The eruption of Tonga's underwater volcano, in January 2022, vaporized 150 million tons of seawater and shot a geyser of super heated steam through the stratosphere. The water vapour, a strong greenhouse gas, may increase global temperatures for at least five years. For the past 800,000 years, atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2) was about 290 parts per million (ppm). Many people believe the current atmospheric CO2 concentration of 415 ppm is causing global warming. (While commercial greenhouses use 1000 to 1500 ppm of CO2 to optimize plant growth). But . . . there is no correlation between temperature and atmospheric CO2 over the past 500 million years, so CO2 does not appear to directly affect the temperature. And . . . the automatic thermostatic effect of a small increase in cloud cover could offset the effect of greenhouse gases by reflecting more solar radiation back into space. Between 717 and 635 million years ago, the Earth was probably covered in ice and snow. However, between 56 and 34 million years ago the average temperature near the poles was 25°C warmer than it is today. The Little Ice Age devastated harvests in Europe from 1300 to 1850 CE, causing starvation and sickness. Wood was expensive so, in London, England, people began burning coal despite the smoke and dirt. But . . . almost everyone on the planet is five times wealthier than their ancestors. In the past 70 years, the average life span increased from about 40 years to more than 80 and the average world income grew from less than $3 to more than $33 per person per day. This explosive growth in productivity (largely as a result of fossil fuels) was responsible for astonishing improvements in health, education, and longevity. Eliminating fossil fuels will cause massive declines in productivity but the average person is still expected to be four times richer by 2100 CE despite disruptions. Read WEALTH at https://www.wattpad.com/user/duncmacphun

H.Becquerel found uranium emitted radiation and, in1898, M.Curie extracted minute traces of radium from ore. J.Maxwell predicted electro-magnetic radiation in 1855 and Einstein formulated special relativity; mass could be converted into energy. In 1905, E.Rutherford found radon gas emitted helium nuclei. In 1919, F.Aston identified 212 naturally occurring isotopes. But why was the atomic weight of helium exactly 4.000 and not 4.032? In 1925, Rutherford transmuted nitrogen into an isotope of oxygen. By 1934, J.Chadwick had found neutrons emitted by polonium and E.Fermi had transmuted uranium into plutonium. Fermi's research reactor went critical in 1942. The 235-uranium was extracted at Oak Ridge, while plutonium was produced in Washington state and the first atom bomb exploded in New Mexico in 1945. Two more atom bombs destroyed Hiroshima and Nagasaki, ending the war with Japan. The first practical nuclear power plant was developed for submarines and, by 2021, 442 fission reactors supplied about 10% of the world's electricity. WHO THE HELL ARE WE? is a series of short books and videos describing the evolution of civilization. Almost everyone on the planet is five times wealthier than their ancestors only 50 years ago. This astonishing phenomenon has also improved health, education, and longevity. The cause; an explosive growth in ideas and productivity. It began when we learned to control fire, evolved articulate speech and stumbled onto the way to create infinite wealth; free trade. The discovery of agriculture made us richer but we also learned how to destroy wealth. Great civilization grew up but then disappeared leaving only incredible ruins and ideas. Later books detail some of the ideas and developments that increased the average life span from about 40 years to more than 80 and the average world income from less than $3 to more than $33 per person per day (and to $140 per day in some countries).

The Orville and Wilbur Wright flew under power in 1903. The first flight travelled only 120 feet but Wilbur flew 24.5 miles in 38 minutes in August 1904. More powerful aircraft engines were developed during WW-1 but airframes were too fragile for aerial fighting. H.Focke's transverse twin-rotor helicopter, broke all helicopter world records in 1937. After WW-1, designers used duralumin airframes and smaller, monoplane wings for fighter aircraft like the Supermarine Spitfire. At Midway, in 1942, American dive-bombers sank three of the four Japanese aircraft carriers. I.Sikorsky developed the first practical single rotor helicopter with a single tail boom rotor and produced over 400 helicopters in WW-2. The Messerschmitt Me 262 was the first jet fighter in action in 1944. For maximum efficiency most jet aircraft need to cruise at about Mach 0.8 (610 mph) and at altitudes above 30,000 ft. In 2021, with battery powered, contra-rotating propellers spinning at 2500 rpm, NASA's Dragonfly helicopter lifted off from the surface of Mars. It weighed only 2 pound. WHO THE HELL ARE WE? is a series of short books and videos describing the evolution of civilization. Almost everyone on the planet is five times wealthier than their ancestors only 50 years ago. This astonishing phenomenon has also improved health, education, and longevity. The cause; an explosive growth in ideas and productivity. It began when we learned to control fire, evolved articulate speech and stumbled onto the way to create infinite wealth; free trade. The discovery of agriculture made us richer but we also learned how to destroy wealth. Great civilization grew up but then disappeared leaving only incredible ruins and ideas. Later books detail some of the ideas and developments that increased the average life span from about 40 years to more than 80 and the average world income from less than $3 to more than $33 per person per day (and to $140 per day in some countries).

