For fans of accessible and fun popular science comes an exploration of evolution’s quirkiest puzzles and most enduring mysteries.Why do cats live longer than dogs? Why do bees have yellow stripes? Why can we smell a skunk from a mile away? Such questions can be seen as puzzles about creatures' evolved traits. Besides triggering our curiosity, they focus our attention on beguiling designs that have been millions of years in the making. Indeed, looking at the living ...

An award-winning science writer introduces us to mathematics using the extraordinary equation that unites five of mathematics' most important numbersBertrand Russell wrote that mathematics can exalt "as surely as poetry." This is especially true of one equation: ei(pi) + 1 = 0, the brainchild of Leonhard Euler, the Mozart of mathematics. More than two centuries after Euler's death, it is still regarded as a conceptual diamond of unsurpassed beauty. Called Euler's i...

In a world where the quest for eternal youth seems unattainable, David Stipp offers a captivating exploration into the scientific battle against aging.Even before the first person set off to find the Fountain of Youth, we were searching for a way to live longer. But promises of life extension have long reeked of snake oil, and despite our wishful thinking—not to mention the number of vitamins we pop—few of us believe we’ll live to see one hundred, much less set a l...

For fans of accessible and fun popular science comes an exploration of evolution’s quirkiest puzzles and most enduring mysteries.Why do cats live longer than dogs? Why do bees have yellow stripes? Why can we smell a skunk from a mile away? Such questions can be seen as puzzles about creatures' evolved traits. Besides triggering our curiosity, they focus our attention on beguiling designs that have been millions of years in the making. Indeed, looking at the living ...

Bertrand Russell wrote that mathematics can exalt "as surely as poetry." This is especially true of one equation: ei(pi) + 1 = 0, the brainchild of Leonhard Euler, the Mozart of mathematics. More than two centuries after Euler's death, it is still regarded as a conceptual diamond of unsurpassed beauty. Called Euler's identity or God's equation, it includes just five numbers but represents an astonishing revelation of hidden connections. It ties together everything from basic arithmetic to ...

The promise of a longer life has captivated humans for centuries, even before the first person set out to find the Fountain of Youth. But promises of life extension have long reeked of snake oil, and despite our wishful thinking, most of us regard it as an impossible dream.In The Youth Pill, science writer David Stipp explores the history of efforts to slow aging, which have been plagued by fits and starts that have led to dead ends, not to mention countless disillusioning...

An authoritative history of the overlooked youth activists that spearheaded the largest protests of the Civil Rights Movement and set the blueprint for future generations of activists to follow.Some of the most iconic images of the Civil Rights Movement are those of young people engaged in social activism, such as children and teenagers in 1963 being attacked by police in Birmingham with dogs and water hoses. But their contributions have not been well documented or...

**One of Scientific American’s Best Books of 2024One of the world’s leading astrobiologists takes us on an awe-inspiring journey across the cosmos to investigate some of humanity’s most profound questions: Are we alone in the universe? And how did life on Earth begin?**We are in a golden age in astronomy, living on the cusp of breakthroughs that will revolutionize our understanding of our place in the cosmos. Yet a profound question remains: Are we alone in the uni...

From the time the country was founded, early Americans assumed that the land's natural resources were infinite, including its birds, which were zealously hunted for food, game, and fashion. With the rapid extinction of the passenger pigeon—a bird once so numerous that its flocks darkened the sky in flight—many realized actions needed to be taken if other birds were to be saved. What followed was both a spiritual awakening and a great crusade to save birds and their habitat. The campaign to...

For readers of What an Owl Knows and The World Without Us, this infectiously impassioned tour of the five New York City boroughs offers jaded city dwellers and bird lovers everywhere an unexpected, delightful new view of the concrete jungle – through its surprisingly enormous and diverse bird populationRyan Goldberg came to birding unexpectedly, but as many first timers do after seeing their “spark” bird, he fell hard. Enamored by the incredible v...

A critically-acclaimed literary memoir braiding together environmental research and the personal journey of generational healing, grief, and chronic illness.Author Eiren Caffall is the inheritor of a family legacy of two hundred years of genetic kidney disease and the mother of a child who may inherit that legacy.A literary memoir on loss, chronic illness, and generational healing, Caffall’s The Mourner’s Bestiary is also a meditation on grief and ...

A reporter and abortion access correspondent investigates the secret killers and hidden motives behind the death of abortion rights.They are going to kill people, investigative reporter for The Nation Amy Littlefield knew, when the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade. After a decade covering abortion, she wanted to more deeply understand the motives, means, and opportunities behind the a...