Autumn 2009 Catalogue 4 pdfing:1 - Yale University Press

The Best TechnologyWriting 2009Edited by Steven JohnsonIn his Introduction to thisbeautifully curated collection ofessays, Steven Johnson heralds thearrival of a new generation oftechnology writing. Whether it isNicholas Carr worrying thatGoogle is making us stupid, DanaGoodyear chronicling the rise ofthe cellphone novel, Andrew Sullivan explaining the rewardsof blogging, Dalton Conley lamenting the sprawling nature ofwork in the information age or Clay Shirky marvelling at the‘cognitive surplus’ unleashed by the decline of the TV sitcom,this new generation does not waste time speculating about thefuture. Its attitude seems to be: Who needs the future?The present is interesting enough on its own.Packed with sparkling essays from print and onlinepublications, The Best Technology Writing 2009 announces afresh brand of technology journalism, deeply immersed in thefascinating complexity of digital life.Steven Johnson’s books include The Invention of Air, TheGhost Map and Everything Bad Is Good for You. He writes forthe New York Times Magazine, Wired, The Guardian,Discover and others, and has made numerous appearanceson Charlie Rose, The Daily Show and The Colbert Report.November 288 pp. 210x140mm.Paper ISBN 978-0-300-15410-8 £14.00*Translation rights: Paradigm Agency, New YorkScience/Environment 67Green IntelligenceCreating EnvironmentsThat Protect Human HealthJohn WargoWe live in a world awash withmanmade chemicals, from thepesticides in our gardens to thediesel exhaust in the air we breathe.Although experts are beginning tounderstand the potential dangers ofthese substances, there are still morethan 80,000 synthetic compounds that have not beensufficiently tested to interpret their effects on human health.In this book John Wargo explains the origins of society’sprofound misunderstanding of everyday chemical hazards andoffers a practical path towards developing greater ‘greenintelligence’.Despite the rising trend in environmental awareness,information about synthetic substances is often unavailable,distorted, kept secret or presented in a way that preventscitiens from acting to reduce threats to their health and theenvironment. Sobering yet eminently readable, Wargo’s bookultimately offers a clear vision for a safer future throughprevention, transparency and awareness.John Wargo is Professor of Environmental Policy, RiskAnalysis, and Political Science at the Yale School of Forestryand Environmental Studies and the Department of PoliticalScience at Yale University.October 400 pp. 234x156mm. 17 b/w illus.ISBN 978-0-300-11037-1 £25.00Notes from the GroundScience, Soil, and Society inthe American CountrysideBenjamin R. CohenNotes from the Ground examines thecultural conditions that broughtagriculture and science together innineteenth-century America. Integratingthe history of science, environmentalhistory and science studies, the bookshows how and why agrarianAmericans—yeoman farmers,gentleman planters, politicians andpolicy makers alike—accepted, resistedand shaped scientific ways of knowingthe land. By detailing the changingperceptions of soil treatment, BenjaminCohen shows that the credibility of newsoil practices grew not from the arrivalof professional chemists, but out of anexisting ideology of work, knowledgeand citizenship.Benjamin R. Cohen is AssistantProfessor of Science, Technology andSociety at the University of Virginia.Yale Agrarian Studies SeriesJanuary 288 pp. 234x156mm.29 b/w illus.Paper ISBN 978-0-300-13923-5 £30.00Conservation Biology ofHawaiian Forest BirdsImplications for Island AvifaunaEdited by Thane K. Pratt, Carter T.Atkinson, Paul C. Banko, James D.Jacobi and Bethany L. WoodworthThis book describes the research andconservation efforts over the past thirtyyears to save Hawaii’s forest birds andoffers the most comprehensive look at thereasons for recent extinctions andattempts to overcome them in the future.Among the topics covered in this book aretrends in bird populations, environmentaland genetic factors limiting populationsize, avian diseases, predators andcompeting alien bird species.Thane K. Pratt is a wildlife biologist,Carter T. Atkinson is a microbiologist,Paul C. Banko is a research wildlifebiologist and James D. Jacobi is abiologist, all at the U.S. GeologicalSurvey, Pacific Island EcosystemResearch Center. Bethany Woodworthis an Instructor of EnvironmentalStudies at University of New England.January 640 pp. 254x178mm.97 b/w + 32 colour illus.ISBN 978-0-300-14108-5 £60.00The Jaguar’s ShadowSearching for a Mythic CatRichard MahlerWhen the nature writer Richard Mahlerdiscovers that wild jaguars are prowlinga remote corner of his home state ofNew Mexico, he embarks on adetermined quest to see in the flesh abig, beautiful cat that is the stuff oflegend—yet verifiably real.Mahler’s passion sets in motion a yearslongadventure through tracklessdeserts, steamy jungles and malarialswamps, as well as a confoundingimmersion in centuries-old debates overhow we should properly regard thesepowerful predators: as vermin or asicons, trophies or gods? Along the way,he is forced to reconsider the truemeaning of his search—and theenduring symbolism of the jaguar.Richard Mahler is an award-winningwriter, editor and tour guide based inSilver City, New Mexico. He is theauthor or co-author of ten books.October 376 pp. 234x156mm.41 b/w illus.ISBN 978-0-300-12225-1 £20.00*