'Intimate and thoughtful... Exciting... [A] sweeping evolutionary history.' Science The author of the bestselling Your Inner Fish gives us a brilliant, up-to-date account of the great transformations in the history of life on Earth. This is a story full of surprises. If you think that feathers arose to help animals fly, or lungs to help them walk on land, you'd be in good company. You'd also be entirely wrong. Neil Shubin delves deep into the mystery of life, the ongoing revolutions in our understanding of how we got here, and brings us closer to answering one of the great questions - was life on earth inevitable...or was it all an accident?

For the millions who remain curious about the world around them, but gained little from science at school, this book offers a way forward. Based on live discussions with adults from all walks of life, each chapter begins with an everyday experience, like swallowing a pill or watching a bee on a flower. The main scientific ideas underlying each topic are then explored, so that understanding of a set of fundamental concepts builds up gradually throughout the book. In contrast to more traditional approaches to science learning, topics range freely across the subject areas. The story of Covid, for example includes aspects of biology, chemistry, mathematics and social behaviour. Plain English is used throughout and mathematical expressions are avoided. Key points are illustrated with clear diagrams and photographs. By drawing on questions and perspectives of ordinary people, the book offers an introduction to basic ideas in science as a whole, rather than any one particular subject. For the adult wishing to make good a gap in their understanding it provides a starting point for entering the rich world of popular science.

Learn how to strengthen your immune system, for life. Our immune system is our body's fortress - without it, we would be vulnerable to all sorts of infections and diseases. Yet misinformation about how to boost the immune system is everywhere. In Immune, Dr Servaas Binge breaks through those myths, translating the latest scientific findings on immunity into clear advice with which you can optimise your lifestyle. Using no-nonsense language with a touch of humour and lots of creative thinking, Binge takes us on a fascinating journey through our immune system. He explains how we become ill and how best to protect against it, providing superb guidance for the most important thing you can do - stay healthy.

Those opposed to the teaching of evolution often make well-rehearsed claims about the science that sound, to the layperson, powerful and convincing. And many people who support the teaching of evolution-students, teachers, parents, administrators-do not have the background to respond. They know that scientists have pretty thoroughly dismantled these arguments, but they don't have a handy way of responding to these attacks. The Counter-Creationism Handbook is a one-stop resource for addressing over 400 of the most prevalent claims made by creationists. Each claim is followed by a succinct and scientifically valid rebuttal, and the book includes print and on-line resources for further reading and information.Whether you are a preservice, inservice or veteran teacher, through the inquiry and reflection of teacher research you can learn about your practice and your students and gain a deeper understanding of the potential that the inquiry process has to support powerful student learning. This useful resource covers claims made about the disciplines of philosophy, biology, paleontology, geology, astronomy, physics and mathematics, history, linguistics, and folklore The work addresses the claims of Biblical creationism, intelligent design creationism, and even some creationism based on other religions. An introduction covers how to address creationists in different venues, how to deal with novel claims, and why accurate science is important. The volume is organized thematically, with extensive cross-referencing, so that someone presented with an unfamiliar claim can quickly find the argument, understand its flaws, provide a rebuttal, and see where to go for more information.

Life is a diverse and ubiquitous phenomenon on Earth, characterized by fundamental features distinguishing living bodies from nonliving material. Yet it is also so complex that it has long defied precise definition. This book from a seasoned biologist offers new insights into the nature of life by illuminating a fascinating architecture of dualities inherent in its existence and propagation. Life is connected with individual living beings, yet it is also a collective and inherently global phenomenon of the material world. It embodies a dual existence of cycles of phenotypic life, and their unseen driver - an uninterrupted march of genetic information whose collective immortality is guaranteed by individual mortality. Although evolution propagates and tunes species of organisms, the beings produced can be regarded merely as tools for the survival and cloning of genomes written in an unchanging code. What are the physical versus informational bases and driving forces of life, and how do they unite as an integrated system? What does time mean for individuals, life on the global scale, and the underlying information? This accessible examination of principles and evidence shows that a network of dualities lies at the heart of biological puzzles that have engaged the human mind for millennia.

