BookOdyssey

Steven Johnson\'s Emergence: The Connected Lives of Ants, Brains, Cities and Software is a fascinating look at how self-organising systems are changing the world. Why do people cluster together in neighborhoods? How do internet communities spring up from nowhere? Why is a brain conscious even though no single neuron is? What causes a media frenzy?The answer, as Steven Johnson\'s groundbreaking book shows, is emergence: change that occurs from the bottom up. When enough individual elements interact and organize themselves, the result is collective intelligence - even though no-one is in charge. It is a phenomenon that exists at every level of experience, and will revolutionize the way we see the world. \'Exhilarating\' J.G. Ballard \'A dizzying, dazzling romp through fields as disparate as urban planning, computer-game design, neurology and control theory\' Economist \'Mind-expanding ... intelligent, witty and tremendously thought-provoking ... Popular science books interesting enough to read twice don\'t come along all that often\' Guardian \'Not just a fascinating quirk of science: it\'s the future\' The New York Times Σελίδες: 288, Διαστάσεις: 13x13cm

\'SYNC\' IS A STORY OF A DAZZLING KIND OF ORDER IN THE UNIVERSE, THE HARMONY THAT COMES FROM CYCLES IN SYNC. THE TENDENCY TO SYCHRONIZE IS ONE OF THE MOST FAR- REACHING DRIVES IN ALL OF NATURE. IT EXTENDS FROM PEOPLE TO PLANETS, FROM ANIMALS TO ATOMS. IN \'SYNC\' PROFESSOR STEVEN STROGATZ CONSIDERS A RANGE OF APPLICATIONS - HUMAN SLEEP AND CIRCADIAN RHYTHMS, MENSTRUAL SYNCHRONY, INSECT OUTBREAKS, SUPERCONDUCTORS, LASERS, SECRET CODES, HEART ARRHYTHMIAS AND FADS - CONNECTING ALL TRHOUGH AN EXPLORATION OF THE SAME MATHEMATICAL THEME: SELF- ORGANISATION, OR THE SPONTANEOUS EMERGENCE OF ORDER OUT OF CHAOS. FOCUSED ENOUGH TO PRESENT A COHERENT WORLD UNTO THEMSELVES, STROGATZ\'S CHOSEN TOPICS TOUCH ON SEVERAL OF THE HOTTEST DIRECTIONS IN CONTEMPORARY SCIENCE. Σελίδες: 352, Διαστάσεις: 13x13cm

Is there a \'physics of society\'? Philip Ball\'s investigation into human nature ranges from Hobbes and Adam Smith to modern work on traffic flow and market trading, across economics, sociology and psychology. Ball shows how much of human behaviour we can understand when we cease trying to predict and analyse the behaviour of individuals and look to the impact of hundreds, thousands or millions of individual human decisions, in circumstances in which human beings both co-operate and conflict, when their aggregate behaviour is constructive and when it is destructive. By perhaps Britain\'s leading young science writer, this is a deeply thought-provoking book, causing us to examine our own behaviour, whether in buying the new Harry Potter book, voting for a particular party or responding to the lures of advertisers. Σελίδες: 656, Διαστάσεις: 13x13cm

Paul Davies\' The Mind of God: Science and the Search for Ultimate Meaning explores how modern science is beginning to shed light on the mysteries of our existence. Is the universe - and our place in it - the result of random chance, or is there an ultimate meaning to existence? Where did the laws of nature come from? Were they created by a higher force, or can they be explained in some other way? How, for example, could a mechanism as complex as an eye have evolved without a creator? Paul Davies argues that the achievement of science and mathematics in unlocking the secrets of nature mean that there must be a deep and significant link between the human mind and the organization of the physical world. In this quest for an ultimate explanation of the universe, he examines the origin of the cosmos, the possibility of other universes and the claim that we inhabit a kind of gigantic computer. The universe is, he concludes, no mere quirk of fate but a meaningful place for thinking beings. Through science, we can truly glimpse the mind of God. \'Makes us re-examine the great questions of existence\'  The New York Times \'The greatest achievement of the book is to provide an insight into the nature of science itself and the uncertainties that lie in the physical realm\'  John Gribbin, Sunday Times\'For those brought up on a diet of Adam and Eve, The Mind of God will make surprising reading\'  Independent Paul Davies is Director of the BEYOND Center for Fundamental Concepts in Science, and co-Director of the Cosmology Initiative, both at Arizona State University. An internationally-acclaimed physicist, writer and broadcaster, Davies is the author of some twenty award-winning books, including The Eerie Silence: Searching for Ourselves in the Universe, The Goldilocks Enigma: Why is the Universe Just Right for Life? and About Time: Einstein\'s Unfinished Revolution. Σελίδες: 256, Διαστάσεις: 12.9x12.9cm

