Download or read book Braving the Elements written by David Laskin and published by Anchor. This book was released on 1997-06-16 with total page 273 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Nowhere in the world is weather as volatile and powerful as it is in North America. Scorching heat in the Southwest, hurricanes on the Atlantic coast, tornadoes in the Plains, blizzards in the mountains: Every area of the country has vastly different weather, and vastly different cultures as a result. Braving the Elements is David Laskin's delightful and fascinating history of how our unique weather has shaped a nation, and how we've tried to cope with it over centuries. Since before Columbus, the peoples of America have struggled to make sense of the capricious and violent nature of America's weather. Anasazi Indians used the rain dance (and sometimes human sacrifice) to induce rain, while the Puritans in New England blamed the sins of the community for lightening strikes and Nor'easters. IN modern times we carry on those traditions by blaming the weatherman for ruined weekends. Despite hi-tech satellites and powerful computers and 24-hour-a-day forecasting from The Weather Channel, we're still at the mercy of the whims of Mother Nature. Laskin recounts the many dramatic moments in American weather history, from the "Little Ice Age" to Ben Franklin's invention of the lightning rod to the Great Blizzard of the 1930's to the worries about global warming. Packed with fresh insights and wonderful lore and trivia, Braving the Elements is unique and essential reading for anyone who's ever asked, "What's it like outside?"
Download or read book Weather Matters written by Bernard Mergen and published by . This book was released on 2008 with total page 416 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A kaleidoscopic book that illuminates our obsession with weather--as both physical reality and evocative metaphor--focusing on the ways in which it is perceived, feared, embraced, managed, and even marketed.
Download or read book Weather by the Numbers written by Kristine C. Harper and published by MIT Press. This book was released on 2012-01-13 with total page 321 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The history of the growth and professionalization of American meteorology and its transformation into a physics- and mathematics-based scientific discipline. For much of the first half of the twentieth century, meteorology was more art than science, dependent on an individual forecaster's lifetime of local experience. In Weather by the Numbers, Kristine Harper tells the story of the transformation of meteorology from a “guessing science” into a sophisticated scientific discipline based on physics and mathematics. What made this possible was the development of the electronic digital computer; earlier attempts at numerical weather prediction had foundered on the human inability to solve nonlinear equations quickly enough for timely forecasting. After World War II, the combination of an expanded observation network developed for military purposes, newly trained meteorologists, savvy about math and physics, and the nascent digital computer created a new way of approaching atmospheric theory and weather forecasting. This transformation of a discipline, Harper writes, was the most important intellectual achievement of twentieth-century meteorology, and paved the way for the growth of computer-assisted modeling in all the sciences.
Download or read book Weather on the Air written by Robert Henson and published by Springer Science & Business Media. This book was released on 2013-01-05 with total page 256 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: From low humor to high drama, TV weather reporting has encompassed an enormous range of styles and approaches, triggering chuckles, infuriating the masses, and at times even saving lives. In Weather on the Air, meteorologist and science journalist Robert Henson covers it all—the people, technology, science, and show business that combine to deliver the weather to the public each day. Featuring the long-term drive to professionalize weathercasting; the complex relations between government and private forecasters; and the effects of climate-change science and the Internet on today’s broadcasts. With dozens of photos and anecdotes illuminating the many forces that have shaped weather broadcasts over the years, this engaging study will be an invaluable tool for students of broadcast meteorology and mass communication and an entertaining read for anyone fascinated by the public face of weather.
Download or read book Americans and Their Weather written by William B. Meyer and published by Oxford University Press. This book was released on 2014 with total page 310 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book traces the major exchanges that have occurred since colonial times in the role of weather in life and livelihood in the U.S. The intent is to relate how shifts in ordinary human activities have been influenced and altered the significance of climate patterns -- patterns that have been far more stable than the society experiencing them -- development of weather science where appropriate. At times, persistent features of our climate and recurrent weather have acted as help or hindrance, hazard or resource. And as ways of life in country have changed, these features have become hazard of resources in new ways.
