Nature, Science and Tech

**THE NUMBER ONE BESTSELLER**In twenty-one bite-sized lessons, Yuval Noah Harari explores what it means to be human in an age of bewilderment.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?The world-renowned historian and intellectual 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.Faced with a litany of existential and real crises, are we still capable of understanding the world we have created?'[Harari] has teed up a crucial global conversation about how to take on the problems of the 21st century' Bill Gates, New York Times'21 Lessons is, simply put, a crucial book' Adam Kay, author of Undoctored

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**NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER**Why do human beings behave as they do? 'Awe-inspiring... You will learn more about human nature than in any other book I can think of' Henry Marsh, bestselling author of And Finally.We are capable of savage acts of violence but also spectacular feats of kindness: is one side of our nature destined to win out over the other?Every act of human behaviour has multiple layers of causation, spiralling back seconds, minutes, hours, days, months, years, even centuries, right back to the dawn of time and the origins of our species.In the epic sweep of history, how does our biology affect the arc of war and peace, justice and persecution? How have our brains evolved alongside our cultures?This is the exhilarating story of human morality and the science underpinning the biggest question of all: what makes us human?'One of the best scientist-writers of our time' Oliver Sacks

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One compact, indispensable safari book for outdoor enthusiasts! Presenting a Wealth of Information to ponder until they become as clear as a Scrouge of Mosquitoes or an Obstinacy of Buffalo. Have you ever wondered what to call a large number of creatures congregated together? When last did you see a Murder of Crows or a Flamboyance of Flamingoes? Have you bumped into a Generation of Vipers or a Bask of Crocodiles recently? It’s never good to try to outrun a Coalition of Cheetah or a Leap of Leopards and make every attempt to avoid a Plague of Locusts, a Business of Flies or an Intrusion of Cockroaches. An Implausibility of Wildebeest, a Leap of Leopards and a Cacophony of Hadida – I present to you a Trove of Treasures to reflect upon! A pile of wildlife books crammed into one! This fabulous all-in-one wildlife book featuring mammals, birds, reptiles, insects, and other Southern African species eliminates the burden of having to carry a whole library of safari books! Compact and comprehensive for easy wildlife identification, it also contains collective nouns, diminutives, genders, and many more wildlife wonders! Ideal for all ages and perfect for tourists. The only safari book you need!

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Artificial intelligence (AI) is upending life, work, and play as we know it and it’s only just getting started. The rise of AI is a milestone on par with the discovery of fire, the invention of the wheel, and the creation of the internet. In short, AI is going to change everything. For some, that’s an exciting prospect. For others, it’s terrifying. However, you feel about AI, there’s no escaping it, whether you’re in a global metropolis or a farmer in rural KwaZulu-Natal. Dr Mark Nasila has been watching AI’s ascent for over a decade, studying its effects on everything from agriculture and aviation to healthcare, education, entertainment, crime prevention, energy management, policy creation, finance, and anything in between, and applying them to his role at one of South Africa’s most successful financial institutions, First National Bank, a division of FirstRand Group. African Artificial Intelligence is a comprehensive and fascinating journey, tracing the rise of AI and its evolution into the emerging technology underpinning all others – from connected devices and smart chatbots to the metaverse. Mark combines unexpected use cases and tales of cutting-edge innovation with a unique and potent argument: harnessing AI to solve Africa’s problems requires embracing it from an African perspective. African nations can’t afford to simply import AI solutions from afar. Instead, Mark contends, they need to rework, remix, and refine AI so it’s able to meet uniquely African challenges in uniquely African ways, and to take advantage of the once-in-a-generation opportunities.

