Shiny and new:
technica q&a: charles seife (decoding the universe)
technica q&a: henry petroski (success through failure)
linus pauling memorial lectures: robert e. ulanowicz
giant microbes!
brain awareness
calendar of events
ebooks
doug brown's crayfish factoid
bestsellers
"The universe is a big place, perhaps the biggest."
—Kilgore Trout, Venus
on the Half-Shell
TECHNICA
Q&A: CHARLES SEIFE
In
a parallel universe, Charles Seife would likely be running about New York City
searching for its charms, fencing, enjoying an absorbing round of Ms. Pac Man,
and exploring the mind of Leonardo da Vinci. In this universe, Seife explores
one of the greatest revolutions of the 20th century: information theory. But
it is precisely the study of information theory that has pointed many mainstream
physicists to seriously look at decoding the universe through things like parallel
universes. Read our Tech Q&A with Seife and save 30% on Decoding
the Universe.
TECHNICA
Q&A: HENRY PETROSKI
Though
it may seem a paradox, bad design can lead to great success. For example, if
the dome of Constantinople's Hagia Sophia had not continued to collapse in the
6th century, its architects, Isidorus and Anthemius, would have never invented
the hollow building blocks that eventually created the largest enclosed space
in the world — until, that is, St. Peter's in Rome was constructed some
1,000 years later. In his newest book, Henry Petroski elucidates the many great
failures that have, in turn, led to great design and invention. Read our Tech
Q&A and save 30% on Success
through Failure.
LINUS
PAULING MEMORIAL LECTURE SERIES: ROBERT E. ULANOWICZ
On
April 6, Dr. Robert E. Ulanowicz presents Ecology:
The Ascendent Perspective. Mounting a powerful challenge to prevailing mechanistic
paradigms of ecology, Dr. Ulanowicz provides an entirely fresh view of the origins
of organization in living systems. Dr. Ulanowicz is the fifth speaker in this
season's Institute for Science, Engineering and Public Policy's Linus Pauling
Memorial Lecture Series. Click here and
use the password "Discovery" to get tickets at 25% off.
"The physicist's greatest tool is his wastebasket."
—Albert Einstein
GIANT
MICROBES
Ever
want to nuzzle your sore
throat, snuggle the Black
Death, or pet a bookworm?
Those fuzzy-wuzzy geniuses at Giant Microbes have provided a warm way to bond
with disease in a kinder, gentler manner. Each stuffed microbe measures in at
five to seven inches of plush wonder and is accompanied by an image of the real
microbe it represents. In 2005, MoMA called Giant Microbes the "best things on
view."
BRAIN
AWARENESS
Oregon
Health Science University's Brain Awareness Season is underway. The 2006 season
features a variety of events that take a close look at how our brains and the
environment work together to shape who we are. Browse our Brain
Awareness section to find a few suggestions for celebrating this most cerebral
of events.
CALENDAR
OF EVENTS
Visit Powell's
Technical Books March 16-19 for a Match Day Celebration! Receive a 15% discount
on all our medical reference titles, including a selection of the bestselling
titles for residents. (Discount will be extended to all medical professionals
and students. Please show your ID at checkout.) Register to win great prizes,
including a travel voucher for Southwest Airlines. And join us during our Medical
Reference Open House on March 17 from 5-7 p.m. — refreshments will be served.
On Saturday, March 25, join authors Allison Randall, Randal Schwartz, Tom Phoenix,
Chromatic, and Curtis Poe at Perl in the
Pearl, an event that will appeal to a variety of programmers — from
seasoned pros to first-time dabblers who enjoy the fun of technology. Partake
in this discussion as the authors distill their many years of programming experience.
"Science is a good thing. News reporters are good
things too. But it's never a good idea to put them in the same room."
—Scott Adams
eBOOKS
When
do fish sleep? How does aspirin find a headache? Why doesn't glue get stuck in
the bottle? Do snakes sneeze?
If you already know the answers to conundrums such
as these, do not bother to read further. If, however, you are like most of the
rest of us, pop-culture guru David Feldman demystifies many of civilization's
most aching questions with his Imponderables series.
DOUG BROWN'S CRAYFISH
FACTOID
The
word crayfish has a very interesting etymological history that comes from
being passed through no less than four languages. It originally comes from the
Anglo-Saxon crabbe (meaning crab). From there, it passed to Old
High German, where it became krebiz. Old French grabbed it next, transforming
it to crevise (where it lives on in the modern form ecrevisse).
From there it passed back to English, where the second syllable of crevise was
mistaken for fish, and it became crayfish. Crawfish comes
from an alternate Old French name, croivisse.
TECH
BESTSELLERS
1. The Road to Reality by
Roger Penrose (Physics)
2. National Electrical Code
2005 by NFPA (Construction)
3. Ugly's Electrical References
2005 by George Hart (Construction)
4. Sacred Geometry by
Miranda Lundy (Mathematics)
5. Make (Volume 2) by
Mark Fraudenfelder (Electricity)
6. Agile Web Development with
Rails by Dave Thomas (Computer Languages)
7. JavaScript by David
Flanagan (Computer Languages)
8. 2005 Key Word Index by
Tom Henry (Construction)
9. National Electrical Code by
NFPA (Construction)
10. Manual of Steel Construction by
AISC (Construction)
Technica
By Steven
Copyright 2006 Powells.com
