Jimmy Guieu - Cavernele de pe Wolf

Jimmy Guieu (Henri René Guieu) - Cavernele de pe Wolf

(ro, 103pg)

Pamantul devenise de nelocuit. O misiune internationala a plecat in cosmos pentru a salva specia umana. Gasisera planeta perfecta: aer curat, vegetatie luxurianta... orice si-ar putea dori fiinta umana. Nu le-a trebuit mult sa-si dea seama ca nu sunt singuri si nu sunt doriti.
O aventura extraordinara, o poveste ce te va tine cu sufletul la gura.

Terry Pratchett - Trilogia Nomilor vol. 3 - În Navă

Terry Pratchett - Trilogia Nomilor vol. 3 - În Navă

(Wings)

(100pg, ro, 1990)

In Nava este cartea a treia a superbei Trilogii a nomilor a britanicului Terry Pratchet, autorul seriei Lumea Disc, o serie care a cunoscut un succes fulminant!
Undeva intr-un loc atat de sus incat nu mai exista si un jos, o nava asteapta pentru a-i duce pe nomi acasa - inapoi in locul de unde au venit. Iar unul dintre nomi, Masklin, stie ca trebuie sa ia legatura cu aceasta nava. Asta inseamna sa mearga in Florida (oriunde ar fi asta), apoi sa ajunga la lansarea unui satelit de comunicaţii (orice ar fi asta).
Un plan de-a dreptul ridicol. Un plan imposibil.
Dar Masklin nu stie asta, asa ca incearca. Iar primul pas este sa calatoreasca intr-un nou fel de camion, un camion cu aripi - un Concorde.

(http://www.cartiabc.ro/, 25ron)

Terry Pratchett - Trilogia Nomilor vol. 2 - In Excavator

Terry Pratchett - Trilogia Nomilor vol. 2 - In Excavator

(Diggers)

(105pg, ro, 1990)

In Excavator, a doua carte din Trilogia Nomilor, continua minunata epopee a poporului de omuleti ratacit în lumea oamenilor! Un nou inceput pare sa-i astepte pe miile de nomi micuti atunci cand se muta in cladirile darapanate ale unei cariere de piatra parasite.
Oare asa sa fie?
Curand, lucruri ciudate incep sa se intample. Ca de pilda suprafata baltilor, care devine rece si tare, sau ca apa care cade din cer in bucatele inghetate. Apoi apar oamenii, si ei chiar strica totul. Cariera urmeaza sa fie redeschisa, iar nomii trebuie sa lupte pentru a-si apara noul camin. Dar cat timp vor reusi sa-i tina departe pe oameni – chiar si cu ajutorul monstrului Jekub?

(http://www.cartiabc.ro/, 25ron)

Terry Pratchett - Trilogia Nomilor vol. 1 - In camion

Terry Pratchett - Trilogia Nomilor vol. 1 - In camion

(Truckers)

(119pg, ro, 1988)

In camion este cartea intai din superba Trilogie a nomilor (cunoscuta si ca Trilogia Bromeliadelor), nominalizata pentru Premiul Smarties. Este o carte ce debordeaza de umor si inteligenta, atragandu-ne intr-un univers generat de o imaginatie sclipitoare.
Nomii sunt un popor de omuleti care ratacesc in lumea oamenilor. Pentru miile de nomi marunti care locuiesc sub podelele unui mare magazin universal, nu exista Exterior. Lucruri precum Ziua si Noaptea, Soarele si Ploaia sunt doar niste vechi mituri ciudate. Dar, o veste cumplita le zdruncina existenta: Magazinul – care reprezinta intreaga lor lume – urmeaza sa fie demolat. Iar Masklin, unul dintre ultimii nomi sositi în Magazin, va fi cel ce va concepe un plan incredibil care ii va duce pe toti nomii în nebanuitele primejdii ale marelui Exterior …

(http://www.cartiabc.ro/, 24.90 ron)

Lem Stanislaw - Ciberiada

Lem Stanislaw - Ciberiada

(386pg, 1967, ro)

Ciberiada este o lume a robotilor aflati intr-un fel de ev mediu, cu regi, printese si dragoni. Cartea este o colectie de povestiri care prezinta mai ales aventurile celor doi "geniali constructori", Trurl si Clapautius. Cei doi prieteni exploreaza Universul si construiesc diverse masini inteligente, motiv pentru a aborda teme esentiale ale umanitatii; de la problema fericirii la chestiuni politice. Caci "Ciberiada" este de fapt o alegorie, iar robotii care o populeaza sunt caricaturi ale oamenilor, cu toate virtutile si viciile lor.

