If God is good and all-powerful, why does he allow his creatures to suffer painAnd what about the suffering of animals, who neither deserve pain nor can be improved by itThe greatest Christian thinker of our time sets out to disentangle these knotty issues. With his signature wealth of compassion and insight, C. S. Lewis offers answers to these crucial questions and shares his hope and wisdom to help heal a world hungering for a true understanding of human nature.

Addressing some of the most difficult issues we face in our day-to-day lives, C. S. Lewis ardent and timeless words provide an unparalleled path to greater spiritual understanding. Considered by many to be his most moving address, The Weight of Glory extols a compassionate vision of Christianity and includes lucid and compelling discussions on forgiveness and faith.

Utilize ServiceStack as the rock solid foundation of your distributed systemAbout This BookTake advantage of the various data providers to access authentication and authorization, sessions, cache, and databaseLeverage asynchronous processing for decoupling components to ease scalingMonitor and tune the performance of your distributed system Who This Book Is For Mastering ServiceStack is targeted at developers who have already implemented web services with ASMX, WCF, or ServiceStack and want to gain more insight into the possibilities ServiceStack has to offer to build distributed systems of all scales.What You Will LearnDesign a prudent and resilient API, following the RESTful designUnderstand the internal processing chain and utilize the provided hooksIncorporate ServiceStack as a full service provider to your existing distributed systemLeverage the power of asynchronous processing and add message queues to your architectureAnalyze and tune the performance of your service In Detail Mastering ServiceStack covers real-life problems that occur over the lifetime of a distributed system and how to solve them by deeply understanding the tools of ServiceStack. Distributed systems is the enterprise solution that provide flexibility, reliability, scaling, and performance. ServiceStack is an outstanding tool belt to create such a system in a frictionless manner, especially sophisticated designed and fun to use. The book starts with an introduction covering the essentials, but assumes you are just refreshing, are a very fast learner, or are an expert in building web services. Then, the book explains ServiceStack's data transfer object patterns and teach you how it differs from other methods of building web services with different protocols, such as SOAP and SOA. It also introduces more low-level details such as how to extend the User Auth, message queues and concepts on how the technology works. By the end of this book, you will understand the concepts, framework, issues, and resolutions related to ServiceStack.Style and approach A step-by-step approach that follows the natural requirements of a distributed system in a conversational style.

Get started with Python for data analysis and numerical computing in the Jupyter notebookAbout This BookLearn the basics of Python in the Jupyter NotebookAnalyze and visualize data with pandas, NumPy, matplotlib, and seabornPerform highly-efficient numerical computations with Numba, Cython, and ipyparallel Who This Book Is For This book targets students, teachers, researchers, engineers, analysts, journalists, hobbyists, and all data enthusiasts who are interested in analyzing and visualizing real-world datasets. If you are new to programming and data analysis, this book is exactly for you. If you're already familiar with another language or analysis software, you will also appreciate this introduction to the Python data analysis platform. Finally, there are more technical topics for advanced readers. No prior experience is required; this book contains everything you need to know.What You Will LearnInstall Anaconda and code in Python in the Jupyter NotebookLoad and explore datasets interactivelyPerform complex data manipulations effectively with pandasCreate engaging data visualizations with matplotlib and seabornSimulate mathematical models with NumPyVisualize and process images interactively in the Jupyter Notebook with scikit-imageAccelerate your code with Numba, Cython, and IPython.parallelExtend the Notebook interface with HTML, JavaScript, and D3 In Detail Python is a user-friendly and powerful programming language. IPython offers a convenient interface to the language and its analysis libraries, while the Jupyter Notebook is a rich environment well-adapted to data science and visualization. Together, these open source tools are widely used by beginners and experts around the world, and in a huge variety of fields and endeavors. This book is a beginner-friendly guide to the Python data analysis platform. After an introduction to the Python language, IPython, and the Jupyter Notebook, you will learn how to analyze and visualize data on real-world examples, how to create graphical user interfaces for image processing in the Notebook, and how to perform fast numerical computations for scientific simulations with NumPy, Numba, Cython, and ipyparallel. By the end of this book, you will be able to perform in-depth analyses of all sorts of data.Style and approach This is a hands-on beginner-friendly guide to analyze and visualize data on real-world examples with Python and the Jupyter Notebook.