The ancient Greeks called it Gaia; the Romans Terra. We know it simply as Earth, the planet we call home. And what a planet it is. Formed around 4.6 billion years ago from the debris of the big bang and long-dead stars, at first it was nothing special, but somehow it evolved to become the most amazing place in the known Universe. The only living planet we know of, it also has a very unusual moon, a remarkably dynamic surface, a complex atmosphere and a deeply mysterious interior. This is Planet Earth is dedicated to the wonders of Planet Earth. Its past is long and dramatic and its future shrouded in mystery. Yet despite centuries of research, only now are we starting to understand Earth's complexity. ABOUT THE SERIES New Scientist Instant Expert books are definitive and accessible entry points to the most important subjects in science; subjects that challenge, attract debate, invite controversy and engage the most enquiring minds. Designed for curious readers who want to know how things work and why, the Instant Expert series explores the topics that really matter and their impact on individuals, society, and the planet, translating the scientific complexities around us into language that's open to everyone, and putting new ideas and discoveries into perspective and context.

THE NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER I wanted to know what they were experiencing, and why to us they feel so compelling, and so close. This time I allowed myself to ask them the question that for a scientist was forbidden fruit: Who are you? Weaving decades of field observations with exciting new discoveries about the brain, Carl Safina's landmark book offers an intimate view of animal behavior to challenge the fixed boundary between humans and animals. Travelling to the threatened landscape of Kenya to witness struggling elephant families work out how to survive poaching and drought, then on to Yellowstone National Park to observe wolves sort out the aftermath of one pack's personal tragedy, the book finally plunges into the astonishingly peaceful society of killer whales living in the crystalline waters of the Pacific Northwest. Beyond Words brings forth powerful and illuminating insight into the unique personalities of animals through extraordinary stories of animal joy, grief, jealousy, anger, and love. The similarity between human and nonhuman consciousness, self-awareness and empathy calls us to re-evaluate how we interact with animals. Wise, passionate, and eye-opening at every turn, Beyond Words is ultimately a graceful examination of humanity's place in the world.

Imagine mathematics, imagine with the help of mathematics, imagine new worlds, new geometries, new forms. The new volume in the series "Imagine Math" is intended to contribute to grasping how much that is interesting and new is happening in the relationships between mathematics, imagination and culture. The present book begins with the connections between mathematics, numbers, poetry and music, with the latest opera by Italian composer Claudio Ambrosini. Literature and narrative also play an important role here. There is cinema too, with the "erotic" mathematics films by Edward Frenkel, and the new short "Arithmetique " by Munari and Rovazzani. The section on applications of mathematics features a study of ants, as well as the refined forms and surfaces generated by algorithms used in the performances by Adrien Mondot and Claire Bardainne. Last but not least, in honour of the hundredth anniversary of his birth, a mathematical, literary and theatrical homage to Alan Turing, one of the outstanding figures of the twentieth century.

We humans are collectively driven by a powerful - yet not fully explained - instinct to understand. We would like to see everything established, proven, laid bare. The more important an issue, the more we desire to see it clarified, stripped of all secrets, all shades of gray. What could be more important than to understand the Universe and ourselves as a part of it? To find a window onto our origin and our destiny? This book examines how far our modern cosmological theories - with their sometimes audacious models, such as inflation, cyclic histories, quantum creation, parallel universes - can take us towards answering these questions. Can such theories lead us to ultimate truths, leaving nothing unexplained? Last, but not least, Heller addresses the thorny problem of why and whether we should expect to find theories with all-encompassing explicative power.

This fascinating, colourful book offers in-depth insights and first-hand working experiences in the production of art works, using simple computational models with rich morphological behaviour, at the edge of mathematics, computer science, physics and biology. It organically combines ground breaking scientific discoveries in the theory of computation and complex systems with artistic representations of the research results. In this appealing book mathematicians, computer scientists, physicists, and engineers brought together marvelous and esoteric patterns generated by cellular automata, which are arrays of simple machines with complex behavior. Configurations produced by cellular automata uncover mechanics of dynamic patterns formation, their propagation and interaction in natural systems: heart pacemaker, bacterial membrane proteins, chemical rectors, water permeation in soil, compressed gas, cell division, population dynamics, reaction-diffusion media and self-organisation. The book inspires artists to take on cellular automata as a tool of creativity and it persuades scientists to convert their research results into the works of art. The book is lavishly illustrated with visually attractive examples, presented in a lively and easily accessible manner.