\'Be prepared to be amazed\' GuardianCan anyone get a perfect memory?Joshua Foer used to be like most of us, forgetting phone numbers and mislaying keys. Then he learnt the art of memory training, and a year later found himself in the finals of the US Memory Championship. He also discovered a truth we often forget: that, even in an age of technology, memory is the key to everything we are.In Moonwalking with Einstein he takes us on an astonishing journey through the mind, from ancient \'memory palace\' techniques to neuroscience, from the man who can recall nine thousand books to another who constantly forgets who he is. In doing so, Foer shows how we can all improve our memories.\'Captivating ... engaging ... smart and funny\' The New York Times\'Delightful ... uplifting ... it shows that our minds can do extraordinary things\' Wall Street Journal\'Great fun ... a book worth remembering\' Independent\'A lovely exploration of the ways that we preserve our lives and our world in the golden amber of human memory\' New Scientist Σελίδες: 320, Διαστάσεις: 2.9x2.9cm

In To Explain the World, pre-eminent theoretical physicist Steven Weinberg offers a rich and irreverent history of science from a unique perspective - that of a scientist. Moving from ancient Miletus to medieval Baghdad to Oxford, and from the Museum of Alexandria to the Royal Society of London, he shows that the scientists of the past not only did not understand what we understand about the world - they did not understand what there is to understand. Yet eventually, through the struggle to solve such mysteries as the backward movement of the planets and the rise and fall of tides, the modern discipline of science emerged. Σελίδες: 432, Διαστάσεις: 13x13cm

\'A manifesto for future-proofing our jobs and prosperity\' THE SUNDAY TIMESWe stand on the edge of a new era that will bring change to our world on a par with the Industrial Revolution. Automation, artificial intelligence and robotics are changing our lives quickly - but digital disruption goes much further than we realize. Richard Baldwin, one of the world\'s leading globalization experts, argues that the inhuman speed of this transformation threatens to overwhelm our capacity to adapt. But while the changes are now inevitable, there are strategies that humanity can use to adapt to this new world, employing the indispensable skills that no machine can copy: creativity and independent thought. THE GLOBOTICS UPHEAVAL will help each of us prepare for the oncoming wave of the advanced robotic workforce. Σελίδες: 304, Έτος Έκδοσης: 0908, Διαστάσεις: 12.8x12.8cm

From the phenomenal New Scientist series, with over 2,500,000 copies soldDo Polar Bears Get Lonely? is the third compilation of readers\' answers to the questions in the \'Last Word\' column of New Scientist, the world\'s best-selling science weekly. Following the phenomenal success of Does Anything Eat Wasps? (2005) and the even more spectacularly successful Why Don\'t Penguins\' Feet Freeze? (2006), Do Polar Bears Get Lonely? includes a bumper crop of wise and wonderful answers never-before-seen in book form.Why does garlic make your breath smell? How toothpaste makers get the stripes in toothpaste? Why do we get \'pins and needles\'? Why are some people left-handed and other people right-handed? Can insects get fat? Do elephants sneeze? And do fish get thirsty? What causes cells to stick together in the human body rather than simply fall apart? And why are pears pear-shaped (and not apple-shaped)?This all-new and eagerly awaited selection of the best once again presents popular science at its most entertaining and enlightening. Σελίδες: 240, Διαστάσεις: 13.1x13.1cm

For you to be here today reading this requires a mind-boggling series of lucky breaks, starting with the Big Bang and ending in your own conception. So it\'s not surprising that we persist in thinking that we\'re in with a chance, whether we\'re playing the lottery or working out the likelihood of extra-terrestrial life. In Chance, a (not entirely) random selection of the New Scientist\'s sharpest minds provide fascinating insights into luck, randomness, risk and probability. From the secrets of coincidence to placing the perfect bet, the science of random number generation to the surprisingly haphazard decisions of criminal juries, it explores these and many other tantalising questions.Following on from the bestselling Nothing and Question Everything, this book will open your eyes to the weird and wonderful world of chance - and help you see when some things, in fact, aren\'t random at all. Σελίδες: 272, Έτος Έκδοσης: 0704, Διαστάσεις: 12.8x12.8cm