Master the art of digital forensics and analysis with PythonAbout This BookLearn to perform forensic analysis and investigations with the help of Python, and gain an advanced understanding of the various Python libraries and frameworksAnalyze Python *s to extract metadata and investigate forensic artifactsThe writers, Dr. Michael Spreitzenbarth and Dr. Johann Uhrmann, have used their experience to craft this hands-on guide to using Python for forensic analysis and investigations Who This Book Is For If you are a network security professional or forensics analyst who wants to gain a deeper understanding of performing forensic analysis with Python, then this book is for you. Some Python experience would be helpful.What You Will LearnExplore the forensic analysis of different platforms such as Windows, Android, and vSphereSemi-automatically reconstruct major parts of the system activity and time-lineLeverage Python ctypes for protocol decodingExamine artifacts from mobile, Skype, and browsersDiscover how to utilize Python to improve the focus of your analysisInvestigate in volatile memory with the help of volatility on the Android and Linux platforms In Detail Digital forensic analysis is the process of examining and extracting data digitally and examining it. Python has the combination of power, expressiveness, and ease of use that makes it an essential complementary tool to the traditional, off-the-shelf digital forensic tools. This book will teach you how to perform forensic analysis and investigations by exploring the capabilities of various Python libraries. The book starts by explaining the building blocks of the Python programming language, especially ctypes in-depth, along with how to automate typical tasks in file system analysis, common correlation tasks to discover anomalies, as well as templates for investigations. Next, we’ll show you cryptographic algorithms that can be used during forensic investigations to check for known files or to compare suspicious files with online services such as VirusTotal or Mobile-Sandbox. Moving on, you’ll learn how to sniff on the network, generate and analyze network flows, and perform log correlation with the help of Python *s and tools. You’ll get to know about the concepts of virtualization and how virtualization influences IT forensics, and you’ll discover how to perform forensic analysis of a jailbroken/rooted mobile device that is based on iOS or Android. Finally, the book teaches you how to analyze volatile memory and search for known malware samples based on YARA rules.Style and approach This easy-to-follow guide will demonstrate forensic analysis techniques by showing you how to solve real-word-scenarios step by step.

Create, package, and customize stunning themes using PrimeFacesAbout This BookBuild PrimeFaces themes that meet the industry standardsCustomize your themes for mobile web applications with PrimeFaces MobileA precise, example-oriented guide to help you create interesting themes using the PrimeFaces tools Who This Book Is For If you are a Web Designer who wants to create and modify PrimeFaces themes then this book is for you. Basic knowledge of JSF, CSS, and HTML is assumed.What You Will LearnUse Maven to create JSF ProjectsCreate a custom theme using JQuery UI toolsPackage your theme for distribution and use your PrimeFaces-based web applications as drop in librariesDevelop additional dynamic look and feel elements that themes do not already supplyApply look and feel elements dynamically to views without causing page refreshesReduce code repetition by applying page templates to your JSF project In Detail Developing stunning themes for web applications has never been easier! PrimeFaces delivers a powerful set of features that enables JSF developers to create and customize awesome themes on the web. It is very easy to use because it comes as a single JAR file and requires no mandatory XML configuration. With more than 30 out-of-the-box themes, jQuery integration, a mobile UI toolkit, Ajax Push technology, and much more, PrimeFaces takes JSF application development to a whole new level! This book is a hands-on example-rich guide to creating and customizing PrimeFaces themes using available tools. Beginning with creating a JSF project and integrating the PrimeFaces library, this book will introduce you to the features of theme components, how these are structured, and how PrimeFaces uses JQuery UI to apply a theme to your application. You will learn to examine and change the CSS rules and get creative by setting standard icons and adding new icons to them. You will use a combination of JavaScript and CSS to enhance your application with help of scheduler component and go on to adapt and package your custom theme so that it is compatible with the Resource Manager. Finally, you will explore PrimeFaces mobile apps, ensuring themes are compatible with your mobile applications best practices for theme design.Style and approach This book is a concise, hands-on guide to developing PrimeFaces themes, working from the ground up with examples in each topic implemented in a web application. You will be encouraged to explore areas of your own interest without the requirement to stick to the letter of the chapter.

