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"The Universe and Beyond is a celebration of the human spirit of exploration. It is a majestic voyage to the most distant realms we can imagine. Prepare yourself for a great adventure." - Edward G. Gibson, Astronaut, Skylab 4.  The Universe and Beyond is a factual, up-to-date guide to the universe, written by bestselling astronomy author, Terence Dickinson. This book includes the most recent astronomical discoveries and events using imaginative astronomical illustration in addition to dramatic photography from the Hubble Space Telescope, space probes and the largest observatories on Earth. This fourth edition has been carefully reviewed, revised and brought up-to-date with new text and photographs. The chapter on cosmology is significantly expanded to include new information about the origin of the universe and the large-scale structure of the universe. Also included are over thirty new photographs of planets, nebulas, galaxies and galaxy clusters. Every major topic of astronomy is described clearly and concisely. The Universe and Beyond addresses the questions that arise most often from those with a fascination for the night sky. Brimming with color illustrations, the book includes the Cassini-Huygens mission. Other topics include: - Overview of the universe - The solar system and nearby worlds - Planets of other stars - Galaxies and black holes - The search for extraterrestrial life - How the universe will end - Telescopes for the twenty-first century. The astronomical resources include books, associations and web sites.

Now reading.

Feed by M. T. Anderson



In a future where most people have computer implants in their heads to control their environment, a boy meets an unusual girl who is in serious trouble. So says Titus, a teenager whose ability to read, write, and even think for himself has been almost completely obliterated by his "feed, " a transmitter implanted directly into his brain. Feeds are a crucial part of life for Titus and his friends. After all, how else would they know where to party on the moon, how to get bargains at Weatherbee & Crotch, or how to accessorize the mysterious lesions everyone's been getting? But then Titus meets Violet, a girl who cares about what's happening to the world and challenges everything Titus and his friends hold dear. A girl who decides to fight the feed.

Alvarez, Walter, T. Rex and the Crater of Doom

Why did the dinosaurs die out?
There are dozens of theories to explain a probable cause or causes. Throughout the Mesozoic Era, individual dinosaur species were evolving and becoming extinct for various reasons. The unusually massive extinction at the end of the Cretaceous exterminated the last of the dinosaurs, the flying reptiles, and the large swimming reptiles, as well as many other marine animals. There is now widespread evidence that a meteorite impact was at least the partial cause for this extinction. Impact craters are visible on most planets in our solar system. A spectacular example of this was witnessed in 1994, when Jupiter was struck by a series of cometary fragments. Some of these impact blasts were larger than the Earth's diameter. Other factors such as extensive release of volcanic gases, climatic cooling (with related changes in ocean currents and weather patterns), sea-level change, low reproduction rates, poison gases from a comet, or changes in the Earth's orbit or magnetic field may have contributed to this extinction event. - From the USGS.

How was "Tyrannosaurus rex" toppled from the apex of creation? In a gripping work that is both a scientific detective story and a convincing account of "one terrible day in the history of the Earth", Alvarez makes his case for the mysterious, catastrophic theory of dinosaur extinction

Kobo Abe, The Ark Sakura

A classic from the renowned Japanese novelist about isolation and the threat of a nuclear holocaust.  The Ark Sakura is as timely today as it was at its original publication. In this Kafkaesque allegorical fantasy, Mole has converted a huge underground quarry into an "ark" capable of surviving the coming nuclear holocaust and is now in search of his crew. He falls victim, however, to the wiles of a con man-cum-insect dealer. In the surreal drama that ensues, the ark is invaded by a gang of youths and a sinister group of elderly people called the Broom Brigade, led by Mole's odious father, while Mole becomes trapped in the ark's central piece of equipment, a giant toilet powerful enough to flush almost anything, including chopped-up humans, out to sea.

Here's the total list of recommended literature for the 9-12 science curriculum.