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The greatest botanical artists in the world capture one of the most diverse floral kingdoms on earth 44 botanical artists from all over the world, create 120 original artworks. A Ground Breaking 21st Century First: The traditional medium of botanical art is given a new lens with the aim to ultimately connect the reader to a bigger picture - one in which the intricate relationship between ourselves, the natural environment, plants and their pollinators is revealed. Expect meticulous detailing of floral structures, bursting seed pods, brightly coloured beetles, foraging ants, floating pollen and striped field mice...coupled with scientific facts and narrative stories about each plant. This is a florilegium immersed in the natural world, informed by ecology and the fragility of our botanical heritage. Each chapter includes an up-front 'Wunderkammer' of artists' notes, colour swatches, working drawings and archeological details, revealing a glimpse into the creative process and ancient origins of the area. - A unique marriage of art, natural science and storytelling is used to share the treasures of our botanical heritage, diversity and sustainability - Featuring flowers, their pollinators and the landscapes in which they are found - Artists' notes, working drawings and archeological finds bring each chapter to life Found on a narrow coastal belt on the southern tip of Africa, GROOTBOS is a private nature reserve dedicated to protecting, rehabilitating and conserving the indigenous flora and fauna of the Cape floristic kingdom. The flats, slopes and valleys of Grootbos are a microcosm of the extraordinary botanical diversity that characterizes the region, one of the most species-rich habitats in the world.

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The Roberts bird Guide (2nd Edition) has gone to great trouble to concentrate on, and illustrate, difficult-to-identify species and family groups such as raptors, warblers, cisticolas and waders. Special attention has been given to make sure there is far greater coverage of male-female differences and there are also many more juvenile illustrations. Unlike all previously published southern African bird guides, this new edition will be scattered with informative photographs that are incorporated in the text pages and each plate illustration is augmented with an introduction. Apart from the approximately 240 plate spreads, the guide also has 12 photographic and illustrated double spreads that show head enlargements and other details. Plates are annotated far more definitively than other guides - highlighting key identification features, especially for difficult-to-identify species. Plates are richly illustrated with vignettes, which will make any birding experience more informative.

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We spend our whole lives in one body and yet most of us have practically no idea how it works and what goes on inside it. The idea of the book is simply to try to understand the extraordinary contraption that is us.' Bill Bryson sets off to explore the human body, how it functions and its remarkable ability to heal itself. Full of extraordinary facts and astonishing stories The Body: A Guide for Occupants is a brilliant, often very funny attempt to understand the miracle of our physical and neurological make up. A wonderful successor to A Short History of Nearly Everything, this new book is an instant classic. It will have you marveling at the form you occupy, and celebrating the genius of your existence, time and time again. 'What I learned is that we are infinitely more complex and wondrous, and often more mysterious, than I had ever suspected. There really is no story more amazing than the story of us.' Bill Bryson

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The thrilling story of the conservationist who pioneered the use of dogs in combating poachers to protect wildlife in South Africa’s game reserves. Barely out of his teens, one of Conraad’s first brushes with the reality of life at the frontline of conservation was when he shot the leader of a poaching gang during an ambush in Windy Ridge game reserve. Much of Con’s work involving dogs is a continuous struggle against industrial-scale bushmeat poachers, who strangle game in snares, an even greater threat to wildlife than rhino horn poachers as the overburdened courts seem interested only in endangered species. He also works to catch poachers of critically endangered pangolins, the most trafficked animal in the world. Con decided to use his almost telepathic rapport with dogs to tackle the poaching crisis sweeping South Africa. His first anti-poaching dog, a Weimaraner named Zingela, became an inseparable companion. Zingela saved Conraad’s life on numerous occasions – once when Conraad was about to be assassinated by two fellow rangers hired by poachers. Con’s story is an epic of modern-day African wildlife conservation, spiced with adventure, courage and romance.

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**WINNER OF THE PULITZER PRIZE** 'A book of big questions, and big answers' Yuval Noah Harari, bestselling author of Sapiens Why has human history unfolded so differently across the globe? And what can it teach us about our current crisis? Jared Diamond puts the case that geography and biogeography, not race, moulded the contrasting fates of Europeans, Asians, Native Americans, sub-Saharan Africans, and aboriginal Australians. An ambitious synthesis of history, biology, ecology and linguistics, Guns, Germs and Steel is a ground-breaking and humane work of popular science that can provide expert insight into our modern world.'The most absorbing account on offer of the emergence of a world divided between have and have-nots... Never before put together so coherently, with such a combination of expertise, charm and compassion' The Times

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Brand new and unique, this book works with our free app to play animal and bird calls and sounds simply by pointing a device over the image.Keep track of all your Kruger sightings with a tick box system, including Star ratings for rare animals. Listen to their calls and see what their tracks and spoor look like.Free app download (offers in-app purchases) which works fully offline.All mammals, birds and reptiles of the Kruger are listed, as well as a bonus section on trees. A star rating identifies rare and special sightings.