N.Otto was selling 634, 3 hp piston engines a year by 1875 and, between 1908 and 1927, Ford sold over 4 million Model T automobiles. In 1903 the Wright Brother's engine produced 1 horsepower for each 17 pounds of engine weight. In 1943, the Rolls-Royce Merlin aero engine developed 2,000 hp; 1.2 hp for each pound. W.von Braun developed the V-2 long-range rocket used in 1943. Also during World War 2, A.Franz, mass-produced the Jumo 004 turbojet for German aircraft. In 1945, the V-1 cruise missile was powered by a pulsejet engine with virtually no moving parts. The Lockheed "Blackbird" was the fastest manned ramjet; capable of Mach 2 to 4 supersonic speeds. On October 4, 1957 the satellite Sputnik 1 proved that the Soviets were capable of reaching any point in the USA with nuclear weapons. The Syncom 3 communication satellite was placed in geostationary orbits over the Pacific on August 19, 1964. In July 1969 N.Armstrong and B.Aldrin landed a Lunar Module on the moon. WHO THE HELL ARE WE? is a series of short books and videos describing the evolution of civilization. Almost everyone on the planet is five times wealthier than their ancestors only 50 years ago. This astonishing phenomenon has also improved health, education, and longevity. The cause; an explosive growth in ideas and productivity. It began when we learned to control fire, evolved articulate speech and stumbled onto the way to create infinite wealth; free trade. The discovery of agriculture made us richer but we also learned how to destroy wealth. Great civilization grew up but then disappeared leaving only incredible ruins and ideas. Later books detail some of the ideas and developments that increased the average life span from about 40 years to more than 80 and the average world income from less than $3 to more than $33 per person per day (and to $140 per day in some countries).

In 1885 a Pennsylvanian oil field produced 77 % of the world's oil supply. By 1889, J.Maxwell's equations for electro-magnetism and H.R. Hertz's, proof inspired Einstein's theory of relativity. By 1841, W.Talbot and J. Herschel had fixed photographic images on silver iodide coated paper. Kodachrome film captured red, green, and blue colours in three layers of emulsion in 1936. J.M. Spangler developed the first successful portable 'Electric Suction Sweeper' in 1908. In 1851, I. Singer added a foot treadle drive to his sewing machines and, by 1900, a shirt could be made in one hour. In 1885, John Starley and William Sutton invented the modern safety bicycle. S. Morse sent his first telegraph message in 1844 and 32 years later, Alexander Graham Bell made the first long-distance telephone call. The rotary Strowger switch allowed connections without an operator in 1891. Banks of these later provided 13,200 voice channels on one coaxial cable. Marconi's spark gap radio of 1896 was crucial during the 1912 Titanic disaster. WHO THE HELL ARE WE? is a series of short books and videos describing the evolution of civilization. Almost everyone on the planet is five times wealthier than their ancestors only 50 years ago. This astonishing phenomenon has also improved health, education, and longevity. The cause; an explosive growth in ideas and productivity. It began when we learned to control fire, evolved articulate speech and stumbled onto the way to create infinite wealth; free trade. The discovery of agriculture made us richer but we also learned how to destroy wealth. Great civilization grew up but then disappeared leaving only incredible ruins and ideas. Later books detail some of the ideas and developments that increased the average life span from about 40 years to more than 80 and the average world income from less than $3 to more than $33 per person per day (and to $140 per day in some countries).

*SEQUEL TO THE POST SUNDAY EXPERIMENT* Days after graduating her senior year of high school, Aubrey Nadir finds herself lost and looking at the only place she's ever had. The sky. When her mother died eleven years ago, the child seemed to lose her heart. She did not know how to move on, so she did all she could to keep up her one, childish promise to her mom. The promise was this, that she would 'take her mom to the stars.' So here, eleven years later, Aubrey continues to watch the midnight diamonds above. Doing all she can, Aubrey dreams of being accepted into a certain NASA internship program in her gap year before college. This will allow the penniless girl from Washington, DC to have a chance at something bigger in life than the polluted sidewalks and flashing streetlights of her city. Holding onto hope after school ends, Aubrey comes across something odd in the pattern of the sky. A black circle that blends into the sky covers a select few stars. Sharing her observations and theories with her blog, a member of an organization called "The PSE" notices her unique theory that changes the way we look at our universe. Later accepted by this internship Aubrey believes to be with NASA, she soon finds it is not what she expected. She is not studying the sky but instead needed to work with the PSE, the military, the US government, and select NASA employees to understand this circle that has the potential to cause unexpected, devastating effects.

