July 10, 2008
Fish are jumpin' and the cotton is high:
technica q&a: michael gazzaniga (human)
technica q&a: tom boellstorff (coming of age in second life)
original essay: paul and anne ehrlich (the dominant animal)
oscon
nurture your nature sale
aisle 49
new arrivals
doug brown's factoid
bestsellers
Last week, summer roared in like a furnace. Saturday's 100-degree scorcher brought hordes of sunburned and dazed customers into the store for some air-conditioned relief to go with their computer books. All good! But the smartest ones pulled up a chair and read in the aisles all day — who needs that pesky vitamin D anyway?
TECHNICA Q&A: MICHAEL GAZZANIGA
Neuroscientist Michael Gazzaniga finds the human brain fascinating. His new book, Human: The Science behind What Makes Us Unique, explores the similarities and differences between humans and animals. Even though humans and animals share, at a molecular level, the same physiological brain processes, being human is a unique experience. "No pet understands the difference between sorrow and pity," Gazzaniga explains. In this Q&A, read about his first biological dissection, and find out what famous scientist he would love to be for a day and why his dinner parties are the hottest ticket in town. Save 30% on Human while our promotion lasts.
TECHNICA Q&A: TOM BOELLSTORFF
Tom Boellstorff's last two books were anthropological studies on Indonesia. So why now a book on Second Life? Boellstorff decided to study virtual reality as if it were the Yanamamos. In his Q&A, he writes, "I decided to see if the same methods anthropologists used in the physical world could be used to study virtual worlds." His new book, Coming of Age in Second Life, reveals what he's learned since joining the online community in 2004. Read on, and learn about his surprising score on the Geek Test, his fluency in Elvish, and the influence of The Lord of the Rings on the virtual world. And save 30% off the cover price of Coming of Age in Second Life for a limited time.
Red Rover, Red Rover
On July 4, 1997, the Mars Pathfinder landed in the Ares Vallis region of Mars. This was the first mission to send a rover (named Sojourner) on the planet. Frugal NASA officials nicknamed this mission "faster, better, cheaper" which is understandable, given the fact that a few attempted landings on Mars had failed up to this point.
ORIGINAL ESSAY: PAUL AND ANNE EHRLICH
Humans are unquestionably the dominant animal. Why, then, are we creating a world that threatens our own species? In The Dominant Animal renowned scientists Paul and Anne Ehrlich tackle the fundamental challenge of the human predicament and offer a vivid and unique exploration of humanity's origins, evolution, and its future. Read this exclusive, original essay by the Ehrlichs and save 30% on The Dominant Animal.
OSCON
Do you hear that? It's the clock ticking down the minutes until the 10th annual OSCON convention begins here in Portland at the Oregon Convention Center. During the week of July 21-25, over 2,500 geeks will attend tutorials, teach workshops, network, and get inspired. We're proud to be the official bookstore of OSCON; you'll find our booth right outside the exhibition hall. Save 30% off all books, and remember: there's no sales tax in Oregon. Don't want to lug your books home? We can ship them for you. And save 10% off the event registration fee by using Powell's promo code.
Pave the Way
In July 1891, in Bellefontaine, Ohio, the first concrete street was poured. A fellow named George Bartholomew invented concrete pouring and tested it on Court Street, by the Logan County Courthouse. Those original sections of the street are holding up fine... it's the more "modern" repaired parts that are crumbling. A $215,000 renovation project is in the works, but residents are still squabbling over whether the street should stay open for vehicular traffic or be closed in order to be saved.
NURTURE YOUR NATURE SALE
When temperatures rise above 80 degrees, Oregonians recreate with a vengeance. We hike, camp, and spend hours in our gardens. Our Nurture Your Nature sale has a book for all your summer plans. You can identify plants at the coast, look for treasures while beachcombing, or just learn how to make some killer compost in your backyard. Like summer, this sale won't last forever — save 30% on these select titles while our promotion lasts.
AISLE 49
As adults, we sometimes forget that summer is happening while we work eight hours a day in an air-conditioned office. Luckily, there are still summer nights to enjoy. This month we feature books for stargazers in Aisle 49 (our section of books you covet) to remind you to relax and give yourself some time to look up at the sky and chill out. Dig out that telescope from the basement and set it up in the backyard. Put up a tent and stay up too late looking at the stars. Roast some marshmallows. Tell some stories. Ahhh... that summer feeling is back! Thank you, Aisle 49.
Grok This
Science fiction writer Robert Heinlein leapt into this world on July 7, 1907. We all know that he was the genius behind books like Starship Troopers, but he had many other interests. He enjoyed success as an engineer during World War II. He designed his own houses; he and his wife Virginia (Ginny) were featured in a 1952 Popular Mechanics magazine article, in which he showed off the house that they designed themselves. And, according to the Heinlein Archives, they were nudists! Truly a stranger in a strange land.
NEW ARRIVALS
We have lots of titles on our featured tables to tickle your fancy this month.
Alain de Botton's dismal writing studio inspired him to write The Architecture of Happiness, now out in paperback. The book's illustrations, coupled with the author's highbrow yet accessible text, make this book a pleasure. Sketching User Experiences by Bill Buxton is an instant classic, full of engaging, thought-provoking insights on the process of designing products. Alastair Gordon's Naked Airport might first make you think of security checkpoints, but, no, Gordon just reveals the transparent history of
airports, from the golden age of the 1960s to today's slog. Go back in time with Richard Thompson's new Images of Rail book, Willamette Valley Railways, a tribute to the brief heyday of the streetcar before autos became king. Curl up in a sunny spot and get to it. Browse all our featured newly arrived titles here.
DOUG BROWN'S FACTOID
A genus of African frogs has been in the news recently, as they have claws that pierce the skin, similar to the X-Men's Wolverine. Salamanders that can defensively push their rib tips through their skin have been known for decades, but what makes these frogs unique is that in order for the claws to extend they have to break more than skin. The claws are attached to a bone in the toe via a chunk of collagen that must be broken for the claw to move. While the primary researchers feel this is a defensive adaptation, some think the claws primarily help the frogs grip the substrate in their stream habitats.
POWELL'S TECHNICAL BOOKS BESTSELLERS
1. Cross-Cultural Filmmaking by Ilisa Barbash (Communications)
2. Shot by Shot: A Practical Guide to Filmmaking by John Cantine (Communications)
3. Ugly's Electrical References: 2008 Edition by George V. Hart and Sammie Hart (Code Books)
4. Tom Henry's Key Word Index by Tom Henry (Code Books)
5. 101 Things I Learned in Architecture School by Matthew Frederick (Architecture)
6. National Electrical Code 2008 by NFPA (Code Books)
7. The Emperor's New Mind by Roger Penrose (Popular Science)
8. Design Patterns: Elements of Reusable Object-Oriented Software by Erich Gamma (Software Engineering)
9. A Semantic Web Primer by Grigoris Antoniou (Web Services)
10. The Little Schemer by Daniel P. Friedman (Computer Languages)
And the livin' is easy.
Technica
By Carole R.
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