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'Interesting and provocative... It gives you a sense of how briefly we've been on this Earth' Barack ObamaWhat makes us brilliant? What makes us deadly? What makes us Sapiens?One of the world's preeminent historians and thinkers, Yuval Noah Harari challenges everything we know about being human.Earth is 4.5 billion years old. In just a fraction of that time, one species among countless others has conquered it: us.In this bold and provocative book, Yuval Noah Harari explores who we are, how we got here and where we're going.**ONE OF THE GUARDIAN'S 100 BEST BOOKS OF THE 21st CENTURY**PRAISE FOR SAPIENS:'Jaw-dropping from the first word to the last... It may be the best book I've ever read' Chris Evans'Startling... It changes the way you look at the world' Simon Mayo'I would recommend Sapiens to anyone who's interested in the history and future of our species' Bill Gates

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There is an African proverb: ‘Until the lion has a historian of his own, the tale of the hunt will always glorify the hunter.’ This book is an acceptance of that challenge, to write a brand new kind of history, where the author becomes the the lion’s historian. As a species, we are not alone. But for too long our history has been written as though we are. This book insists on a retelling of our more-than-human past, a retelling of a shifting series of significant inter-species relationships – from the odd and quirky connections to those that triggered major changes in history itself. Sandra Swart has scoured the archives to find both the real animal stories and the stories we have told about them for millennia. The animals in this book – elephants, hippos, okapi, lions, jackals, cows, sheep, horses, white ants, quagga, Nazi-bred Heck cattle, police dogs and baboons – are chosen strategically to highlight different facets of our shared past. With this animal-centric lens, decades of research are brought together in a stunning book that take animals seriously. To do this, Swart embraces the natural sciences (biology, ethology, conservation biology, palaeontology) and the social sciences, oral history, indigenous knowledge as well as archival history. This is a book with fangs! It tears through conventional stories to ask: if we are not alone and given our current global crises of mass extinctions, are we prepared to move beyond the convention that ‘history’ is only the story of our own species? Can we, instead, consider a more-than-human past? In our current cataclysmic biodiversity crisis, we humans need to find new ways to live with and relate to other beings. The possibility of our shared future pivots on a reckoning with our shared pasts. This ground-breaking book shows what human–animal history can do, not only to understand our place in the world better but to make our world – however slightly – a better place.

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Sleep is one of the most important aspects of our life, health and longevity and yet it is increasingly neglected in twenty-first-century society, with devastating consequences: every major disease in the developed world - Alzheimer's, cancer, obesity, diabetes - has very strong causal links to deficient sleep. In this book, the first of its kind written by a scientific expert, Professor Matthew Walker explores twenty years of cutting-edge research to solve the mystery of why sleep matters. Looking at creatures from across the animal kingdom as well as major human studies, Why We Sleep delves into everything from what really happens during REM sleep to how caffeine and alcohol affect sleep and why our sleep patterns change across a lifetime, transforming our appreciation of the extraordinary phenomenon that safeguards our existence. 'Startling, vital ... a life-raft' Guardian 'A top sleep scientist argues that sleep is more important for our health than diet or exercise' The Times 'Passionate, urgent . . . it had a powerful effect on me' Observer

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This completely revised field guide to one of Africa’s finest birding spots, the Kruger National Park and adjacent Lowveld, is packed with new information on all of the more than 550 species that have been recorded to date. This includes updated text and distribution maps based on data from the Southern African Bird Atlas Project 2, hundreds of new illustrations, new sections with bird tracks and bird habitats and the latest rarity information. Incorporating information from literally hundreds of observers and contributors, this field guide sets a new standard for the region’s varied avifauna.

