Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind by Yuval Noah Harari

$24.99 AUD

Category: Science

#1 New York Times Bestseller From a renowned historian comes a groundbreaking narrative of humanity's creation and evolution--a #1 international bestseller--that explores the ways in which biology and history have defined us and enhanced our understanding of what it means to be "human." One hundred th ousand years ago, at least six different species of humans inhabited Earth. Yet today there is only one--homo sapiens. What happened to the others? And what may happen to us? Most books about the history of humanity pursue either a historical or a biological approach, but Dr. Yuval Noah Harari breaks the mold with this highly original book that begins about 70,000 years ago with the appearance of modern cognition. From examining the role evolving humans have played in the global ecosystem to charting the rise of empires, Sapiens integrates history and science to reconsider accepted narratives, connect past developments with contemporary concerns, and examine specific events within the context of larger ideas. Dr. Harari also compels us to look ahead, because over the last few decades humans have begun to bend laws of natural selection that have governed life for the past four billion years. We are acquiring the ability to design not only the world around us, but also ourselves. Where is this leading us, and what do we want to become? Featuring 27 photographs, 6 maps, and 25 illustrations/diagrams, this provocative and insightful work is sure to spark debate and is essential reading for aficionados of Jared Diamond, James Gleick, Matt Ridley, Robert Wright, and Sharon Moalem. ...Show more

21 Lessons for the 21st Century by Yuval Noah Harari

$35.00 AUD

Category: Science

The Number One Bestseller Sapiens showed us where we came from. Homo Deus looked to the future. 21 Lessons for the 21st Century explores the present. How can we protect ourselves from nuclear war, ecological cataclysms and technological disruptions? What can we do about the epidemic of fake news or the threat of terrorism? What should we teach our children? Yuval Noah Harari takes us on a thrilling journey through today?s most urgent issues. The golden thread running through his exhilarating new book is the challenge of maintaining our collective and individual focus in the face of constant and disorienting change. Are we still capable of understanding the world we have created? ...Show more

Brief Answers to the Big Questions: Stephen Hawking (HB) by Stephen Hawking

$32.99 AUD

Category: Science

'A beautiful little book by a brilliant mind' Steven Poole, DAILY TELEGRAPH The 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. ...Show more

Woo's Wonderful World of Maths by Edward Woo; Hannah Schubert (Illustrator); Alissa Dinallo (Illustrator)

$29.99 AUD

Category: Science | Reading Level: 4 Science

Why is a rainbow curved? Why aren't left-handers extinct? How is a sunflower like a synchronised swimmer? Why is 'e' a magic number?The answer to these questions is contained within one simple word: MATHS. Because maths is all about patterns, and our universe is extraordinarily patterned.With enthusiasm , humour and heart, Eddie Woo shows how card tricks, conspiracy theories, teacups, killer butterflies, music, lightning and so much more illuminate the spellbinding world of maths that surrounds us.'I never thought I'd read a maths book cover to cover, let alone sing its praises. Eddie Woo makes maths fun, accessible and relevant. Now we can all benefit from his extraordinary skill as a teacher.'JENNY BROCKIE, journalist and TV host'Not just a great teacher, Woo's Wonderful World of Maths shows Eddie to be a storyteller too. Is there anything the Woo cannot do?'ADAM SPENCER, Ambassador for Mathematics, University of Sydney ...Show more

Accessory to War - The Unspoken Alliance Between Astrophysics and the Military by Neil deGrasse Tyson; Avis Lang

$39.95 AUD

Category: Science

An exploration of the age-old complicity between skywatchers and warfighters, from the best-selling author of Astrophysics for People in a Hurry. In this fascinating foray into the centuries-old relationship between science and military power, acclaimed astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson and writer-rese archer 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, scrutinize 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. ...Show more

Man on the Moon: The Voyages of the Apollo Astronauts A by Andrew Chaikin

$35.00 AUD

Category: Science

Through the windows of the slowly turning spacecraft they looked out at the place where the sun had once been, and there was the moon- a huge, magnificent sphere bathed in the eerie blue light of earthshine, each crater rendered in ghostly detail.' The race to the moon was won spectacularly by Apollo 1 1 on 20 July 1969. When astronauts Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin took their 'giant step' across a ghostly lunar landscape, they were watched by some 600 million people on Earth 250,000 miles away. A Man on the Moon is the definitive account of the heroic Apollo programme- from the tragedy of the fire in Apollo 1 during a simulated launch, through the euphoria of the first moonwalk, to the discoveries made by the first scientist in space aboard Apollo 17. Drawing on hundreds of hours of in-depth interviews with the astronauts and team, this is the story of the twentieth century's greatest human achievement, minute-by-minute, in the words of those who were there. ...Show more

The Best American Science and Nature Writing 2018 by Sam Kean (Editor); Tim Folger (Editor)

$27.95 AUD

Category: Science | Series: The\Best American Series ® Ser.