This book introduces Industrial AI in multiple dimensions. Industrial AI is a systematic discipline which focuses on developing, validating and deploying various machine learning algorithms for industrial applications with sustainable performance. Combined with the state-of-the-art sensing, communication and big data analytics platforms, a systematic Industrial AI methodology will allow integration of physical systems with computational models. The concept of Industrial AI is in infancy stage and may encompass the collective use of technologies such as Internet of Things, Cyber-Physical Systems and Big Data Analytics under the Industry 4.0 initiative where embedded computing devices, smart objects and the physical environment interact with each other to reach intended goals. A broad range of Industries including automotive, aerospace, healthcare, semiconductors, energy, transportation, mining, construction, and industrial automation could harness the power of Industrial AI to gain insights into the invisible relationship of the operation conditions and further use that insight to optimize their uptime, productivity and efficiency of their operations. In terms of predictive maintenance, Industrial AI can detect incipient changes in the system and predict the remains useful life and further to optimize maintenance tasks to avoid disruption to operations.

The Industrial Revolution provided the greatest increase in living standards the world has ever known while propelling Britain to dominance on the global stage. In Forging Modernity, Martin Hutchinson looks at how and why Britain gained this prize ahead of its European competitors. After comparing their endowments and political structures as far back as 1600, he then traces how Britain, through better policies primarily from the political Tory party, diverged from other European countries. Hutchinson's Harvard MBA allows a unique perspective on the early industrial enterprises - many successes resulted from marketing, control systems and logistics rather than from production technology alone, while on a national scale the scientific method and commercial competition were as important as physical infrastructure.  By 1830, through ever-improving policies, Britain had built a staggering industrial lead, half a century ahead of its rivals. Then the Tories lost power and policy changed forever. In his conclusion, Hutchinson shows how changes welcomed by conventional historians caused the decline of Industrial Britain. Nevertheless, the policies that drove growth, ingenuity and rising living standards are still available for those bold enough to adopt them.  

As NASA prepared for the launch of Apollo 11 in July 1969, many African American leaders protested the billions of dollars used to fund "space joyrides" rather than help tackle poverty, inequality, and discrimination at home. This volume examines such tensions as well as the ways in which NASA's goal of space exploration aligned with the cause of racial equality. It provides new insights into the complex relationship between the space program and the civil rights movement in the Jim Crow South and abroad. Essays explore how thousands of jobs created during the space race offered new opportunities for minorities in places like Huntsville, Alabama, while at the same time segregation at NASA's satellite tracking station in South Africa led to that facility's closure. Other topics include black skepticism toward NASA's framing of space exploration as "for the benefit of all mankind," NASA's track record in hiring women and minorities, and the efforts of black activists to increase minority access to education that would lead to greater participation in the space program. The volume also addresses how to best find and preserve archival evidence of African American contributions that are missing from narratives of space exploration. NASA and the Long Civil Rights Movement offers important lessons from history as today's activists grapple with the distance between social movements like Black Lives Matter and scientific ambitions such as NASA's mission to Mars.

This book is a science text about light for the general reader; it is also an adventure story and a detective story revealing how the secrets of light were uncovered. Readers can share in the thrill of each discovery and learn about some of the myriad applications opened up by these fascinating discoveries, including the telescope, fiber optics, the laser, and even the recent optical detection of gravitational waves from space.With Professor Fortson, distinguished experimental physicist, as your tour guide, follow the journey from the 17th century - when Descartes first calculated the size of the rainbow - to the 20th century, when the quantum theory of light was born. Learn how Huygens, Newton, Planck, Einstein and many other great scientists solved one mystery after another, from the reason underlying the law of refraction to the puzzle of the photoelectric effect. The journey ends with the solution to the most challenging mystery of all: that light is both a wave and a particle - a fascinating finale.

Learn about the most important mathematical ideas, theorems, and movements in The Maths Book.

