Arnold O. Beckman was a legend in his time: the blacksmith's son who grew up to play a pivotal role in the instrumentation revolution that dramatically changed science, technology, and society. From his rural boyhood world of farming and woodworking, through his service in the U.S. Marines and his appointment to the Caltech faculty, to his path-breaking creation of the pH meter, the DU spectrophotometer, and the establishment of the Beckman Instruments company, this work portrays an individual whose ingenuity and integrity made him a scientific leader and industrial pioneer. It also discusses his role in California and national politics, and his career as a major philanthropist. Arnold Beckman's story is inseparable from that of the 20th century--a very inspiring read. Included with this biography is a video portrait of Arnold Beckman, in CD-ROM format for both PC and Mac. You will see and hear Dr. Beckman talk about his early life, his marriage to Mabel, and his philosophies of inventing, education, and philanthropy. The CD-ROM was produced by Jeffrey I. Seeman.

We all have a hard time getting out of bed from time to time, but Astronaut Arnie makes an art of it as he brings us on the space adventure of a lifetime. Kids will love and relate to Arnie, the unlikely astronaut who learns a little about each of the planets he visits along the way. From award-winning illustrator, Dave Dircks (Alphabert: An A-B-C Bedtime Adventure and Unleash the Sloth), this will be the book that science-craving kids will ask for and giggle at as they learn not only about the solar system we live in, but also that it's OK to be not-so-perfect.

Student-scientist-teacher interactions provide students with several advantages. They provide opportunities to interact with experts and professionals in the field, give students a chance at meeting a role model that may impact students' career choices, and increase awareness of available career options combined with an understanding of how their skills and interests affect their career decisions. Additionally, it enhances attitudes and interest toward STEM professions for students and grants opportunities to connect with scientists as human beings and see them as "real people," replacing stereotypical perceptions of scientists. Moreover, there are many advantages for the teacher or informal educator when these partnerships are established. For these reasons and more, numerous studies are often conducted involving the partnerships of students, scientists, and teachers. Enhancing Learning Opportunities Through Student, Scientist, and Teacher Partnerships organizes a collection of research on student-scientist-teacher partnerships and presents the models, benefits, implementation, and learning outcomes of these interactions. This book presents a variety of different scientist-student-teacher partnerships with research data to support different learning outcomes in settings like schools, after-school programs, museums, science centers, zoos, aquariums, children's museums, space centers, nature centers, and more. This book is ideal for in-service and preservice teachers, administrators, teacher educators, practitioners, stakeholders, researchers, academicians, and students interested in research on beneficial student-scientist-teacher partnerships/models in formal and informal settings.

One of the most elusive and controversial figures in NASA's history, George W. S. Abbey was called "the Dark Lord," "the Godfather," and "UNO" (unidentified NASA official) by those within NASA. From young pilot and wannabe astronaut to engineer, bureaucrat, and finally director of the Johnson Space Center ("mission control"), Abbey's story has never been fully told—until now. This fascinating account takes readers inside NASA to learn the real story of how Abbey rose to power and wielded it out of the spotlight. Informed by countless hours of interviews with Abbey and his family, friends, adversaries, and former colleagues, The Astronaut Maker is the ultimate insider's account of ambition and power politics at NASA.

Scientists at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, one of the major testing facilities for the United States Department of Defense, have developed a powerful laser weapon that has the ability to kill more people at one time than the atomic bombs did at Hiroshima and Nagasaki combined. The US government secretly installed the laser into the American module of the International Space Station. Officials believe it is safe and secure. But two spies for al Qaeda, a worldwide terrorist organization, have infiltrated the National Security Council. Theyve alerted their operative, Abreu, about the existence and location of this weapon of mass destruction for which there is no defense. Al Qaeda executes a long-term plan to insert a terrorist into the NASA astronaut corps and to the International Space Station. There, the spy is to gain control of and use the laser weapon to devastate the North American continent. Tipped off about the existence of the al Qaeda plot, American security agencies must combine efforts to find and stop the terrorist. The plan and the American investigation collide head on at the International Space Station.

Emphasizing the importance of the space programme to the scientific, social and cultural history of the last half of the 20th century, this brief history celebrates the almost unimaginable technological leap that the space programme represents, a feat of teamwork, innovation, dedication and mastery unprecedented in the history of mankind. Walsh's narrative begins just before the Mercury programme, covers the original seven astronauts, the Gemini and Apollo programmes, through Skylab and up to the space shuttle. The glories and emotion of space exploration are presented against the backdrop of the Cold War, the presidential administrations of Eisenhower, JFK, LBJ, Nixon, Ford and Carter, and other singificant events in US history. The positive accomplishments of the astronauts are put in context of an increasingly negative domestic situation in the '60s and '70s, the Bay of Pigs, civil rights, assassinations, growing involvement in and dissension about Vietnam, the Watergate scandal, and Nixon's resignation.