Publishers Weekly Most Anticipated Books of Fall 2019
A New York Times Editor’s Pick
People Best Books Fall 2019
Chicago Tribune 28 Books You Need to Read Now
Booklist’s Top Ten Sci-Tech Books of 2019

“It blew my mind to discover that teenage animals and teenage humans are so similar. Both are naive risk-takers. I loved this book!” —Temple Grandin, author of Animals Make Us Human and Animals in Translation

A revelatory investigation of human and animal adolescence and young adulthood from the New York Times bestselling authors of Zoobiquity.

With Wildhood, Harvard evolutionary biologist Barbara Natterson-Horowitz and award-winning science writer Kathryn Bowers have created an entirely new way of thinking about the crucial, vulnerable, and exhilarating phase of life between childhood and adulthood across the animal kingdom.

In their critically acclaimed bestseller, Zoobiquity, the authors revealed the essential connection between human and animal health. In Wildhood, they turn the same eye-opening, species-spanning lens to adolescent young adult life. Traveling around the world and drawing from their latest research, they find that the same four universal challenges are faced by every adolescent human and animal on earth: how to be safe, how to navigate hierarchy; how to court potential mates; and how to feed oneself. Safety. Status. Sex. Self-reliance. How human and animal adolescents and young adults confront the challenges of wildhood shapes their adult destinies.

Natterson-Horowitz and Bowers illuminate these core challenges through the lives of four animals in the wild: Ursula, a young king penguin; Shrink, a charismatic hyena; Salt, a matriarchal humpback whale; and Slavc, a roaming European wolf. Through their riveting stories—and those of countless others, from adventurous eagles and rambunctious high schooler to inexperienced orcas and naive young soldiers—readers get a vivid and game-changing portrait of adolescent young adults as a horizontal tribe, sharing behaviors and challenges, setbacks and triumphs.

Upending our understanding of everything from risk-taking and anxiety to the origins of privilege and the nature of sexual coercion and consent, Wildhood is a profound and necessary guide to the perilous, thrilling, and universal journey to adulthood on planet earth.

We delight in using our eyes, particularly when puzzling over pictures. Art and illusionists is a celebration of pictures and the multiple modes of manipulating them to produce illusory worlds on flat surfaces. This has proved fascinating to humankind since the dawning of depiction. Art and illusionists is also a celebration of the ways we see pictures, and of our ability to distil meaning from arrays of contours and colours. Pictures are not only a source of fascination for artists, who produce them, but also for scientists, who analyse the perceptual effects they induce. Illusions provide the glue to cement the art and science of vision. Painters plumb the art of observation itself whereas scientists peer into the processes of perception. Both visual artists and scientists have produced patterns that perplex our perceptions and present us with puzzles that we are pleased to peruse. Art and illusionists presents these two poles of pictorial representation as well as presenting novel 'perceptual portraits' of the artists and scientists who have augmented the art of illusion. The reader can experience the paradoxes of pictures as well as producing their own by using the stereoscopic glasses enclosed and the transparent overlay for making dynamic moire patterns.

The single biggest and most difficult question that exists? From early religions through Greek Philosophy and Western Science, man has attempted to discover the meaning of the Universe and our place within it. In the last twenty year these debates have all been stood on their head by amazing discoveries, big bang theory and ideas about new sub-atomic layers. The nature of Time and Space are truly up for grabs. With a witty and accessible style Osborne leads us on a historical and informative adventure through the philosophies of the universe; including the importance of telescopes, mathematics and relativity theory and ending with contemporary mind-expanding concepts such as the reversibility of time and parallel universes.

Is anything truly random? Does infinity actually exist? Could we ever see into other dimensions?

In this delightful journey of discovery, David Darling and extraordinary child prodigy Agnijo Banerjee draw connections between the cutting edge of modern maths and life as we understand it, delving into the strange would we like alien music? and venturing out on quests to consider the existence of free will and the fantastical future of quantum computers. Packed with puzzles and paradoxes, mind-bending concepts and surprising solutions, this is for anyone who wants life s questions answered even those you never thought to ask.

Planetary scientist and educator Ken Coles has teamed up with Ken Tanaka from the United States Geological Survey's Astrogeology team, and Phil Christensen, Principal Investigator of the Mars Odyssey orbiter's THEMIS science team, to produce this all-purpose reference atlas, The Atlas of Mars. Each of the thirty standard charts includes: a full-page color topographic map at 1:10,000,000 scale, a THEMIS daytime infrared map at the same scale with features labeled, a simplified geologic map of the corresponding area, and a section describing prominent features of interest. The Atlas is rounded out with extensive material on Mars' global characteristics, regional geography and geology, a glossary of terms, and an indexed gazetteer of up-to-date Martian feature names and nomenclature. This is an essential guide for a broad readership of academics, students, amateur astronomers, and space enthusiasts, replacing the NASA atlas from the 1970s.