Most of us believe that we possess a self - an internal individual who resides inside our bodies, making decisions, authoring actions and possessing free will. The feeling that a single, unified, enduring self inhabits the body - the \'me\' inside me - is compelling and inescapable. This is how we interact as a social animal and judge each other\'s actions and deeds. But that sovereignty of the self is increasingly under threat from science as our understanding of the brain advances. Rather than a single entity, the self is really a constellation of mechanisms and experiences that create the illusion of the internal you. We only emerge as a product of those around us as part of the different storylines we inhabit from the cot to the grave. It is an ever changing character, created by the brain to provide a coherent interface between the multitude of internal processes and the external world demands that require different selves. Σελίδες: 272, Έτος Έκδοσης: 0307, Διαστάσεις: 12.8x12.8cm

OVER ONE MILLION COPIES SOLD \'A remarkable and hopeful portrait of the endless adaptability of the human brain\' Oliver Sacks\'Utterly wonderful . . . without question one of the most important books about the brain you will ever read; yet it is beautifully written, immensely approachable, and full of humanity\' Iain McGilchrist MA, author of The Master and His EmissaryMeet the ninety-year-old doctor who is still practicing medicine, the stroke victim who learned to move and talk again and the woman with half a brain that rewired itself to work as a whole. All these people had their lives transformed by the remarkable discovery that our brains can repair themselves through the power of positive thinking. Here bestselling author, psychiatrist and psychoanalyst Norman Doidge reveals the secrets of the cutting-edge science of \'neuroplasticity\'. He introduces incredible case histories - blind people helped to see, IQs raised and memories sharpened - and tells the stories of the maverick scientists who are overturning centuries of assumptions about the brain. This inspiring book will leave you with a sense of wonder at the capabilities of the mind, and the self-healing power that lies within all of us. Σελίδες: 448, Διαστάσεις: 12.9x12.9cm

Simplifying chaos and complexity theory for the perplexed, John Gribbin\'s Deep Simplicity: Chaos, Complexity and the Emergence of Life brilliantly illuminates the harmony underlying our existence. The world around us can be a complex, confusing place. Earthquakes happen without warning, stock markets fluctuate, weather forecasters seldom seem to get it right - even other people continue to baffle us. How do we make sense of it all? In fact, John Gribbin reveals, our seemingly random universe is actually built on simple laws of cause and effect that can explain why, for example, just one vehicle braking can cause a traffic jam; why wild storms result from a slight atmospheric change; even how we evolved from the most basic materials. Like a zen painting, a fractal image or the pattern on a butterfly\'s wings, simple elements form the bedrock of a sophisticated whole. \'The master of popular science writing\'  Sunday Times \'What makes Deep Simplicity different from other books on complexity theory is that Gribbin ... goes back to the fundamentals\'  Daily Telegraph \'One is left feeling even more - if this is possible - filled with admiration for science and delight at the world it investigates\'  Financial Times John Gribbin is one of today\'s greatest writers of popular science and the author of bestselling books, including In Search of Schrödinger\'s Cat, Stardust, Science: A History and In Search of the Multiverse. Gribbin trained as an astrophysicist at Cambridge University and is currently Visiting Fellow in Astronomy at the University of Sussex. Σελίδες: 272, Διαστάσεις: 13x13cm

India: it\'s a nation of geeks, swots and nerds. Almost one in five of all medical and dental staff in the UK is of Indian origin, and one in six employed scientists with science or engineering doctorates in the US is Asian. By the turn of the millennium, there were even claims that a third of all engineers in Silicon Valley were of Indian origin, with Indians running 750 of its tech companies. At the dawn of this scientific revolution, Geek Nation is a journey to meet the inventors, engineers and young scientists helping to give birth to the world\'s next scientific superpower - a nation built not on conquest, oil or minerals, but on the scientific ingenuity of its people. Angela Saini explains how ancient science is giving way to new, and how the technology of the wealthy are passing on to the poor. Delving inside the psyche of India\'s science-hungry citizens, she explores the reason why the government of the most religious country on earth has put its faith in science and technology.Through witty first-hand reportage and penetrative analysis, Geek Nation explains what this means for the rest of the world, and how a spiritual nation squares its soul with hard rationality. Full of curious, colourful characters and gripping stories, it describes India through its people - a nation of geeks. Σελίδες: 288, Έτος Έκδοσης: 0313, Διαστάσεις: 13x13cm