Part of the fascinating Big Ideas series, this book tackles tricky topics and themes in a simple and easy to follow format. Learn about Maths in this overview guide to the subject, great for novices looking to find out more and experts wishing to refresh their knowledge alike! The Maths Book brings a fresh and vibrant take on the topic through eye-catching graphics and diagrams to immerse yourself in.

This captivating book will broaden your understanding of Maths, with:

- More than 85 ideas and events key to the development of mathematics
- Packed with facts, charts, timelines and graphs to help explain core concepts
- A visual approach to big subjects with striking illustrations and graphics throughout
- Easy to follow text makes topics accessible for people at any level of understanding

The Maths Book is a captivating introduction to the world's most famous theorems, mathematicians and movements, aimed at adults with an interest in the subject and students wanting to gain more of an overview. Charting the development of maths around the world from Babylon to Bletchley Park, this book explains how maths help us understand everything from patterns in nature to artificial intelligence.

Your Maths Questions, Simply Explained

What is an imaginary number? Can two parallel lines ever meet? How can maths help us predict the future? This engaging overview explores answers to big questions like these and how they contribute to our understanding of maths. If you thought it was difficult to learn about topics like algebra and statistics, The Maths Book presents key information in an easy to follow layout. Learn about the history of maths, from ancient ideas such as magic squares and the abacus to modern cryptography, fractals, and the final proof of Fermat's Last Theorem.

The Big Ideas Series

With millions of copies sold worldwide, The Maths Book is part of the award-winning Big Ideas series from DK. The series uses striking graphics along with engaging writing, making big topics easy to understand.

From the New York Times bestselling author of The Lion in the Living Room comes a fascinating and provocative exploration of the biology of motherhood that "is witty, reassuring, and takes motherhood out of the footnotes and places it front and center--where it belongs" (Louann Brizendine, MD, New York Times bestselling author). Everyone knows how babies are made, but scientists are only just beginning to understand the making of a mother. Mom Genes reveals the hard science behind our tenderest maternal impulses, tackling questions such as why mothers are destined to mimic their own moms (or not), how maternal aggression makes females the world's most formidable creatures, and how a crisis like the COVID-19 pandemic can make or break a mom. Weaving the latest research with Abigail Tucker's personal experiences, Mom Genes "is an eye-opening tour through the biology and psychology of a role that is at once utterly ordinary and wondrously strange" (Annie Murphy Paul, author of Origins).

An awe-inspiring exploration of the sounds of the living Earth, and the joys and threats of human music, language and noise. 'A symphony, filled with the music of life . . . fascinating, heartbreaking, and beautifully written.' ELIZABETH KOLBERT, author of The Sixth Extinction 'Sounds Wild and Broken affirms Haskell as a laureate for the earth, his finely tuned scientific observations made more potent by his deep love for the wild he hopes to save.' NEW YORK TIMES 'Wonderful . . . a reminder that the narrow aural spectrum on which most of us operate, and the ways in which human life is led, blocks out the planet's great, orchestral richness.' GUARDIAN We live on a planet alive with song, music, and speech. David George Haskell explores how these wonders came to be. In rainforests shimmering with insect sounds and swamps pulsing with frog calls we learn about evolution's creative powers. From birds in the Rocky Mountains and on the streets of Paris, we discover how animals learn their songs and adapt to new environments. Below the waves, we hear our kinship to beings as different as snapping shrimp, toadfish, and whales. In the startlingly divergent sonic vibes of the animals of different continents, we experience the legacies of plate tectonics, the deep history of animals and their movements around the world, and the quirks of aesthetic evolution. Starting with the origins of animal song and traversing the whole arc of Earth's history, Haskell illuminates and celebrates the emergence of the varied sounds of our world. In mammoth ivory flutes from Paleolithic caves, violins in modern concert halls, and electronic music in earbuds, we learn that human music and language belong within this story of ecology and evolution. Yet we are also destroyers, now silencing or smothering many of the sounds of the living Earth. Haskell takes us to threatened forests, noise-filled oceans, and loud city streets to show that sonic crises are not mere losses of sensory ornament. Sound is a generative force, and so the erasure of sonic diversity makes the world less creative, less beautiful. Sounds Wild and Broken is an invitation to listen, wonder, act. 'Absolutely fascinating.' MARIELLA FROSTRUP, TIMES RADIO 'Enlightening and sobering.' JINI REDDY, METRO

