were confined to remote islands at the tip of South America, sensing a larger story, but he set this mystery aside and never returned to it. Almost two hundred years later, Jonathan Meiburg takes up this chase. He takes us through South America, from the fog-bound coasts of Tierra del Fuego to the tropical forests of Guyana, in search of these birds: striated caracaras, which still exist, though they're very rare. He reveals the wild, fascinating story of their history, origins, and possible futures. And along the way, he draws us into the life and work of William Henry Hudson, the Victorian writer and naturalist who championed caracaras as an unsung wonder of the natural world, and to falconry parks in the English countryside, where captive caracaras perform incredible feats of memory and problem-solving. A Most Remarkable Creature is a hybrid of science writing, travelogue, and biography, as generous and accessible as it is sophisticated, and absolutely riveting.

Author : Ana Fernandes
Publisher : Cambridge Scholars Publishing
Page : 136 pages
File Size : 18,37 MB
Release : 2018-12-14
Category : Fiction
ISBN : 1527523519

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This book enquires into the processes by which certain contemporary women pay testimony to history. It examines the reasons why they recreate the past, whether political, social or artistic, and the strategies employed to establish a comparison with the present. The focus is on authors such as A.S. Byatt, Pat Barker, Anne Enright, Tracy Chevalier and Ali Smith. The volume demonstrates and discusses parallels, shifts and transformations in the writing of these authors and in the rewriting of history in contemporary fiction by women authors.

Author : Rod Bailey
Publisher : Rod Bailey
Page : 180 pages
File Size : 26,93 MB
Release : 2023-08-01
Category : Science
ISBN : 0645876496

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"Those wonderful creatures you do not know" takes readers on an immersive exploration of the incredible creatures that inhabit our planet. From the depths of the oceans to the vast deserts, from the lush forests to the smallest microorganisms, this book unveils the captivating stories of lesser-known species that often go unnoticed. In this book, readers will embark on a remarkable journey through different ecosystems, encountering extraordinary creatures along the way. Dive into the mysterious depths of the ocean and encounter the enchanting Vampire Squid, the whimsical Dumbo Octopus, and the mesmerizing Angler Fish. Discover the unique adaptations these deep-sea creatures have developed to survive in extreme conditions, such as bioluminescence, pressure tolerance, and camouflage. Venture into the intricate world of soil dwellers and learn about the resilient Springtails, the fascinating Velvet Worms, and the diverse insects and arachnids that call the soil their home. Understand the crucial role these creatures play in soil health and ecosystem function, including nutrient cycling, soil fertility, and the maintenance of soil structure. Delve into the avian realm and encounter the secretive Oilbird, the peculiar Hoatzin, and the captivating Lyrebird. Gain insight into the significance of avian biodiversity, their contributions to ecosystem services, such as pollination and seed dispersal, and their extraordinary abilities like mimicry and elaborate mating displays. Explore the microscopic world, where Tardigrades exhibit incredible resilience, Diatoms create stunning patterns, and Plankton form the foundation of marine food webs. Uncover the vital role these tiny organisms play in supporting life on Earth, including oxygen production, carbon sequestration, and the maintenance of aquatic ecosystems. Finally, venture into the frigid Arctic regions, where the resilient Arctic Tern, the mighty Wolverine, and the microscopic Tardigrade defy the extreme cold. Explore their incredible adaptations, such as migration strategies, insulation mechanisms, and the ability to enter cryptobiosis, showcasing their unparalleled ability to thrive in the most unforgiving environments.

Author : Gisela Febel
Publisher : Springer Nature
Page : 373 pages
File Size : 39,10 MB
Release : 2023-04-05
Category : Social Science
ISBN : 3658377844

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“Contradiction” is a core concept in the humanities and the social sciences. Beside the classical ideas of logical or dialectical contradiction, instances of “lived” contradiction and strategies of coping with it are objects of this study. Contradiction Studies discuss the many ways in which explicit or implicit contradictions are negotiated in different political or cultural settings. This volume collects articles that tackle the concept of contradiction, practices of contradicting and lived contradictions from a number of relevant perspectives and assembles contributions from linguistics, literary studies, philosophy, political science, and media studies.

Author : John Glendening
Publisher : Routledge
Page : 278 pages
File Size : 28,5 MB
Release : 2013-04-17
Category : Literary Criticism
ISBN : 1134088345

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Criticism about the neo-Victorian novel — a genre of historical fiction that re-imagines aspects of the Victorian world from present-day perspectives — has expanded rapidly in the last fifteen years but given little attention to the engagement between science and religion. Of great interest to Victorians, this subject often appears in neo-Victorian novels including those by such well-known authors as John Fowles, A. S. Byatt, Graham Swift, and Mathew Kneale. This book discusses novels in which nineteenth-century science, including geology, paleontology, and evolutionary theory, interacts with religion through accommodations, conflicts, and crises of faith. In general, these texts abandon conventional religion but retain the ethical connectedness and celebration of life associated with spirituality at its best. Registering the growth of nineteenth-century secularism and drawing on aspects of the romantic tradition and ecological thinking, they honor the natural world without imagining that it exists for humans or functions in reference to human values. In particular, they enact a form of wonderment: the capacity of the mind to make sense of, creatively adapt, and enjoy the world out of which it has evolved — in short, to endow it with meaning. Protagonists who come to experience reality in this expansive way release themselves from self-anxiety and alienation. In this book, Glendening shows how, by intermixing past and present, fact and fiction, neo-Victorian narratives, with a few instructive exceptions, manifest this pattern.

Author : Brenda Rosen
Publisher : Sterling Publishing Company, Inc.
Page : 388 pages
File Size : 37,24 MB
Release : 2009
Category : Body, Mind & Spirit
ISBN : 9781402765360

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Mythical creatures that come from the land, sea, air, and beyond your wildest imagination ... -- p.[4] of cover.

Author : Jessica Cox
Publisher : Springer Nature
Page : 251 pages
File Size : 20,53 MB
Release : 2019-11-11
Category : Literary Criticism
ISBN : 3030292908

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This book represents the first full-length study of the relationship between neo-Victorianism and nineteenth-century sensation fiction. It examines the diverse and multiple legacies of Victorian popular fiction by authors such as Wilkie Collins and Mary Elizabeth Braddon, tracing their influence on a range of genres and works, including detective fiction, YA writing, Gothic literature, and stage and screen adaptations. In doing so, it forces a reappraisal of critical understandings of neo-Victorianism in terms of its origins and meanings, as well as offering an important critical intervention in popular fiction studies. The work traces the afterlife of Victorian sensation fiction, taking in the neo-Gothic writing of Daphne du Maurier and Victoria Holt, contemporary popular historical detective and YA fiction by authors including Elizabeth Peters and Philip Pullman, and the literary fiction of writers such as Joanne Harris and Charles Palliser. The work will appeal to scholars and students of Victorian fiction, neo-Victorianism, and popular culture alike.

Author : Tom Harvey
Publisher : Trafford Publishing
Page : 72 pages
File Size : 17,85 MB
Release : 2013-05-23
Category : Juvenile Fiction
ISBN : 1466994169

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Creature Teachers is the story of Big Bubba Black Bear, his mate, Bonnie, and their three young bear cubs, Bumbles, Bella, and Rose. Bubba and Bonnie are concerned that they may not know all that they need to know to help their young cubs survive in the world today. So they seek to learn the most important lessons in life from the animals around them to share with their cubs. The result is a road trip adventure with meaningful thoughts for our children today. The importance of laughter, loyalty, caring, sharing, respect, and much more is taught by the animals we see every day.