Tales of science fiction and adventure from the Hugo Award–winning author of Way Station and City. The long and prolific career of Clifford D. Simak cemented him as one of the formative voices of the science fiction and fantasy genre. The third writer to be named a Grand Master by the Science Fiction Writers of America, his literary legacy stands alongside those of Robert A. Heinlein and Ray Bradbury. This striking collection of nine tales showcases Simak’s ability to take the everyday and turn it into something truly compelling, taking readers on a long journey in a very short time. In “Dusty Zebra,” Joe discovers a portal that allows him to exchange everyday objects with an entity he can neither see nor hear, and soon learns that one man’s treasure may be another dimension’s trash. In “Retrograde Evolution,” an interplanetary trading vessel tries to figure out how to deal with a remote society that has suddenly decided to become far less civilized. And in “Project Mastodon,” an unusual ambassador from an unheard-of country offers amazing opportunities in a place the modern world can never compete with: the past. Simak’s mastery of the short form is on display in these and six other stories. Each story includes an introduction by David W. Wixon, literary executor of the Clifford D. Simak estate and editor of this ebook.

Tales of science fiction and adventure from the Hugo Award-winning author of Way Station and City. The long and prolific career of Clifford D. Simak cemented him as one of the formative voices of the science fiction and fantasy genre. The third writer to be named a Grand Master by the Science Fiction Writers of America, his literary legacy stands alongside those of Robert A. Heinlein and Ray Bradbury. This striking collection of nine tales showcases Simak's ability to take the everyday and turn it into something truly compelling, taking readers on a long journey in a very short time. In "Dusty Zebra," Joe discovers a portal that allows him to exchange everyday objects with an entity he can neither see nor hear, and soon learns that one man's treasure may be another dimension's trash. In "Retrograde Evolution," an interplanetary trading vessel tries to figure out how to deal with a remote society that has suddenly decided to become far less civilized. And in "Project Mastodon," an unusual ambassador from an unheard-of country offers amazing opportunities in a place the modern world can never compete with: the past. Simak's mastery of the short form is on display in these and six other stories. Each story includes an introduction by David W. Wixon, literary executor of the Clifford D. Simak estate and editor of this ebook.

From eminent biologists like Alfred Russel Wallace and Charles Darwin to famous authors such as Rudyard Kipling in his Just So Stories, many people have asked, “Why do zebras have stripes?” There are many explanations, but until now hardly any have been seriously addressed or even tested. In Zebra Stripes, Tim Caro takes readers through a decade of painstaking fieldwork examining the significance of black-and-white striping and, after systematically dismissing every hypothesis for these markings with new data, he arrives at a surprising conclusion: zebra markings are nature’s defense against biting fly annoyance. Popular explanations for stripes range from camouflage to confusion of predators, social facilitation, and even temperature regulation. It is a serious challenge to test these proposals on large animals living in the wild, but using a combination of careful observations, simple field experiments, comparative information, and logic, Caro is able to weigh up the pros and cons of each idea. Eventually—driven by experiments showing that biting flies avoid landing on striped surfaces, observations that striping is most intense where biting flies are abundant, and knowledge of zebras’ susceptibility to biting flies and vulnerability to the diseases that flies carry—Caro concludes that black-and-white stripes are an adaptation to thwart biting fly attack. Not just a tale of one scientist’s quest to solve a classic mystery of biology, Zebra Stripes is also a testament to the tremendous value of longitudinal research in behavioral ecology, demonstrating how observation, experiment, and comparative research can together reshape our understanding of the natural world.

Born in 1904, Clifford D. Simak sold his first science fiction story in 1930, and was soon publishing widely in the pulp magazines. He also pursued a separate career as a journalist and writer on science and other popular topics. He gained widespread fame in the SF world with the first of his series of "City" stories, published in Astounding Science Fiction in 1944; these were collected together in the book of the same title, which has remained almost continuously in print ever since. Simak was best known for his pastoral and humanitarian themes, as exemplied in his Hugo Award-winning novel, Way Station (1963). In later years he wrote both fantasy and SF stories and novels, winning many additional accolades for his work. He died in 1988. Robert J. Ewald provides the first extended look at Simak's writing, from his earliest pulp stories to the sophistical fiction of his later years. Complete with Chronology, Notes, Primary and Secondary Bibliographies, and detailed Index.

Science fiction is a literary genre based on scientific speculation. Works of science fiction use the ideas and the vocabulary of all sciences to create valid narratives that explore the future effects of science on events and human beings. Science Fact and Science Fiction examines in one volume how science has propelled science-fiction and, to a lesser extent, how science fiction has influenced the sciences. Although coverage will discuss the science behind the fiction from the Classical Age to the present, focus is naturally on the 19th century to the present, when the Industrial Revolution and spectacular progress in science and technology triggered an influx of science-fiction works speculating on the future. As scientific developments alter expectations for the future, the literature absorbs, uses, and adapts such contextual visions. The goal of the Encyclopedia is not to present a catalog of sciences and their application in literary fiction, but rather to study the ongoing flow and counterflow of influences, including how fictional representations of science affect how we view its practice and disciplines. Although the main focus is on literature, other forms of science fiction, including film and video games, are explored and, because science is an international matter, works from non-English speaking countries are discussed as needed.

Filling the gap between basic mammal guides and extensive academic texts, this resource answers everyday questions about mammals in an understandable fashion that will appeal to tourists, bush enthusiasts, and field guides. Addressing everything from how an elephant's trunk works to why the blue whale is not a fish, this question-and-answer guide includes more than 700 color photographs and a detailed section on tracks and signs, making it a must-have for anyone wanting to know about the mammals of the bush region.

Equine Color Genetics, Fourth Edition presents a detailed examination of the color variation in horses and donkeys and the genetic mechanisms that produce color variations. Thoroughly covers the basic colors in horses, including bay, chestnut, black, and brown Details the genetic basis of the colors built from the basic coat color, including dilutions and white patterning Provides an explanation of genetic mechanisms that determine coat color Presents a thorough revision and update, including new advances in molecular genetics, biochemistry, molecular mechanisms, genetic loci, coat colors before domestication, and more Offers a new introduction describing the principles of genetics and genomics research to help outline how knowledge is discovered and to assist the reader in understanding concepts covered in the book