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The International Bestseller ‘Somehow, the elephants got into my soul, and it became my life’s work to see them safe and happy. There was no giving up on that vision, no matter how hard the road was at times.’ Françoise Malby-Anthony is the owner of a game reserve in South Africa with a remarkable family of elephants whose adventures have touched hearts around the world. The herd’s feisty matriarch Frankie knows who’s in charge at Thula Thula, and it’s not Françoise. But when Frankie becomes ill, and the authorities threaten to remove or cull some of the herd if the reserve doesn’t expand, Françoise is in a race against time to save her beloved elephants . . .The joys and challenges of a life dedicated to conservation are vividly described in this charming and moving book. The search is on to get a girlfriend for orphaned rhino Thabo – and then, as his behaviour becomes increasingly boisterous, a big brother to teach him manners. Françoise realizes a dream with the arrival of Savannah the cheetah – an endangered species not seen in the area since the 1940s – and finds herself rescuing meerkats kept as pets. But will Thula Thula survive the pandemic, an invasion from poachers and the threat from a mining company wanting access to its land? As Françoise faces her toughest years yet, she realizes once again that with their wisdom, resilience and communal bonds, the elephants have much to teach us. 'Enthralling' – Daily Mail

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**THE MILLION COPY BESTSELLER**Sapiens showed us where we came from. In our increasingly uncertain times, Homo Deus shows us where we're going. 'Spellbinding' Guardian The world-renowned historian and intellectual Yuval Noah Harari envisions a near future in which we face a new set of challenges. Homo Deus explores the projects, dreams and nightmares that will shape the twenty-first century and beyond - from overcoming death to creating artificial life. It asks the fundamental questions: how can we protect this fragile world from our own destructive power? And what does our future hold? 'Even more readable, even more important, than his excellent Sapiens' Kazuo Ishiguro' Homo Deus will shock you. It will entertain you. It will make you think in ways you had not thought before' Daniel Kahneman, bestselling author of Thinking, Fast and Slow

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The ultimate eye-opening journey through time and space, A Short History of Nearly Everything is the biggest-selling popular science book of the 21st century and has sold over 2 million copies.'Possibly the best scientific primer ever published.' Economist'Truly impressive...It's hard to imagine a better rough guide to science.' Guardian'A travelogue of science, with a witty, engaging, and well-informed guide' The TimesBill Bryson describes himself as a reluctant traveller, but even when he stays safely at home he can't contain his curiosity about the world around him. A Short History of Nearly Everything is his quest to understand everything that has happened from the Big Bang to the rise of civilization - how we got from there, being nothing at all, to here, being us.Bill Bryson's challenge is to take subjects that normally bore the pants off most of us, like geology, chemistry and particle physics, and see if there isn't some way to render them comprehensible to people who have never thought they could be interested in science. As a result, A Short History of Nearly Everything reveals the world in a way most of us have never seen it before.

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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.

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Is a zebra black with white stripes or white with black stripes? And why do flamingos stand on one leg while bats hang upside down? Did you know that a chameleon’s tongue can shoot out at five times the acceleration of a fighter jet? In The Buck That Buries its Poo, naturalist Quinton Coetzee answers these and many other intriguing wildlife questions. He also dispels countless myths and elucidates some of the legends that surround creatures in the South African bush we thought we knew all about. For example, bats do not get tangled in people’s hair (because they are far too adept at flying) and elephants are not afraid of mice (but they do fear bees!). Other tall tales you might hear around the campfire are that lions roll in animal dung, entrails or carcasses to disguise their scent, and that rhinos have a predilection for stamping out fires. What is true, though, is that hyenas are more closely related to cats than to dogs. This handy guide is based on Coetzee’s own research and that of others, and his experience gleaned over decades living close to nature and wildlife. It seeks to unravel the mysteries of nature in Africa – from mammals and birds to arthropods and plants – with fascinating information and fun trivia. It is a book that will enlighten and entertain. PS: Zebras are black with white stripes!

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A moving account of one man's race to save a herd of elephants – with unforgettable characters and exotic wildlife, The Elephant Whisperer is an enthralling book that will appeal to animal lovers and adventurous souls everywhere.When South African conservationist Lawrence Anthony was asked to accept a herd of 'rogue' elephants on his Thula Thula game reserve in Zululand, his common sense told him to refuse. But he was the herd's last chance of survival – dangerous and unpredictable, they would be killed if Anthony wouldn't take them in.As Anthony risked his life to create a bond with the troubled elephants and persuade them to stay on his reserve, he came to realize what a special family they were, from the wise matriarch Nana, who guided the herd, to her warrior sister Frankie, always ready to see off any threat, and their children who fought so hard to survive.