-- What is the true nature of water and does it have memory? -- By working with the rhythm and flow of water, can we increase its life-giving power? Water is not only fundamental to life but is essential for the cycles and changes in nature. John Wilkes argues as well that water is the universal bearer of whatever character we put into it. For this reason the way we treat water is of crucial importance to our health, and to the well-being of our planet. Working with his remarkable invention, the Flowform, Wilkes has uncovered hidden secrets of the world of water, and at the same time created an artform of great beauty. His lifetime of applied research into rhythms and water, fully revealed in this book for the first time, has startling implications for such topical issues as farming and irrigation; food production and processing; water treatment and recycling; and health and cosmetic products. This ground-breaking book is lavishly illustrated to show both the beauty of the Flowform and the wide range of its applications.

Marie Skodowska Curie (1867-1934) was the first woman scientist to win worldwide fame, and, indeed, one of the great scientists of the century. Written by Curie's daughter Eve, this biography chronicles Curie's legendary achievements in science, including her pioneering efforts in the study of radioactivity and her two nobel prizes in Physics and in Chemistry. It also, however, spotlights her remarkable life, spanning from her childhood in Poland, to her storybook Parisian marriage to fellow scientist Pierre Curie, to her tragic death from the very radium heat that brought her fame. Both professionally and personally, Marie Curie was respected and admired by her male colleagues, at a time when few women achieved such equal status. Her mind and remarkable life are recounted lovingly by her daughter in this biography.

The million copy international bestseller, critically acclaimed and translated into over 25 languages. As influential today as when it was first published, The Selfish Gene has become a classic exposition of evolutionary thought. Professor Dawkins articulates a gene's eye view of evolution - a view giving centre stage to these persistent units of information, and in which organisms can be seen as vehicles for their replication. This imaginative, powerful, and stylistically brilliant work not only brought the insights of Neo-Darwinism to a wide audience, but galvanized the biology community, generating much debate and stimulating whole new areas of research. Forty years later, its insights remain as relevant today as on the day it was published. This 40th anniversary edition includes a new epilogue from the author discussing the continuing relevance of these ideas in evolutionary biology today, as well as the original prefaces and foreword, and extracts from early reviews. Oxford Landmark Science books are 'must-read' classics of modern science writing which have crystallized big ideas, and shaped the way we think.

Teenagers reimagines the way people think about adolescents. No longer society's scourge and scapegoat, the teenager emerges from David Bainbridge's fascinating study as an awe-inspiring natural phenomenon that evokes reverence and wonder. Bainbridge, a veterinarian and anatomist, suggests that the second decade is the most important in the human lifecycle. In lively prose, he explains the science behind the changes that occur both on the surface of the teenage body and deep within the teenage brain, from lanky limbs and bad skin to falling in love, sleeping till noon, and the irresistible allure of sex, drugs, and rocknroll. Observed through a scientific lens, these bizarre biological transformations and behavioral anomalies snap into focus, as not only a beautifully choreographed sequence of steps on the path to adulthood, but also as a key evolutionary factor in the success of the species.

Chemistry For Dummies, 2nd Edition (9781119293460) was previously published as Chemistry For Dummies, 2nd Edition (9781118007303). While this version features a new Dummies cover and design, the content is the same as the prior release and should not be considered a new or updated product. See how chemistry works in everything from soaps to medicines to petroleum We're all natural born chemists. Every time we cook, clean, take a shower, drive a car, use a solvent (such as nail polish remover), or perform any of the countless everyday activities that involve complex chemical reactions we're doing chemistry! So why do so many of us desperately resist learning chemistry when we're young? Now there's a fun, easy way to learn basic chemistry. Whether you're studying chemistry in school and you're looking for a little help making sense of what's being taught in class, or you're just into learning new things, Chemistry For Dummies gets you rolling with all the basics of matter and energy, atoms and molecules, acids and bases, and much more! * Tracks a typical chemistry course, giving you step-by-step lessons you can easily grasp * Packed with basic chemistry principles and time-saving tips from chemistry professors * Real-world examples provide everyday context for complicated topics Full of modern, relevant examples and updated to mirror current teaching methods and classroom protocols, Chemistry For Dummies puts you on the fast-track to mastering the basics of chemistry.