A Sunday Times bestsellerHow long is \'now\'? The short answer is \'somewhere between 2 and 3 seconds\'. The long answer involves an incredible journey through neuroscience, our subconscious and the time-bending power of meditation. Living in the present may never feel the same. Ready for some more? Okay. Why isn\'t Pluto a planet? Why are dogs\' noses wet? Why do hens cluck more loudly after laying an egg? What happens when one black hole swallows another? Do our fingerprints change as we get older? How young can you die of old age? And what is at the very edge of the Universe?Life is full of mind-bending questions. And, as books like What If? and Why Don\'t Penguins\' Feet Freeze? have shown, the route to find each answer can take us on the weirdest and most wonderful journeys. How Long is Now? is a fascinating new collection of questions you never thought to ask, along with answers that will change the way you see everything. Σελίδες: 304, Έτος Έκδοσης: 1025, Διαστάσεις: 12.8x12.8cm

\'An extraordinary book . . . It will shake up your most fundamental beliefs about everyday experience, and it just might change your life.\' Paul Bloom___For the millions of people who want spirituality without religion, Sam Harris\'s new book is a guide to meditation as a rational spiritual practice informed by neuroscience and psychology. Throughout the book, Harris argues that there are important truths to be found in the experience of contemplatives such as Jesus, Buddha and other saints and sages of history-and, therefore, that there is more to understanding reality than science and secular culture generally allow.Waking Up is part seeker\'s memoir and part exploration of the scientific underpinnings of spirituality. No other book marries contemplative wisdom and modern science in this way, and no author other than Sam Harris-a scientist, philosopher, and famous sceptic-could write it. ___\'A demanding, illusion-shattering book.\' Kirkus Reviews\'A pleasure to read.\' Huffington Post Σελίδες: 256, Διαστάσεις: 12.8x12.8cm

In this eye-opening book, psychologist Jesse Bering argues that we are all sexual deviants on one level or another. He introduces us to the young woman who falls madly in love with the Eiffel Tower, a young man addicted to seductive sneezes, and a pair of deeply affectionate identical twins, among others. He challenges us to move beyond our attitudes towards ‘deviant’ sex and consider the alternative: what would happen if we rise above our fears and revulsions and accept our true natures?With his signature wit and irreverent style, Bering pulls back the curtains on the history of perversions, the biological reasons behind our distaste for unusual sexual proclivities and the latest research on desire. Armed with reason, science and an insatiable appetite for knowledge, he humanises deviants while asking some provocative questions about the nature of hypocrisy, prejudice and when sexual desire can lead to harm.A groundbreaking look at our complex relationship with our carnal urges and the ways in which we disguise, deny and shame the sexual deviant in all of us, Perv brings hidden desires into the spotlight. Σελίδες: 336, Διαστάσεις: 12.7x12.7cm

Was there a beginning of time? Could time run backwards? Is the universe infinite or does it have boundaries?These are just some of the questions considered in the internationally acclaimed masterpiece by the world renowned physicist - generally considered to have been one of the world\'s greatest thinkers. It begins by reviewing the great theories of the cosmos from Newton to Einstein, before delving into the secrets which still lie at the heart of space and time, from the Big Bang to black holes, via spiral galaxies and strong theory. To this day A Brief History of Time remains a staple of the scientific canon, and its succinct and clear language continues to introduce millions to the universe and its wonders.This new edition includes recent updates from Stephen Hawking with his latest thoughts about the No Boundary Proposal and offers new information about dark energy, the information paradox, eternal inflation, the microwave background radiation observations, and the discovery of gravitational waves. It was published in tandem with the app, Stephen Hawking\'s Pocket Universe. Σελίδες: 272, Διαστάσεις: 12.7x12.7cm

The Science of Secrecy from Ancient Egypt to Quantum Cryptography From the best-selling author of Fermat’s Last Theorem, The Code Book is a history of man’s urge to uncover the secrets of codes, from Egyptian puzzles to modern day computer encryptions. As in Fermat’s Last Theorem, Simon Singh brings life to an anstonishing story of puzzles, codes, languages and riddles that reveals man’s continual pursuit to disguise and uncover, and to work out the secret languages of others. Codes have influenced events throughout history, both in the stories of those who make them and those who break them. The betrayal of Mary Queen of Scots and the cracking of the enigma code that helped the Allies in World War II are major episodes in a continuing history of cryptography. In addition to stories of intrigue and warfare, Simon Singh also investigates other codes, the unravelling of genes and the rediscovery of ancient languages and most tantalisingly, the Beale ciphers, an unbroken code that could hold the key to a $20 million treasure. Σελίδες: 416, Διαστάσεις: 12.9x12.9cm

