THE SCIENCE FILES Questions and Answers from A – Z by Richard Zurawski

Conventional wisdom has it that science is boring. “The Science Files,” an hourly radio call-in talk show about science, is anything but boring, and certainly none of the listeners, emailers or tweeters who participate in the call-in radio talk show think science is boring either. Richard Zurawski has been hosting “The Science Files” for eight years and has fielded literally thousands of questions. This book, The Science Files, is about the questions that listeners have been asking about science and the way the world, nature and the universe works. Compiled by Zurawski, the questions and answers in this book are lively, engaging and interesting discussions about a wide range of topics. Present throughout is Zurawski’s passion for learning and his genuine fascination with the natural world. Furthermore, The Science Files is a dialogue that encourages readers and participants alike to continue to learn and to ask questions.
CONTENTS
Life on Other Worlds...Is Europa the Place to Find It? • Will There Ever Be Human Footprints on Mars, the Red Planet? • What Keeps the Sun Shining? • Is Falling Space Junk a Threat? • Why Did the United States Win the Race to the Moon? • What Is at the Bottom of the Ocean? • How Much Plastic Is There in the Ocean? • What Is the Tipping Point? • What Is Happening to the Antarctic Western Sheet? • Oxygen, Where Does It Come From? • What Are Supervolcanoes? • Are We Overpopulating the World? • Is the Sea Level Rising? • Is the Antarctic Ice Sheet Going to Collapse? • Does Recycling Help? • What Are Eco and Green Scams? • Can Solar Power Help Solve Climate Change? • What Is Better – Plastic or Real Xmas Trees? • What Was the First Fission Nuclear Reactor? • Is Nuclear Power a Genie or Demon? • Why the Controversy About Nuclear Power? • What Is BioChar and Is It a Possible Climate Change Solution? • Why Don’t We Use Hydrogen to Power the World? • Why Don’t We Have Fusion Power Yet? • How Significant Were the Tambora and Krakatoa Volcanic Eruptions? • Did Humans Almost Die Out 72,000 Years Ago? • How Bad Can Volcanic Eruptions Be? • How Many Planets Are There with Intelligent Life In the Universe? • Is Time Travel Possible? • Where Did Oxygen Come From and Will We Ever Run Out of It? • Why Were the Indigenous Peoples of North America so Vulnerable to European Diseases? • What Is the Difference Between Meteorology and Climatology? • What Is the Big Bang? • What Are Greenhouse Gases? • Why Should We Care if the Arctic Ice Melts? • Ethanol Based Fuels: Good or Bad? • What Is the Space Elevator and Could It Really Work? • What Is Infinity and How Big Is It? • How Will the Universe End? • Could a PennyDropped off the Top of the Empire State Building Kill Someone? • How Do We Know How Old Things Are?

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Richard Zurawski is a meteorologist, documentary film producer, TV host, writer, university lecturer, public speaker and media expert and personality. He is the author of Richard Zurawski’s Book of Maritime Weather and The Maritime Book of Climate Change. He lives in Halifax with his wife, Susan, and two border collies, Patch and Tasha.