The fascinating untold story of how the ancients imagined robots and other forms of artificial life—and even invented real automated machines The first robot to walk the earth was a bronze giant called Talos. This wondrous machine was created not by MIT...

The cutting-edge science that is taking the measure of the universeThe Little Book of Cosmology provides a breathtaking look at our universe on the grandest scales imaginable. Written by one of the world's leading experimental cosmologists, this short...

An entertaining mathematical exploration of the heat equation and its role in the triumphant development of the trans-Atlantic telegraph cableHeat, like gravity, shapes nearly every aspect of our world and universe, from how milk dissolves in coffee to...

An account of the concepts and intellectual structure of classical thermodynamics that reveals the subject's simplicity and coherence.Students of physics, chemistry, and engineering are taught classical thermodynamics through its methods—a “problems...

This “intelligent treatise articulates why the pursuit of scientific truths, even if inevitably flawed . . . matters” in our post-truth world (Publishers Weekly).What separates science from other disciplines? An attitude that respects evidence and is...

A concise, non-technical exploration of quantum entanglement—the enigma Albert Einstein called ‘spooky action at a distance’—and how it contradicts our assumptions about the ultimate nature of reality. Quantum physics is notable for its brazen defiance...

Are we alone in the universe? If not, where is everybody? An engaging exploration of one of the most important unsolved problems in science.Everything we know about how planets form and how life arises suggests that human civilization on Earth should not...

“Playful and enchanting.” ―Priyamvada Natarajan, Wall Street JournalCould there be a civilization on a mote of dust? How much of your fate have you made? Using pleasingly paradoxical vignettes, known as Koans, that follow the ancient Zen tradition and...

NATIONAL BESTSELLERStephen Hawking has dazzled readers worldwide with a string of bestsellers exploring the mysteries of the universe. Now, for the first time, perhaps the most brilliant cosmologist of our age turns his gaze inward for a revealing look...

Quantum mechanics is an extraordinarily successful scientific theory. It is also completely mad. Although the theory quite obviously works, it leaves us chasing ghosts and phantoms; particles that are waves and waves that are particles; cats that are at...

Number theory is the branch of mathematics that is primarily concerned with the counting numbers. Of particular importance are the prime numbers, the 'building blocks' of our number system. The subject is an old one, dating back over two millennia to the...

Everything around us is made of 'stuff', from planets, to books, to our own bodies. Whatever it is, we call it matter or material substance. It is solid; it has mass. But what is matter, exactly? We are taught in school that matter is not continuous, but...

Vol. 4 of a monumental 4-volume set covers such topics as mathematical machines, mathematics in warfare, a mathematical theory of art, mathematics of the good, mathematics in literature, mathematics and music, and amusements, puzzles, and fancies...

This book presents an overview of recent developments in the area of localization for quasi-periodic lattice Schrödinger operators and the theory of quasi-periodicity in Hamiltonian evolution equations. The physical motivation of these models extends...

“A brilliant travel guide to the coming world of AI.”―Jeanette WintersonWhat does it mean to be creative? Can creativity be trained? Is it uniquely human, or could AI be considered creative?Mathematical genius and exuberant polymath Marcus du Sautoy...

Every rock is a tangible trace of the earth’s past. The Story of the Earth in 25 Rocks tells the fascinating stories behind the discoveries that shook the foundations of geology. In twenty-five chapters―each about a particular rock, outcrop, or geologic...

How both logical and emotional reasoning can help us live better in our post-truth worldIn a world where fake news stories change election outcomes, has rationality become futile? In The Art of Logic in an Illogical World, Eugenia Cheng throws a lifeline...

In this "provocative" book (New York Times), a contrarian physicist argues that her field's modern obsession with beauty has given us wonderful math but bad science.Whether pondering black holes or predicting discoveries at CERN, physicists believe the...

The challenges to humanity posed by the digital future, the first detailed examination of the unprecedented form of power called "surveillance capitalism," and the quest by powerful corporations to predict and control our behavior.In this masterwork of...