I Used To Know That: Geography is an accessible yet fun way to revisit all the stuff you have forgotten from your school days.

Do you know which countries border Afghanistan? Or the difference between Micronesia and Melanesia? And that 51 member states existed in 1945 at the founding of the UN and 192 exist today? It's hard to know everything about geography, that amazing science that explains the interaction of diverse physical, biological, and cultural features of the Earth's surface. However, I Used to Know That: Geography explores both the physical and human aspects of the world in short order. With its entertaining, easy-to-understand language, this little book takes on a broad subject with ease. Inside you'll find: The physical world: rivers & coasts, tectonics, climate and weather, global issues The human world: world population growth, settlements and how they happened, industry and energy, and development Countries by continent maps, complete with capital cities and population counts Maps and a "tree" illustration, showing all branches of geography With its "a-ha!" facts, useful illustrations, and interesting sidebars, I Used to Know That: Geography offers answers to common geography questions and gives you all you need to know to start a provocative conversation at your next party.

It can be difficult to keep different historical events and figures straight in your head, which is why I Used to Know That: World History presents major episodes in history with short, easily understood sections. Among the people, movements, and events covered are: · Ancient Greece and Rome-Learn about the birth of democracy and the death of the Roman Republic · The Middle Ages-From the Crusades to the Hundred Years War and the signing of the Magna Carta to the Black Plague · The Renaissance-A cultural revival that changed art, poetry, learning, and religion forever · The Revolutionary War-How America became independent; George Washington, the “father of the nation” · The Age of Empire-European colonialism in Africa and Asia; American expansion and the Civil War · Wars of the 20th Century-World War I and World War II; Hitler, Stalin, Churchill, and Roosevelt; the Cold War; the rise and fall of fascism and communism Packed with important facts and sweeping overviews of historical events, I Used to Know That: World History is essential reading for anyone who wants to understand the history of civilization and the geopolitical situation of today.

Where on earth will you find a more exciting look at the world around us? Explore the world's continents, countries, and capital cities, and marvel at the planet's most extraordinary physical features-from the highest mountains to the deepest oceans-in a lighthearted mix of text, diagrams, maps, and amusing illustrations that will captivate children and encourage them to keep trekking. Divided into bite-size chunks, this book presents kids with a world of knowledge in the coolest ways possible and includes: a whirlwind tour of what planet Earth is made of and its position in the solar system. a look at the continents, with a listing of all the countries and their capital cities. forest fun facts and "tree-via." a chart of the world's largest deserts and the venomous animals that live there. an exciting journey across the ocean floor. Filled with hundreds of cool ways to remember the tallest, largest, longest, and most desolate, I Wish I Knew That: Geography is the perfect companion to help kids get a grip on the globe.

More information to be announced soon on this forthcoming title from Penguin USA

Do you know why we are able to see light and hear sound? What is the Earth made of? How does the body produce energy? And, most important, does any of this matter? In I Used to Know That: Science, Marianne Taylor will answer those questions and more and will tell you why the answers are vital to us and to the scientists working on the cutting edge of scientific research. In this book, you will learn about: Physics-Energy and Electricity: How electricity is generated; how heat moves from one place to another; the relationship between electricity and magnetismForces: The four fundamental forces; the origins of the universe; the composition and behavior of planets, stars and galaxies; the basic laws of mechanical physics Waves, Radiation and Space: How waves behave and how they affect us; the electromagnetic spectrum; radioactivity Chemistry-The Periodic Table: How to read the table; how atoms work; chemical bonds and reactionsFuels, Air and Pollution: Chemicals, both helpful and dangerous, in the air; crude oil and its useful chemicals; live cycle assessments Metals: The Earth’s structure; metals and alloys; construction materials Organic Chemistry: Natural polymers and their usefulness; nutrition; which chemicals are harmful Biology-Human (and Other) Bodies: The body’s systems-circulatory, skeletal, muscular, nervous, digestive, reproductive, respiratory and sensoryCell Biology: The structure of a cell; how photosynthesis works; what hormones do Evolution and Environment Ecology: The origins of life; how the eukaryotic cell evolved; mutation and natural selection; population, predation and extinction Genetics: what chromosomes are; how you inherit genetic traits; reproduction and cloning I Used to Know That: Science is a necessary read for anyone who wants to understand the modern scientific world and how the general principles of physics, chemistry, and biology affect our everyday lives.

"Rediscover what you learned in social studies and history class about the world and its inhabitants as well as new geography quick facts. I Used to Know That: Geography explores both the physical and human aspects of the world in short order. With its "a-ha!" facts, useful illustrations, and interesting sidebars, I Used to Know That: Geography offers answers to common geography questions"--

"All are lunatics, but he who can analyze his delusions is called a philosopher." -Ambrose Bierce, Epigrams If a tree falls and no one hears it, does it make a sound? I Used to Know That: Philosophy examines this and many other related questions. Spanning over some two-and-a-half thousand years of philosophical thought, this book covers the main highlights, from Pythagoras and Heraclitus, to Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle, to Descartes, Kierkegaard, Marx, and Sartre. From the Socratic method to structuralism, you'll get an overview of all the major theories, presented in an easy-to-understand and engaging format. This lively, fun-to-read compendium explains how philosophy began and uncovers the thinkers and movements that have used it in both brilliant and frightening ways. It includes: Short biographies of all the great philosophers, from the early Greeks to the modern greats All the main -isms and -ologies, from atomism to utilitarianism, via epistemology and ontology Quips, quotes, and conundrums to impress your friends at your next dinner party So if you ever paused to wonder about the origin of the phrase "platonic love" or why Nietzsche came to believe that "God is dead," this is the book for you. It will refresh and enlighten you, and it may even make you stop and reflect on the larger questions of life. Because after all, as Socrates said, "the unexamined life is not worth living."

What makes a nation happy? Is one country's sense of happiness the same as another's? In the last two decades, psychologists and economists have learned a lot about who's happy and who isn't. The Dutch are, the Romanians aren't, and Americans are somewhere in between... After years of going to the world's least happy countries, Eric Weiner, a veteran foreign correspondent, decided to travel and evaluate each country's different sense of happiness and discover the nation that seemed happiest of all. ·He discovers the relationship between money and happiness in tiny and extremely wealthy Qatar (and it's not a good one) ·He goes to Thailand, and finds that not thinking is a contented way of life. ·He goes to the tiny Himalayan kingdom of Bhutan, and discovers they have an official policy of Gross National Happiness! ·He asks himself why the British don't do happiness? In Weiner's quest to find the world's happiest places, he eats rotten Icelandic shark, meditates in Bangalore, visits strip clubs in Bangkok and drinks himself into a stupor in Reykjavik. Full of inspired moments, The Geography of Bliss accomplishes a feat few travel books dare and even fewer achieve: to make you happier.

Relearn the essential rules of the English language, from grammar and punctuation to sentence construction and parts of speech.