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This visual guide is packed with amazing diagrams and infographics to answer all your burning scientific head-scratchers - from gravity and black holes to earthquakes and gene therapy. In How Science Works you will find the most fascinating phenomena in the Universe visually explained, from pulleys to string theory, light to lasers, and chemical reactions to artificial intelligence. If you have ever wondered why the sky is blue, how a black hole works, or what happens in a tsunami, this indispensable guide is for you. Rather than long columns of text, How Science Works is filled with diagrams and infographics, to make even the most difficult concept fun and easy to grasp. Turn the pages to understand dark matter, radioactivity and so much more, and find answers to the really big questions including how life began, will the Universe end, and are we really alone? With hours of enthralling reading, How Science Works is the book you wished you'd had at school and it's the one you'll want for your family.

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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 biologycommunity, 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.

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The greatest botanical artists in the world capture one of the most diverse floral kingdoms on earth 44 botanical artists from all over the world, create 120 original artworks. A Ground Breaking 21st Century First: The traditional medium of botanical art is given a new lens with the aim to ultimately connect the reader to a bigger picture - one in which the intricate relationship between ourselves, the natural environment, plants and their pollinators is revealed. Expect meticulous detailing of floral structures, bursting seed pods, brightly coloured beetles, foraging ants, floating pollen and striped field mice...coupled with scientific facts and narrative stories about each plant. This is a florilegium immersed in the natural world, informed by ecology and the fragility of our botanical heritage. Each chapter includes an up-front ‘Wunderkammer’ of artists' notes, colour swatches, working drawings and archeological details, revealing a glimpse into the creative process and ancient origins of the area. - A unique marriage of art, natural science and storytelling is used to share the treasures of our botanical heritage, diversity and sustainability - Featuring flowers, their pollinators and the landscapes in which they are found - Artists’ notes, working drawings and archeological finds bring each chapter to life. Found on a narrow coastal belt on the southern tip of Africa, grootbos is a private nature reserve dedicated to protecting, rehabilitating and conserving the indigenous flora and fauna of the Cape floristic kingdom. The flats, slopes and valleys of Grootbos are a microcosm of the extraordinary botanical diversity that characterizes the region, one of the most species-rich habitats in the world.

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If memories of learning algebra bring you out in a cold sweat and thoughts of quadratic equations cause you feelings of fear and dread, I Used to Know That: Maths can help. A light-hearted and informative reminder of the things that we learnt in school but have since become relegated to the backs of our minds, this book will help you to brush up on your mental arithmetic, including percentages, averages and recurring decimals or work on your trigonometry skills, from Pythagoras' theorem to triangle areas and angles. A practical guide to turn to when an answer is eluding you, from helping a child with homework to calculating change or understanding statistics. I Used to Know That: Maths is a fun and accessible way to re-visit all those useful tips and maths tricks that you have forgotten from your school days.

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In Basic AI, leading futurist David L. Shrier delves deep into the rapidly advancing world of artificial intelligence, delivering fascinating insights and exploring the impact this powerful technology will have on our lives and world.Artificial intelligence is driving workforce disruption on a scale not seen since the Industrial Revolution. In schools and universities, AI technology has forced a re-evaluation of the way students are taught and assessed. Meanwhile ChatGPT has become a cultural phenomenon, reaching 100 million users and attracting a $10 billion dollar investment in its parent company OpenAI. The race to dominate the generative AI market is accelerating at breakneck speed, inspiring breathless headlines and immense public interest.Basic AI provides a rare window into a frontier area of computer science that will change everything about how you live and work. Read this book and better understand how to succeed in the AI-enabled future.

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THE SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER From the creator of the wildly popular xkcd.com, hilarious and informative answers to important questions you probably never thought to ask. Millions visit xkcd.com each week to read Randall Munroe's iconic webcomic. Fans ask him a lot of strange questions: How fast can you hit a speed bump, driving, and live? When (if ever) did the sun go down on the British Empire? When will Facebook contain more profiles of dead people than living? How many humans would a T Rex rampaging through New York need to eat a day? In pursuit of answers, Munroe runs computer simulations, pores over stacks of declassified military research memos, solves differential equations and consults nuclear reactor operators. His responses are masterpieces of clarity and hilarity, complemented by comics. They often predict the complete annihilation of humankind, or at least a really big explosion.

