Are we alone? In 1995 planet hunters discovered the first alien solar system around a star like our own Sun. Ken Croswell tells the fascinating story of this discovery and the people who made it, then explores the possibility that one day we may have the technology to travel to different solar systems and find life.

Brain Quest is beloved by kids, trusted by parents, used and recommended by teachers. It’s the curriculum-based, fast-paced, question-and-answer game that challenges kids on the stuff they need to know, when they need to know it. It’s the brand that says “It’s fun to be smart!” And it delivers. For the fourth edition every deck is thoroughly revised and includes 20 percent new material. The content aligns with national and state standards and is overseen by the Brain Quest Advisory Board, a panel of award-winning educators, each a recent state teacher-of-the-year award winner or a recipient of the prestigious Milken Educator Award. The covers and cards have a refreshed design, giving Brain Quest a cooler, updated look.

Appropriate for researchers, practitioners, and students alike, Communication and Networking in Smart Grids presents state-of-the-art approaches and novel technologies for communication networks in smart grids. It explains how contemporary grid networks are developed and deployed and presents a collection of cutting-edge advances to help improve cu

This book constitutes the thoroughly refereed proceedings of the 7th International Conference on Software and Data Technologies, ICSOFT 2012, held in Rome, Italy, in July 2012. The 14 revised full papers presented were carefully reviewed and selected from 127 submissions. The papers focus on the following research topics and applications: programming issues, theoretical aspects of software engineering, management information systems, distributed systems, ubiquity, data interoperability, context understanding.