Wild Science Discoveries

Did you know that some scientific discoveries have helped further the understanding of human health and the environment? A couple of these are discussed in the pages of this book. First, there’s a discussion on acid rain, how it happens, and what its effects are. The second is about x-rays and how they’re used for diagnosis. Enjoy a good read!

A look at new animal discoveries around the world.

Did you know that some scientific discoveries have helped further the understanding of human health and the environment? A couple of these are discussed in the pages of this book. First, there's a discussion on acid rain, how it happens, and what its effects are. The second is about x-rays and how they're used for diagnosis. Enjoy a good read!

Wild Science investigates the world-wide boom in 'health culture'. While self-help health books and medical dramas are popular around the globe, we are bombarded with daily media images of DNA research, and news reports about cloning, the fight against AIDS, cancer and depression. With popular culture now the principal means through which the non-scientific population encounters science why do certain images of science get promoted above others? Contributors examine the public meanings of science, revealing the frictions and contradictions within popular representations of what medicine can and should do. Focusing on the visual culture of medicine, they show how representations of science have a direct impact on popular perceptions of the limits of science, and ultimately on health education, funding and research, and examine the belief that media literacy in popular representations of medicine makes an ethical public discourse on the aims of science possible. With sections addressing the new visual technologies which make the human body into a virtual territory, the diagnostic and medical practices centered around women's bodies, and popular debates around genetics and identity, Wild Science argues that science is a practice bound in values and institutions, and argues for a responsible engagement with the public cultures of science and health.

Science has helped us make sense of some of the freakiest things about life on Earth, and more amazing discoveries are made every day. This book takes readers on a jaw-dropping journey through some of history’s wildest scientific revelations, such as the existence of black holes, the role of mold in fighting killer diseases, and how maggots—yes, maggots!—are used to treat serious wounds. Astounding full-color images enhance the high-interest text, and will make readers squirm with delight as they learn about some of the most pivotal moments in scientific study. Fascinating fun facts and in-depth sidebars enhance the main content with information readers will not soon forget!

Discoveries and mysteries from wild New Zealand New Zealand is an extraordinary land. It has been called 'the closest thing to life on another planet' and 'a planetary lifeboat'. The main reason behind this land's uniqueness is that the islands have remained an isolated outpost for life in the midst of the ocean. This isolation has been a huge advantage. It has turned New Zealand into a wild laboratory where evolution could conduct experiments that led to weird and wonderful outcomes. And this uniqueness has also made New Zealand a magnet for scientists from around the world; yet many locals have no idea what's so special about their environment. These stories will present new Zealand's wildlife as never before. It will solve some mysteries and explode some myths with the help of those at the front line of science and conservation.

This chronology of scientific curiosities comprises a host of cranky theories, crackpot experiments, crazed professors, questionable quacks, mischievous pranksters, deluded pundits, and a priceless host of wild and baseless speculations.

The American South is famous for its astonishingly rich biodiversity. In this book, Georgann Eubanks takes a wondrous trek from Alabama to North Carolina to search out native plants that are endangered and wavering on the edge of erasure. Even as she reveals the intricate beauty and biology of the South's plant life, she also shows how local development and global climate change are threatening many species, some of which have been graduated to the federal list of endangered species. Why should we care, Eubanks asks, about North Carolina's Yadkin River goldenrod, found only in one place on earth? Or the Alabama canebrake pitcher plant, a carnivorous marvel being decimated by criminal poaching and a booming black market? These plants, she argues, are important not only to the natural environment but also to southern identity, and she finds her inspiration in talking with the heroes the botanists, advocates, and conservationists young and old on a quest to save these green gifts of the South for future generations. These passionate plant lovers caution all of us not to take for granted the sensitive ecosystems that contribute to the region's long-standing appeal, beauty, and character.