The Rocket Lab: Maurice Zucrow, Purdue University, and America’s Race to Space focuses on the golden era of space exploration between 1946 and 1966, specifically the life and times of Purdue University’s Dr. Maurice J. Zucrow, a pioneering teacher and researcher in aerospace engineering. Zucrow taught America’s first university course in jet and rocket propulsion, wrote the field’s first textbook, and established the country’s first educational Rocket Lab. He was part of a small c...

Shines a light on Detroit architect Wirt Rowland who, until now, has largely slipped into obscurity.In the early 1900s, Detroit was leading the nation in architectural innovation and designer Wirt Rowland was at the forefront of this advancement, yet few are even aware of his substantial contribution to the evolution of architectural style. It is widely believed that celebrated local architect Albert Kahn designed many of Detroit's structures, such as the General M...

The Complete Guide to Safe, Durable, and Beautiful Cob BuildingsPart of the Sustainable Building Essentials series, Essential Cob Construction delivers the most up-to-date design, engineering, and building guidance for one of the world's most enduring and expressive natural materials: cob. Learn how to build structurally sound, comfortable, low-carbon homes using clay, sand, and straw—with full support for permitting and modern building science.

This engaging survey of the Space Age links science and technology with politics and popular culture, war and peace, and crises and controversies. It examines the history of spaceflight as a mirror of human thought and action across the Earth.The volume encompasses the new astronomy and sciences of the modern era, the early dreamers and pioneers after 1903, the national competitions of the First World War, the rocket states that prepared for the Second World War, the rivalries and ...

At the turn of the 20th century, industrial manufacturing was expanding dramatically while factory buildings remained fire-prone relics of an earlier age. That is, until a 28-year-old civil engineer finally achieved what engineers around the world had unsuccessfully attempted. Working in his brother’s basement in Detroit, Julius Kahn invented the first practical and scientific method of reinforcing concrete with steel bars, which finally made it possible to construct strong, fireproof buil...

Rockets and Revolution offers a multifaceted study of the race toward space in the first half of the twentieth century, examining how the Russian, European, and American pioneers competed against one another in the early years to acquire the fundamentals of rocket science, engineer simple rockets, and ultimately prepare the path for human spaceflight.Between 1903 and 1953, Russia matured in radical and dramatic ways as the tensions and expectations of the Russian revolutio...

The original, complete, user-friendly introduction to natural building, now fully revised and updatedThe popularity of natural building has grown by leaps and bounds, spurred by a grassroots desire for housing that is healthy, affordable, and environmentally responsible. While there are many books available on specific methods such as straw-bale construction, cob, or timber framing, there are few resources which introduce the reader to the entire scope of this burg...

Witchcraft to Celebrate Your Optimistic & Adventurous SelfBoost your magical practice and personal development with the power of your Sagittarius Sun sign. Ivo Dominguez, Jr. and Enfys J. Book share what strengths and challenges your sign brings to both witchcraft and everyday life. Featuring recipes, exercises, stories, rituals, and spells from the authors and a host of Sagittarius contributors, this book teaches you how to best connect with your sign's energy, ma...

Witchcraft to Celebrate Your Fierce & Fiery SelfBoost your magical practice and personal development with the power of your Aries Sun sign. Ivo Dominguez, Jr. and Diotima Mantineia share what strengths and challenges your sign brings to both witchcraft and everyday life. Featuring recipes, exercises, stories, rituals, and spells from the authors and a host of Aries contributors, this book teaches you how to best connect with Aries energy, manage your power, cleanse...

Witchcraft to Celebrate Your Ambitious & Determined SelfImprove your magical practice and personal development with the power of your Capricorn Sun sign. Ivo Dominguez, Jr. and Maria Wander share what strengths and challenges your sign brings to both witchcraft and everyday life. Featuring recipes, exercises, stories, rituals, and spells from the authors and a host of Capricorn contributors, this book teaches you how to best connect with your sign’s energy, manage ...

Witchcraft to Celebrate Your Innovative & Independent SelfEnhance your magical practice and personal development with the power of your Aquarius Sun sign. Ivo Dominguez, Jr. and Mickie Mueller share what strengths and challenges your sign brings to both witchcraft and everyday life. Featuring recipes, exercises, stories, rituals, and spells from the authors and a host of Aquarius contributors, this book teaches you how to best connect with your sign's energy, manag...

It was all part of man's greatest adventure--landing men on the Moon and sending a rover to Mars, finally seeing the edge of the universe and the birth of stars, and launching planetary explorers across the solar system to Neptune and beyond.The ancient dream of breaking gravity's hold and taking to space became a reality only because of the intense cold-war rivalry between the superpowers, with towering geniuses like Wernher von Braun and Sergei Korolyov shelving dreams of space t...