A book which gives scientific proof of the paranormal. Psychic activity, remote viewing, the power of prayer and homeopathy are all discussed in this book which The Ecologist called ‘one of the most thought-provoking reads of the year’, and which has already gained a almost cult following. Sales Handles:• A highly readable scientific detective story which reveals how ‘the Field’ a vast cobweb of energy connecting everything in the universe, past and present, is responsible for many of the most profound human mysteries How psychics can read the future and the past; how remote viewing works – and how such techniques have been used by the CIA; how energy healing works; why homeopathy works and all sorts of other mysteries are explored by the frontier scientists Lynne McTaggart has interviewed. Σελίδες: 384, Διαστάσεις: 12.9x12.9cm

\'Gribbin casts a wide net and displays his breadth of knowledge in packing a lot into each chapter . . . a brief read, but one that may inspire readers to dig deeper.\' Giles Sparrow, BBC Sky at Night MagazineA mind-warping excursion into the wildly improbable truths of science.Echoing Sherlock Holmes\' famous dictum, John Gribbin tells us: \'Once you have eliminated the impossible, whatever is left, however improbable, is certainly possible, in the light of present scientific knowledge.\' With that in mind, in his sequel to the hugely popular Six Impossible Things and Seven Pillars of Science, Gribbin turns his attention to some of the mind-bendingly improbable truths of science. For example:We know that the Universe had a beginning, and when it was - and also that the expansion of the Universe is speeding up. We can detect ripples in space that are one ten-thousandth the width of a proton, made by colliding black holes billions of light years from Earth.And, most importantly from our perspective, all complex life on Earth today is descended from a single cell - but without the stabilising influence of the Moon, life forms like us could never have evolved. Σελίδες: 160, Διαστάσεις: 13.8x13.8cm

\"Civilization rests on a series of successful conversations.\" Sam HarrisNeuroscientist, philosopher, podcaster and bestselling author Sam Harris, has been exploring some of the greatest questions concerning the human mind, society, and the events that shape our world.Harris\'s search for deeper understanding of how we think has led him to engage and exchange with some of our most brilliant and controversial contemporary minds - Daniel Kahneman, Robert Sapolsky, Anil Seth and Max Tegmark - in order to unpack and clarify ideas of consciousness, free will, extremism, and ethical living.For Harris, honest conversation, no matter how difficult or contentious, represents the only path to moral and intellectual progress.Featuring eleven conversations from the hit podcast, these electric exchanges fuse wisdom with rigorous interrogation to shine a light on what it means to make sense of our world today.\'I don\'t have many can\'t miss podcasts, but Making Sense is right at the top of that short list.\' - Stephen Fry\'Sam Harris is the most intellectually courageous man I know.\' - Richard Dawkins Σελίδες: 464, Διαστάσεις: 12.8x12.8cm

\'The Book of Revelation with a Bill Bryson touch... At least you\'ll die laughing\' Sunday Telegraph **NOW UPDATED TO INCLUDE THE LATEST APOCALYPSE** Of late, Mark O\'Connell has found himself particularly anxious about the end of the world. As things fall apart around him, he sets out to meet the people preparing to survive: environmentalists meditating in remote Scottish forests, billionaires dreaming of life on Mars or a villa in New Zealand, and conspiracy theorists yearning for a lost American idyll. Journeying with him through this landscape of anxiety, we learn just what it takes to make it to the other side. Σελίδες: 272, Διαστάσεις: 12.9x12.9cm

\'Illuminating!\' Professor Brian Cox\'Every Steve Jones book is a masterclass in clear and captivating writing with tantalising detours into beguiling anecdotes. Here Comes the Sun is dense with ideas and stories and, like all his books, it will change the way you see the world around you\' Robin Ince Our sun drives the weather, forms the landscape, feeds and fuels - but sometimes destroys - the creatures that live upon it, controls their patterns of activity, makes chemicals in the skin that cheer up those who bask in its rays, and for the ancients was the seat of divine authority.In Here Comes the Sun, Steve Jones shows how life on Earth is ruled by our nearest star. It is filled with unexpected connections; between the need to stay cool and man\'s ability to stand upright, between the power of memory and the onset of darkness, between the flow of solar energy through the plants and animals and of wealth through society, and between Joseph Goebbel\'s 1938 scheme to make Edinburgh the summer capital of a defeated Britain and the widening gap in the life expectancy of Scottish men compared to that of other European men brought on by thnat nation\'s cloudy climate. Its author charts some of his own research in places hot and cold across the globe on the genetic and evolutionary effects of sunlight on snails, fruit-flies and people and shows how what was once no more an eccentric specialism has grown to become a subject of wide scientific, social and political significance. Stunningly evocative, beautifully written and packed full of insight, Here Comes the Sun is Steve Jones\'s most personal book to date. Σελίδες: 368, Έτος Έκδοσης: 0929, Διαστάσεις: 12.4x12.4cm