1	Abe, Kobo	Ark Sakura, The
2	Alvarez, Walter	T. Rex and the Crater of Doom
3	Anderson, M.T.	Feed
4	Asimov, Isaac	I, Robot
5	Bear, Greg	Darwin's Radio
6	Berg, A. Scott	Lindbergh
7	Bloor, Edward	Crusader
8	Bodanis, David	Secret House: 24 Hours in the Strange and Unexpected World in Which We Spend Our Nights and Days, The
9	Bradbury, Ray	Illustrated Man, The
10	Bradbury, Ray	Martian Chronicles, The
11	Briggs, Raymond	When the Wind Blows
12	Camus, Albert	Plague, The
13	Carroll, Lewis	Alice in Wonderland
14	Carson, Rachel Louise	Silent Spring
15	Chase, Marilyn	Barbary Plague: The Black Death in Victorian San Francisco, The
16	Clements, Andrew	Things Not Seen
17	Crichton, Michael	Andromeda Strain
18	Davis, Brett	Bone Wars
19	Del Giudice, Daniele	Takeoff: The Pilot's Lore
20	Dickinson, Peter	Eva
21	Dillard, Annie	Pilgrim at Tinker Creek
22	Earle, Sylvia A.	Wild Ocean: America's Parks Under the Sea
23	Endo, Shusaku	Sea and Poison, The
24	Farmer, Nancy	House of the Scorpion, The
25	Feynman, Richard P.	Six Easy Pieces: Essentials of Physics Explained by Its Most Brilliant Teacher
26	Finney, Jack	Time and Again
27	Fleischman, Paul	Joyful Noise: Poems for Two Voices, A
28	Fossey, Dian	Gorillas in the Mist
29	Garcia, Cristina	Aguero Sisters, The
30	Garland, Sherry	Lotus Seed, The
31	Gibson, William	Neuromancer
32	Halam, Ann	Dr. Franklin's Island
33	Heinlein, Robert A.	Have Space Suit - Will Travel
34	Herbert, Frank	Dune
35	Herriot, James	All Creatures Great and Small
36	Hersey, John	Hiroshima
37	Hesse, Karen	Out of the Dust
38	Heyerdahl, Thor	Kon-Tiki: Across the Pacific by Raft
39	Hiaasen, Carl	Hoot
40	Hickam, Homer	October Sky (Rocket Boys)
41	Hillerman, Tony	Dance Hall of the Dead
42	Hockenberry, John	Moving Violations: War Zones, Wheelchairs, and Declarations of Independence
43	Hopkinson, Nalo	Brown Girl in the Ring
44	Hosler, Jay	Clan Apis
45	Hosler, Jay	Sandwalk Adventures: An Adventure in Evolution Told in Five Chapters, The
46	Ibuse, Masuji	Black Rain
47	James, P. D.	Death of an Expert Witness
48	Junger, Sebastian	Perfect Storm: A True Story of Men Against the Sea, The
49	Kadohata, Cynthia	Floating World, The
50	Kafka, Franz	Metamorphosis, The
51	Keller, Helen A.	Story of My Life, The
52	Keyes, Daniel	Flowers for Algernon
53	Krakauer, Jon	Into the Wild
54	Krakauer, Jon	Into Thin Air: A Personal Account of the Mt. Everest Disaster
55	Lem, Stanislaw	Eden
56	London, Jack	Call of the Wild, The
57	London, Jack	To Build a Fire and Other Stories
58	Lord, Walter	Night to Remember, A
59	Mah, Adeline Yen	Falling Leaves
60	Mahy, Margaret	Alchemy
61	Maristed, Kai	Belong to Me
62	McCaffrey, Anne	Dragonflight
63	McPhee, John	Oranges
64	Melville, Herman	Moby Dick
65	Miller, Jr., Walter M.	Canticle for Leibowitz
66	Mowat, Farley	Never Cry Wolf
67	Nakazawa, Keiji	Barefoot Gen
68	Nelson, Marilyn	Fortune's Bones: The Manumission Requiem
69	Nichols, John	Milagro Beanfield War, The
70	Nye, Naomi Shihab (editor)	This Same Sky: A Collection of Poems from Around the World
71	Oe, Kenzaburo	Nip the Buds, Shoot the Kids
72	Ottaviani, James	Fallout: J. Robert Oppenheimer, Leo Szilard, and the Political Science of the Atomic Bomb
73	Price, Susan	Sterkarm Handshake, The
74	Sachar, Louis	Holes
75	Schlosser, Eric	Fast Food Nation: The Dark Side of the All-American Meal
76	Schooler, Lynn	Blue Bear: A True Story of Friendship, Tragedy, and Survival in the Alaskan Wilderness, The
77	Shute, Nevil	On the Beach
78	Sinclair, Upton	Jungle, The
79	Sobel, Dava	Longitude: The True Story of a Lone Genius Who Solved the Greatest Scientific Problem of His Time
80	Steinbeck, John	East of Eden
81	Sturm, James	Golem's Mighty Swing
82	Taylor, Clark	House That Crack Built, The
83	Thomas, Lewis	Lives of a Cell: Notes of a Biology Watcher, The
84	Thoreau, Henry David	Walden
85	Thurber, James	My World and Welcome to It
86	Trumbo, Dalton	Johnny Got His Gun
87	Verne, Jules	Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea
88	Wells, H. G.	Island of Dr. Moreau, The
89	Wells, H. G.	War of the Worlds, The
90	Werber, Bernard	Empire of the Ants
91	Werlin, Nancy	Double Helix: A Novel
92	Willis, Connie	Doomsday Book
93	Winick, Judd	Pedro and Me: Friendship, Loss, and What I Learned
94	Wolfe, Tom	Right Stuff, The

