Genetic World

Evolutions brings to life the latest scientific thinking on the birth of the universe and the solar system, the journey from a single cell all the way to our human minds. Reawakening our sense of wonder and terror at the world around us and within us, Oren Harman uses modern science to create new and original mythologies.

Spectacular fossil finds make today's headlines; new technology unlocks secrets of skeletons unearthed 100 years ago. Still, evolution is often poorly represented by the media and misunderstood by the public. A potent antidote to pseudoscience, Written in Stone is an engrossing history of evolutionary discovery for anyone who has marveled at the variety and richness of life.

After more than a thousand years in flight, Starship is crashing towards a new home. At its helm, a corrupted machine with unknown goals and deadly tactics. Scrappy human leftovers cluster in the middle, making plans to run if they survive the landing. War between man and machine, they believe, is inevitable. Best get away from the biggest machine in existence. For Gamma, that machine, that ship is his home, and he won’t abandon it without a fight. First up on that score, finding his friends, his partner.

Genetic engineering, which refers to the direct manipulation of DNA, became a reality in the 1970s. In this audiobook, we take a look at how far the field has come, starting with a revolutionary gene-editing tool called CRISPR that’s taking the research world by storm. We then examine how CRISPR and other approaches are being investigated to treat disease, the fantastic-sounding research being done in synthetic biology, controversial efforts in modifying crops and saving species, as well as the numerous ethical issues raised in these areas.

From the cup of coffee that jump-starts the day to dangerously addictive drugs, the recreational use of plants with psychoactive properties has a long history among humans. But, as with many things, it turns out that other animals got there first. From parrots to primates, consuming medicinal chemicals is an instinctive behavior that helps countless organisms fight infection and treat disease. But the similarities don't end there: Like us, many creatures also consume substances that have no apparent benefit...except for inducing intoxication.

If you think you are you, think again. Primate Change is a wide-ranging, polemical look at how and why the human body has changed since humankind first got up on two feet. Spanning the entirety of human history - from primate to transhuman - Vybarr Cregan-Reid's book investigates where we came from, who we are today and how modern technology will change us beyond recognition.

Portals, treachery, and murder... Seventeen-year-old Mia Taylor, gatekeeper to an interdimensional portal, wants nothing more than to heal from a romance gone wrong. Illegally falling for her co-worker Regulus had been a huge mistake. But when Regulus goes rogue to hunt down a murderer, Mia must forget her broken heart and use her unique abilities to save him. Traveling across dimensions, she enters a strange and hostile world where a rebel faction holds the key to their escape. Her gift of synesthesia is in high demand, and a secret organization of the otherworldly kind has her in its ...

In Unfit for Purpose, biologist and broadcaster Adam Hart explores the mismatch between our fundamental biology and the modern world we have created. In each chapter Adam reveals the many ways in which biological adaptations that evolved to help us survive and thrive now work against us. For example, in the modern world stress is a killer, but how did 'fight or flight' instincts turn from life-savers to life-takers? Obesity might be a disease now, but is it really just a troublesome side-effect of our complex evolutionary past?

Living in the idyllic seaside town of Palmetto Beach is a dream come true for Mitch Sanders, an aspiring marine biologist who studies from home while his wife, Ashley, scores the perfect job at the Bioengineering Clinical Research Institute of Medicine, which is about to make an astounding medical breakthrough.

In a utopian future hundreds of years from now, where function reigns supreme over artistic flair, these adolescents are the stars of the show. They just don’t know it. Dane, a cautious yet curious soul, finds himself abruptly transferred to The Hall, an environment immersed in the art of music. A mysterious note sparks a flame that will alter the course of his existence. Roc, an unstoppable force of energy and competitiveness, finds himself thrust into The Arena, a sports haven perfectly suited to his dynamic nature. In this fast-paced arena, he must navigate the fine line between ...