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* THE NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER * 'Another masterpiece from one of my favorite authors . . . If you want a brief but thorough education in numeric thinking about many of the fundamental forces that shape human life, this is the book to read. It's a tour de force' BILL GATES We have never had so much information at our fingertips and yet most of us don't know how the world really works. This book explains seven of the most fundamental realities governing our survival and prosperity. From energy and food production, through our material world and its globalization, to risks, our environment and its future, How the World Really Works offers a much-needed reality check - because before we can tackle problems effectively, we must understand the facts. In this ambitious and thought-provoking book we see, for example, that globalization isn't inevitable and that our societies have been steadily increasing their dependence on fossil fuels, making their complete and rapid elimination unlikely. Drawing on the latest science and tackling sources of misinformation head on - from Yuval Noah Harari to Noam Chomsky - ultimately Smil answers the most profound question of our age: are we irrevocably doomed or is a brighter utopia ahead? 'Very informative and eye-opening in many ways' HA-JOON CHANG, author of 23 Things They Don't Tell You About Capitalism 'If you are anxious about the future, and infuriated that we aren't doing enough about it, please read this book' PAUL COLLIER, author of The Future of Capitalism

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HarperCollins is proud to present its range of best-loved, essential classics. ‘How fleeting are the wishes and efforts of man! how short his time! and consequently how poor will his products be, compared with those accumulated by nature during whole geological periods.’ Still considered one of the most important and groundbreaking works of science ever written, Darwin’s eminently readable exploration of the evolutionary process challenged most of the strong beliefs of the Western world. Forced to question the idea of the Creator, mid-nineteenth century readers were faced with Darwin’s theories on the laws of natural selection and the randomness of evolution, causing massive controversy at the time. However, Darwin’s theories remain instrumental in providing the backbone to modern biology today.

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'Nerd royalty' Ben Goldacre 'Laugh-out-loud funny' Bill Gates 'Totally brilliant' Tim Harford WHAT IF you still had so many more strange questions about the universe? And WHAT IF Randall Munroe, former NASA roboticist and xkcd creator, were prepared to move mountains, fill the solar system with soup and alter the space-time continuum to answer them? Whether it's how to make a lava lamp out of lava or feeding the inhabitants of New York to a T. Rex, welcome to the weird, wonderful (and sometimes terrifying) world of WHAT IF? 2

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A blueprint for a better future.Playing on the phrase "a theory of everything" in physics, Michael Muthukrishna's ambitious, original and deeply hopeful book, offers a unified theory of human behavior, culture, and society - a theory of everyone.In A Theory of Everyone, Muthukrishna draws on the most recent research across the sciences, humanities, and the emerging field of cultural evolution to paint a panoramic picture of who we are and exactly what makes human beings different from all other forms of life on the planet.He argues it is our unique ability to create culture, a shared body of knowledge, skills, and experience passed on from generation to generation, that has enabled our current dominance. But it is only by understanding and applying the laws of life - the need for energy, innovation, cooperation and evolution - that we can solve the practical and existential challenges we face as a species.A Theory of Everyone attempts to provide solutions for how to solve the most pressing problems of our collective future, such as polarization, inequality, the "great stagnation" in productivity, and the energy crisis. Casting a bold and ambitious net, Muthukrishna's book is a must-read for anyone interested in a better future for ourselves and generations to come.

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THE NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER ‘Sean Carroll has achieved something I thought impossible: a bridge between popular science and the mathematical universe of working physicists. Magnificent!’ Brian Clegg, author of Ten Days in Physics that Shook the World Immense, strange and infinite, the world of modern physics often feels impenetrable to the undiscerning eye – a jumble of muons, gluons and quarks, impossible to explain without several degrees and a research position at CERN. But it doesn’t have to be this way! Allow world-renowned theoretical physicist and bestselling author Sean Carroll to guide you through the biggest ideas in the universe. Elegant and simple, Carroll unravels this web of theories and formulae equation by equation, getting to the heart of the truths they represent.—In Space, Time and Motion, the first book of this landmark trilogy, Carroll delves into the core of classical physics. From Euclid to Einstein, Space, Time and Motion explores the ideas which revolutionised science and forever changed our understanding of our place in the cosmos.