(Nemira, 29ron)

Stanislaw Lem - Catarul

Stanislaw Lem - Catarul

(146pg, ro, 1975)

A former astronaut helps Interpol solve a series of mysterious deaths. Multivariate statistics play an important rôle in this story, and come closer to the truth then it might at first seem.

The Polish title Katar means ``The Cold,'' as in a head-cold. In American English, however, ``The Cold'' would more likely be interpreted as temperature, not illness. Chain of Chance is a good descriptive title. The head-cold, by the way, does figure into that chain-of-chance.

Mustaine: A Heavy Metal Memoir

Mustaine: A Heavy Metal Memoir

(2010, en, 288pg)

The fall and rise of a heavy metal icon

Dave Mustaine is the first to admit that he's bottomed out a few times in his dark and twisted speed metal version of a Dickensian life.

Impoverished, transient childhood? Check.

Abusive, alcoholic parent? Check.

Mind-fucking religious weirdness (in his case the extremes of the Jehovah's Witnesses and Satanism)? Check.

Alcoholism, drug addiction, homelessness? Check, check, check.

Soul-crushing professional and artistic setbacks? Check.

Rehab? Check (seventeen times, give or take).

Near-death experience? Check that one, too.

James Hetfield, with whom many years ago Mustaine founded a band known as Metallica, once observed, with some incredulity, that Mustaine must have been born with a horseshoe up his ass. That's how lucky he's been, how fortunate he is to be pulling breath after so many close calls. And Hetfield is right. Mustaine has been lucky. He has been blessed. But here's the thing about having a horseshoe lodged in your rectum: It also hurts like hell. And you never forget it's there.

Mustaine has battled through it all to achieve dizzying heights. From the early, heady days of Metallica, being unceremoniously let go only to become a world-famous rock star—founder, front man, singer, songwriter, and guitarist (and de facto CEO) for Megadeth, one of the most popular bands in heavy metal—Mustaine's is a story that will inspire, stun, and terrify.

(Amazon, 26$)

Salman Rushdie - Furia

Salman Rushdie - Furia

(ro, 265pg, 2001)

Un roman cu foarte multe accente autobiografice, Furie il are in centrul sau pe profesorul de filozofie Malik Solanka, iar toate celelate personaje sunt aproape inexistente, slab conturate, cu aparitii meteorice, abandonate pe parcurs. Solanka este un barbat de varsta mijlocie, care duce o viata de familie tihnita si aparent fericita, pana intr-o zi cand brusc si fara nici o explicatie, isi paraseste familia si fuge din Anglia la New York.

Creatorul unui fenomen media major, Solanka este autorul unor papusi ce devin staruri de televiziune. Prima si cea mai draga creatie a sa – Isteata – se transforma din papusa capabila sa poarte cele mai complexe discutii filozofice – inteligenta, nostima, usor sarcastica – in tot ceea ce uraste Solanka la societatea in care traieste. Marginalizat, pierzandu-si atat drepturile cat si puterea asupra propriei creatii, Solanka este invadat de frustrare si o furie innebunitoare. (Ana Maria Petritan)

(Amazon, 15$)

Tom Sharpe - Marea aspiraţie

Tom Sharpe - Marea aspiraţie
(The great pursuit)

(ro, 240pg, 1977)

Cartea, in original «The Great Pursuit», publicata in 1977, spune povestea agentului literar, Frensic, proprietarul unui nas care poate "adulmeca" un best-seller de la o posta. Intr-o zi, Frensic primeste un roman pseudo-pornografic - povestea iubirii dintre un adolescent si o femeie de optzeci de ani - si isi da seama ca i s-a oferit pe tava sansa de a da o lovitura comerciala.

Impreuna cu asociata lui, Sonia, reuseste sa-l convinga pe un autor nepublicat, destul de sarac cu duhul si legat de valorile morale ale artei literare, sa se dea drept autorul acelei carti. Lucrurile curg intr-un ritm accelerat, ritmand subiectul cu rasturnari de situatii destul de nebunesti, dupa care autorii vremurilor noastre se dau in vant.

