New updated edition includes color photos of personal adventures and first group of explorers to enter into the Giant Selenite Crystal Caves of Naica Chihuahua, Mexico in January of 2001.

Discover wonder. “A wanderlust-whetting cabinet of curiosities on paper.”— New York Times Inspiring equal parts wonder and wanderlust, Atlas Obscura is a phenomenon of a travel book that shot to the top of bestseller lists when it was first published and changed the way we think about the world, expanding our sense of how strange and marvelous it really is. This second edition takes readers to even more curious and unusual destinations, with more than 100 new places, dozens and dozens of new photographs, and two very special features: twelve city guides, covering Berlin, Budapest, Buenos Aires, Cairo, London, Los Angeles, Mexico City, Moscow, New York City, Paris, Shanghai, and Tokyo. Plus a foldout map with a dream itinerary for the ultimate around-the-world road trip. More a cabinet of curiosities than traditional guidebook, Atlas Obscura revels in the unexpected, the overlooked, the bizarre, and the mysterious. Here are natural wonders, like the dazzling glowworm caves in New Zealand, or a baobob tree in South Africa so large it has a pub inside where 15 people can sit and drink comfortably. Architectural marvels, including the M. C. Escher–like stepwells in India. Mind-boggling events, like the Baby-Jumping Festival in Spain—and no, it’s not the babies doing the jumping, but masked men dressed as devils who vault over rows of squirming infants. Every page gets to the very core of why humans want to travel in the first place: to be delighted and disoriented, uprooted from the familiar and amazed by the new. With its compelling descriptions, hundreds of photographs, surprising charts, maps for every region of the world, and new city guides, it is a book you can open anywhere and be transported. But proceed with caution: It’s almost impossible not to turn to the next entry, and the next, and the next.

The mysterious giant selenite crystals of Naica, Mexico are now known to be the largest crystals discovered on planet Earth. Join Leela Hutchison as she takes you on an adventure as one of the earliest explorers in January of 2001, into an Alien world right here on Earth. Come discover as if you were there yourself and find out why scientists from around the world visit this magical Crystal Palace far below the earth's surface. Considered one of the most hostile environments with temperatures once at 128 degrees when the caves were first discovered in 2000, a human can perish in less than thirty minutes while in these caverns.

What happened before the primordial fire of the Big Bang: a theory about the ultimate origin of the universe. In the beginning was the Big Bang: an unimaginably hot fire almost fourteen billion years ago in which the first elements were forged. The physical theory of the hot nascent universe—the Big Bang—was one of the most consequential developments in twentieth-century science. And yet it leaves many questions unanswered: Why is the universe so big? Why is it so old? What is the origin of structure in the cosmos? In An Infinity of Worlds, physicist Will Kinney explains a more recent theory that may hold the answers to these questions and even explain the ultimate origins of the universe: cosmic inflation, before the primordial fire of the Big Bang. Kinney argues that cosmic inflation is a transformational idea in cosmology, changing our picture of the basic structure of the cosmos and raising unavoidable questions about what we mean by a scientific theory. He explains that inflation is a remarkable unification of inner space and outer space, in which the physics of the very large (the cosmos) meets the physics of the very small (elementary particles and fields), closing in a full circle at the first moment of time. With quantum uncertainty its fundamental feature, this new picture of cosmic origins introduces the possibility that the origin of the universe was of a quantum nature. Kinney considers the consequences of eternal cosmic inflation. Can we come to terms with the possibility that our entire observable universe is one of infinitely many, forever hidden from our view?

This book invites you on a systematic tour through the fascinating world of crystals and their symmetries. The reader will gain an understanding of the symmetry of external crystal forms (morphology) and become acquainted with all the symmetry elements needed to classify and describe crystal structures. The book explains the context in a very vivid, non-mathematical way and captivates with clear, high-quality illustrations. Online materials accompany the book; including 3D models the reader can explore on screen to aid in the spatial understanding of the structure of crystals. After reading the book, you will not only know what a space group is and how to read the International Tables for Crystallography, but will also be able to interpret crystallographic specifications in specialist publications. If questions remain, you also have the opportunity to ask the author on the book's website.

The Encyclopedia of Caves and Karst Science contains 350 alphabetically arranged entries. The topics include cave and karst geoscience, cave archaeology and human use of caves, art in caves, hydrology and groundwater, cave and karst history, and conservation and management. The Encyclopedia is extensively illustrated with photographs, maps, diagrams, and tables, and has thematic content lists and a comprehensive index to facilitate searching and browsing.