Utilize the powerful ingredients of Raspberry Pi to bring to life your amazing robots that can act, draw, and have fun with laser tagsAbout This BookLearn to implement a number of features offered by Raspberry Pi to build your own amazing robotsUnderstand how to add vision and voice to your robots.This fast-paced practical guide comprises a number of creative projects to take your Raspberry Pi knowledge to the next level Who This Book Is For This all-encompassing guide was created for anyone who is interested in expanding their knowledge in applying the peripherals of Raspberry Pi. If you have a fancy for building complex-looking robots with simple, inexpensive, and readily available hardware, then this book is ideal for you. Prior understanding of Raspberry Pi with simple mechanical systems is recommended.What You Will LearnAdd sensors to your robot so that it can sense the world around itKnow everything there is to know about accessing motors and servos to provide movement to the robotic platformExplore the feature of adding vision to your robot so it can “see” the world around itRefine your robot with the skill of speech recognition so that it can receive commandsPolish your robot by adding speech output so it can communicate with the world around itMaximize the use of servos in Raspberry Pi to create a drawing robotStrengthen your robot by adding wireless communication skills so you can see what the robot is seeing and control it from a distanceBuild an unbelievable autonomous hexcopter controlled by Raspberry Pi In Detail The Raspberry Pi is a series of credit card-sized single-board computers developed in the UK by the Raspberry Pi Foundation with the intention of promoting the teaching of basic computer science in schools. The Raspberry Pi is known as a tiny computer built on a single circuit board. It runs a Linux operating system, and has connection ports for various peripherals so that it can be hooked up to sensors, motors, cameras, and more. Raspberry Pi has been hugely popular among hardware hobbyists for various projects, including robotics. This book gives you an insight into implementing several creative projects using the peripherals provided by Raspberry Pi. To start, we’ll walk through the basic robotics concepts that the world of Raspberry Pi offers us, implementing wireless communication to control your robot from a distance. Next, we demonstrate how to build a sensible and a visionary robot, maximizing the use of sensors and step controllers. After that, we focus on building a wheeled robot that can draw and play hockey. To finish with a bang, we’ll build an autonomous hexcopter, that is, a flying robot controlled by Raspberry Pi. By the end of this book, you will be a maestro in applying an array of different technologies to create almost any imaginable robot.Style and approach This book is an easy-to-follow, project-based guide that throws you directly into the action of creating almost any imaginable robot through blueprints. It is full of step by step instructions and screenshots to help you build amazing robots in no time at all.

Efficiently administer and maintain your development environment with Windows PowerShellAbout This BookExplore *ing and automation techniques with Windows PowerShellGain concrete knowledge of Windows PowerShell *ing to perform professional level *ingDiscover the benefits of the Configuration Management Platform with this step-by-step guide that includes real-world *ing examples Who This Book Is For If you are an IT professional or developer who has worked on the .Net platform and you want to learn automation using Windows PowerShell, then this book is for you. This self-start guide takes you from the basics and gradually moves to an intermediate level to show you how to perform professional *ing.What You Will LearnUnderstand the concepts of building PowerShell *s and the basics of programmingManage the LYNC, Exchange, and SharePoint platformsCreate a Pull server using a SMB file share and HTTP and HTTPSUse .NET classes in Windows PowerShell and C# to manage Exchange OnlineUse PowerShell in C# to manage Exchange Online and work with .NET classes in PowerShellAutomate LYNC clients, consuming Client Server Object Models to administrate SharePoint Online In Detail Windows PowerShell 5.0 for .NET Developers is your self-start guide to performing automation using Windows PowerShell. This book will help you to understand the PowerShell syntax and grammar and will also teach you techniques to remove the rough edges of manual deployments. Packed with PowerShell *s and sample C# codes to automate tasks, it also includes real-world scenarios such as administrating office servers to help you save time and perform deployments swiftly and efficiently. The book begins with the Windows PowerShell basics, explores the significant features of Windows Management Framework 5.0, covers the basic concepts of Desired State Configuration and the importance of idempotent deployments. By the end of the book, you will have a good understanding of Windows PowerShell’s features and will be able to automate your tasks and manage configuration effectively.Style and approach This is an easy-to-follow step-by-step guide with text-enabled screenshots. Each topic is explained with codes and examples. It also includes multiple approaches for a number of tasks to let you choose the best one for you depending on your scenario.

