Inventors and Innovators

Battling disease, championing new techniques, recommending necessary medications, and offering comfort and guidance to those in need are just some of the many responsibilities with which healers over time have been charged. Even as the field of medical science rapidly evolves, doctors, researchers, and other medical professionals serve as significant reminders of the human element that has sustained the craft of healing for millennia. Readers discover surveys of the lives of many of those who are persevered in their pioneering quest for new and improved ways to treat a variety of ailments and conditions.

The peaceful coexistence between humans and nature is vital to the survival of every living thing on Earth. Naturalists, conservationists, and environmental activists are dedicated to curbing a number of ecological threats. Readers take a thoughtful look at the work of those individuals who have helped shape and advance the green movement, which aims to provide a sustainable future for all concerned.

Sometimes fickle and often devastating in its most extreme forms, the weather can seem inscrutable. Yet our understanding of weather systems and climate has improved greatly over the years due to the work of scientists dedicated to studying the planet's meteorological conditions. This absorbing volume introduces readers to individuals who have stood at the forefront of deciphering weather-related phenomena and advanced the science of climatology.

The pioneers of astronomy and space exploration have advanced humankind's understanding of the universe. These individuals include earthbound theorists such as Aristotle, Ptolemy, and Galileo, as well as those who put their lives on the line travelling into the great unknown. Readers chronicle the lives of individuals positioned at the vanguard of astronomical discovery, laying the groundwork for space exploration past, present, and yet to come.

Rapidly developing technological innovation and mass production have become such hallmarks of our industrialized world that we may fail to consider the events and individuals that laid the groundwork for our many conveniences today. Beginning in Europe in the mid-18th century, the Industrial Revolution continued growing and spreading as innovators around the world began modifying old machinery and methods for production or creating new ones. This lively volume profiles a number of the minds behind some of history's greatest industrial advances, including Robert Fulton, Margaret Knight, Thomas Edison, and Henry Ford.