In The Synthetic Age, Christopher Preston argues that what is most startling about this coming epoch is not only how much impact humans have had but, more important, how much deliberate shaping they will start to do. Emerging technologies promise to give us the power to take over some of Nature's most basic operations. It is not just that we are exiting the Holocene and entering the Anthropocene; it is that we are leaving behind the time in which planetary change is just the unintended consequence of unbridled industrialism.

On May 10, 1998, biologist Craig Venter, director of the Institute for Genomic Research, announced that he was forming a private company that within three years would unravel the complete genetic code of human life, seven years before the projected finish of the U.S. government's Human Genome Project. Venter hoped that by decoding the genome ahead of schedule, he would speed up the pace of biomedical research and save the lives of thousands of people. He also hoped to become very famous and very rich.

After a day at the 1904 St. Louis World's Fair, time-traveler Ariel returns to her 2015 Vermont rental cabin only to discover an intruder from her future has captured two of her friends. The ransom he demands is that she plays a temporal game of cat and mouse with him. If SHE wins, he returns her friends and departs for the 24th Century. If HE wins, she must return as his Queen to his corrupted future where he rules the world. Ariel has only two weeks to defeat her stalker from the future.

To many of us, tropical forests are the domain of movies and novels. These dense, primordial wildernesses are beautiful to picture but irrelevant to our lives. Jungle tells a different story. Archaeologist Patrick Roberts argues that tropical forests have shaped nearly every aspect of life on earth. They made the planet habitable, enabled the rise of dinosaurs and mammals, and spread flowering plants around the globe. New evidence also shows that humans evolved in jungles, developing agriculture and infrastructure unlike anything found elsewhere.

Despite unimaginable odds, Marine Lieutenant Gant Maker has once again done the impossible, defeating the alien Vacra’s invasion force and nullifying their unstoppable doomsday device. With their armada destroyed and their fleet crippled, the Vacra resort to the inconceivable: They sue for peace via an unexpected envoy. Fresh off his highly improbable victory, Maker now finds himself faced with the unenviable and undesirable task of escorting the Vacra representative home. However, he soon learns that the stakes are far higher than he ever imagined.

A deadly end to a daring journey. "I couldn't stop reading until I reached the final page." “The final book will knock you on your backside.” It’s the moment that has haunted Thirteen for years: the rescue of her sister. But as she, Cord, and Miyu enter the brutal world of the volcano city, it’s nothing like she’d imagined. Buffeted by cruelty more bitter than the Devil Wind, Thirteen must learn a new rule: find the truth before it finds you. Shattered is the third book in M. Terry Green’s White World trilogy, a dystopian, science-fiction thriller. If you want a story of harsh ...

A frozen planet. An impossible quest. A sister who won’t quit. "Spine-tingling, breath-holding action!" “I am sure there are finger indentations in my Kindle.” Though she doesn’t know her real name, Thirteen is sure of two things: survival and finding her sister. Nothing stands in her way—not the great Pacifica Ice Sheet nor the slavers she escaped—until her deadly hunt takes a maddening turn. The first and only clue in her search is held by the survivor of a wrecked ice ship. But he’s not sharing. He has a daughter to rescue, and he needs Thirteen’s help. In the unforgiving...

The world of Dune has shaped an entire generation of science fiction. From the sand-blasted world of Arrakis, to the splendor of the imperial homeworld of Kaitain, readers and listeners have lived in a universe of treachery and wonder. Now, these stories expand on the Dune universe.

Set in the very near future, the plot evolves quickly, moving from a scientist who finds himself killing his coconspirator to a prison corporation CEO who devises the deaths of 13 inmates in order to cover up his larger crimes to a famous criminologist/mystery writer who becomes entangled with a beautiful, violet-eyed geneticist and tries to uncover why she is being targeted.

As starving, travel-weary people overrun High Meadow, Tillie and Angus must do a delicate dance to keep the doors open. Angus has set the boundaries for their new territory, and Martin is tasked with keeping it safe. Tillie struggles to get everyone fed while keeping an eye on the stores for winter. Wisp helps where he can, vetting the newcomers and finding stragglers, but not every person comes under his scrutiny.