A deeply reported look at the rise of home genetic testing and the seismic shock it has had on individual livesYou swab your cheek or spit into a vial, then send it away to a lab somewhere. Weeks later you get a report that might tell you where your ancestors came from or if you carry certain genetic risks. Or the report could reveal a long-buried family secret and upend your entire sense of identity. Soon a lark becomes an obsession, an incessant desire to find an...

"A fascinating exploration of the mysteries ignited by DNA genealogy testing—from the intensely personal and concrete to the existential and unsolvable." —Tana French, New York Times–bestselling authorYou swab your cheek or spit in a vial, then send it away to a lab somewhere. Weeks later you get a report that might tell you where your ancestors came from or if you carry certain genetic risks. Or, the report could reveal a long-buried family secret that upe...

Delve into the fascinating world of dirt in this history of culture, cleanliness, and our evolving perceptions of what is and isn’t gross.In this engaging and often humorous study of life’s imperfections, public health and hygiene authority Terence McLaughlin dissects our attitudes toward the filth that has accompanied society throughout human history. According to him, “dirt” is a matter of opinion.Cultural attitudes about everything from factory smoke to personal hygiene ...

Modern humans are an indoor species. We spend ninety percent of our time inside, shuttling between homes and offices, schools and stores, restaurants and gyms. And yet, in many ways, the indoor world remains unexplored territory. For all the time we spend inside buildings, we rarely stop to consider: How do these spaces affect our mental and physical well-being? Our thoughts, feelings, and behaviors? Our productivity, performance, and relationships? In this wide-ranging, character-driven b...

Explore the mysteries of morality and the concept of right and wrong with this accessible, engaging guide featuring basic facts along with an overview of modern-day issues ranging from business ethics and bioethics to political and social ethics.Ethics 101 offers an exciting look into the history of moral principles that dictate human behavior. Unlike traditional textbooks that overwhelm, this easy-to-read guide presents the key concepts of ethics in fun, ...

A Fields medalist recounts his lifelong transnational effort to uncover the geometric shape—the Calabi-Yau manifold—that may store the hidden dimensions of our universe.Harvard geometer and Fields medalist Shing-Tung Yau has provided a mathematical foundation for string theory, offered new insights into black holes, and mathematically demonstrated the stability of our universe. In this autobiography, Yau reflects on his improbable ...

A memoir by Glenn Close's sister, Jessie, about the challenges of living with severe bipolar disorder—includes chapters by Glenn Close.At a young age, Jessie Close struggled with symptoms that would transform into severe bipolar disorder in her early twenties, but she was not properly diagnosed until she reached adulthood. Jessie and her three siblings spent many years in the Moral Re-Armament cult. Jessie passed her childhood in New York, Switzerland, Connecticut,...

Inspired by Charles Mackay's 19th-century classic Memoirs of Extraordinary Popular Delusions and the Madness of Crowds, Bernstein engages with mass delusion with the same curiosity and passion, but armed with the latest scientific research that explains the biological, evolutionary, and psychosocial roots of human irrationality. Bernstein tells the stories of dramatic religious and financial mania in western society over the last 500 years—from the Anabaptist Madness that afflicte...

A History of the Burger, From Conception to PerfectionA World History of Burgers: Do you know what the first burger chain was? That Taco Bell was originally known as Bell Burger—and was founded in the same city as McDonald's? Have you heard of the 1980s Burger Wars? All About the Burger covers all of these topics and more! Discover the food history you've been missing in this entertaining book.The Burger Journey of a Lifeti...

How to be a great online searcher, demonstrated with step-by-step searches for answers to a series of intriguing questions (for example, "Is that plant poisonous?").We all know how to look up something online by typing words into a search engine. We do this so often that we have made the most famous search engine a verb: we Google it—"Japan population" or "Nobel Peace Prize" or "poison ivy" or whatever we want to know. But knowing how to Google something doesn't ma...

Who invented beds? When did we start cleaning our teeth? How old are wine and beer? Which came first: the toilet seat or toilet paper? What was the first clock? Every day, from the moment our alarm clock wakes us in the morning until our head hits our pillow at night, we all take part in rituals that are millennia old.Structured around one ordinary day, A Million Years in a Day reveals the astonishing origins and development of the daily practices we take for granted. In t...

Don't believe the hype: Tips from financial professionals on recognizing and avoiding overpriced, overcomplicated, and overly risky investments.What if the most effective investment portfolio was also the easiest to manage and the least expensive? As the authors of this clear, practical, and enlightening book—part financial guide, part exposé—prove, there are just three simple rules you need to follow and only a few, very inexpensive investment products that are ne...