The Inside Out of Flies is a look under the bonnet at the astonishing mechanics of fly anatomy. Erica McAlister reveals the engineering miracles embodied in different species of fly and some of the fascinating implications they hold for human technology. Discover the physics of the mysterious 'scuba diving fly', marvel at the venomous horsefly larvae which preys on frogs and glimpse the golden ratio in these creatures' spiral flight patterns. McAlister touches on the emerging field of biomimetics - the study of evolutionary adaptations to devise new technology - and anticipates everything from medical needles based on the mosquito's proboscis to hearing aids inspired by Ormia ochracea, a tiny fly with ears on its thorax. At every juncture she uncovers unique and surprising science lessons encapsulated in the form and function of the humble fly.

An interdisciplinary history of trigonometry from the mid-sixteenth century to the early twentieth The Doctrine of Triangles offers an interdisciplinary history of trigonometry that spans four centuries, starting in 1550 and concluding in the 1900s. Glen Van Brummelen tells the story of trigonometry as it evolved from an instrument for understanding the heavens to a practical tool, used in fields such as surveying and navigation. In Europe, China, and America, trigonometry aided and was itself transformed by concurrent mathematical revolutions, as well as the rise of science and technology. Following its uses in mid-sixteenth-century Europe as the "foot of the ladder to the stars" and the mathematical helpmate of astronomy, trigonometry became a ubiquitous tool for modeling various phenomena, including animal populations and sound waves. In the late sixteenth century, trigonometry increasingly entered the physical world through the practical disciplines, and its societal reach expanded with the invention of logarithms. Calculus shifted mathematical reasoning from geometric to algebraic patterns of thought, and trigonometry's participation in this new mathematical analysis grew, encouraging such innovations as complex numbers and non-Euclidean geometry. Meanwhile in China, trigonometry was evolving rapidly too, sometimes merging with indigenous forms of knowledge, and with Western discoveries. In the nineteenth century, trigonometry became even more integral to science and industry as a fundamental part of the science and engineering toolbox, and a staple subject in high school classrooms. A masterful combination of scholarly rigor and compelling narrative, The Doctrine of Triangles brings trigonometry's rich historical past full circle into the modern era.

Explore the science behind your daily living habits and make your day healthier, happier, and more productive. Best-selling author Stuart Farrimond brings you a ground-breaking health book that will revitalise your daily routine and bring to light the latest research in psychology, nutrition, biology, and physics alike. Set out to unearth the facts behind the pseudo-science fads, and provide take-away advice on every area of our lives,is an approachable, entertaining and easy-to read fitness guide for those seeking self-development backed up by solid The Science of Living scientific evidence. Dive straight in to discover: -The Morning, Afternoon, Evening, Night structure takes you through a typical day. -Fascinating statistics and infographics bringing each science story to life. -Long-held health myths debunked and exploded by new science. -Action points to each story to help you tweak your lifestyle habits accordingly Is sleeping 8 hours a night good for optimum health? If I exercise every day, why am I not losing weight? Should I brush my teeth before or after breakfast? Is coffee good or bad for you? These are all fundamental everyday questions explored throughout this wellness book, which combines popular science with practical self-improvement, factoring in the latest scientific research to debunk the common myths and provide easy-to-read and relatable content for every reader! The popular question and answer format brings an immediacy to the information provided, and the highly visually illustrations truly bring the science to life in a contemporary and accessible way. From fitness tips to circadian rhythms, productivity to popular science, this all-encompassing healthy lifestyle book truly does have it all. What better way to redefine your routine and revitalise your life than gifting yourself a new you this New Years? This curated collection of self-improvement tips will teach you to become a better balanced version of yourself. So make 2022 the year of wellness and healing yourself!

The most distant planets in our solar system, Uranus and Neptune were unknown by the ancients - Uranus was discovered in the 1780s and Neptune only in the 1840s. Our discovery and observation of both planets has been hampered by their sheer distance from Earth: there has only been one close encounter, Voyager 2 in the late 1980s. The Voyager mission revealed many enticing details about the planets and their moons, but also left many more questions unanswered. This book is an informative and accessible introduction to Uranus, Neptune and their moons. It takes the reader on a journey from discovery to the most recent observations made from space- and ground-based telescopes, and will appeal to amateur and professional astronomers alike.

From cells in our bodies to measuring the universe, big numbers are everywhere We all know that numbers go on forever, that you could spend your life counting and never reach the end of the line, so there can't be such a thing as a 'biggest number'. Or can there? To find out, David Darling and Agnijo Banerjee embark on an epic quest, revealing the answers to questions like: are there more grains of sand on Earth or stars in the universe? Is there enough paper on Earth to write out the digits of a googolplex? And what is a googolplex? Then things get serious. Enter the strange realm between the finite and the infinite, and float through a universe where the rules we cling to no longer apply. Encounter the highest number computable and infinite kinds of infinity. At every turn, a cast of wild and wonderful characters threatens the status quo with their ideas, and each time the numbers get larger.