Oricum, se vede treaba ca Sharpe cunoaste aproape la perfectie mecanismele de publicare si promovare din lumea literara, pe care stie sa le infatiseze cititorului intr-un mod cat se poate de primitor si simpatic.
Tom Sharpe satirizeaza industria editoriala, in special pe cea americana, axata pe castiguri cat mai mari si pe lovituri de imagine - nici o problema daca ele au la baza scandaluri grosolane -, dar si lumea plina de orgolii a scriitorilor si editorilor.


(Polirom, 25 ron)

Sergiu Someşan - Carte de magie

Sergiu Someşan - Carte de magie

(2001, ro, 54pg)

Prezentul volum de proza scurta este menit sa ne dea fiori si sa ne poarte printre faliile în realitate care constituie lumea fantasticului. Ghid ne este însusi autorul, care foloseste în mod curent naratiunea la persoana întâi [...] De fapt, Sergiu Somesan se joaca de-a fantasticul. El e un realist ce ne plimba masca insolitului prin fata ochilor, realizând un splendid spectacol de lumini si umbre.

Richard Dawkins - The God Delusion

Richard Dawkins - The God Delusion

(2006, en, 398 pg)

Richard Dawkins, in The God Delusion, tells of his exasperation with colleagues who try to play both sides of the street: looking to science for justification of their religious convictions while evading the most difficult implications—the existence of a prime mover sophisticated enough to create and run the universe, “to say nothing of mind reading millions of humans simultaneously.” Such an entity, he argues, would have to be extremely complex, raising the question of how it came into existence, how it communicates —through spiritons!—and where it resides. Dawkins is frequently dismissed as a bully, but he is only putting theological doctrines to the same kind of scrutiny that any scientific theory must withstand. No one who has witnessed the merciless dissection of a new paper in physics would describe the atmosphere as overly polite.

(Amazon, ~11$)

Victor Kernbach - Luntrea sublimă

Victor Kernbach - Luntrea sublimă

(1961,ro,259pg)

Prima vestire la noi a noii invataturi a fost romanul Luntrea sublima (1961) de Victor Kernbach (1923-1995) - "evocare fantastica" a celebrelor cataclisme "nucleare" care ar fi scufundat candva Atlantida, iar apoi ar fi nimicit biblicele cetati Sodoma si Gomora, in urma descinderii pe Terra a unei expeditii martiene. Este o carte de fictiune, insa, intr-un Epilog in care cuvantul nu mai apartine naratorului ci nedisimulat autorului, ni se dezvaluie o confuzie estetica specifica momentului, cand autorii nostri de science-fiction inca nu gaseau ca este neaparat necesar sa se distanteze liminar si literar de motivul abordat, prin interpunerea unui alter ego Actionai - "naratorul", ci dimpotriva, isi implicau cu voluptate in discurs insasi persoana civila, "eul empiric".

(Ed.Lucman 7,5 lei)

Mika Waltari - Egipteanul

Mika Waltari - Egipteanul

(777pg, ro, 1945)

Egipteanul este o impresionanta imagine a Egiptului din antichitate, cu 3000 de ani in urma, cind prabusirea imperiului faraonilor era iminenta.

Naratiunea isi poarta cititorul prin intreaga lume cunoscuta atunci – din Babilon in Creta si din Teba la Ierusalim, pivotind in jurul unei figuri memorabile: Sinuhe, personaj cu o origine misterioasa, care ajunge medicul personal al faraonului Akhenaton.

„Un roman extraordinar care tradeaza o eruditie absolut impresionanta... Nimic nu se compara cu aceasta uluitoare fresca a Egiptului antic.” (Library Journal)

„Egipteanul contine toate ingredientele unui bestseller, razboaie, intrigi, povesti de dragoste si scene in care abunda violenta, mila, suferinta si moartea.” (New York Herald Tribune)

„Cititorii Egipteanului vor avea sentimentul unei lumi inspaimintator de familiare, in ciuda celor mai bine de trei milenii care s-au scurs de atunci.” (Lynda S. Robinson)

(54.95 lei librariabucuresti.com)

Russ Olsen - Design Patterns in Ruby

Russ Olsen - Design Patterns in Ruby

(384pg, 2007, en)

This book provides a great demonstration of the key 'Gang of Four' design patterns without resorting to overly technical explanations. Written in a precise, yet almost informal style, this book covers enough ground that even those without prior exposure to design patterns will soon feel confident applying them using Ruby. Olsen has done a great job to make a book about a classically 'dry' subject into such an engaging and even occasionally humorous read.