Teacher Stuff, Science, Astronomy and Cosmology

May be ignored unless you are really interested in what your kids should know about science when they graduate from high school.

California Department of Education
Curriculum and Instruction
Science
http://www.cde.ca.gov/ci/sc/
Information that represents the content of science education and includes the essential skills and knowledge students will need to be scientifically literate citizens in the twenty-first century.

http://www.cde.ca.gov/be/st/ss/documents/sciencestnd.pdf

The vitality of a democracy assumes a certain "core of knowledge" shared by everyone which serves as a unifying force. It is fundamental to the effectiveness of our democratic system that our citizens be able to make informed judgments on the more and more complex issues of scientific and technological public policy.

—"A Nation at Risk Revisited"

If that hasn't scared the bejeebers out of you, read on.  It gets more fun now.

http://www.cde.ca.gov/ci/sc/ll/ap/searchlist.asp

My search: 
Keyword: Astronomy and Cosmology
Grade Level Span: 9-12

Books on Astronomy

1	Davis, Kenneth	Don't Know much About the Universe
2	Dickinson, Terence	Universe and Beyond, The
3	Feinberg, Anna	Borrowed Light
4	Hakim, Joy	Newton at the Center
5	Hays, David	My Old Man and the Sea: A Father and Son Sail Around Cape Horn
6	Heinlein, Robert A.	Moon Is a Harsh Mistress, The
7	Highfield, Roger	Physics of Christmas: From the Aerodynamics of Reindeer to the Thermodynamics of Turkey, The
8	Highfield, Roger	Science of Harry Potter: How Magic Really Works, The
9	Osserman, Robert	Poetry of the Universe: A Mathematical Exploration of the Cosmos
10	Roberts, Jeanie	Lucky Science: Accidental Discoveries from Gravity to Velcro, with Experiments
11	Roberts, Royston	Lucky Science: Accidental Discoveries from Gravity to Velcro, with Experiments
12	Schwartz, David M.	Q Is for Quark: A Science Alphabet Book
13	Shimony, Abner	Tibaldo and the Hole in the Calendar
14	Teresi, Dick	Lost Discoveries: The Ancient Roots of Modern Science--From the Babylonians to the Maya
15	Trefil, James S.	101 Things You Don't Know About Science and No One Else Does Either

Books on Cosmology

1	Brockman, John	Third Culture: Beyond the Scientific Revolution
2	Ferris, Timothy	Whole Shebang: A State-of-the-Universe(s) Report, The
3	Henderson, Harry	Importance of Stephen Hawking, The
4	Silver, Brian L.	Ascent of Science, The
5	Teresi, Dick	Lost Discoveries: The Ancient Roots of Modern Science--From the Babylonians to the Maya
6	Trefil, James S.	101 Things You Don't Know About Science and No One Else Does Either

Happy reading everybody.