There have been many books about Antarctica in the past, but all have focused on only one aspect of the continent - its science, its wildlife, the heroic age of exploration, personal experiences or the sheer awesome beauty of the landscape- but none have managed to capture the whole story, until now. Gabrielle Walker, author, consultant to New Scientist and regular broadcaster with the BBC has written a book unlike any that has ever been written about the continent. Antarctica weaves all the significant threads into an intricate tapestry, made up of science, natural history, poetry, epic history, what it feels like to be there and why it draws so many different kinds of people back there again and again. It is only when all the parts come together that the underlying truths of the continent emerge. Antarctica is the most alien place on Earth, the only part of our planet where humans could never survive unaided. It is truly like walking on another planet. And yet, in its silence, its agelessness and its mysteries lie the secrets of our past, and of our future.

Time and beauty are two of our most visceral perceptions. Yet, their nature is seldom questioned. In this ground-breaking new work, Adrian Bejan - a true 'original' among physicists - explains, in a scholarly yet colorful style, the scientific basis for the perception of time and beauty.Organized into three main ideas, the book begins first with the perception of time. The author expounds on why we feel that time flies faster as we get older. Perceived time, also called 'mind time,' is different from clock time. In this context, time is another word for 'perceived change'. Next, readers will discover that beauty is appealing because beautifully-shaped images are scanned faster by two eyes. To observe our immediate surroundings and to understand them faster is highly advantageous to survival; hence, there is an underlying evolutionary advantage to our discernment for ideal ratios, shapes, and beauty at large. Finally, time and beauty are jointly understood to explain why the global pandemic had decelerated our mind time. This understanding arms us with techniques to slow down our mind time (which accelerates with age), and to create the conditions for living longer and more creatively.Scientists may have contemplated aspects of time and beauty separately. In contrast, the author submits an original and rewarding approach to understanding them together. In the process, key questions to our cognition are answered. Why does the mind 'try' to make sense of a new mental image? Why is there a natural tendency to organize a new input and mentally position it among past perceptions? Through physics, the book offers a general answer: to empower the individual with speed and clarity of thought, understanding, decision-making and movement. The same answer holds for the other disparate perceptions illustrated in this book, from time and beauty to ideas, message, shape, perspective, art, science, illusions, and dreams.

__________ If you live on planet Earth, you're probably scared about the future. Terrorism, complicated international relations, global warming, killer viruses and a raft of other issues make it hard not to be. Watching the news you have to wonder: is it safe to go out there or not? In The Day It Finally Happens, Mike Pearl games out many of the 'could it really happen?' scenarios we've all speculated about, assigning a probability rating, and taking us through how it would unfold. He explores what would likely occur in dozens of possible scenarios - the final failure of antibiotics, the loss of the world's marine life, the abolition of the British monarchy, and even the arrival of aliens - and reports back from the future, providing a clear picture on how the world would look, feel, and even smell in each of these instances. Hilarious, enlightening, and terrifying, this book makes science accessible and is a unique form of existential therapy, offering practical answers to some of our most worrisome questions. Thankfully, the odds of humanity pulling through look pretty good. __________ For fans of such bestsellers as What If?,The Worst Case Scenario Survival Handbook and The Uninhabitable Earth, as well as Steven Pinker and Malcolm Gladwell, this is a book about future events that we don't really understand and getting to know them in close detail. Entertaining speculation featuring both authoritative research and a bit of mischief: a look at how humanity is likely to weather such happenings as the day nuclear war occurs, the day the global internet goes down, the day we run out of effective antibiotics, and the day immortality is achieved.