In our brave new world of Big Tech, work is automated and money melts into air. What comes next as the global capitalist edifice crumbles? Slavoj Žižek shows how the answer is already stealing into sight, like a thief in broad daylight. What we must do is wake up and see it. \'In a world determined to crush hope of radical change, where moral corruption poses as pragmatism and systemic oppression as the new freedom, Slavoj Žižek\'s excellent new book serves humanity in a way that only authentic philosophy can\' Yanis Varoufakis\'The Elvis of cultural theory\' New Statesman\'Master of the counterintuitive observation\' New Yorker Σελίδες: 240, Διαστάσεις: 13x13cm

THE NO.1 SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER\'A beautiful little book by a brilliant mind\' DAILY TELEGRAPH\'Effortlessly instructive, absorbing, up to the minute and - where it matters - witty\' GUARDIANThe world-famous cosmologist and #1 bestselling author of A Brief History of Time leaves us with his final thoughts on the universe\'s biggest questions in this brilliant posthumous work.Is there a God?How did it all begin?Can we predict the future?What is inside a black hole?Is there other intelligent life in the universe?Will artificial intelligence outsmart us?How do we shape the future?Will we survive on Earth?Should we colonise space?Is time travel possible?Throughout his extraordinary career, Stephen Hawking expanded our understanding of the universe and unravelled some of its greatest mysteries. But even as his theoretical work on black holes, imaginary time and multiple histories took his mind to the furthest reaches of space, Hawking always believed that science could also be used to fix the problems on our planet.And now, as we face potentially catastrophic changes here on Earth - from climate change to dwindling natural resources to the threat of artificial super-intelligence - Stephen Hawking turns his attention to the most urgent issues for humankind.Wide-ranging, intellectually stimulating, passionately argued, and infused with his characteristic humour, Brief Answers to the Big Questions, the final book from one of the greatest minds in history, is a personal view on the challenges we face as a human race, and where we, as a planet, are heading next.A percentage of all royalties will go to charity. Σελίδες: 272, Έτος Έκδοσης: 0310, Διαστάσεις: 12.8x12.8cm

WINNER OF THE CWA GOLD DAGGER FOR NON-FICTION\'Gripping from the start, Written in Bone is superb\' - Dr Richard Shepherd, author of Unnatural Causes\'No Scientist communicates better than Sue Black\' - Val McDermid, author of Still Life\'Macabre, authoritative and fascinating.\' - The Sunday TimesOur bones are the silent witnesses to the lives we lead. Our stories are marbled into their marrow.Drawing upon her years of research and a wealth of remarkable experience, the world-renowned forensic anthropologist Professor Dame Sue Black takes us on a journey of revelation. From skull to feet, via the face, spine, chest, arms, hands, pelvis and legs, she shows that each part of us has a tale to tell. What we eat, where we go, everything we do leaves a trace, a message that waits patiently for months, years, sometimes centuries, until a forensic anthropologist is called upon to decipher it.Some of this information is easily understood, some holds its secrets tight and needs scientific cajoling to be released. But by carefully piecing together the evidence, the facts of a life can be rebuilt.Limb by limb, case by case - some criminal, some historical, some unaccountably bizarre - Sue Black reconstructs with intimate sensitivity and compassion the hidden stories in what we leave behind.Praise for Sue Black:\'Sue Black has a rare ability to make blood and bones come alive. A marvellous writer. Ruth Davidson, SMP\'The corpse whisperer ... Is it okay for Black, or us, to enjoy this quite so much?\'\'Fascinating\' - Spectator\'Gripping\' - Guardian\'Moving\' - Scotsman\'Engrossing\' - Financial Times Σελίδες: 368, Διαστάσεις: 12.9x12.9cm

In The Nature of Technology, ground-breaking economist W. Brian Arthur explores the extraordinary way in which the technology that surrounds us and allows us to live our modern lives has actually been developed. Rather than coming from a series of one-off inventions, almost all the technology we use today comes from previous developments: these technologies are not being created, but are instead evolving.With fascinating examples, from laser printers to powerplants, Arthur reveals how our own problem-solving skills and creative vision can evolve alongside these technologies, and how this understanding can even improve our understanding of the wider world. Σελίδες: 256, Διαστάσεις: 12.9x12.9cm

