Unnatural Selection is the first book to examine the rise of the "technocentric being"-or geek-who personifies a distinct new phase in human evolution. People considered geeks often have behavioral or genetic traits that were previously considered detrimental. But the new environment of the Anthropocene period-the Age of Man-has created a kind of digital greenhouse that actually favors their traits, enabling many non-neurotypical people to bloom. They resonate with the technologic...

News cycles move faster now than ever before, technology allows us to connect with others in seconds and markets crumble faster than ever. Amidst it all we've come to accept - even expect - that events will continue to accelerate and have an ever greater impact: that the next disaster will always be bigger than the last, that more money than ever will be made in business.Welcome to the new world, in which momentum is the driving force behind everything.Drawing on the latest...

You will undoubtedly recognize quite a few of the products featured in this book—the Coca-Cola bottle, the Wester & Co pocket knife, the Kitchen Aid mixer, the Le Creuset Dutch oven, the Weber grill, the Bic cristal pen, the Rolodex address file, Kikkoman soy sauce bottles, the Kodak Instamatic, the Polaroid SX-70, the SONY Walkman, the Apple MacIntosh, and the Dyson air-multiplier.Maybe they were part of your childhood or represent your ideal in design; certainly,...

This biographical history of the English Civil War profiles the lives and ultimate fates of the nearly 60 men who sentenced their king to death.On January 30th, 1649, King Charles I was executed on a scaffold outside the Banqueting House of Whitehall. The parliamentarian High Court of Justice declared him guilty of treason, disregarding the Divine Right of Kings. Fifty-nine commissioners signed his death warrant.These killers of the king were soldiers, lawy...

Whether you’re a hiker taking a walk through your local wilderness, or a chef looking for new ingredients to incorporate in your dishes, Foraging for Survival is the book for you.As consumerism and a meat-heavy, processed diet become the norm and the world’s population continues to grow at an exponential rate, more and more people are looking toward a more sustainable path for food. Authors Douglas Boudreau and Mykel Hawke believe that the future of food l...

"A crash course in the amazing new science of space archaeology that only Sarah Parcak can give. This book will awaken the explorer in all of us." —Chris Anderson, Head of TEDWinner of Archaeological Institute of America's Felicia A. Holton Book Award • Winner of the Phi Beta Kappa Prize for Science • An Amazon Best Science Book of 2019 • A Science Friday Best Science Book of 2019 • A Kirkus Reviews Best Nonfiction Book of 2019 • A Science News Best Book of...

"A New Civil Rights Leader" explores what we mean when we speak of democracy and if democracy can truly ever exist ( LA Times).There is no shortage of democracy, at least in name, and yet it is in crisis everywhere we look. From a cabal of plutocrats in the White House to gerrymandering and dark-money campaign contributions, it is clear that the principle of government by and for the people is not living up to its promise.The problems lie deeper than...

"Witty [and] provocative" essays on how AI might change us by the New York Times –bestselling author of Why Be Happy When You Can Be Normal? ( Kirkus Reviews ).When we create non-biological life-forms, will we do so in our image? Or will we accept the once-in-a-species opportunity to remake ourselves in their image? What do love, carin...

This sweeping history reveals how the use of chemicals has saved lives, destroyed species, and radically changed our planet: "Remarkable . . . highly recommended." — ChoiceIn The Chemical Age, ecologist Frank A. von Hippel explores humanity's long and uneasy coexistence with pests, and how the battles to exterminate them have shaped our modern world. He also tells the captivating story of the scientists who waged war on famine and disease with chem...

Have you always thought that a goldfish has a 3-second memory span?Do you think your morning coffee comes from a bean?Do you believe that those accused at the Salem Witch Trials were burned at the stake?If the answer to any of these questions is yes, then you’ve been lied to. But don’t worry, this book will set the record straight on all the common myths that most people take for fact, making you the most well-informed smart-alec in t...

A “visual tour through the under-appreciated chemical beauty that surrounds us”—with astonishing photographs of the scientific processes that create snowflakes, bubbles, flames, and other natural wonders (WIRED)Chemistry is not just about microscopic atoms doing inscrutable things; it is the process that makes flowers and galaxies. We rely on it for bread-baking, vegetable-growing, and producing the materials of daily life. In stunning images and illuminat...

The co-founder of Baidu explains how AI will transform human livelihood, from our economy and financial systems down to our daily lives.Written by Baidu cofounder Robin Li and prefaced by award-winning sci-fi writer Cixin Liu (author of The Three-Body Problem), Artificial Intelligence Revolution introduces Baidu’s teams of top scientists and management as pioneers of movement toward AI. The book covers many of the latest AI-related ideas and techn...