Understanding the terms used in science is important in order to succeed in science - students at all levels need to quickly recognize terminology in order to do well in the lab, on tests, and in the real world of the working scientist. But this terminology can be confusing because so much of it consists of combinations of roots, prefixes, and suffixes from other languages, primarily Latin and Greek, and students are often required to waste precious class time in rote memorization. Science Terms Made Easy is a dictionary of several thousand common science terms that are broken down into their component parts. Students using the work will soon learn the meaning of common suffixes, prefixes and roots, and they will begin to quickly understand the meaning of scientific terminology without resorting to memorization or frequently referring to standard dictionaries. Instead of being overly concerned with precise definitions, Science Terms Made Easy offers simple working definitions that enables students to quickly construct the meanings of these terms. Each entry includes: The language of origin of the word The meaning of the prefixes and suffixes in the word The definition of the root of the word BLAnd a working definition of the term, in some cases including a sample sentence. Science Terms Made Easy both saves time by avoiding rote memorization and encourages students to use their analytical skills to figure out meanings.

Renowned photographer Jonathan M. Singer presents his striking black-and-white images of Chinese ornamental rocks from a leading collection. Shaped by nature and selected by man, scholars' rocks, or gongshi, have been prized by Chinese intellectuals since the Tang dynasty, and are now sought after by Western collectors as well. They are a natural subject for the photographer Jonathan M. Singer, most recently acclaimed for his images of those other remarkable hybrids of art and nature, Japanese bonsai. Here Singer turns his lens on some 140 fine gongshi, ancient and modern, from the world-class collection of Kemin Hu, a recognized authority on this art form. In his photographs, Singer captures the spiritual qualities of these stones as never thought possible in two dimensions. He shows us that scholars' rocks truly are, in Hu's words, "condensations of the vital essence and energy of heaven and earth." Hu contributes an introductory essay on the history and aesthetics of scholars' rocks, explaining the traditional terms of stone appreciation, such as shou (thin), zhou (wrinkled), lou (channels), and tou (holes). She also provides a narrative caption for each stone, describing its history and characteristics. Spirit Stones forms a trilogy with Singer's two previous books, Botanica Magnifica and Fine Bonsai. In these volumes, he has established a new style of photography that blends the tonal richness and chiaroscuro of Old Master painting with a scientific clarity of detail; they represent a lasting achievement.