Build an interactive and full-featured web application from scratch using Node.js and MongoDBAbout This BookConfigure your development environment to use Node.js and MongoDBUse Node.js to connect to a MongoDB database and perform data manipulationsA practical guide with clear instructions to design and develop a complete web application from start to finish Who This Book Is For This book is designed for JavaScript developers of any skill level that want to get up and running using Node.js and MongoDB to build full-featured web applications. A basic understanding of JavaScript and HTML is the only requirement for this book.What You Will LearnConfigure your development environment to use Node.js and MongoDBWrite and configure a web server using Node.js powered by the Express.js frameworkBuild dynamic HTML pages using the Handlebars template enginePersist application data using MongoDB and Mongoose ODMTest your code using automated testing tools such as the Mocha frameworkDeploy the development environment to the cloud using services such as Heroku, Amazon Web Services, and Microsoft AzureExplore Single-Page application frameworks to take your web applications to the next level In Detail Node.js and MongoDB are quickly becoming one of the most popular tech stacks for the web. Powered by Google's V8 engine, Node.js caters to easily building fast, scalable network applications while MongoDB is the perfect fit as a scalable, high-performance, open source NoSQL database solution. Using these two technologies together, web applications can be built quickly and easily and deployed to the cloud with very little difficulty. The book will begin by introducing you to the groundwork needed to set up the development environment. Here, you will quickly run through the steps necessary to get the main application server up and running. Then you will see how to use Node.js to connect to a MongoDB database and perform data manipulations. From here on, the book will take you through integration with third-party tools for interaction with web apps. It then moves on to show you how to use controllers and view models to generate reusable code that will reduce development time. Toward the end of the book, we will cover tests to properly execute the code and some popular frameworks for developing web applications. By the end of the book, you will have a running web application developed with MongoDB and Node.js along with it's popular frameworks.Style and approach An easy guide to Node.js and MongoDB, which will quickly introduce you to the relevant concepts by taking you through the different steps involved in building a full-fledged web application.

Take your expertise to the next level by unraveling various techniques to customize TFS 2015About This BookLearn how to efficiently modify your TFS-specific dashboards for complex server pluginsFind out the pros and cons of various extension points and customizations in TFSA fast-paced guide with highly concentrated information on TFS customizations Who This Book Is For This book is intended for anyone with experience with TFS, and in particular, those intermediate users who want to add more value to their organization by making its TFS users more productive. The book requires basic coding skills.What You Will LearnCustomize TFS 2015 dashboard and administer various componentsConfigure board cards, swim lanes, and columnsExplore the types of changes that can be made on the TFS process templatesCreate your own custom control for the Web and client work item formsBuild up new check-in policiesGet to grips with your personal server plugins and their usesCustomize both XAML builds and the new build systemSchedule jobs for more complicated business rules to run on a scheduleExtend your TFS possibilities with service hooks and VSO extensions In Detail Team Foundation Server is an efficacious collaboration tools that will allow you to share code, track records, software, all in a single package. Integrate it with your existing IDE or editor and let your team work in a flexible environment that adapts to projects of all shapes and sizes. Explore what gives you the edge over other developers by knowing the tips and quick fixes of customizing TFS. Effectively minimize the time users spend interacting with TFS so that they can be more productive. In this book you will quickly cover lots of TFS extension points, from the very basic task of customizing and configuring dashboards to customizing automated builds and check-in policies. You will learn how to create dashboards in TFS 2015, as well as add tiles, graphs, and more useful modifications. You'll perform customizations that make TFS work for you by streamlining your team’s boards. You'll cast modifications to the process template and learn the tips and tricks required to make efficient and valuable uses of your team’s board. From team-specific dashboards to complex server plugins, everything is covered in this concentrated guide to aid your knowledge. Delving deep, this book covers the pros and cons of check-in policies, as well as their proper debugging and deployment strategies. After that you will learn about advanced XAML builds and TFS jobs to further experiment with the activities of your jobs on your system. Finally, you will learn about service hooks and the amazing utility of .VSO extensions to help you create new extensions and explore new levels of customization.Style and approach This is an easy-to-follow guide with clearly explained and demonstrated examples.