Download or read book Weather written by Andrew Revkin and published by Union Square + ORM. This book was released on 2018-05-20 with total page 456 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: From an award–winning journalist, a “beautifully illustrated” book describing “the most pivotal moments . . . in the climate’s rich . . . 4.5 billion-year history.” (The Washington Post) Colorful and captivating, Weather: An Illustrated History hopscotches through 100 meteorological milestones and insights, from prehistory to today’s headlines and tomorrow’s forecasts. Bite-sized narratives, accompanied by exciting illustrations, touch on such varied topics as Earth’s first atmosphere, the physics of rainbows, the deadliest hailstorm, Groundhog Day, the invention of air conditioning, London’s Great Smog, the Year Without Summer, our increasingly strong hurricanes, and the Paris Agreement on climate change. A groundbreaking work by prominent environmental journalist and author Andrew Revkin, Weather: An Illustrated History presents an intriguing history of humanity’s evolving relationship with Earth’s dynamic climate system and the wondrous weather it generates. “FINALLY, someone has done something about the weather. Andrew Revkin and Lisa Mechaley have given us a startlingly fascinating book about how weather got the way it is, and how we’ve reacted to it, used it, and even helped shape it. There are a hundred captivating stories in this book that are as enlightening as they are fun. Reading them is like seeing the clouds part and the sun come out.” —Alan Alda, longtime host of Scientific American Frontiers and a founder of the Alan Alda Center for Communicating Science at Stony Brook University ”Informative, addictively readable . . . Highly recommended.” —Nathaniel Philbrick, National Book Award winner for In the Heart of the Sea: The Tragedy of the Whaleship Essex ”A gift of a book—at once fascinating, informative, and surprising.” —Elizabeth Kolbert, Pulitzer Prize–winning author of The Sixth Extinction
Download or read book The Worst Weather on Earth written by William Lowell Putnam and published by Light Technology Publishing. This book was released on 1991-06-01 with total page 264 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "There may be worse weather, from time to time, at some forbidding place on Planet Earth, but it has yet to be reliably recorded." So begins The Worst Weather on Earth: A History of the Mount Washington Observatory. Mount Washington, at 6,288 feet above sea level, is one of the highest elevations in the eastern United States and is subject to some of the fiercest weather patterns in the world. Situated close to major centers of population, it has been an accessible objective for travellers. The curious, the intrepid, the scientific -- Mount Washington has attracted them all. In this age of satellites and advanced instrumentation, the intricacies of weather observation are now taken for granted. However, not so long ago, weather was a blank on the scientific map of understanding. The Worst Weather on Earth chronicles the social and scientific milieu of those who have recorded the weather on the mountain for over one hundred years. Included are chapters such as "Radio on the Rockpile," which covers the pioneering days of radio broadcasting from the Summit, and "Rime and Reason," which presents a fascinating discussion of rime and the problems of icing that were researched extensively on the Summit. The Worst Weather on Earth is rendered more immediate by the liberal use of contemporary accounts; excerpts from letters, reports, and the log notes of the Summit observers abound, giving the flavor and the excitement of over a century of scientific observation and discovery.
Download or read book Fixing the Sky written by James Rodger Fleming and published by Columbia University Press. This book was released on 2010-08-13 with total page 346 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Weaving together stories from elite science, cutting-edge technology, and popular culture, Fleming examines issues of health and navigation in the 1830s, drought in the 1890s, aircraft safety in the 1930s, and world conflict since the 1940s.
Download or read book Eric Sloane s Weather Book written by Eric Sloane and published by Courier Corporation. This book was released on 2005-10-28 with total page 98 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "Amateur weather forecasters (which includes just about everyone) will find this volume an informative and entertaining account of the why and how of the weather." — The Nation In simple language, Eric Sloane explains the whys and wherefores of weather and weather forecasting — and does it in a style that's universally appealing. With humor and common sense shining through in a book that's also lively and informative, Sloane shows readers how to predict the weather by "reading" such natural phenomena as winds, skies, and animal sounds. This beautifully illustrated and practical treasure trove of climate lore will enlighten outdoorsmen, farmers, sailors, and anyone else who has ever wondered what a large halo around the moon means, why birds "sit it out" before a storm, and whether or not to take an umbrella when leaving the house.
Download or read book Stormy Weather written by Anastasia Carol Curwood and published by Univ of North Carolina Press. This book was released on 2010 with total page 214 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The so-called New Negroes of the period between World Wars I and II embodied a new sense of racial pride and upward mobility for the race. Many of them thought that relationships between spouses could be a crucial factor in realizing this dream. But there
Download or read book The Howling Storm written by Kenneth W. Noe and published by LSU Press. This book was released on 2020-10-07 with total page 687 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Finalist for the Lincoln Prize! Traditional histories of the Civil War describe the conflict as a war between North and South. Kenneth W. Noe suggests it should instead be understood as a war between the North, the South, and the weather. In The Howling Storm, Noe retells the history of the conflagration with a focus on the ways in which weather and climate shaped the outcomes of battles and campaigns. He further contends that events such as floods and droughts affecting the Confederate home front constricted soldiers’ food supply, lowered morale, and undercut the government’s efforts to boost nationalist sentiment. By contrast, the superior equipment and open supply lines enjoyed by Union soldiers enabled them to cope successfully with the South’s extreme conditions and, ultimately, secure victory in 1865. Climate conditions during the war proved unusual, as irregular phenomena such as El Niño, La Niña, and similar oscillations in the Atlantic Ocean disrupted weather patterns across southern states. Taking into account these meteorological events, Noe rethinks conventional explanations of battlefield victories and losses, compelling historians to reconsider long-held conclusions about the war. Unlike past studies that fault inflation, taxation, and logistical problems for the Confederate defeat, his work considers how soldiers and civilians dealt with floods and droughts that beset areas of the South in 1862, 1863, and 1864. In doing so, he addresses the foundational causes that forced Richmond to make difficult and sometimes disastrous decisions when prioritizing the feeding of the home front or the front lines. The Howling Storm stands as the first comprehensive examination of weather and climate during the Civil War. Its approach, coverage, and conclusions are certain to reshape the field of Civil War studies.
