An ambitious and beautifully illustrated account of the evolution and biology of insects. Insects are the busy, teeming arthropods on whose activities much of life on earth depends, and whose global populations are currently under the gravest of threats - with unimaginable consequences for us all. In Alien Worlds, Steve Nicholls explores nothing less than a complete natural history of insects, bringing us on a journey through a world of a million species and their phenomenal and extraordinary diversity. A fantastically authoritative and congenial guide, led by a fluent and entertaining writer with the ability to make complex ideas comprehensible, it is not only a feast for the curious mind but also contains beautiful and visually arresting imagery of the tiny beasts whom we depend on greatly.

The first Europeans to set foot on North America stood in awe of the natural abundance before them. The skies were filled with birds, seas and rivers teemed with fish, and the forests and grasslands were a hunter's dream, with populations of game too abundant and diverse to even fathom. It's no wonder these first settlers thought they had discovered a paradise of sorts. Fortunately for us, they left a legacy of copious records documenting what they saw, and these observations make it possible to craft a far more detailed evocation of North America before its settlement than any other place on the planet.

Here Steve Nicholls brings this spectacular environment back to vivid life, demonstrating with both historical narrative and scientific inquiry just what an amazing place North America was and how it looked when the explorers first found it. The story of the continent's colonization forms a backdrop to its natural history, which Nicholls explores in chapters on the North Atlantic, the East Coast, the Subtropical Caribbean, the West Coast, Baja California, and the Great Plains. Seamlessly blending firsthand accounts from centuries past with the findings of scientists today, Nicholls also introduces us to a myriad cast of characters who have chronicled the changing landscape, from pre-Revolutionary era settlers to researchers whom he has met in the field.

A director and writer of Emmy Award-winning wildlife documentaries for the Smithsonian Channel, Animal Planet, National Geographic, and PBS, Nicholls deploys a cinematic flair for capturing nature at its most mesmerizing throughout. But "Paradise Found" is much more than a celebration of what once was: it is also a reminder of how much we have lost along the way and an urgent call to action so future generations are more responsible stewards of the world around them. The result is popular science of the highest order: a book as remarkable as the landscape it recreates and as inspired as the men and women who discovered it.

From the machair grasslands of the Outer Hebrides to the chalk cliffs of Kent, and from the dense pinewoods of Abernethy forest to the wetlands of the Fens of eastern England, Britain offers a richly varied array of habitats for our wild flowers. The distinguished science and natural history producer and filmmaker Steve Nicholls presents a visually stunning survey of Britain's best-loved wildflowers, illustrated with the his own beautiful photographs of flora in their habitat. Focusing on three broad habitats - grassland, open land and woodland - he offers a biologically rigorous but engagingly readable account of our wild flowers and the places that nourish them. He probes deep into the social and cultural history of wild flowers to tell a plethora of fascinating stories, from the 'daffodil trains' which transported Londoners to the 'golden triangle' in Gloucestershire to experience woodlands carpeted with wild daffodils, to the odd case of the Bath asparagus - which isn't an asparagus at all, but rather the edible flower buds of the rare spiked star of Bethlehem, which used to grow in abundance around Bath.

"Better PR and Editorial Photography" is a brand new resource manual that shows you how to set photographs up, how to handle individuals and groups shots and how to make your images more interesting. It looks at how you can use props to make your images come alive and shows you techniques to let you handle people shots, groups, portraits, event shots, presentations and much more. If ever you've looked at the press/editorial photographs you've taken and thought "how could I make them better?" this book is for you.

What is social media? Social media is a generic label describing the dynamic interaction among the global community, enabled by the use of web-based and mobile technological advancements. No precise definitions exist in fact; social media and Internet are now readily interchangeable terms, which is sometimes called Web 2.0, 3.0, Web Squared, or just the Internet. This openness is one of social media s greatest strengths, but understanding its impact can be overwhelming and confusing. Social media represents a major shift in how you, your customers, competitors, and suppliers in fact, everyone uses the Internet. The main shift is how people actively interact in cyberspace, rather than just viewing pages. This sudden change has surprised many as it represents the Internet s ongoing evolution, helped by technology with new devices such as mobility, iPads and Internet on large flat screen televisions, by communication companies providing increasing access to broadband technology, and by new media companies providing new applications such as Facebook. Social Media in Business provides an overview of the opportunities social media offers to a business and a concrete plan to help managers and decision-makers, effectively, integrate social media platforms into their current organizational structure. What are the key aims of SOCIAL MEDIA IN BUSINESS? 1. To provide a clear guide to social media in business for managers This book aims to help the manager to understand the opportunities and to create a common language of what social media means for your whole organization, not just the marketing and information technology (IT) parts of the business that tend to dominate the conversation around social media. Secondly, it provides a guide to a host of available social media applications and tools for business. Finally, the book presents an overview of the potential risks and impact of social media on your organization in a broader strategic sense. 2. To provide a practical framework for the introduction and implementation of social media that can be adapted to your organization The 3-CORE Project Success System The framework introduced in this book is The 3-CORE Project Success System, based on three elements: Business Environment, Project Stages, and The Project Development Cycle. The key idea is that the framework can be adapted to your organizational context and is easy to use in training employees who may not be familiar with social media or project management. The Project Development Cycle is a tool developed by the author to help organizations meet the above objectives. In Social Media In Business, readers will discover: * Four Business Opportunities of Social Media * How Social Media has Developed over the Last Three Years * The Social Media Applications Guide * Five Social Media Dark Sides and Mitigation Strategies * The 3-CORE Project Success System * The Project Development Cycle Praise for SOCIAL MEDIA IN BUSINESS An invaluable guide to the marketing opportunities presented by social media and how to use them to best effect in business. This book tells you everything you need to know in a concise and easy to follow format. .

The siege of Malta during World War 2 is one of the great epics of aerial warfare. In 1942, it was described alternately as both a 'fighter pilot's paradise' and 'the most bombed place on earth'. During the peak of the Axis efforts against Malta, it suffered 154 consecutive days and nights of bombing, 100 nights more that London suffered during the Blitz.
The destruction of Axis convoys by Malta-based aircraft proved to be one of the decisive factors in the defeat of Rommel's forces in North Africa. This vital position would have been lost if it had not been for the successful defence of the island by a handful of greatly outnumbered Royal Air Force fighter squadrons. In the brutal and unforgiving air war over Malta only the very best fighter pilots succeeded, and all too often that was no guarantee of living another day. This book details the heroic story of the Spitfire Aces based on Malta. Drawn from an international team of Australians, British, Canadians, New Zealanders, Rhodesians and South Africans these pilots fought against extreme deprivation, physical hardships and overwhelming odds in one of the most crucial and decisive air battles of World War II.