Our lives are pretty stressful, from the mountains of work emails to the never-ending life admin, finding time to see friends and family whilst still getting in those gym workouts, and why does everyone on Instagram have all this figured out. Working with crystals is a way to slow that frenetic world down, realign your intentions and find the inner calm we all seek. Some say that crystals are magic, but they're more than just magic. They have the power to reveal your truest self, the version of you that's been waiting to be seen and acknowledged. The Crystal Code explains how to the harness the power of these awesome rocks, introducing us to seventy stones and their unique personalities. It will show you how to find the perfect crystals to empower and energize you and will teach you some easy rituals, meditations and crystallized self-care routines. Whether it's peacock ore to give you more confidence on that nerve-racking first date, white celestite to conquer anxiety or purple amethyst to you help you feel centred, this is the ultimate guide to regaining control of your life and to feeling happier, healthier and more grounded.

Author of Alien Scriptures: Extraterrestrials in the Holy Bible and frequent guest of History Channel's Ancient Aliens series, Reverend Michael Carter, takes ancient astronaut theory to its next developmental step in his latest work, A New World If You Can Take It: God, Extraterrestrials, and the Evolution Of Human Consciousness. Drawing on the works of such giants as Erich von Däniken and Zecharia Sitchin, it is well established that many in the UFO community believe that our ancient ancestors mistook extraterrestrial visitors for all powerful deities. Reverend Carter builds on this outlook by reexamining religious and spiritual philosophies and demonstrating how off-world intelligences shaped early religious teachings. The concepts presented in this book are not for the spiritually faint of heart or those with closed minds. Reverend Carter courageously asks, and answers, the next rational question: How can one reconcile spirituality and faith with a belief that ancient astronauts influenced the events depicted in humanity's greatest holy texts? Expanding on this line of questioning, Reverend Carter explores how expanding one's spiritual consciousness may actually lead to the next step in human evolution. Are you searching for more out of life? Do you have questions about what you have been taught by organized religion? Do you feel that if the world's diverse population recognized their shared singular tradition of extraterrestrial involvement in human affairs would foster peace and prosperity for all of humanity? Can the messages from present day Star Visitors to contactees hold the key to unlocking your spiritual potential? Reverend Michael Carter encourages his readers to ask these questions, research for answers, and embrace what resonates with your heart. Are you ready for a New World?

Whitely Strieber, author of Communion: A True Story considered Alien Scriptures: Extraterrestrials in the Holy Bible to be, "the best book ever written on the subject." Reverend Michael S. Carter's Alien Scriptures: Extraterrestrials in the Holy Bible is written from the point of view of a man or woman in biblical times, anything that came down from the sky would be considered a god, or at least sent by the gods. Now consider what the site of modern technology, such as a helicopter or rocket ship, would do to the mind of a 1st century man or woman. The explanation of this type of phenomenon would probably sound an awful lot like what we find in civilization's most sacred books. Reverend Michael S. Carter explores the possibilities that the Bible, Koran, and other religious texts contain clues to visitations from extraterrestrials in this expanded second edition of Alien Scriptures: Extraterrestrials in the Holy Bible. Rev. Michael J. Carter is originally from Baltimore, Maryland. He moved to New York City in 1980 and lived there for 25 years, working as a professional actor before moving to Asheville with his family. Michael is an ordained Interfaith minister and received his BA Degree in Letters from the College of New Rochelle where he graduated cum laude. He received his Masters In Divinity Degree from Union Theological Seminary in New York City (class of 2000).While serving various Unitarian Universalist Congregations in New York, Michael was trained as an anti-racism trainer and has been recognized by President Clinton for his efforts. Michael was also a weekly columnist for the Asheville Citizen Times. Rev. Carter now serves as the minister for Unitarian Universalist Congregation of The Swananoa Valley, in the beautiful mountains of Western North Carolina. Rev. Carter has written articles on UFOs and Religion for such publications as UFO Magazine, Alien Encounters ( A British Publication), The MUFON UFO Journal, Contact Forum, The S.P.A.C.E. Newsletter (Support Program for Abductees Contact Encounters) a UFO support group in New York City. He has spoken at UFO Conferences such as the 2nd Philadelphia, Need To Know Conference, The Annual Long Island UFO Conference with Budd Hopkins, as well as appearing on radio and TV appearances across the nation. Rev. Carter has also appeared on Japanese television discussing the Bible and UFOs. A long-time UFO experiencer, he lectures extensively on the topic of religion and UFOs. He has appeared on the Sci-Fi Channel's production of Steven Spielberg's Abduction Diaries, The Real 4400, Coast to Coast AM, and is a frequent guest on The History Channel's production of Ancient Aliens.