Download or read book Storm Watchers written by John D. Cox and published by John Wiley & Sons. This book was released on 2002-11-04 with total page 258 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A lively, inspiring account of the pioneers who sought toaccurately predict the weather Benjamin Franklin . . . James P. Espy . . . Cleveland Abbe . . .Carl-Gustaf Rossby . . . Jule G. Charney . . . just a few of theremarkable individuals who struggled against formidable odds tounderstand the atmosphere and predict the weather. Where they sawpatterns and processes, others saw randomness and tumult-and yetthey strove to make their voices heard, often saving lives in theprocess. Storm Watchers takes you on a fascinating journey through time thatcaptures the evolution of weather forecasting. From the age whenmeteorology was considered one step removed from sorcery to themodern-day wizardry of supercomputers, John Cox introduces you tothe pioneering scientists whose work fulfilled an ancient dream andmade it possible to foretell the future. He tells the little-knownstories of these weathermen, such as Ptolemy's weather predictionsbased on astrology, John Finley's breakthrough research inidentifying tornadoes, and Tor Bergeron's new techniques of weatherforecasting, which contributed to its final worldwideacceptance. Filled with extraordinary tales of bravery and sacrifice, StormWatchers will make you think twice the next time you turn on thelocal news to catch the weather report.
Download or read book Weather Legends written by Carole Garbuny Vogel and published by . This book was released on 2001 with total page 80 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Native American tales are set against scientific facts to explain how thunder, tornadoes, sunlight, rainbows, and other weather phenomena come into existence.
Download or read book The Weather Machine written by Andrew Blum and published by HarperCollins. This book was released on 2019-06-25 with total page 191 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: From the acclaimed author of Tubes, a lively and surprising tour through the global network that predicts our weather, the people behind it, and what it reveals about our climate and our planet The weather is the foundation of our daily lives. It’s a staple of small talk, the app on our smartphones, and often the first thing we check each morning. Yet, behind all these humble interactions is the largest and most elaborate piece of infrastructure human beings have ever constructed—a triumph of both science and global cooperation. But what is the weather machine, and who created it? In The Weather Machine, Andrew Blum takes readers on a fascinating journey through the people, places, and tools of forecasting, exploring how the weather went from something we simply observed to something we could actually predict. As he travels across the planet, he visits some of the oldest and most important weather stations and watches the newest satellites blast off. He explores the dogged efforts of forecasters to create a supercomputer model of the atmosphere, while trying to grasp the ongoing relevance of TV weather forecasters. In the increasingly unpredictable world of climate change, correctly understanding the weather is vital. Written with the sharp wit and infectious curiosity Andrew Blum is known for, The Weather Machine pulls back the curtain on a universal part of our everyday lives, illuminating our changing relationships with technology, the planet, and our global community.
Download or read book The Weather Factor written by David Ludlum and published by Springer. This book was released on 2015-03-30 with total page 284 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In this book, David Ludlum, America's acknowledged dean of weather history, describes historical weather events and their consequences to society. From the colonists' first encounter with the American climate to the launch of the first weather satellite in space, weather has influenced battles, wars, elections, sports events, balloon launches, airship flights, and many other history-making events. Want to know what part the weather played in ending the Siege in Yorktown? Why President Harrison caught his fatal cold on Inauguration Day? Which was the worst-ever Saturday for football all across the country? This book attempts to answer these questions and many more.
Download or read book Look at the Sky and Tell the Weather written by Eric Sloane and published by Courier Corporation. This book was released on 2004-03-01 with total page 116 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Takes the reader on a voyage of discovery as the author traces a single mass of air traveling from the Canadian Rockies to the northeastern United States.
Download or read book Eric Sloane s Weather Almanac written by Eric Sloane and published by Voyageur Press (MN). This book was released on 2005 with total page 252 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Voyageur Press is proud to publish this new edition of Eric Sloane’s classic folksy history of American weather. Combining two Sloane books, "Eric Sloane’s Almanac and Weather Forecaster" (1955) and "Folklore of American Weather" (1963), this omnibus is filled with traditional weather sayings and beliefs. In "Eric Sloane’s Weather Almanac," readers will learn forecasting tips such as which winds bring what kinds of weather, how to ""read"" clouds, how to foretell the weather by the moon, and more. Also included is fun climate lore such as old-time sayings about when sap is running and why you should dig your well where lightning has struck. One hundred thirty-five of Sloane’s drawings clarify and enhance the text of this entertaining and informative book by one of the most popular recorders of American history. Before Eric Sloane (1905-1985) became famous for paintings and books, he was one of the top weather experts in the United States and wrote several books on the subject for the U.S. Navy.
