Drinking vomit. Breathing poisonous gasses. Creating two headed dogs. These mad acts aren't just the stuff gross out stories and horror movies. They are real things that real scientists have done in the search for scientific answers.

"If you learn about the scientific method, you learn that first we hypothesize about something we've experienced, and then we look for more of it. This works well enough--but what if you were interested in studying a heretofore unknown comet or supernova? That is the essential problem of the astronomer: the most important discoveries happen without notice! Indeed, as Chris Lintott argues in Accidental Astronomy, luck defines astronomy. Lintott explores...

As editor of "Seeing Further," Bryson has rounded up an extraordinary roster of scientists who write and writers who know science in order to celebrate 350 years of the Royal Society, Britain's scientific national academy. The contributors include Margaret Atwood, Steve Jones, Richard Dawkins, James Gleick, Richard Holmes, and Neal Stephenson, among many others, on subjects ranging from metaphysics to nuclear physics, from the threatened endtimes...

"No generation has yet had to cope with the kind of rapid changes in science and technology that are facing today's teens. This is why "STEM education" is the latest buzz term and science literacy is enjoying a renewed focus. A foundation in basic science is key. With decades of scientific knowledge behind him and a genuine sense of fun in his approach, Jan Paul Schutten rewards curiosity with engaging explanations about some of the most complicated...

"A lighthearted but informative look at chance discoveries made by ordinary people, of artifacts (and treasures) from the past. Many of these discoveries have led to leaps in our knowledge of history and science. Each short chapter will begin with a dramatic story of discovery, followed by the significance of the artifact that was discovered, followed by a look into the history of the civilization/era from which the artifact originates. The stories...

Recounts the triumphs and mishaps of Columbus and other explorers, following the naturalists--both famous and obscure--whose investigations of the world's fauna and flora fueled the rise of science and technology that propelled Western Europe towards modernity.

"Leigh grew up in Rotterdam, drawn to the waterfront as an escape from her unhappy home life and volatile father. Enchanted by the undersea world of her childhood, she excels in marine biology, traveling the globe to study ancient organisms. When a trench is discovered in the Atlantic Ocean, Leigh joins the exploration team, hoping to find evidence of Earth's first life forms--what she instead finds calls into question everything we know about our...

The years that followed World War II have seen science and technology advance rapidly. The inventions and developments of this era have truly shaped our lives and our connections to the world around us. The first computers were gigantic and not very powerful, but constant innovations have turned our world into one dominated by microcomputer technology. Lasers, microchips, semiconductors, and artificial intelligence are just a few of the developments...

"From the Pythagorean theorem to DNA's double helix, from the discovery of microscopic life-forms to the theory of relativity--the big ideas of science and technology shape an era's worldview. Open this book, grasp the newest ideas from thought leaders of today, then spring off from them to move back through the past, one big idea at a time. Meet the people who gave birth to these ideas--and those who fought against them. Meet the MIT electrical engineer...

Charlie Thorne, along with former agents Dante Garcia and Milana Moon, race to find an immensely powerful discovery of Isaac Newton's and face challenges and enemies along the way. Charlie Thorne is a genius. Charlie Thorne is fearless. Charlie Thorne may have finally met her match. Charlie Thorne is used to being on the run. Ever since she was recruited by the CIA to track down Einstein's most dangerous equation, Charlie - and former CIA agents...