Systems Science

"Resistance is futile." The greatest threat the Federation has ever faced is the half organic, half mechanical Borg. Now more dangerous than ever, the Borg threatens the Federation's past, present, and future. Read by Gates McFadden, "Beverly Crusher" on Star Trek, The Next Generation!

Estimating the cost of a project is critical to your business success. Done correctly, your company is profitable. Done wrong, you lose money. Michael Stone, a successful construction business consultant and trainer, shares his years of experience estimating residential projects in this manual. Estimating isn't difficult when you have a system. The purpose of this book is to help you create that system. It's an approach that helps you estimate without having to think about the process. An orderly approach makes estimating easier and more accurate.

Finding his way back to Earth through a portal, John returns to a very changed world. The shackles of galactic control have bound Earth and humanity ever tighter to the system. Now, John has to find a way to free Earth from galactic control while battling stronger, more powerful enemies. And worst of all, he will need to indulge in politics. Good thing he's got a new class and new allies.

A clock hangs over the head of every mortal. Counting down to the inescapable day that the Goddess of Death claims them. That is the way of the world. The natural cycle of mortals. The Gods, however, were said to live for forever. To exist so far outside of the natural laws of the universe that even their crimes can't be punished. But Knell Coba, at great cost, realizes this is nothing but another lie.

Intended to create life from nothingness, the Genesis Wave had the potential to become a weapon of awe-inspiring destructiveness, capable of rearranging matter and life energy on a planetary scale. After cataclysmic close calls, Starfleet wisely decided to destroy all data and records on Project Genesis, hoping to bury its deadly secrets forever...but now it is back with a vengeance...Read by Tim Russ, Tuvok on Voyager!

This explosive finale to Star Trek, The Next Generation centers on the Q Continuum's decision to destroy humanity's existence in space and time, and Captain Jean-Luc Picard's chance to sacrifice everything and save mankind. Featuring a dramatic reading by Jonathan Frakes and enhanced with sound effects and an original score!

The Supreme Court has always had the authority to issue emergency rulings in exceptional circumstances. But since 2017, the Court has dramatically expanded its use of the behind-the-scenes “shadow docket,” regularly making decisions that affect millions of Americans without public hearings and without explanation, through cryptic late-night rulings that leave lawyers—and citizens—scrambling. But Americans of all political stripes should be worried about what the shadow docket portends for the rule of law, argues Supreme Court expert Stephen Vladeck.

In the tradition of Dale Russakoff's The Prize and Dana Goldstein's The Teacher Wars, Wexler brings together history, research, and compelling characters to pull back the curtain on this fundamental flaw in our education system - one that fellow reformers, journalists, and policymakers have long overlooked, and of which the general public, including many parents, remains unaware.

Ten years ago, the world changed. The System brought dungeons and monsters to earth. Billions were lost. While most try to rebuild, Claire chooses to take revenge on the people who took advantage of orphans in the chaos—100 names, 100 targets. In this often brutal story about a world in chaos, Claire will kill every target on her list. No matter what it takes.

The System Apocalypse has come to Australia, altering native organisms and importing even more menacing creatures to the most dangerous continent on Earth. For Kira Kent, plant biologist, the System arrives while she's pulling an all nighter at work with her pair of kids in tow. Now, instead of mundane parental concerns like childcare and paying the bills, she's got to figure out how to survive a world where already deadly flora and fauna have grown even more perilous.

John de Lancie, in his role as "Q," headlines a Star Trek cast and crew (directed by Jonathan Frakes!) in this fully dramatized adventure of the future and the adventures of the heroic Starfleet officer who must save the Federation!

Every year, millions of Americans are overcharged and underserved while the health-care industry makes record profits. We know something is wrong, but the layers of bureaucracy designed to discourage complaints make pushing back seem impossible. Never Pay the First Bill is the guerilla guide to health care the American people and employers need. Drawing on 15 years of investigating the health-care industry, reporter Marshall Allen shows how companies and individuals have managed to force medical providers to play fair and shows how you can, too.

After revealing the deception spread by the Galactic Council and the hidden aspects of the System, John Lee and his friends flee the council building on Irvina. Just escaping the capital planet will tax them to their utmost. Evading the full force of the Galactic Council and their minions might be more than they can handle. While old allies deal with the new truths, friends fracture under the increasing pressure, and all the while, the System Quest hangs over John's head, unfinished. Their only hope - their only clue - lies in the Forbidden Zone.

There is no shortage of democracy, at least in name, and yet it is in crisis everywhere we look. From a cabal of plutocrats in the White House to gerrymandering and dark-money campaign contributions, it is clear that the principle of government by and for the people is not living up to its promise. The problems lie deeper than any one election cycle. As Astra Taylor demonstrates, real democracy - fully inclusive and completely egalitarian - has in fact never existed. In a tone that is both philosophical and anecdotal, Taylor invites us to reexamine the term.

Is our sun behaving differently from other stars? When an amateur astronomer discovers something strange on telescopic solar pictures, an explanation must be found. Is it merely artifact? Or has he found something totally unexpected? An expert international crew is hastily assembled, a spaceship is speedily repurposed, and the foursome is sent on the ride of their lives. What challenges will they face on this spur-of-the-moment mission to our central star?

The Kobayashi Maru is the test given to cadets at the Starfleet Academy - a simulated no-win situation in space. Now, the Starfleet officers share with each other the painful, often fierce lessons of their Kobayashi Maru as each man struggles to tap his inner strength and to overcome the most desperate situation of their careers! Featuring a dramatic reading by James Doohan and enhanced with sound effects and an original score!

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.

The immune system is our first line of defense against the hordes of microbes that threaten us constantly. Immunity answers the question everyone is asking now: What can I do to strengthen my immune system? Dr. Jenna Macciochi has studied the interplay of immunity, lifestyle, and health for over 20 years, and her book is filled with authoritative guidance. Dr. Macciochi also debunks common myths, explores why some people never get ill, and explains how germs - those pesky invaders - can actually be good for us.

After the end of the Enterprise™'s five-year mission, Captain Kirk, Mr. Spock, and Dr. McCoy struggle to establish new lives apart from one another and the starship. The newly promoted Admiral Kirk is placed in charge of a specially created Starfleet division and attempts to defuse a critical hostage situation; Mr. Spock, who, in the midst of a teaching assignment on Vulcan, finds the one thing he least expected; and Dr. McCoy, whose unerring instinct for trouble lands him smack in the middle of an incident that could trigger an interstellar bloodbath.

For the past 25 years, scientists have challenged conventional views of evolution and have developed revolutionary theories with profound implications. Fritjof Capra has been at the forefront of this revolution and now, in The Web of Life, he offers a brilliant synthesis of these exciting breakthroughs.