The human population increased from 1 billion to 7.8 billion between 1800 and 2020 because of sewage treatment, clean drinking water, vitamins, vaccines and antibiotics. In the USA in 1800, 46% of babies died before their fifth birthday; in 2020 less than 1% died. (Breastfeeding babies up to 12 months should be given 400 IU of vitamin D per day; 600 IU thereafter). In 1536, Jacques Cartier's crew were cured of scurvy with a tea made from the arbor vitae tree's needles (which have 50 mg of vitamin C per 100g). In 1796, Dr.E.Jenner developed a smallpox vaccine from cowpox. In 1812, When Napoleon invaded Russia only 40,000 soldiers survived a typhus epidemic; over 400,000 died. Between1848 and 1870, life expectancy in Liverpool, England, increased from 19 years to 40 years because of the new sewage system. In 1854, Dr. J. Snow identified a public well as the source of a cholera outbreak in London. In 1865, J.Lister applied a carbolic acid solution, to a boy's broken leg and was amazed when the leg bones fused back together without gangrene. WHO THE HELL ARE WE? is a series of short books and videos describing the evolution of civilization. Almost everyone on the planet is five times wealthier than their ancestors only 50 years ago. This astonishing phenomenon has also improved health, education, and longevity. The cause; an explosive growth in ideas and productivity. It began when we learned to control fire, evolved articulate speech and stumbled onto the way to create infinite wealth; free trade. The discovery of agriculture made us richer but we also learned how to destroy wealth. Great civilization grew up but then disappeared leaving only incredible ruins and ideas. Later books detail some of the ideas and developments that increased the average life span from about 40 years to more than 80 and the average world income from less than $3 to more than $33 per person per day (and to $140 per day in some countries).

The arms race began in Mesopotamia with the invention of composite bows, light chariots and crossbows. The Persian (Iranian) emperor tried to conquer Athens in 480 BCE but was delayed by the Spartans at Thermopylae while Greek warships destroyed the Persian fleet. The Macedonian ruler, Alexander the Great, completely destroyed the Persian armies by 326 BCE and established the Greek empire. Then, between 600 and 200 BCE, a few hundred Greeks revolutionized science, mathematics, medicine, engineering, history, law and philosophy. Meanwhile, Greeks settlers in Sicily were in conflict with Rome and, by first century BCE, Romans had conquered Greece, Egypt, Carthage and the old Persian empire. Roman traders made large profits using the Silk Road between Rome, China and India and which created higher incomes though out the Roman empire. Roman engineers built more than 80,000 km of roads throughout the empire and 800 km of aqueducts in Rome delivered a million cubic metres of water each day. WHO THE HELL ARE WE? is a series of short books and videos describing the evolution of civilization. Almost everyone on the planet is five times wealthier than their ancestors only 50 years ago. This astonishing phenomenon has also improved health, education, and longevity. The cause; an explosive growth in ideas and productivity. It began when we learned to control fire, evolved articulate speech and stumbled onto the way to create infinite wealth; free trade. The discovery of agriculture made us richer but we also learned how to destroy wealth. Great civilization grew up but then disappeared leaving only incredible ruins and ideas. Later books detail some of the ideas and developments that increased the average life span from about 40 years to more than 80 and the average world income from less than $3 to more than $33 per person per day (and to $140 per day in some countries).

COMPLETED // Highest Ranking: #12 in Science Fiction As the author I feel the responsibility to warn you of what you will encounter if you choose to read The Academy For Genetically Altered Children series: -a boy whose life depends on a rock -a lurking monster -a lot of sassiness -strange powers -a future that might not be far off from our own -a room full of weapons -strange, vivid dreams -bullies -children infused with animals -students disappearing - SO MUCH MORE // Even among a genetically altered society Andromeda Lovelace, Kai Kinsman, Layla DeStone, and Orion Hornthaw are considered far from normal. The GOP (Government Owned Property) Children were created, their genes professionally selected before they even came into existence. Birthed by surrogate mothers for the government, these four children have to discover just how they came to be, why they exist, and what the New Nation expects from them. At the age of twelve, they each are selected for the Academy for Genetically Gifted Children; an institution for "special" children. There, they will face insane tasks, meet a diverse group of kids and adults, and uncover secrets about themselves, the academy, and the government--ones that might better be kept hidden. Meanwhile, something sinister is haunting the academy's grounds and the GOP Children are facing inner battles of their own: Andi is having drastically realistic nightmares, Kai's life depends on a rock, Layla is hearing screams and whispers, and Rion has secrets of his own. Join the four GOP Children on a journey that may make you question things about yourself, the future, and what is right and what is inhumane in a world that may not be so far off--and maybe, just maybe you'll even see a little bit of yourself in each character. // This is my first novel, so I'm fairly new to this haha. I'm sure there will be the occasional grammatical error so I apologize in advance! I hope you all enjoy it and I am open to any suggestions!

--JUNE 2021 EDITOR'S PICK-- In a near future where neuroprosthetics have evolved, Nina--a young journalist--receives a hippoccampal implant after losing the ability to create long term memories. All seems well until memories that don't seem to be her own begin to surface. Now, Nina must find the truth behind these memories while struggling not to lose herself in them.