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The best-selling author of Leonardo da Vinci and Steve Jobs returns. In 2012, Nobel Prize winning scientist Jennifer Doudna hit upon an invention that will transform the future of the human race: an easy-to-use tool that can edit DNA. Known as CRISPR, it opened a brave new world of medical miracles and moral questions. It has already been deployed to cure deadly diseases, fight the coronavirus pandemic of 2020, and make inheritable changes in the genes of babies.  But what does that mean for humanity? Should we be hacking our own DNA to make us less susceptible to disease? Should we democratise the technology that would allow parents to enhance their kids? After discovering this CRISPR, Doudna is now wrestling these even bigger issues. THE CODE BREAKERS is an examination of how life as we know it is about to change – and a brilliant portrayal of the woman leading the way.

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The latest volume in The New York Times bestselling physics series explains Einstein's masterpiece: the general theory of relativityHe taught us classical mechanics, quantum mechanics and special relativity. Now, physicist Leonard Susskind, assisted by a new collaborator, André Cabannes, returns to tackle Einstein's general theory of relativity. Starting from the equivalence principle and covering the necessary mathematics of Riemannian spaces and tensor calculus, Susskind and Cabannes explain the link between gravity and geometry. They delve into black holes, establish Einstein field equations and solve them to describe gravity waves. The authors provide vivid explanations that, to borrow a phrase from Einstein himself, are as simple as possible (but no simpler).An approachable yet rigorous introduction to one of the most important topics in physics, General Relativity is a must-read for anyone who wants a deeper knowledge of the universe's real structure.

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2nd Edition Covering nearly 1000 species found in southern Africa, this completely reworked edition of Roberts Bird Guide features all new vivid artwork which details seasonal, age and sexual differences in approximately 240 annotated colour plates. It includes updated distribution maps, breeding and seasonality bars. Concise but informative species texts deal not only with identification but contain delightful and accurate descriptions of call and eating habits. In December 1935, with very little available on birding in South Africa, the South African Bird Book Fund was formed to produce a complete bird guide for southern Africa under the authorship of Austin Roberts, and illustrated by Norman CK Lighton. The successful and popular first edition, titled The Birds of South Africa, was published on 8 June 1940. Now, a lifetime later, seventy-six years to be exact, Roberts Bird Guide brings you, for the first time, a completely newly designed bird guide. With well over 300 000 copies of the Roberts previous guide books sold to date, the John Voelcker Bird Book Fund is committed to remaining the forerunner in the publication of up-to-date bird information in the region, and to making publications as affordable as possible to the southern African birding community.

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How did wet nurses drive civilization? Are women always the weaker sex? Is sexism useful for evolution? And are our bodies at war with our babies? In Eve, Cat Bohannon answers questions scientists should have been addressing for decades. With boundless curiosity and sharp wit, she covers the past 200 million years to explain the specific science behind the development of the female sex. Eve is not only a sweeping revision of human history, it's an urgent and necessary corrective for a world that has focused primarily on the male body for far too long. Bohannon's findings, including everything from the way C-sections in the industrialized world are rearranging women's pelvic shape to the surprising similarities between pus and breast milk, will completely change what you think you know about evolution and why Homo sapiens have become such a successful and dominant species, from tool use to city building to the development of language.

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A fully updated new edition of David Attenborough’s bestselling classic. BIRDS. Over 9,000 species, the most widespread of all animals: on icebergs, in the Sahara or under the sea, at home in our gardens or flying for over a year at a time. Earthbound, we can only look and listen, enjoying their lightness, freedom and richness of plumage and song. David Attenborough has been watching and learning all his life. His classic book, now fully updated with the latest discoveries in ornithology, is a brilliant introduction to bird behaviours around the world: what they do and why they do it. He looks at each step in birds' lives and the problems they have to solve learning to fly; finding food; communicating; mating and caring for nests, eggs and young; migrating; facing dangers and surviving harsh conditions. Sir David has no equal in helping others to learn and making it exciting. His curiosity and enjoyment are infectious. He shows the lifelong pleasure that birds around us offer, and how much we miss if unaware of them.

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