(42.99$ Amazon)

Richard Dawkins - Climbing mount Improbable

Richard Dawkins - Climbing mount Improbable

(1996, 353pg, en)

Climbing Mount Improbable is a 1996 popular science book by Richard Dawkins. The book is about probability and how it applies to the theory of evolution, and specifically is designed to debunk claims by creationists about the probability of naturalistic mechanisms like natural selection producing complex organisms.

The main metaphorical treatment is of a geographical landscape, upon which evolution can only ascend in a gradual way, not being able to climb cliffs (this is known as an adaptive landscape). In the book he gives various ideas about a seemingly complex mechanism coming about from many different gradual steps, that were previously unseen.

John Brunner - Victimele novei

John Brunner - Victimele novei
(Victims of the Nova)

(1989, 507pg, ro)


1. Polymath (probleme de ordin social - un Crusoe modern)
2. Răzbunătorii din Carrig (problema sclavagismului modern)
3. Depanatorii de pe Cyclops (atinge problema comerţului cu organe)

Maddalena şi Gus Langenschmidt.

John Brunner - Oile privesc in sus

John Brunner - Oile privesc in sus
The Sheep Look Up

(1972, 334pg, ro)

Oile Privesc în sus este un roman science-fiction al scriitorului britanic John Brunner, publicat pentru prima dată în 1972. Cadrul romanului este distopic, cartea având ca subiect principal deteriorarea mediului în Statele Unite. Romanul a primit o nominalizare pentru Premiul Nebula la categoria 'Cel mai bun roman' în 1972.

Titlul romanului este un citat din poemul Lycidas de John Milton.

Odată cu ascensiunea unui guvern sponsorizat de corporații, poluarea din orașele mari a atins nivele extreme și sănătatea majorității oamenilor a fost afectată într-un fel sau altul. Romanul are mai multe planuri narative și multe personaje nu se întâlnesc unele pe altele.
În loc de capitole, cartea este împărțită în secțiuni care variază în lungime de la câteva fraze la mai multe pagini. Personajul prinicipal, Austin Train este un fost cadru universitar care, deși a prezis și interpretat schimbări sociale, devine deziluzionat de nepăsarea societății.

(Ed Rao Books, 2000, 31,60 lei)

Richard Wiseman - 59 Seconds, Think a little change a lot

Richard Wiseman - 59 Seconds, Think a little change a lot

(2009, 213pg, en)

In “59 Seconds”, psychologist Professor Richard Wiseman presents a fresh approach to change that helps people achieve their aims and ambitions in minutes, not months. From mood to memory, persuasion to procrastination, and resilience to relationships, Wiseman outlines the research supporting this new science of rapid change, and describes how these quick and quirky techniques can be incorporated into everyday life. Think a little, change a lot.

This title helps to: discover why even thinking about going to the gym can help you keep in shape; learn how pot plants make you more creative; and, find out why putting a pencil between your teeth instantly makes you happier.

John Brunner - Reţelele infinitului

John Brunner - Reţelele infinitului
(The Webs of Everywhere)

(1974, 116pg, ro)

Here, Brunner deals with the broader philosophical and sociological implications of the existence of this kind of technology, whereas in the later novel he confronts it as a physics problem. Though Webs roots its story in a few assumptions that are initially a little hard to swallow — that the device, implemented without any sort of security apparatus of any kind, is singly responsible for the destruction of civilization as we know it — ultimately the tale is more thematically and intellectually rewarding.

Once the Skelter made global instantaneous travel a reality, it soon proved to have opened a Pandora's Box. Terrorists, criminals, and other miscreants used to device with impunity, wreaking havoc upon the world leading to an apocalyptic war the characters refer to as the Blowup. Not until after the dust had settled and the straggling remnants of humanity pulled themselves together did one of the world's few remaining wealthy movers and shakers, the philanthropist Chaim Aleuker, invent the privateer, that allowed Skelter owners a privacy code. It's a bit implausible, I know, that Skelters would have been built without such a device in the first place. Kind of like building a house without a door that locks.

