Fire
A Very Short Introduction
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Fire
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Narrated by:
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James Cameron Stewart
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By:
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Andrew C. Scott
About this listen
Fire is rarely out of the headlines, from large natural wildfires raging across the Australian or Californian countrysides to the burning of buildings such as the disasters of Grenfell tower and Notre Dame. Fire on these scales can represent a serious risk to human life and property. But the advent of fire made and controlled by humans also represented a crucial point in our evolution, allowing us to cook our food, forge our weapons, and warm our homes.
This Very Short Introduction audiobook covers the fundamentals of fire, whether wild or under human control, starting with the basics of ignition, combustion, and fuel. Andrew Scott considers both natural wildfires and the role of humans in making and suppressing fire. Despite frightening reports of wildfire destruction, he also shows how landscape fires have been part of our planet's history for 400 million years and do not always have to be extinguished. He also considers the problem of fires in urban settings, including new ways to prevent fires. The cost of wildfire can be steep - as well as the burning, post-fire erosion and flooding can have a great impact on both humans and the environment. It can also have a lasting effect in shaping ecosystems and plant life. Scott ends by examining the relationship between fire and the climate and considering the future of wildfire in a warming world.
©2020 Andrew C. Scott (P)2021 TantorListeners also enjoyed...
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Story0 out of 5 stars 0
This sensitive picture of the constant and circumspect struggle waged by peasants materially and ideologically against their oppressors shows that techniques of evasion and resistance may represent the most significant and effective means of class struggle in the long run.
By: James C. Scott
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Energy Systems
- A Very Short Introduction
- By: Nick Jenkins
- Narrated by: Chris Sorensen
- Length: 4 hrs and 26 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall3.5 out of 5 stars 9
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Performance3.5 out of 5 stars 8
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Story4 out of 5 stars 8
In this Very Short Introduction, Nick Jenkins explores our historic investment in the exploitation of fossil energy resources and their current importance, and discusses the implications of our increasing rate of energy use. He considers the widespread acceptance by scientists and policy makers that our energy systems must reduce emissions of CO2 and other greenhouse gases, and looks forward to the radical changes in fuel technology that will be necessary to continue to provide energy supplies in a sustainable manner, and extend access across the developing world.
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3 out of 5 stars
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Extremely irritating voice distracting from the substance
- By Kindle Customer FB on 12-29-23
By: Nick Jenkins
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Classical Mythology
- A Very Short Introduction
- By: Helen Morales
- Narrated by: Julia Whelan
- Length: 3 hrs and 55 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4 out of 5 stars 15
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Performance4 out of 5 stars 15
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Story4 out of 5 stars 15
This imaginative and stimulating Very Short Introduction audiobook goes beyond a simple retelling of the stories to explore the rich history and diverse interpretations of classical mythology. It is a wide-ranging account, examining how classical myths are used and understood in both high art and popular culture, taking the listener from the temples of Crete to skyscrapers in New York, and finding classical myths in a variety of unexpected places: from Arabic poetry and Hollywood films, to psychoanalysis, the Bible, and New Age spiritualism.
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1 out of 5 stars
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Woeful: poorly titled, written, and structured
- By Drone Boy on 05-08-24
By: Helen Morales
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Seeing Like a State
- By: James C. Scott
- Narrated by: Michael Kramer
- Length: 16 hrs and 6 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 482
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 393
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 389
Why do well-intentioned plans for improving the human condition go tragically awry? Author James C. Scott analyzes failed cases of large-scale authoritarian plans in a variety of fields. Centrally managed social plans misfire, Scott argues, when they impose schematic visions that do violence to complex interdependencies that are not - and cannot - be fully understood. Further, the success of designs for social organization depends upon the recognition that local, practical knowledge is as important as formal, epistemic knowledge.
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3 out of 5 stars
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Beats a dead horse and then beats it again
- By Nathan Parker on 10-29-20
By: James C. Scott
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War and Religion
- A Very Short Introduction
- By: Jolyon Mitchel, Joshua Rey
- Narrated by: Anne Flosnik
- Length: 3 hrs and 50 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 11
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 11
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 11
Is religion a force for war, or a force for peace? Some of the most terrible wars in history have been caused and motivated by religion. Much of the violence that fills our screens today springs from the same source. Yet some of the bravest pacifists have also been deeply religious people, and many of the laws and institutions that work to soften or prevent war have deep religious roots. This Very Short Introduction provides an overview of the history of religion and war, and a framework for analyzing it.
By: Jolyon Mitchel, and others
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Concentration Camps
- A Very Short Introduction
- By: Dan Stone
- Narrated by: Paul Woodson
- Length: 4 hrs and 12 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 7
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Performance5 out of 5 stars 7
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 7
Concentration camps are a relatively new invention, a recurring feature of 20th century warfare, and one that is important to the modern global consciousness and identity. Although the most famous concentration camps are those under the Nazis, the use of concentration camps originated several decades before the Third Reich, in the Philippines and in the Boer War, and they have been used again in numerous locations, not least during the genocides in Bosnia and Rwanda.
By: Dan Stone
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Fractals
- A Very Short Introduction
- By: Kenneth Falconer
- Narrated by: Jason Huggins
- Length: 3 hrs and 58 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 5
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Performance5 out of 5 stars 5
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Story4 out of 5 stars 5
From the contours of coastlines to the outlines of clouds, and the branching of trees, fractal shapes can be found everywhere in nature. In this Very Short Introduction, Kenneth Falconer explains the basic concepts of fractal geometry, which produced a revolution in our mathematical understanding of patterns in the 20th century, and explores the wide range of applications in science, and in aspects of economics.
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5 out of 5 stars
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I have always been skeptical of Fractals
- By Duane Guthrie on 09-29-24
By: Kenneth Falconer