Donald Rapp Knihy

This book examines the history and analysis of extreme climate change on Earth. The first chapter reviews significant climate fluctuations from hundreds of millions of years ago, including snowball Earth and hothouse Earth, and discusses the impact of continental drift, particularly the closing of the Isthmus of Panama, on the onset of ice ages over the past three million years. This sets the stage for exploring ice ages in the geological recent past, focusing on the last few hundred thousand years. The second chapter presents geological evidence for ice ages, detailing how geologists deduced their existence before subsurface data confirmed the theory. Subsequent chapters delve into ice core data from Greenland and Antarctica, with Chapter 3 discussing data processing and Chapter 4 summarizing findings. Chapter 5 shifts to ocean sediment data, while the next chapter examines information from sources like "Devil’s Cave." Chapter 7 synthesizes experimental results from previous chapters, laying the groundwork for theory comparison. The author highlights the challenges of circular reasoning in data dating, particularly concerning astronomical theory. Chapter 8 reviews theories explaining the patterns of ice ages and interglacials, leading to chapters that compare the astronomical theory and other theories with data. The final chapter summarizes current knowledge about ice ages and identifies gaps in understanding.

In this book Donald Rapp provides a balanced assessment of global warming, tending neither to the views of alarmists or nay-sayers. Rapp has the ability to move into a highly technical field, assimilate the content, organize the knowledge base and succinctly describe the field, its content, its unresolved issues and achievements. This is precisely what he does in this book in relation to global climate change. As such his approach is refreshingly different.

Focusing on in situ resource utilization (ISRU) on the Moon and Mars, this book explores the costs associated with implementing various techniques. It presents three innovative approaches that utilize atmospheric processing: solid oxide electrolysis, reverse water gas shift reaction, and water absorption. Each method is analyzed for its feasibility and potential impact on future space exploration missions, offering valuable insights into sustainable resource management on extraterrestrial bodies.

Offering an extensive examination of climate change, this book compiles nearly 1,000 references from various publications and reports. It systematically reviews the multifaceted aspects of the subject, making it a comprehensive resource for understanding the complexities and implications of climate change.

The book provides a detailed technological analysis of human missions to Mars, breaking down the journey into distinct stages. It covers the progression from Earth's surface to low-Earth orbit, the departure toward Mars, and the complexities of Mars orbit insertion, landing, and ascent. Additionally, it examines the trans-Earth injection process and the return to Earth, offering a comprehensive understanding of the challenges and innovations involved in interplanetary travel.

This book deals at some length with the question: Since there are many more poor than rich, why don’t the poor just tax the rich heavily and reduce the inequality? In the 19th century and the first half of the 20th century, the topic of inequality was discussed widely. Ending or reducing inequality was a prime motivating factor in the emergence of communism and socialism. The book discusses why later in the 20th century, inequality has faded out as an issue. Extensive tables and graphs of data are presented showing the extent of inequality in America, as well as globally. It is shown that a combination of low taxes on capital gains contributed to a series of real estate and stock bubbles that provided great wealth to the top tiers, while real income for average workers stagnated. Improved commercial efficiency due to computers, electronics, the Internet and fast transport allowed production and distribution with fewer workers, just as the advent of electrification, mechanization, production lines, vehicles and trains in the 1920s and 1930s produced the same stagnating effect.