Anyway, many years after the Blowup, we meet Hans Dykstra and Mustapha Sharif. Hans is a photographer and hobbyist who has been illegally buying Skelter codes from Mustapha, a blind Egyptian poet who has attained influence and reknown for his own philanthropic work. Hans wants a little reknown of is own, travelling to ruined cities and abandoned, forbidden territories to catalog their history; he hopes that after his own death his work will be appreciated despite its illegality. But soon ambition and greed take over Hans' altruism. One of the few men with a wife (the male/female population ratio is skewed), he is still deeply dissatisfied with his lot. Clearly a man can have what few other men have and still be miserable.

Arthur C Clarke - 3001: Odiseea Finală

Arthur C Clarke - 3001: Odiseea Finală
(3001: The Final Odyssey)

(1997, 149pg, ro)

3001 follows the adventures of Frank Poole, an astronaut who was deliberately killed by HAL 9000 in 2001: A Space Odyssey by casting him out into space. His body is discovered in the Kuiper belt, beyond the orbit of Neptune, by the comet-collecting space tug Goliath, after drifting in space for a millennium, and brought back to life, deep-freezing to near absolute zero having preserved him sufficiently for the advanced medical technology of the time to be able to revive him. He then explores the Earth of 3001, notable features of which are the BrainCap, a technology which interfaces computers directly with the human brain, genetically engineered dinosaur servants, a space drive, and four huge space elevators spaced around the Earth's Equator connected by a spaceport ring in geostationary orbit. Humanity has also colonized Jupiter's moons Ganymede and Callisto.

Arthur C Clarke - 2061: A treia odisee spatiala

Arthur C Clarke - 2061: A treia odisee spatiala
(2061: Odyssey Three)

(1987, 168pg, ro)

In 2061, at the age of 103, Floyd is chosen as one of several "celebrity guests" to come aboard the spaceliner Universe for the first-ever human landing on the surface of Halley's Comet, when it makes its periodic pass through the solar system. Meanwhile, a team of scientists on Ganymede are terraforming the moon. Scientist Rolf van der Berg, a second-generation Afrikaner refugee, studies pictures of Mount Zeus and determines that it is in fact one enormous diamond. He communicates his discovery to his uncle Paul Kreuger and decide that van der Berg will get aboard the Galaxy on its flyby of Europa to investigate.

As Galaxy nears Europa, a militant anti-Afrikaner USSA operative hijacks the ship forcing Galaxy to crash into Europa's ocean. She commits suicide and the rest of the crew lives stranded in their ship unable to forage, after they discover that Earth and Europan biology are incompatible. Universe receives the news that Galaxy needs rescue from Europa.

Van der Berg and Chris take the shuttle William Tsung (nicknamed Bill Tee) to study Mount Zeus, the wreck of the Chinese spacecraft Tsien, and the enormous monolith lying on its side at the border between the dayside and nightside, dubbed the Great Wall. Near Mount Zeus, van der Berg relays the message "LUCY IS HERE" to his uncle Paul, verifying that Mount Zeus is indeed one large diamond. The code word "Lucy" was chosen both in reference to the mini-sun Lucifer and to an article in the journal Nature in 1981 hypothesizing that the cores of Uranus and Neptune were in fact diamonds the size of Earth (caused by the compression of carbon), with the hypothesis making a logical extension to Jupiter. The article was subtitled "Diamonds in the Sky?" in reference to the Beatles song "Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds". Mount Zeus is a fragment of Jupiter's core which survived the creation of Lucifer and later struck Europa.

Arthur C Clarke - 2010: A doua odisee spatiala

Arthur C Clarke - 2010: A doua odisee spatiala
(2010: Odyssey Two)

(1982, 244pg, ro)

The story is set nine years after the failure of the Discovery One mission to Jupiter.

A joint Soviet-American crew, including Heywood Floyd from 2001, on the Soviet spaceship Alexei Leonov (named after the famous cosmonaut) arrives to discover what went wrong with the earlier mission, to investigate the monolith in orbit around the planet, and to resolve the disappearance of David Bowman. They hypothesize that much of this information is locked away on the now-abandoned Discovery One. The Soviets have an advanced new "Sakharov" drive which will propel them to Jupiter ahead of the American Discovery Two, so Floyd is assigned to the Leonov crew.

