Lost Worlds of the Guiana Highlands
Stewart McPherson
I’m guessing most viewers of the Pixar flick Up were convinced that the surreal, twisted landscape on the top of the mountain where the balloon-house landed were figments of overheated animators’ brains. However, based on the pictures in Lost Worlds of the Guiana Highlands, it is clear that much of the artwork was straight still-life renditions of the eerie scenery at the top of these remote cloud-shrouded mountains. The tepuis, mountain islands shooting vertically thousands of feet into the air, have been objects of fascination and speculation for centuries. Until the 1800s, no one had ever managed to climb to the top of the straight and treacherous mountains. Despite their immense inaccessibility, numerous stories have...
Micro
Michael Crichton and Richard Preston
Despite being dead, Michael Crichton has managed to still write quite prolifically. The book, finished posthumously by science writer Richard Preston, has its moments. The premise is pure old-school Crichton. An evil tech company owner shrinks down a bunch of science grad students and they must survive in a jungle. The descriptions of the micro world from a tiny size are lovely and intriguing. Crichton/Preston provide tons of fascinating details on insects, spiders, birds and the plants of a Hawaiian jungle. Aspects of being super-small that I had never considered become excellent plot points – gravity has much less effect, bodies run through massive amounts of calories, micro people need to break the...
Can You Get Hooked on Lip Balm?
thebeautybrains.com
Yes, yes you can. But the the lip balm question is only one of hundreds in this fascinating little book. Full of delightfully refreshing skepticism, various beauty products and myths are put through the rigors of scientific inquiry. Not surprisingly, most claims by the beauty industry are either false or worded in a skewed manner. However, there is plenty to be relieved over. Many products and ingredients have myths attached to them that are complete falsehoods. Dig in and find out if expensive shampoo is really better, what is in perfume and if your moisturizer will really get rid of wrinkles.
Losing My Religion: How I Lost My Faith Reporting on Religion in America-and Found Unexpected Peace
William Lobdell
Lobdell’s journey from non-belief, to fervent Christianity and back again is a surprisingly rational one. With his life falling apart on all fronts, a young Lobdell’s friend and mentor suggests he give Christianity a try. Following a conversion at a retreat, Lobdell reorders his life and soon finds the success and peace he had been searching for. As a journalist, he turned his newfound faith into a living, writing a religion beat. After years of covering upbeat stories of folks whose faith carried them through the worst life has to offer, Lobdell found himself covering the numerous accusations against the Catholic church. As afraid as he ...
Identical Strangers: A Memoir of Twins Separated and Reunited
Identical Strangers: A Memoir of Twins Separated and Reunited - Elyse Schein and Paula Bernstein
Schein and Bernstein were both aware that they had been adopted at birth. Both had some interest in finding out who their birth parents were. Finally both found and contacted the adoption agency where their adoptions took place. Instead of finding their birth parents, the two were shocked to discover that they had an identical twin… and they had been separated for research. While their discovery and consequent research and interviews with living staff who decided to separate a number of twins is often infuriating and almost sickening, most of the book is uplifting....
The Island of the Colorblind
The Island of the Colorblind – Oliver Sacks
Neurologist Oliver Sacks is probably best known for his book The Man Who Mistook His Wife for a Hat. With a focus on rare neurological diseases and maladies, Sacks was deeply interested to hear about the Island of Pingelap. Nearly 10% of the population is achromatopic – unable to see colors of any sort. This extremely rare condition is seen in very few places in the world. Sacks travels with an ophthalmologist friend and an achromatope Knut Nordby from another small enclave in of achromatopes in Denmark. The three make a harrowing trip into the heart of Micronesia to meet and study these rare folks. At first shy ...