Best-selling author of The Disappearing Spoon, The Violinist's Thumb, and more, Sam Kean, selects the year's top science and nature writing, looking for writers who balance research with humanity and in the process uncover riveting stories of discovery across the disciplines.

She Has Her Mother's Laugh by Carl Zimmer

$34.99 AUD

Category: Science

Heredity is redefined in this sweeping, resonating overview of a force that shaped human society--a force set to shape our future even more radically.   "Extraordinary"--New York Times Book Review "Magisterial"--The Atlantic"Engrossing"--Wired"Leading contender as the most outstanding nonfiction work of the year"--Minneapolis Star-TribuneAward-winning, celebrated New York Times columnist and science writer Carl Zimmer presents a profoundly original perspective on what we pass along from generation to generation. Charles Darwin played a crucial part in turning heredity into a scientific question, and yet he failed spectacularly to answer it. The birth of genetics in the early 1900s seemed to do precisely that. Gradually, people translated their old notions about heredity into a language of genes. As the technology for studying genes became cheaper, millions of people ordered genetic tests to link themselves to missing parents, to distant ancestors, to ethnic identities...   But, Zimmer writes, "Each of us carries an amalgam of fragments of DNA, stitched together from some of our many ancestors. Each piece has its own ancestry, traveling a different path back through human history. A particular fragment may sometimes be cause for worry, but most of our DNA influences who we are--our appearance, our height, our penchants--in inconceivably subtle ways." Heredity isn't just about genes that pass from parent to child. Heredity continues within our own bodies, as a single cell gives rise to trillions of cells that make up our bodies. We say we inherit genes from our ancestors--using a word that once referred to kingdoms and estates--but we inherit other things that matter as much or more to our lives, from microbes to technologies we use to make life more comfortable. We need a new definition of what heredity is and, through Carl Zimmer's lucid exposition and storytelling, this resounding tour de force delivers it.   Weaving historical and current scientific research, his own experience with his two daughters, and the kind of original reporting expected of one of the world's best science journalists, Zimmer ultimately unpacks urgent bioethical quandaries arising from new biomedical technologies, but also long-standing presumptions about who we really are and what we can pass on to future generations. ...Show more

Human Errors: Pointless Bones, Runaway Nerves and Other Human Defects by Nathan Lents

$29.99 AUD

Category: Science

We like to think of ourselves as highly evolved creatures. But if we are evolution's greatest creation, why are we so badly designed? We have retinas that face backward, the stump of a tail, and way too many bones in our wrists. We must find vitamins and nutrients in our diets that other animals simply make for themselves. Millions of us can't reproduce successfully without help from modern science. We have nerves that take bizarre paths, muscles that attach to nothing, and lymph nodes that do more harm than good. And that's just the beginning of the story. As biologist Nathan H. Lents explains, our evolutionary history is a litany of mistakes, each more entertaining and enlightening than the last. As we will discover, by exploring human shortcomings, we can peer into our past, because each of our flaws tells a story about our species' evolutionary history. A rollicking, deeply informative tour of our four-billion-year-long evolutionary saga, Human Errors both celebrates our imperfections - for our mutations are, in their own way, a testament to our species' greatness - and offers an unconventional accounting of the cost of our success. ...Show more

Brief Answers to the Big Questions

$34.95 AUD

Category: Science

I'm a Joke and So Are You - A Comedian's Take on What Makes Us Human by Robin Ince; Stewart Lee (Foreword by)

$29.99 AUD

Category: Science

'Funny, Honest and Heart-warming.' Matt Haig What better way to understand ourselves than through the eyes of comedians - those who professionally examine our quirks on stage daily? In this touching and witty book, award-winning presenter and comic Robin Ince uses the life of the stand-up as a way of e xploring some of the biggest questions we all face. Where does anxiety come from? How do we overcome imposter syndrome? What is the key to creativity? How can we deal with grief? Informed by personal insights from Robin as well as interviews with some of the world's top comedians, neuroscientists and psychologists, this is a hilarious and often moving primer to the mind. But it is also a powerful call to embrace the full breadth of our inner experience - no matter how strange we worry it may be! ...Show more

Astrophysics for People in a Hurry HC by Neil deGrasse Tyson

$26.95 AUD

Category: Science | Reading Level: General Adult

# 1 New York Times BestsellerLibraryReads PickSMLWhat is the nature of space and time? How do we fit within the universe? How does the universe fit within us? Today, few of us have time to contemplate the cosmos. Now Neil deGrasse Tyson brings the universe down to Earth succinctly and clearly, within sp arkling wit, in tasty chapters consumable anytime and anywhere in your busy day. ...Show more