However, a Chinese space station rockets out of Earth orbit, revealing itself to be the interplanetary spacecraft Tsien, also aimed at Jupiter. The Leonov crewmembers think the Chinese are on a one-way trip due to its speed, but Floyd surmises that due to the large water content of Europa they intend to land there and use the water content to refuel. The Tsien's daring mission ends in failure, when it is destroyed by an indigenous life-form on Europa. The only survivor radios the story to the Leonov; it is presumed that he dies when his spacesuit air supply runs out.

Arthur C Clarke - Odiseea spatiala 2001

Arthur C Clarke - Odiseea spatiala 2001

(1968, 151pg, ro)

In the background to the story in the book, an ancient and unseen alien race uses a mechanism with the appearance of a large crystalline monolith to investigate worlds all across the galaxy and, if possible, to encourage the development of intelligent life. The book shows one such monolith appearing in ancient Africa, three million years B.C. (in the movie, this was altered to 4 million years), where it inspires a starving group of the hominid ancestors of human beings to conceive of tools. The ape-men use their tools to kill animals and eat meat, ending their starvation. They then use the tools to kill a leopard that had been preying on them; the next day, the main ape character, Moon-Watcher, uses a club to kill the leader of a rival tribe. Moon-Watcher reflects that though he is now master of the world, he is unsure of what to do next—but he will think of something. The book suggests that the monolith was instrumental in awakening intelligence, and enabling the transition of the ape-men to a higher order, with the ability to fashion crude tools and thereby be able to hunt and forage for food in a much more efficient fashion.

Arthur C Clarke - Mânia lui Dumnezeu

Arthur C Clarke - Mânia lui Dumnezeu
(The Hammer of God)

(1993, 131pg, ro)

A good portion of the book details the life of spaceship-captain Robert Singh (including his running a marathon race on the Lunar surface and uprooting his life and moving to Mars). When it is discovered that the asteroid Kali is likely to hit Earth, Singh's ship Goliath makes an emergency voyage to Kali with a load of thrusters to set up on the asteroid, hopefully nudging the rock's orbit just enough to push it clear of Earth. In the meantime, a religious sect called Chrislam, originally founded by a female veteran of the Persian Gulf War, believes that they can convert a human being into a few terabytes of computer information, and then transmit this data across space to Sirius (where they believe aliens reside); members of the sect also come to believe that the asteroid is meant to destroy the Earth. They thus sneak a bomb on board the Goliath and ruin the thrusters. While Singh uses the Goliath itself as a thruster to move the asteroid, the world government on Earth rushes to reconstruct one of the planet's long-decommissioned nuclear weapons, hoping to break the peanut-shaped Kali in two.

David Baldacci - Hour Game

David Baldacci - Hour Game

(2004, 303pg, en)

Two disgraced former Secret Service officers team up to solve a series of copy-cat crimes in this exciting new thriller by a master of the game. Sean King was momentarily distracted when a presidential candidate he'd been guarding was assassinated a few feet from where he stood, and Michelle Maxwell left the Service under a similar cloud when she lost a "protectee" to an ingenious kidnapping scheme, events told in Baldacci's typical terse, fast-paced style in Split Second.

Arthur C Clarke - Leul din Comarre

Arthur C Clarke - Leul din Comarre
(Lion of Commare)

(1968,43pg,ro)

Arthur C Clarke - Insula delfinilor

Arthur C Clarke - Insula delfinilor
(Dolphin Island)

(1963, 109pg)

Late one night (in the world of the future), a giant cargo hover ship makes an emergency landing somewhere in the middle of the United States and an enterprising teenager named Johnny Clinton stows away on it. In the space of only a few hours the craft crashes into the Pacific Ocean. The crew ("even the ship's cat") is offloaded onto lifeboats, leaving Johnny (who, as a stowaway, they didn't know was on board) adrift in the flotsam from the hovercraft. His life is saved by the "People of the Sea"--dolphins. A school of these fantastic creatures guides him to an island on Australia's Great Barrier Reef. Johnny becomes involved with the work of a strange and fascinating research community where a brilliant professor (Prof Kazan) tries to communicate with dolphins. Johnny learns skindiving and survives a typhoon--only to risk his life again, immediately afterwards, to get medical help for the people on the island.

