Science Literacy Week September 18 - 24, 2023

Modern civilization and the social reproduction of capitalism are bound inextricably with fossil fuel consumption. But as carbon energy resources become scarcer, what implications will this have for energy-intensive modes of life? Can renewable energy sustain high levels of accumulation Or will we witness the end of existing capitalist economies?

For almost fifty years, coal dominated the Navajo economy. But in 2019 one of the Navajo Nation's largest coal plants closed. This comprehensive new work offers a deep dive into the complex inner workings of energy shift in the Navajo Nation.

In Charged, James Morton Turner unpacks the history of batteries to explore why solving "the battery problem" is critical to a clean energy transition. As climate activists focus on what a clean energy future will create, sustainability, resiliency, and climate justice, the history of batteries offers a sharp reminder of what building that future will consume: lithium, graphite, nickel, and other specialized materials. With new insight on the consequences for people and communities on the front lines, Turner draws on the past for crucial lessons that will help us build a just and clean energy future, from the ground up.

In Civilization Critical, Darrin Qualman takes readers on a tour of the wonders of the 21st century. But the great strength of our modern word is also its great weakness. Our immense powers to turn resources and nature into products and waste imperil our future. And plans to double and redouble the size of the global economy veto sustainability. So, is our civilization doomed? No. Doom is a choice. We can make different choices. In this sweeping work, Qualman reinterprets and re-explains the problems we face today, and charts a clear, hopeful path into the future.

Exploring the connections between energy and media--and what those connections mean for our current moment Energy and media are the entangled middles of social life--and also of each other. This volume traces the contours of both a media analytic of energy and an energy analytic of media across the cultural, environmental, and economic relations they undergird.

Thermodynamics--the branch of physics that deals with energy and entropy--governs everything from the behavior of living cells to the black hole at the center of our galaxy. Not only that, but thermodynamics explains why we must eat and breathe, how lights turn on, the limits of computing, and how the universe will end. From French military engineer and physicist Sadi Carnot to Lord Kelvin, James Joule, Albert Einstein, Emmy Noether, Alan Turing, and Stephen Hawking, author Paul Sen introduces us to all of the players who passed the baton of scientific progress through time and across nations. Incredibly driven and idealistic, these brave pioneers performed groundbreaking work often in the face of torment and tragedy. Their discoveries helped create the modern world and transformed every branch of science, from biology to cosmology.

Saul Griffith lays out an accessible, rigorously-researched plan to decarbonize the U.S. economy in time to address climate change. His plan, in short, is to "electrify everything." Griffith uses his deep understanding of U.S. energy flows, materials, and clean energy technologies to show that decarbonizing in time to meet climate goals is not only possible, but can be done without major sacrifices in our lifestyles, creating more jobs and a cleaner, healthier environment. Unlike many books in the climate space, Griffith's Electrify is optimistic, drawing on historical precedents to show that we are up for meeting the challenge of global warming-if we act decisively, and fast.

People have lived and died, businesses have prospered and failed, and nations have risen to world power and declined, all over energy challenges. Through an unforgettable cast of characters, Pulitzer Prize-winning author Richard Rhodes explains how wood gave way to coal and coal made room for oil, as we now turn to natural gas, nuclear power, and renewable energy.

A comprehensive account of how energy has shaped society throughout history, from pre-agricultural foraging societies through today's fossil fuel-driven civilization.

Energy is typically regarded as understandable, despite its multiple forms of storage and transfer. Entropy, however, is an enigma, in part because of the common view that it represents disorder. That view is flawed and hides entropy's connection with energy. In fact, macroscopic matter stores internal energy, and that matter's entropy is determined by how the energy is stored. Energy and entropy are intimately linked. Energy and Entropy: A Dynamic Duo illuminates connections between energy and entropy for students, teachers, and researchers. Conceptual understanding is emphasised where possible through examples, analogies, figures, and key points.

Setting the standard for more than 30 years, Exercise Physiology has helped more than 350,000 students build a solid foundation in the scientific principles underlying modern exercise physiology. This Eighth Edition is updated with the latest research in the field to give you easy-to-understand, up-to-date coverage of how nutrition, energy transfer, and exercise training affect human performance.

Drawing on her own intimate struggles and based on cutting-edge research, Dr. Suzuki has developed an inspiring guidebook for managing unwarranted anxiety and turning it into a powerful asset. In the tradition of Quiet and Thinking, Fast and Slow, Good Anxiety has the power to permanently change how we understand anxiety and, more importantly, how we can use it to improve our lives for the better.

In this urgent, authoritative book, Bill Gates sets out a wide-ranging, practical--and accessible--plan for how the world can get to zero greenhouse gas emissions in time to avoid a climate catastrophe.

Pulitzer Prize-winning author and global energy expert, Daniel Yergin offers a revelatory new account of how energy revolutions, climate battles, and geopolitics are mapping our future. The world is being shaken by the collision of energy, climate change, and the clashing power of nations in a time of global crisis. Out of this tumult is emerging a new map of energy and geopolitics.

Energy is vital for a good standard of living, and affordable and adequate sources of power that do not cause climate change or pollution are crucial. Renewables can meet the world’s energy needs without compromising human health and the environment, and this VSI gives a history of their deployment and the principles of their technologies.

As we look for safer, more economical, and more sustainable ways to meet our needs for electricity--and as more and more electric cars hit the road--solar has become an increasingly popular option. Solar Electricity Basics is an indispensable guide for homeowners, business owners, builders, and students for figuring out solar electricity quickly and easily.

Science journalist Sally Adee breaks open the field of bioelectricity--the electric currents that run through our bodies and every living thing--its misunderstood history, and why new discoveries will lead to new ways around antibiotic resistance, cleared arteries, and new ways to combat cancer.