Science Myths

In Our Robots, Ourselves, David Mindell offers a fascinating behind-the-scenes look at the cutting edge of robotics today, debunking commonly held myths and exploring the rapidly changing relationships between humans and machines. Drawing on firsthand experience, extensive interviews, and the latest research from MIT and elsewhere, Mindell takes us to extreme environments-high atmosphere, deep ocean, and outer space - to reveal where the most advanced robotics already exist.

In Which Comes First, Cardio or Weights?, physicist and award-winning journalist Alex Hutchinson tackles dozens of commonly held beliefs and looks at just what research science has - and has not - proven to be true. This myth-busting book covers the full spectrum of exercise science and offers the latest in research from around the globe, as well as plenty of practical tips on using proven science to improve fitness, reach weight loss goals, and achieve better competition results.

In Cybersecurity Myths and Misconceptions: Avoiding the Hazards and Pitfalls that Derail Us, three cybersecurity pioneers don't just deliver the first comprehensive collection of falsehoods that derail security from the frontlines to the boardroom; they offer expert practical advice for avoiding or overcoming each myth.

Vane Weston is haunted. By the searing pull of his bond to Audra. By the lies he’s told to cover for her disappearance. By the treacherous winds that slip into his mind, trying to trap him in his worst nightmares. And as his enemies grow stronger, Vane doesn’t know how much longer he can last on his own.

The labyrinth is a death sentence. And I’m trapped inside with a monster. I’m being imprisoned for a crime I didn’t commit. My sentence is brief—only three months—but it doesn’t matter. No one gets out of the labyrinth alive.

Why were Prometheus and Loki envisioned as chained to rocks? What was the Golden Calf? Why are mirrors believed to carry bad luck? How could anyone think that mortals like Perseus, Beowulf, and St. George actually fought dragons, since dragons don't exist? Strange though they sound, however, these "myths" did not begin as fiction.

Zélie remembers when the soil of Orïsha hummed with magic. When different clans ruled - Burners igniting flames, Tiders beckoning waves, and Zélie’s Reaper mother summoning forth souls. But everything changed the night magic disappeared. Under the orders of a ruthless king, anyone with powers was targeted and killed, leaving Zélie without a mother and her people without hope. Only a few people remain with the power to use magic, and they must remain hidden.

Stranded in a time and place he never wished for, Kishan Rajaram struggles to forget the girl he loves and the brother who stole her away as he fulfills his divine role - that of assisting the beautiful, yet extremely irritable, goddess Durga. When the wily shaman Phet appears and tells Kishan that Kelsey needs him, he jumps at the chance to see her again, but in saving Kelsey, he discovers that the curse he thought was over is just beginning. As time unravels around him, Kishan realizes that the fates of all those he holds dear lie in his hands.

Weaving a rich tapestry of multicultural myths, ancient legends, and simple folktales, Anita Johnston, PhD, inspires women to free themselves from disordered eating by discovering the metaphors that are hidden in their own life stories.

When fifteen-year-old Jacob Lau is pulled from the crumpled remains of his mother's car, no one can explain why he was driving or why the police can't find his mother's body. Made a ward of his uncle and thousands of miles from home, a beautiful and mysterious neighbor, Dr. Abigail Silva, offers to use her unique abilities to help him find his mom. In exchange, she requires Jacob to train as a Soulkeeper, a gifted warrior charged with protecting human souls. He agrees to her demands, desperate for any clue to the mystery of his mother's disappearance.

From New York Times best-selling author Chris Colfer comes two new audiobooks about two beloved characters, Mother Goose and Queen Red Riding Hood. Mother Goose's diary entries over the last 500 years take listeners on a journey to learn buried secrets; and the young queen gives us her take on politics, government, health, love, and of course, what it means to be royalty.

Tristan Strong, just back from a victorious but exhausting adventure in Alke, the land of African American folk heroes and African gods, is suffering from PTSD. But there's no rest for the weary when his grandmother is abducted by a mysterious villain out for revenge. Tristan must return to Alke - and reunite with his loud-mouthed sidekick, Gum Baby - in order to rescue Nana and stop the culprit from creating further devastation.

Morganna and Arthur have returned - and Morganna’s lust for power leads my fairy tale ladies and me on a high stakes chase across the globe.

Tossed back into the not-so-familiar fairy-tale world of Never After, Filomena Jefferson-Cho and her friends set off on another adventure...this time in search of Cinderella’s glass slipper. Or rather, glass slippers. It turns out the classic story of Cinderella is full of lies - starting with how Cinderella herself is far from the innocent heroine everyone thinks she is. She is manipulative and cunning - willing to do anything to be the princess of Eastphalia. The real heroines of her story are her “wicked” stepsisters, who aren’t actually wicked at all!

When Charlie begins to experience freaky bodily manifestations - ones all too similar to those described by his grandma in his favorite legend - he is suddenly swept up in a world where the mythical beings he's spent his entire life hearing about seem to be walking straight out of the pages of Hispanic folklore and into his life. Even stranger, they seem to know more about him than he knows about himself.

An unusual murder brings together three strangers, John, Jack, and Charles, on a rainy night in London during the first World War. An eccentric little man called Bert tells them that they are now the caretakers of the Imaginarium Geographica: an atlas of all the lands that have ever existed in myth and legend, fable and fairy tale.

Can tweakments do me any harm? Does deodorant cause breast cancer? Does eating chocolate give you acne? Do I need to wear sunscreen every day? What exactly is in my serum? Are collagen supplements the fountain of youth? What's the best way to fade scars? And is "clean beauty" really as healthy as it sounds? The Science of Beauty reveals the truth behind the bold marketing claims and viral TikTok trends, and tells you what you really need to know about the products you use every day, form good habits, and learn what really works.

Magnus Chase has always been a troubled kid. Since his mother's mysterious death, he's lived alone on the streets of Boston, surviving by his wits. One day he's tracked down by an uncle he's never met - who tells him an impossible secret: Magnus is the son of a Norse god. The Viking myths are true. The gods of Asgard are preparing for war. Trolls, giants and worse monsters are stirring for doomsday. To prevent Ragnarok, Magnus must search the Nine Worlds for a weapon that has been lost for thousands of years.

The Royal Trials were never meant to be easy, not even for an imposter like Rybet Waise. But nothing could have prepared her for the magical storms, mutated animals, and malicious gods standing in her way. There is no time for tears. Mere hours after being bathed in Prince Alexander’s blood, Rybet must embark on a quest. The second trial dictates she find a missing magical artefact - Queen Ophelia’s crown. Released from the overbearing confines of the royal palace, Rybet competes not only with the other remaining ladies, but also with the land itself.

It is impossible to think of Russia today without thinking of Vladimir Putin. More than any other major national leader, he personifies his country in the eyes of the outside world, and dominates Western media coverage of it to an extraordinary extent. In Russia itself, he is likewise the centre of attention for detractors and supporters alike. But as Tony Wood argues, this overwhelming focus on the president and his personality means that we understand Russia less than we ever did before.