Arthur C Clarke - Fântînile Paradisului

Arthur C Clarke - Fântînile Paradisului
(The Fountains of Paradise)

(1979, 202pg, ro)

The Fountains of Paradise is a Hugo[1] and Nebula[2] Award winning 1979 novel by Arthur C. Clarke. Set in the 22nd century, it describes the construction of a space elevator. This "orbital tower" is a giant structure rising from the ground and linking with a satellite in geostationary orbit at the height of approximately 36,000 kilometers (approx. 22,300 miles). Such a structure would be used to raise payloads to orbit without having to use rockets, making it much more cost-effective.

Arthur C Clarke - Fantoma adâncurilor

Arthur C Clarke - Fantoma adâncurilor
(The Ghost from the Grand Banks)

(1990, 151pg, ro)

The story deals with two groups, both of whom are attempting to raise one of the halves of the wreck of the Titanic from the floor of the Atlantic Ocean in time for the sinking's centennial in 2012.

Stephen Hawking - Scurta istorie a timpului

Stephen Hawking - Scurta istorie a timpului


(2008, 154pg)

Nici o carte de stiinta nu s-a bucurat vreodata de popularitatea ‘Scurtei istorii a timpului’; timp de mai bine de patru ani s-a aflat pe lista de bestseller-uri din Sunday Times, mai mult decat orice alta carte.

Bill Bryson - A Short History of Nearly Everything

(2003, 298 pg)

Bryson describes graphically and in layman's terms the size of the universe, and that of atoms and subatomic particles. He then explores the history of geology and biology, and traces life from its first appearance to today's modern humans, placing emphasis on the development of the modern Homo sapiens. Furthermore, he discusses the possibility of the Earth being struck by a meteor, and reflects on human capabilities of spotting a meteor before it impacts the Earth, and the extensive damage that such an event would cause. He also focuses on some of the most recent destructive disasters of volcanic origin in the history of our planet, including Krakatoa and Yellowstone National Park. A large part of the book is devoted to relating humorous stories about the scientists behind the research and discoveries and their sometimes eccentric behaviours. Bryson also speaks about modern scientific views on human effects on the Earth's climate and livelihood of other species, and the magnitude of natural disasters such as earthquakes, volcanoes, tsunamis, hurricanes, and the mass extinctions caused by some of these events. The book does however contain some inaccuracies and errors, see Errata (i.e. a list of errors) for "A Short History of Nearly Everything".

An illustrated edition of the book was released in November 2005.^[3] A few editions in Audiobook form are also available, including an abridged version read by the author, and at least three unabridged versions.

Bryson dealt in detail about the microbes and organisms living in the sea floors at a great temperature. These sea animals helps us in catching the carbon atoms and do a great to contain the green house effect.

Bernard Werber - Revolutia Furnicilor

Bernard Werber - Revolutia Furnicilor

(1996, 399pg, ro)

Bernard Werber - Furnicile

Bernard Werber - Furnicile

(1991, 230pg, ro)

The plot begins as two stories that take place in parallel, one in the world of humans (in Paris) and one in the world of ants (in a Formica rufa colony in a park near Paris). The time is the early 21st century (the recent future, relative to the time when Werber wrote the book). The human character receives a house and a provocative message as legacy from his recently died uncle. He begins to investigate the life and mysterious activities of his uncle and decides to descend into the cellar of the house but does not return. His family and other people follow and disappear. The ant character is a male whose foraging expedition gets destroyed in one strike by a mysterious force that comes from above. He suspects that a colony of another ant species has attacked them with a secret weapon, and attempts to meet with the queen and to rally other ants to investigate the disaster. However, he attracts the attention of a secret group of ants within the same colony that appear to want to conceal his information. As the plot unveils, the humans and the ants encounter new mysteries and participate in challenging events, including a war between different ant species. The descriptions of ant morphology, behavior, and social organization as well as their interactions with other species are engaging, detailed, and scientifically based, although Werber significantly exaggerates the reasoning and communication capabilities of the ants (rendering his work science-fiction).

Dana Stabenow - Dead in the water

Dana Stabenow - Dead in the water

(1993, 128pg, en)

It’s October, and Kate’s sometime boss and long-distance lover Jack Morgan hires her to investigate the strange disappearance of two crew members on a fishing boat working out of Dutch Harbor. Unfortunately, this means she has to take one of the vacant deckhand positions, and solving a double homicide on a 100-foot crabber in the middle of the Bering Sea is not Kate’s idea of a good time.