The spectacular culinary creations of modern cuisine are the stuff of countless articles and Instagram feeds. But to a scientist they are also perfect pedagogical explorations into the basic scientific principles of cooking. In Science and Cooking, Harvard professors Michael Brenner, Pia Soerensen and David Weitz bring the classroom to your kitchen to teach the physics and chemistry underlying every recipe. Science and Cooking answers questions such as why we knead bread, what determines the temperature at which we cook a steak or the how much time our chocolate chip cookies should spend in the oven, through fascinating lessons ranging from the role of pressure and boiling points in pecan praline to that of microbes in your coffee. With beautiful full-colour illustrations and recipes, hands-on experiments, and engaging introductions from world-renowned chefs Ferran Adria and Jose Andres, Science and Cooking will change the way readers approach both subjects-in their kitchens and beyond.

A New York Times bestseller and a Book of the Year for the Evening Standard and The Times.

Is getting a little less comfortable the key to living a happier, healthier life?

When journalist Scott Carney came across a picture of a man in his fifties sitting on a glacier in just his underwear, he assumed it must be a hoax. Dutch guru Wim Hof claimed he could control his body temperature using his mind and teach others to do the same. Sceptical, Carney signed up to Hof’s one-week course, not realising that it would be the start of a four-year journey to unlock his own evolutionary potential.

From hyperventilating in a Polish farmhouse to underwater weight training in California, and eventually climbing Mt Kilimanjaro wearing just shorts and running shoes, Carney travelled the world testing out unorthodox methods of body transformation and discovering the science behind them.

In What Doesn’t Kill Us he explains how getting a little less comfortable can help us to unlock our lost evolutionary strength.

The COVID-19 and the onslaught of Climate Change have exposed the fragility of our lives and ecosystem. Natural disasters like asteroid impact, earthquakes, tsunamis, volcanic eruptions, floods, cyclones, etc., and pandemics like plagues, smallpox, cholera, tuberculosis, malaria, etc., have been man's nemesis from the beginning of time. This list of public risks has now expanded to include pollutions, industrial disasters, and very many new, confusing and emerging technologies.How have governments handled these public risks? How have they convinced people to take precautions under such emergencies? What measures does one take for managing them, and for the rescue, relief, and rehabilitation of the masses? And most importantly, how does one prepare the masses to face the risks without panicking? It is argued that sermons, dictates, and discourses may not work in democratic societies. Rather, one needs a new breed of risk communicators who can enter into a dialogue with the people to prepare them for these challenges and to welcome truly beneficial new technologies.The book takes a panoramic view of the issue of risks and illustrates the challenges and opportunities of the Art and Science of Managing Public Risks. It celebrates the indomitable spirit of man, who has leveraged science to predict - where possible, and provide solutions for managing these risks.

Gerald Schroeder, an MIT-trained scientist who has worked in both physics and biology, has emerged in recent years as one of the most popular and accessible apostles for the melding of science and religion. He first reconciled science and faith as different perspectives on a single whole in The Science of God. Now, in The Hidden Face of God, Schroeder takes a bold step forward, to show that science, properly understood, provides positive reasons for faith.

From the wisdom encoded in DNA and analyzed by information science, to the wisdom unveiled in the fantastic complexity of cellular life, to the wisdom inherent in human consciousness, The Hidden Face of God offers a tour of the best of modern science. This fascinating volume will open a world of science to religious believers, and it will cause skeptics to rethink some of their deepest beliefs.

The design processes behind a giant leap for mankind. Neil Armstrong in a space suit on the moon remains an iconic representation of America's technological ingenuity. Few know that the Model A-7L pressure suit worn by the Apollo 11 astronauts, and the Model A-7LB that replaced it in 1971, originated at ILC Industries (now ILC Dover, LP), an obscure Delaware industrial firm.Longtime ILC space suit test engineer Bill Ayrey draws on original files and photographs to tell the dramatic story of the company's role in the Apollo Program. Though respected for its early designs, ILC failed to win NASA's faith. When the government called for new suit concepts in 1965, ILC had to plead for consideration before NASA gave it a mere six weeks to come up with a radically different design. ILC not only met the deadline but won the contract. That underdog success led to its greatest challenge: winning a race against time to create a suit that would determine the success or failure of the Apollo missions-and life or death for the astronauts. A fascinating behind-the-scenes history of a vital component of the space program, Lunar Outfitters goes inside the suit that made it possible for human beings to set foot on the Moon.