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"Natural history Miscellanea."
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Two truths and a lie. It's alive!
Blends strange but true facts about the natural world with a handful of fictional accounts, challenging readers to discover which two out of every three stories are true.
Book
Magical House Protection
Belief in magic and particularly the power of witchcraft
was once a deep and enduring presence in popular
culture.
\"Diving into Brian Hoggard's Magical House Protection is a
remarkable experience… [It] provides an immersive and fascinating
read.\"- Fortean Times
People created and concealed many objects to protect themselves
from harmful magic. Detailed are the principal forms of magical
house protection in Britain and beyond from the fourteenth century
to the present day. Witch-bottles, dried cats, horse skulls,
written charms, protection marks and concealed shoes were all used
widely as methods of repelling, diverting or trapping negative
energies. Many of these practices and symbols can be found around
the globe, demonstrating the universal nature of efforts by people
to protect themselves from witchcraft.
From the introduction: The most popular locations to conceal
objects within buildings are usually at portals such as the hearth,
the threshold and also voids or dead spaces. This suggests that
people believed it was possible for dark forces to travel through
the landscape and attack them in their homes. Whether these forces
were emanations from a witch in the form of a spell, a witch's
familiar pestering their property, an actual witch flying in spirit
or a combination of all of those is difficult to tell. Additional
sources of danger could be ghosts, fairies and demons. People went
to great lengths to ensure their homes and property were protected,
highlighting the fact that these beliefs and fears were visceral
and, as far as they were concerned, literally terrifying.
eBook
Genes, development, and cancer : the life and work of Edward B. Lewis
Edward B.Lewis' science is the bridge linking experimental genetics as conducted in the first half of the twentieth century, and the powerful molecular genetic approaches that revolutionized the field in its last quarter.
eBook
Science Secrets
Was Darwin really inspired by Galápagos finches? Did Einstein's wife secretly contribute to his theories? Did Franklin fly a kite in a thunderstorm? Did a falling apple lead Newton to universal gravity? Did Galileo drop objects from the Leaning Tower of Pisa? Did Einstein really believe in God?Science Secretsanswers these questions and many others. It is a unique study of how myths evolve in the history of science. Some tales are partly true, others are mostly false, yet all illuminate the tension between the need to fairly describe the past and the natural desire to fill in the blanks.Energetically narrated, Science Secrets pits famous myths against extensive research from primary sources in order to accurately portray important episodes in the sciences. Alberto A. Martínez analyzes how such myths grow and rescues neglected facts that are more captivating than famous fictions. Moreover, he shows why opinions that were once secret and seemingly impossible are now scientifically compelling. The book includes new findings related to the Copernican revolution, alchemy, Pythagoras, young Einstein, and other events and figures in the history of science.
eBook
Why Do Bees Buzz?
Twenty-five thousand species of bees certainly create a loud buzz. Yet silence descended a few years ago when domesticated bee populations plummeted. Bees, in particular honey bees, are critical links in the vibrant chain that brings fruits, vegetables, and nuts to markets and dinner tables across the country. Farmers and scientists on the agricultural frontlines quickly realized the impact of this loss, but many others did not see this devastation.Why Do Bees Buzz?reports on the mysterious \"colony collapse disorder\" that has affected honey bee populations, as well as other captivating topics, such as their complex, highly social lives, and how other species of bees are unique and different from honey bees. Organized in chapters that cover everything from these provocative pollinators' basic biology to the aggressive nature of killer bees, this insightful question and answer guide provides a honeycomb of compelling facts.With clarity and depth, bee biologist Elizabeth Capaldi Evans and coauthor Carol A. Butler examine the lives of honey bees, as well as other species such as orchid bees, bumblebees, and stingless bees. Accessible to readers on every level, and including the latest research and theory for the more sophisticated reader, the authors reveal more than one hundred critical answers to questions about the lives of bees.Concepts about speciation, evolutionary adaptation and pollination, as well as historical details about topics such as Mayan beekeeping and the appearance of bees in rock art, are arranged in easy-to-follow sidebars that highlight the text. Color and black and white photographs and drawings enhance the beauty and usefulness ofWhy Do Bees Buzz?
eBook
Solomon's Secret Arts
The late seventeenth and eighteenth centuries are known as the Age of Enlightenment, a time of science and reason. But in this illuminating book, Paul Monod reveals the surprising extent to which Newton, Boyle, Locke, and other giants of rational thought and empiricism also embraced the spiritual, the magical, and the occult.
Although public acceptance of occult and magical practices waxed and waned during this period they survived underground, experiencing a considerable revival in the mid-eighteenth century with the rise of new antiestablishment religious denominations. The occult spilled over into politics with the radicalism of the French Revolution and into literature in early Romanticism. Even when official disapproval was at its strongest, the evidence points to a growing audience for occult publications as well as to subversive popular enthusiasm. Ultimately, finds Monod, the occult was not discarded in favor of \"reason\" but was incorporated into new forms of learning. In that sense, the occult is part of the modern world, not simply a relic of an unenlightened past, and is still with us today.
eBook