I am doomed to remember a boy with a wrecked voice not because of his voice, or because he was the smallest person I ever knew, or even because he was the instrument of my mother's death, but because he is the reason I believe in God; I am a Christian because of Owen Meany. In the summer of 1953, two eleven-year-old boys best friends are playing in a Little League baseball game in Gravesend, New Hampshire. One of the boys hits a foul ball that kills the other boy's mother. The boy who hits the ball doesn't believe in accidents; Owen Meany believes he is God's instrument. What happens to Owen after that 1953 foul ball is extraordinary.

Avery Johnson is a coach, a teacher, and sometimes even a preacher, but most of all, he is a motivator, driving his team with the same fiery passion that allowed him to earn his championship credentials as an NBA player. Growing up in New Orleans's Lafitte Housing Project, he was never the biggest, fastest, or strongest, but by the strength of his will and character, he persevered. Now he offers the lessons he learned on his journey from the bottom of the bayou to the heights of success in this inspiring book. Aspire Higher is the essential game plan for reaching your goals. Johnson begins by outlining what it takes to get to the top: determination and discipline provide the foundation that allows you to make the right decisions, on the basketball court or in the boardroom. The goal isn't just to be successful, however; it's also about caring for other people along the way. I care about you more than I care about winning, Johnson often tells his players.Avery Johnson's personal and professional experiences illuminate crucial lessons, inspiring readers just as he has inspired teammates and players. His spirited message is for anyone looking for the tools and secrets of success in business, school, sports, and more anyone looking to aspire higher.

Tabatha is back to share her secrets of business success . . .With her characteristic savvy expertise and no-nonsense advice, the perfectly coiffed celebrity hairstylist, Tabatha Coffey, returns with her second book, teaching readers that the secret of success is taking charge of your priorities, your future, and your life. Fans of her hit show, Tabatha Takes Over, value Tabatha's sound approach to overhauling failing businesses, and now, in Own It!, she takes to the page to reach out to anyone with a dream: whether you're just beginning, revamping your career, or starting your own enterprise.Sharing her blunt but rock-solid wisdom, Tabatha provides tips for every aspect of business from entrepreneurship, to customer service, to management as well as on the home front, to help women seeking to balance their family lives with their careers. Filled with stories about real people who have faced challenging transitions, in addition to anecdotes from Tabatha's own experiences, this book reveals, through her unflinching honesty, Tabatha's commitment to the dreams and goals of her readers, and her never-say-never attitude when it comes to bringing them to life. Success is the result when you Own It! in all aspects of your life, and Tabatha breaks it down step-by-step as your straight-shooting personal coach to show you how it's done.

In this inspirational follow-up to the beloved Things I Want My Daughters to Know, lifestyle philosopher Alexandra Stoddard reflects on the lessons she's learned from her daughters and offers further thoughts and words of wisdom garnered from her own life.A mother, a grandmother, and the author of more than twenty-five books on personal fulfillment, Alexandra Stoddard celebrates the wisdom of motherhood and the lessons mothers can learn from their daughters in this warm and deeply moving new book that cuts to the heart of what is important in life.Speaking from her own experience and relying on the many conversations she has had with her contemporaries and their children, Stoddard has created a wonderful gift for every mother, daughter, and mother-to-be to give, receive, and share. Bridging generations, full of timeless insights to help us pursue a life rich with happiness, love, and gratitude, The Shared Wisdom of Mothers and Daughters reminds us of everything that makes life beautiful and profound.