Chuck Klosterman - Eating the Dinosaur

Chuck Klosterman - Eating the Dinosaur

(2009, 204pg, en)

Eating the Dinosaur is the sixth book written by Chuck Klosterman, first published by Scribner in 2009. In the mold of Klosterman's earlier Sex, Drugs, and Cocoa Puffs, the book is a collection of previously unpublished essays concerning an array of pop culture topics.

Sven Hassel - Blindatele mortii

Sven Hassel - Blindatele mortii
(Wheels of Terror)

(1958, 190pg, ro)

The best-selling military writer returns to his comrades in 27th penal battalion, offering another gritty, realistic view of the ordinary soldier in wartime. Now stationed at the Russian Front, and equipped with armored vehicles, Sven Hassel's band of warriors from the German army gird for the next battles. Caught between the insane orders of the Nazi high command and the overwhelming numbers of Russian soldiers, they prepare to fight on nonetheless--and will do anything to survive the inferno. A remorseless ride through a man-made hell.

Sven Hassel - Batalion de mars

Sven Hassel - Batalion de mars

(1962, 234pg, ro)

Diferenţa nu-i chiar atât de mare pe cât ar putea părea, declară Barcelona Blom, scuipând prin oblonul tancului. După cum ştiţi, războiul civil din Spania l-am început ca „miliciano" în Servicios Especiales. Cei bănuiţi că ar aparţine coloanei a V-a sau c-ar fi fascişti erau duşi, prin Calle del Ave Maria, până la zidurile abatorului. Nisipul era într-atât de uscat încât sugea imediat sângele, de nu mai era nevoie să fie vânturat după execuţie. Preferam să-i împuşcăm stând în picioare, dar unii se aruncau pe jos şi nu era chip să-i scoli. Mulţi strigau: „Trăiască Spania!"

Poul Anderson - Avatarul

Poul Anderson - Avatarul

(420pg, ro)

In the immeasurable past a mysterious alien race known as The Others left mankind a challenging legacy, a 'gate' to the unexplored reaches of the stars. Humanity has utilized the gate to painstakingly colonize the Phoebus star system but has left the rest of the galaxy unexplored. In the midst of turbulent political upheaval on Earth, the exploratory ship Emissary leaves through the gate on a voyage of discovery. When the Emissary returns ahead of schedule the Social Welfare Party on Earth impounds the ship and imprisons its crew - and forbids all future space exploration. Dan Broderson, an entrepreneur and adventurer, commandeers a commercial spaceship from his own company and travels to Earth to find the Emissary. He locates the ship, confounds its captors and rescues some of the explorers, including the first alien to visit the solar system. But Broderson has to flee through the gate unprepared, to become a wanderer among the stars in search of The Others. They alone have the knowledge that will enable his ship to return home.

Steven Levy - Hackers, Heroes of the Computer Revolution

Steven Levy - Hackers, Heroes of the Computer Revolution
(25th Anniversary Edition)

(2010, 1061pg, en)

Hackers is a terrific telling of how the DIY mindset (and of course some shrewd business dealings) gave birth to the personal computer industry. The new edition includes recent interviews with Bill Gates, Mark Zukerberg, Richard Stallman, and Steven Wozniak. Hindsight is 20/20 but damn, those were different times.

Sven Hassel - Imperiul Iadului

Sven Hassel - Imperiul Iadului
(Reign of Hell)

(209pg,ro)

Umilit in fata portilor Moscovei in decembrie 1941, Hitler avea nevoie nu numai de o victorie militara, ci si de imagine.

A ales Stalingradul, loc care a devenit mormantul a 3 milioane de soldati.

Lino Aldani - Crucea de Gheaţă

Lino Aldani - Crucea de Gheaţă

(1996, 140pg, ro)

In secolul XXIII, parintele iezuit Francisco Morales de Acantara este hotarit sa-i converteasca la credinta intru Hristos pe indigenii altor lumi. El crede cu tarie in menirea sa de misionar si nu se da inapoi de la nimic pentru a s-o implini. Chiar daca asta inseamna pierderea oricarei posibilitati de intoarcere spre comunitatea umana... Chiar daca, in final, confruntarea cu extraterestri poate insemna moartea...

Chuck Klosterman - On Rock

Chuck Klosterman - On Rock

(2010, 268pg, en)

From Fargo Rock City, Sex, Drugs, and Cocoa Puffs; Chuck Klosterman IV; and Eating the Dinosaur, this ebook collects Klosterman's writing on rock.