What is the origin of our universe? What are dark matter and dark energy? What is our role in the universe as human beings capable of knowledge? What makes us intelligent cognitive agents seemingly endowed with consciousness? Scientific research across both the physical and cognitive sciences raises fascinating philosophical questions. "Philosophy and the Sciences For Everyone" introduces these questions and more. It begins by asking what good is philosophy for the sciences before examining the following questions:

• The origin of our universe
• Dark matter and dark energy
• Anthropic reasoning in philosophy and cosmology
• Evolutionary theory and the human mind
• What is consciousness?
• Intelligent machines and the human brain
• Embodied Cognition.

Each chapter includes an introduction, summary and study questions and there is a glossary of technical terms. Designed to be used on the corresponding Philosophy and the Sciences online course offered by the University of Edinburgh this book is also a superb introduction to central topics in philosophy of science and popular science.

What is the origin of our universe? What are dark matter and dark energy? What is our role in the universe as human beings capable of knowledge? What makes us intelligent cognitive agents seemingly endowed with consciousness? Scientific research across both the physical and cognitive sciences raises fascinating philosophical questions. "Philosophy and the Sciences For Everyone" introduces these questions and more. It begins by asking what good is philosophy for the sciences before examining the following questions:

• The origin of our universe
• Dark matter and dark energy
• Anthropic reasoning in philosophy and cosmology
• Evolutionary theory and the human mind
• What is consciousness?
• Intelligent machines and the human brain
• Embodied Cognition.

Each chapter includes an introduction, summary and study questions and there is a glossary of technical terms. Designed to be used on the corresponding Philosophy and the Sciences online course offered by the University of Edinburgh this book is also a superb introduction to central topics in philosophy of science and popular science.

At the Root of Things: The Subatomic World is a journey into the world of elementary particles-the basic constituents of all matter in the universe-and the nature of the interactions among them. The book begins with a summary of pre-quantum physics and later tackles quantum physics, which is essential for the study of elementary particles. The book discusses the emergence of quantum theory from studies in heat radiation and the photoelectric effect as well as developments that led to the concept of duality between particles and waves. Also discussed is how quantum theory helped to better understand the structure of atoms and the discovery of particles that were not constituents of atoms, such as the positron and the muon. Dozens of particles that were discovered experimentally in the 1950s and the 1960s are described along with fundamental particles-quarks and leptons. The book concludes with a discussion on fundamental interactions, the basic nature of quantum theories surrounding these interactions, and a discussion of how these interactions might be unified. At the Root of Things: The Subatomic World is written in non-technical language making it accessible to a broad audience. It helps outsiders understand the subject in a non-mathematical manner and inspires them to learn more about this interesting field.

'The who, what, where, when and how of human evolution, from one of the world's experts on the dating of prehistoric fossils' Steve Brusatte, author of The Rise and Fall of the Dinosaurs 'Fascinating and entertaining. If you read one book on human origins, this should be it' Ian Morris, author of Why the West Rules - For Now 50,000 years ago, we were not the only species of human in the world. There were at least four others, including the Neanderthals, Homo floresiensis, Homo luzonesis and the Denisovans. At the forefront of the latter's ground-breaking discovery was Oxford Professor Tom Higham. In The World Before Us, he explains the scientific and technological advancements - in radiocarbon dating and ancient DNA, for example - that allowed each of these discoveries to be made, enabling us to be more accurate in our predictions about not just how long ago these other humans lived, but how they lived, interacted and live on in our genes today. This is the story of us, told for the first time with its full cast of characters. 'Exciting' David Abulafia, author of The Boundless Sea 'Remarkable' Rebecca Wragg Sykes, author of Kindred 'Thrilling' David Reich, author of Who We Are and How We Got Here 'Brilliant' Chris Gosden, author of The History of Magic 'Gripping and fun' Paul Collier, author of The Bottom Billion 'Essential' Barry Cunliffe, author of The Scythians 'Profoundly entertaining' Brian Fagan, author of World Prehistory

"Can science be funny?" takes a close look at an element of modern science communication that is as innovative as it is promising for the future: comedy! Readers are guided through vividly presented academic theory as well as exciting hands-on and best practice examples from renowned practitioners and cabaret artists: - What do sheep's cheese and car tires have in common? - Can laughter break down walls? - How does "Die Anstalt" work? - How does magic create knowledge? - Is there humor in museums? - When a Dalmatian comes to the cash register - Three steps to humor - Serving suggestion for the Holy Spirit - dictatorship of stupidity - And much more! But it's not all just funny. Comedy can also take away some of the biting sharpness of criticism, making it digestible, even palatable, for the addressees. "Can Science Be Funny?" navigates between criticism and cabaret, tackling comedy in various guises from different perspectives. 22 contributions show how the results of science, research and technology can be brought to the general public in new ways. In particular, they also demonstrate how humour can be used as a critical and questioning force - valuable for all types of communication and helpful so that they come across more shrewdly in the future.

