Global Change

The revised and expanded third edition of Hot Talk, Cold Science forms the capstone of the distinguished astrophysicist Dr. S. Fred Singer’s lucid, yet hard scientific look at climate change. And the book is no less explosive than its predecessors—and certainly never more timely. Singer explores the inaccuracies in historical climate data and the failures of climate models, as well as the impact of solar variability, clouds, ocean currents, and sea levels on global climate—plus factors that could mitigate any human impact on world climate.

Jonathan Reckford, the CEO of Habitat for Humanity, has seen time and again the powerful benefits that arise when people from all walks of life work together to help one another. In this uplifting audiobook, he shares true stories of people involved with Habitat as volunteers and future homeowners who embody seven timeless virtues - kindness, community, empowerment, joy, respect, generosity, and service - and shows how we can all practice these to improve the quality of our own lives as well as those around us.

It’s fate when a man accidentally drops his phone off the bridge. It’s fortune when it’s retrieved by a friendly shape sloshing in the muck underneath. From that day forward, as they share a coffee every morning, an unlikely friendship blooms. Considering the reality for the man above, where life seems perfect, and that of the sharp-witted creature below, how forever after can a happy ending be?

From Mayor Michael Bloomberg and former head of the Sierra Club Carl Pope comes a manifesto on how the benefits of taking action on climate change are concrete, immediate, and immense. They explore climate change solutions that will make the world healthier and more prosperous, aiming to begin a new type of conversation on the issue that will spur bolder action by cities, businesses, and citizens—and even, someday, by Washington.

"The climate crisis may at times appear to be happening slowly, but in fact it is happening very quickly - and has become a true planetary emergency....[I]nconvenient truths do not go away just because they are not seen. Indeed, when they are not responded to, their significance doesn't diminish; it grows." -Al Gore

In the tradition of Rachel Carson’s groundbreaking environmental classic Silent Spring, an award-winning entomologist and conservationist explains the importance of insects to our survival and offers a clarion call to avoid a looming ecological disaster of our own making.

In September 2014, a Chinese company that most Americans had never heard of held the largest IPO in history - bigger than Google, Facebook, and Twitter combined. Alibaba, now the world's largest ecommerce company, mostly escaped Western notice for over 10 years, while building a customer base larger than Amazon's and handling the bulk of ecommerce transactions in China. How did it happen? And what was it like to be along for such a revolutionary ride?

The second volume of William T. Vollmann's epic book about the factors and human actions that have led to global warming begins in the coal fields of West Virginia and Eastern Kentucky. Over the course of four years, Vollmann finds hollowed out towns with coal-polluted streams and acidified drinking water; makes covert visits to mountaintop removal mines; and offers documented accounts of unpaid fines for federal health and safety violations and of miners who died because their bosses cut corners to make more money.

"The Nuclear Option: Reducing Emissions, Securing Energy" is a comprehensive exploration of the potential and challenges of nuclear energy in the fight against climate change. This book delves into every aspect of nuclear energy, providing readers with an in-depth understanding of its workings, benefits, and implications. Starting with an introduction to the growing threat of climate change, the book sets the stage for why nuclear energy is a crucial option in tackling emissions. It offers a historical overview, tracing the discovery and development of nuclear energy from its early days to ...

From Ice to Heat: A Climate Change Book Exploring Global Warming, Earth’s Climate History, and the Future of Our Planet For over four billion years, Earth’s climate has transformed through powerful natural cycles—glacial advances, warming interglacials, and dramatic atmospheric changes that reshaped life on the planet. These transformations were slow, giving ecosystems time to adapt. But now, that ancient rhythm has been broken. In just over a century, human activity has driven Earth into a state of rapid and unprecedented climate change. The burning of fossil fuels, deforestation, ...

Ireland is a small island — rugged, rain-soaked, and far from the centers of empire —yet its influence has stretched across continents, cultures, and centuries. From the poetry of Yeats to the code of Boole, from the ballads sung in rebellion to the submarines launched in revolution, the Irish have left fingerprints on the modern world that are as enduring as they are unexpected. This book is a tribute to the impact—real, verifiable, often remarkable - in which Irishmen and women altered the course ofhistory, influenced thought, reshaped societies, and touched lives well beyond the ...

Mimi is a "waste girl". A member of the lowest caste on Silicon Isle, located off China’s southeastern coast, and home to the world’s largest electronic waste recycling center. There, thousands of miles from home, Mimi struggles to earn a living for her family and dreams of a better life. Luo Jincheng is the head of one of three clans who run the island, a role passed down from his father and grandfather before him. As the government enforces tighter restrictions, Luo in turn tightens the reins on the waste workers in his employ. Ruthlessness is his means of survival.

Politics are being transformed by religion, namely in China - within the next 30 years, one-third of this potential superpower could be Christian. If this religious transformation occurs, China would be one of the largest Christian nations in the world.

A historical fiction book set in England and the Middle East during World War I. In "Secret Plot of WWI," the stakes of war are heightened as Major Richard Hannay embarks on a perilous mission that could change the course of history. Battling his own demons and the scars of recent combat, Hannay must navigate the treacherous waters of espionage and military strategy to thwart a potential uprising led by a charismatic figure threatening to ignite Islamic jihad against the Allied forces. With influences from the past haunting him, Hannay's journey takes him beyond the battlefield, revealing ...

Speaking to experts in fields as diverse as oil production and ecology, and visiting the places that have escaped recent human activity to discover how they have adapted to life without us, Alan Weisman paints an intriguing picture of the future of Earth. Exploring key concerns of our time, this absorbing thought experiment reveals a powerful - and surprising - picture of our planet's future.

On the brink of a critical moment in human history, this audiobook presents a vision of "planetary stewardship"—a rethinking of our relationship with our planet—and plots a new course for our future. In 2009, scientists identified nine planetary boundaries that keep Earth stable, ranging from biodiversity to ozone. Beyond these boundaries lurk tipping points. In order to stop short of these tipping points, the 2020s must see the fastest economic transition in history. This audiobook demonstrates how societies are reaching positive tipping points that make this transition possible.

Professor of environmental engineering Daniel Cohan argues that escaping the gravest perils of climate change will first require American diplomacy, technological innovation, and policy to catalyze decarbonization globally. Combining his own expertise along with insights from more than a hundred interviews with diplomats, scholars, and clean-technology pioneers, Cohan identifies flaws in previous efforts to combat climate change.

NASA Astrobiologist and renowned scientist Dr. David Grinspoon brings listeners an optimistic message about humanity's future in the face of climate change. For the first time in Earth's history, our planet is experiencing a confluence of rapidly accelerating changes prompted by one species: Humans. Climate change is only the most visible of the modifications we've made - up until this point, inadvertently - to the planet. And our current behavior threatens not only our own future but that of countless other creatures.

The climate is the fundamental issue of our time, and now we face a critical decision. Whether to be optimistic or fatalistic, whether to profess skepticism or to take action. Yet it seems we can barely agree on what is really going on, let alone what needs to be done. We urgently need facts, not opinions. Insights, not statistics. And a shift from thinking about climate change as a “me” problem to a “we” problem. The Carbon Almanac is a once-in-a-lifetime collaboration that focuses on what we know, what has come before, and what might happen next.

Hiring an offshore team can save a company 70% on its staffing costs and offer previously unimaginable access to a near-infinite pool of 2 billion highly qualified professionals. It's a game changing proposition for businesses. Globalization and technology are connecting the world's 8 billion people into one single online economy. For three decades, the outsourcing industry was a sleeping giant, generating $200 billion annually, and employing tens of millions of people, but mostly invisible to the traditional economy. Now, the giant is waking.