Everyone knows the New Testament begins with the Gospel of Matthew, but how many know Matthew was actually one of the later books to be written(It wasn't even the first Gospel!) But Evolution of the Word is not your typical New Testament.Marcus J. Borg, esteemed Bible scholar and bestselling author, shakes up the order of the New Testament as we know it by putting the books in a completely new order the order in which they were written. By doing so, Evolution of the Word allows us to read these documents in their historical context. For the first time, see how the core ideas of Christianity took shape and developed over time.Borg surveys what we know of the Jewish community of Jesus followers who passed on their stories orally. Into this context emerges the apostle Paul, whose seven authentic letters become the first collected writings that would later become the New Testament. Borg offers helpful introductions for each book so that as we read through these biblical documents, spanning over a century in time, we see afresh what concerns and pressures shaped this movement as it evolved into a new religion.In this groundbreaking format, Borg reveals how a radical and primitive apocalyptic Jewish faith slowly became more comfortable with the world, less Jewish, and more pre- occupied with maintaining power and control. Evolution of the Word promises to change forever how we think about this historic work.

The critically acclaimed author of Good-bye and Amen, Leeway Cottage, and More Than You Know returns with a sharply perceptive and emotionally resonant novel about all the ways we talk about one another, the sometimes fine line between showing concern and doing damage, and the difficulty of knowing the true obligations of friendshipGossipBeth Gutcheon "Did you know that the origin of the word gossip in English is 'god-sibling'It's the talk between people who are godparents to the same child, people who have a legitimate loving interest in the person they talk about. It's talk that weaves a net of support and connection beneath the people you want to protect."Loviah "Lovie" French owns a small, high-end dress shop on Manhattan's Upper East Side. Renowned for her taste and discretion, Lovie is the one to whom certain women turn when they need "just the thing" for major life events baptisms and balls, weddings and funerals or when they just want to dish in the dressing room. Among the people who depend on Lovie's confidence are her two best friends since boarding school: Dinah Wainwright and Avis Metcalf. Outspoken and brimming with confidence, Dinah made a name for herself as a columnist covering the doings of New York's wealthiest and most fabulous. Shy, proper Avis, in many ways Dinah's opposite, rose to prominence in the art world with her quiet manners, hard work, and precise judgment. Despite the deep affection they both feel for Lovie, they have been more or less allergic to each other since a minor incident decades earlier that has been remembered and resented with what will prove to be unimaginable consequences. These uneasy acquaintances become unwillingly bound to each other when Dinah's favorite son and Avis's only daughter fall in love and marry. On the surface, Nick and Grace are the perfect match a playful, romantic, buoyant, and beautiful pair. But their commitment will be strained by time and change: career setbacks, reckless choices, the birth of a child, jealousies, and rumor. At the center of their orbit is Lovie, who knows everyone's secrets and manages them as wisely as she can. Which is not wisely enough, as things turn out a fact that will have a shattering effect on all their lives.An astute chronicler of everything that makes us human, Beth Gutcheon delivers her most powerful and emotionally devastating novel to date. Gossip is a tale of intimacy and betrayal, trust and fidelity, friendship, competition, and motherhood that explores the myriad ways we use and abuse "information" about others be it true, false, or imagined to sustain, and occasionally destroy, one another.

Foundational: The four gospels come directly fromthe ancient church and are among the primary sourcesfor the church's teachings.Familiar: Since Christian worship services began, areading from the gospels has played a central role.Studied: For over two hundred years scholars havechallenged and defended the central claims of thegospels: miracles, historical accuracy, the divinity ofJesus, and more.But Forgotten: Still, leading Bible scholar N. T.Wright reveals shocking news: We have all forgottenwhat the four gospels are about."Despite centuries of intense and heavy industryexpended on the study of all sorts of features of thegospels," Wright writes, "we have often managed tomiss the main thing that they, all four of them, aremost eager to tell us. What we need is not just a bitof fine-tuning, an adjustment here and there. We needa fundamental rethink about what the gospels aretrying to tell us."What Wright offers is an opportunity to confront thesepowerful texts afresh, as if we are encountering themfor the first time. How God Became King reveals thesurprising, unexpected, and shocking news of thegospels: this is the story of a new king, a new kind ofking, a king who has changed everything, and a kingwho invites us to be part of his new world.