DUST is unmistakably a major book in the making. This is a book with an extraordinary global story to tell, but - and - also with an ethical argument to advance. - Robert Macfarlane __________ Four-and-a-half billion years ago, Planet Earth was formed from a vast spinning nebula of cosmic dust, the detritus left over from the birth of the sun. Within the next hundred years, human life on swathes of the earth's surface will also end, in a haze of heat, drought and, again, dust. Dust is the legacy of twentieth-century progress and a profound threat to life in the twenty-first. And yet it's something we hardly ever consider - so small and so mundane as to be beyond the threshold of thought. All of history is recorded in the dust we create: the pollution we make, the fires we start, the chemicals we use, the volcanos that erupt. Now, for the first time DUST will examine this substance and reveal it's importance and the fascinating stories it has.

A cutting-edge examination of what it means to be human and to have a 'self' in the face of new scientific developments in genetic editing, cloning and neural downloading. After seeing his own cells used to grow clumps of new neurons - essentially mini-brains - Philip Ball begins to examine the concepts of identity and consciousness. Delving into humanity's deep evolutionary past to look at how complex creatures like us emerged from single-celled life, he offers a new perspective on how humans think about ourselves. In an age when we are increasingly encouraged to regard the 'self' as an abstract sequence of genetic information, or as a pattern of neural activity that might be 'downloaded' to a computer, he return us to the body - to flesh and blood - and anchors a conception of personhood in this unique and ephemeral mortal coil. How to Build a Human brings us back to ourselves - but in doing so, it challenges old preconceptions and values. It asks us to rethink how we exist in the world.

A WATERSTONES BEST BOOK OF 2022: POLITICS Significant strides have been made in recent years in the movement for LGBTQ+ rights, visibility and empowerment, but the conversation is far from over. After years of feeling the crushing dearth of information on bisexuality, psychological scientist and bestselling author Dr Julia Shaw dug deep and found a colourful and fascinating world that she is bringing out of the shadows. It is a personal journey that starts with her own openly bisexual identity, and celebrates the resilience and beautiful diversity of the bi community. In Bi: The Hidden Culture, History and Science of Bisexuality, Shaw explores all that we know about the world's largest sexual minority. From the hunt for a bi gene, to the relationship between bisexuality and consensual non-monogamy, to asylum seekers who need to prove their bisexuality in a court of law, there is more to explore than most have ever realised. This rigorous and fun book will challenge us to think deeper about who we are and how we love.

The Short Story of the Universe is a new introduction to the subject of the universe. Covering 130 key components that make it up - from dwarf galaxies and spiral arms to red giants and the planets of the solar sytem - and linking these to the universe's structure and the theories that help us understand it, this book simplifies this riveting yet mind-boggling subject, telling the story of how it came into being and how it will eventually be no more. Accessible and concise, generously illustrated throughout, and with all the essential information presented without jargon, readers are given all the tools they need to enjoy the fascinating history of the deepest depths of the universe.

In this fascinating foray into the millennia-long relationship between science and military power, acclaimed astrophysicist and "the world's best science communicator" (Times Literary Supplement) Neil deGrasse Tyson and writer-researcher Avis Lang examine how the methods and tools of astrophysics have been enlisted in the service of war. "The overlap is strong, and the knowledge flows in both directions", say the authors, because astrophysicists and military planners care about many of the same things: multi-spectral detection, ranging, tracking, imaging, high ground, nuclear fusion and access to space. Tyson and Lang call it a "curiously complicit" alliance. "The universe is both the ultimate frontier and the highest of high grounds", they write. "Shared by both space scientists and space warriors, it's a laboratory for one and a battlefield for the other. The explorer wants to understand it; the soldier wants to dominate it. But without the right technology-which is more or less the same technology for both parties-nobody can get to it, operate in it, scrutinise it, dominate it or use it to their advantage and someone else's disadvantage." Spanning early celestial navigation to satellite-enabled warfare, Accessory to War is a richly researched and provocative examination of the intersection of science, technology, industry and power that will introduce Tyson's millions of fans to yet another dimension of how the universe has shaped our lives and our world.