\'A fascinating and enticing vision of the utopian New World that Robert Zubrin believes could and should be created on the Red Planet’ Martin ReesThe world\'s leading expert on the human settlement of Mars explains what Martian societies will look like - sooner than we thinkWithin a few years, humans will be able to voyage to Mars. SpaceX is at the forefront of companies already building fleets of spaceships to make interplanetary travel as affordable as Old-World passage to America – to the then New World. We will settle the red planet, transforming its raw materials into resources and tackling the challenges that await us, creating a new frontier for humankind.Dr Robert Zubrin explains how populous Martian city-states will emerge, producing their own air, water, food, power and more. How they must be beautiful to attract settlers, and what that might look like. How the primary exports are unlikely to be material goods but intellectual products, created by a technically adept population in a frontier environment where people will be forced to innovate – including GMOs, robotics, AI and power production. Zubrin even predicts the red planet’s customs, social relations and government – of the people, by the people, for the people, with inalienable individual rights – that will overcome traditional forms of oppression to draw talented Earth immigrants.In 1776, Thomas Paine wrote ‘We have it in our power to begin the world over again’. Zubrin inspires us to embrace another magnificent future today. With the right pieces in place, his red planet will become a pressure cooker for invention, benefiting humans on Earth, Mars and beyond. The New World on Mars proves that there is no point killing each other over provinces on Earth when, together, we can create planets. Σελίδες: 320, Διαστάσεις: 13x13cm

Time travel is a familiar theme of science fiction, but is it really possible?Surprisingly, time travel is not forbidden by the laws of physics - and John Gribbin argues that if it is not impossible then it must be possible.Gribbin brilliantly illustrates the possibilities of time travel by comparing familiar themes from science fiction with their real-world scientific counterparts, including Einstein\'s theories of relativity, black holes, quantum physics, and the multiverse, illuminated by examples from the fictional tales of Robert Heinlein, Larry Niven, Carl Sagan and others.The result is an entertaining guide to some deep mysteries of the Universe which may leave you wondering whether time actually passes at all, and if it does, whether we are moving forwards or backwards. A must-read for science fiction fans and anyone intrigued by deep science. Σελίδες: 176, Διαστάσεις: 13.8x13.8cm

In the summer of 1953, maverick neurosurgeon William Beecher Scoville performed a groundbreaking operation on an epileptic patient named Henry Molaison. But it was a catastrophic failure, leaving Henry unable to create long-term memories.Scoville\'s grandson, Luke Dittrich, takes us on an astonishing journey through the history of neuroscience, from the first brain surgeries in ancient Egypt to the New England asylum where his grandfather developed a taste for human experimentation. Dittrich\'s investigation confronts unsettling family secrets and reveals the dark roots of modern neuroscience, raising troubling questions that echo into the present day. Σελίδες: 480, Διαστάσεις: 13x13cm

‘A devastating portrait of the cultures and logics underlying big tech. Rushkoff is going to make you mad enough to fight back. A vital, lucid, and enraging read.’ Naomi Klein, author of This Changes Everything The tech elite have a plan to survive the apocalypse: they want to leave us all behind.  When Douglas Rushkoff was summoned to the desert to a private talk for the rich and powerful, he learned about ‘The Mindset’: a theory that inevitable societal catastrophe can be evaded by individuals with enough money and the right technology. Here, Rushkoff traces the evolution of The Mindset through its origins in science and technology to its current expression in missions to Mars, island bunkers, and the Metaverse. This mind-blowing work of social analysis shows us how to transcend the landscape The Mindset has created — a world alive with algorithms and intelligences actively rewarding our most selfish tendencies — and rediscover community, mutual aid, and human interdependency.  Σελίδες: 224, Διαστάσεις: 12.9x12.9cm