Springwatch British Wildlife is the perfect year-round countryside introduction to the much-loved wildlife of the popular BBC2 television series. The book guides you through Britain's rich and diverse natural heritage, allowing you to enjoy the nation's wildlife at its finest – learning how the animals live and where to find them, why they do what they do and how we can appreciate them. You will be introduced to the birds, mammals and plants that inhabit our gardens, cities and countryside, with detailed species de*ions and beautiful photographs allowing you to understand their appearance, behaviour and habitats. Discover the best-kept secrets about garden birds, fascinating fungi facts and what leaves and seeds tell us about our thriving plant life. Join the Springwatch team as they help you to explore the natural world and unlock the mysteries to British wildlife.

Is happiness catching? Are your friends making you fat? Can your sibling make you smart? Is wealth contagious? Where is true love found? Does free will exist? Based on exciting discoveries in mathematics, genetics, psychology and sociology, ‘Connected’ is an innovative and fascinating exploration of how social networks operate. Think it's all about who you know? It is. But not the way you think. Turns out your colleague's husband's sister can make you fat, even if you don't know her. And a happy friend is more relevant to your happiness than a bigger income. Our connections – our friends, their friends, and even their friends' friends – have an astonishing power to influence everything from what we eat to who we sleep with. And we, in turn, influence others. Our actions can change the behaviours, the beliefs, and even the basic health of people we've never met. In this brilliantly original and effortlessly engaging exploration of how much we truly influence one another. Pre-eminent social scientists Nicholas Christakis and James Fowler explain why obesity is contagious, why the rich get richer, even how we find and choose our partners. Intriguing and entertaining, with revelatory implications for everything from our notion of the individual to ideas about public health initiatives, ‘Connected’ will change the way you think about every aspect of your life, and how you live it.

Over the years, millions of school children must have written out their address in the same way – their house number and street, their town, their country, their continent, planet Earth, the universe… Following this simplest of patterns, taking each line of the address as a starting point, Tim Radford explores our place in the scheme of things – why we are attached to a particular geographical place and what significance do we have when faced with the realms of astronomy and astrophysics. Fascinating, entertaining and completely original, The Address Book tackles some of the most fundamental questions facing us, and allows us see ourselves completely afresh.

In this fresh and gutsy analysis, Amanda Little lays bare America’s energy past, present and future and shows how the innovatory designs that got it to its current energy crisis will actually save it from ruin. 'We're about to see a revolution in the way we live, fundamental changes to the way our homes work, the way our cars move, the way we grow our food, distribute our products, the way we make and recycle plastics.' - Amanda Little In this adventurous, jargon free, optimistic book, Amanda Little – tipped as 'the new voice of green' by Robert Redford – reveals the gargantuan influence of oil on our daily lives. It fights our wars, grows our crops, produces our plastics and medicines, warms our homes and animates our cities. We've allowed it to seep into every facet of our existence, from the shine on glossy magazine covers to life-saving pharmaceuticals. We depend on it completely. So what does this mean for when the oil runs out? From a deep-sea oil rig to a plastic surgery operating theatre, from New York City's electrical grid to the offices of the Pentagon, from a state-of-the-art wind farm to a testing ground for the cars of tomorrow, Little visits the most eccentric and exciting frontiers of the global energy landscape. As she introduces us to a range of characters - Saudi royalty, grassroots activists, the world's most respected politicians and an array of inventors - she argues that we are on the brink of a revolution in the way we source the energy that is so vital to us; there is an energy future beyond oil - as long as we have the courage and creativity to pursue it. Fresh, gutsy and optimistic, Power Trip will show you our world in a completely new way.