From a foremost expert on the science of emotions, a ground-breaking exploration into the history, psychology and meaning of aweSocial psychologist Dacher Keltner has spent his career speaking to different groups of people, from schoolchildren to prisoners to healthcare workers, about the good life. These conversations and his pioneering research into the science of emotion have convinced him that happiness comes down to one thing: finding awe.Awe allows us to collaborate with others, open our minds to wonder, and see the deep patterns of life. In his new book, Keltner presents a radical investigation into this elusive emotion. Drawing on his own scientific research into how awe transforms our brains and bodies, alongside an examination of awe across history, culture and within his own life during a period of immense grief, Keltner shows us how cultivating wonder leads us to appreciate what is most humane in our human nature. The book includes intensely moving, deeply personal stories of awe from people all over the world - doctors and veterans, environmentalists and filmmakers, indigenous scholars and hospice workers, ministers and midwives, poets and prisoners.At turns radical and profound, Awe is our field guide for how to uncover everyday wonder as a vital force within our lives. Σελίδες: 336, Διαστάσεις: 12.9x12.9cm

Pleasure is one of the most fascinating aspects of being human. But what is it?Exploring child development, philosophy, neuroscience and behavioural economics, Paul Bloom uncovers how universal habits explain what we like and why we like it.The average Briton spends over a day a week watching television. People slow their cars to look at gory accidents and go to sentimental movies that make them cry. Some men pay good money to be spanked by prostitutes.In this revealing and witty account, Paul Bloom examines the science behind these curious desires, attractions and tastes, exploring one of the most fascinating and fundamental engines of human behaviour.‘How Pleasure Works has one of the best discussions I\'ve read of why art is pleasurable, why it matters to us, and why it moves us so’ Daniel Levitin, author of This Is Your Brain on Music Σελίδες: 304, Διαστάσεις: 12.9x12.9cm

Paul Davies\' The Goldilocks Enigma: Why is the Universe Just Right for Life? gets to the heart of what makes the universe tick ­- and what makes our place in it so special. It\'s not too hot, it\'s not too cold, and its forces act together in a way that\'s just right: why does the universe seem so perfectly tailor-made for life to exist? Paul Davies, one of the world\'s most acclaimed science writers, shows how everything from the humble carbon atom to the speed of light and the laws of physics themselves interact. He asks: is there a theory of everything within our grasp? If there was a big bang, what happened before it? Is there on universe or many? Could we exist within an endless time loop? \'This is popular science as home to the really big questions\'  Independent Books of the Year \'Beautifully judged\'  Guardian \'Britain\'s most eminent cosmologist ... Davies is effortlessly at home in the scale of the impossibly large, hundreds of billions of miles\'  Observer \'He leads the reader gently by the hand through the basics of what we are sure we understand about space, time and the universe\'  John Gribbin \'Paul Davies is undoubtedly one of the most important modern scientific authors ... his most significant contribution to date\'  Patrick Moore Paul Davies is Director of the BEYOND Center for Fundamental Concepts in Science, and co-Director of the Cosmology Initiative, both at Arizona State University. An internationally-acclaimed physicist, writer and broadcaster, Davies is the author of some twenty award-winning books, including The Eerie Silence: Searching for Ourselves in the Universe, The Goldilocks Enigma: Why is the Universe Just Right for Life? and The Mind of God: Science and the Search for Ultimate Meaning. Σελίδες: 368, Διαστάσεις: 13.1x13.1cm

What\'s the nature of reality? Does the universe ever end? What is time and does it even exist? These are the biggest imagination-stretching, brain-staggering questions in the universe - and here are their fascinating answers.From quantum weirdness to freaky cosmology (like white holes - which spew out matter instead of sucking it in), This Book Will Blow Your Mind takes you on an epic journey to the furthest extremes of science, to the things you never thought possible. This book will explain: Why part of the universe missing (and how scientists finally found it)How time might also flow backwardsHow human head transplants might be possible (in the very near future)Whether the universe is a hologramAnd why we are all zombiesFilled with counterintuitive stories and factoids you can\'t wait to share, as well as lots of did-you-knows and plenty of how-did-we-ever-not-knows, this new book from the bestselling New Scientist series will blow your mind - and then put it back together again. You don\'t need a spaceship to travel to the extremes of science. You just need this book. Σελίδες: 336, Έτος Έκδοσης: 1009, Διαστάσεις: 16x16cm

• Where do our thoughts come from?• How can we manipulate our dreams?• What is the role of the unconscious?• How do we make decisions and trust the judgement of both others and ourselves? In this mind-bending international bestseller by Mariano Sigman, one of the world’s leading neuroscientists reveals his life’s work exploring the intricacies of the human brain. Building on his awe-inspiring TED talk and drawing on examples in science and the arts, The Secret Life of the Mind offers an accessible guide to how the human brain works and its impact on our everyday life. This informative, lucid book is essential reading for anyone curious about how we perceive, reason and communicate. Σελίδες: 284, Διαστάσεις: 12.9x12.9cm