Mathematics & Science Books

One of Inverse's Best Science Books of 2018Co-Winner of the AIP Science Communication Book Award, American Institute of Physics Finalist for the AAAS/Subaru SB&F Prizes for Excellence in Science Books, Young Adult Science Books Discovering the...

An engaging journey into the biological principles underpinning a beloved science-fiction franchiseIn Star Trek, crew members travel to unusual planets, meet diverse beings, and encounter unique civilizations. In these remarkable space adventures, does...

An enticing illustrated look at pollination, one of the most astonishing marvels of the natural worldPollination is essential to the survival of most plants on Earth. Some plants rely on the wind to transport pollen from one flower to another. Others...

The first comprehensive graduate-level introduction to stochastic thermodynamicsStochastic thermodynamics is a well-defined subfield of statistical physics that aims to interpret thermodynamic concepts for systems, ranging in size from a few to hundreds...

Longlisted for thePEN America Literary Awards 2021:PEN/E.O Wilson Literary Science Writing AwardWaterstone's Best Books of 2020: Popular ScienceAmerican Scientist's 2020 Science Book Gift GuideWhy is the world the way it is? How did we...

A richly illustrated natural history of the world's crabs that examines their diversity, ecology, anatomy, behavior, and moreThis lavishly illustrated book offers a remarkable look at the world's crabs. More than 7,000 crab species, in 100...

The Sahara is the largest hot desert in the world, equal in size to China or the United States. Yet, this arid expanse was once a verdant, pleasant land, fed by rivers and lakes. The Sahara sustained abundant plant and animal life, such as Nile perch,...

A fascinating exploration of the pentagon and its role in various culturesThe pentagon and its close cousin, the pentagram, have inspired individuals for the last two and half millennia, from mathematicians and philosophers to artists and naturalists...

As Featured on Wall Street Journal's Holiday Books Round-up Nature The enduring influence of naturalist and explorer Alexander von Humboldt on American art, culture, and politics.Alexander von Humboldt (17691859) was one of the most influential...

The form and function of a sprinting cheetah are quite unlike those of a rooted tree. A human being is very different from a bacterium or a zebra. The living world is a realm of dazzling variety, yet a shared set of physical principles shapes the forms...

There are some 10,000 bird species in existence today, occupying every continent and virtually every habitat on Earth. The variety of bird species is truly astounding, from the tiny bee hummingbird to the large flightless ostrich, making birds one of the...

A savoury account of how the pursuit of delicious foods shaped human evolutionNature, it has been said, invites us to eat by appetite and rewards by flavour. But what exactly are flavours? Why are some so pleasing while others are not? Delicious is a...

'A mathematician, like a painter or poet, is a maker of patterns,' wrote the British mathematician G. H. Hardy. In Do Not Erase, photographer Jessica Wynne presents remarkable examples of this idea through images of...

Corals are among the most varied lifeforms on Earth, ranging from mushroom corals and leather corals to button polyps, sea fans, anemones, and pulse corals. Bridging the gap between plant and animal, these marine invertebrates serve as homes to reef fish...

A natural history of cheating from selfish genes to lying politiciansNature is rife with cheating. Possums play possum, feigning death to cheat predators. Crows cry wolf to scare off rivals. Amphibians and reptiles are inveterate impostors. Even genes...

The year's finest mathematical writing from around the worldThis annual anthology brings together the year's finest mathematics writing from around the world. Featuring promising new voices alongside some of the foremost names in the field, The Best...

The epic story of human evolution, from our primate beginnings more than five million years ago to the agricultural eraOver the course of five million years, our primate ancestors evolved from a modest population of sub-Saharan apes into the globally...

A leading astronomer takes readers behind the scenes of the thrilling science of stellar archaeologyAstronomers study the oldest observable stars in the universe in much the same way archaeologists study ancient artifacts on Earth. Anna Frebel takes...

A fascinating account of the breakthrough ideas that transformed probability and statisticsIn the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, gamblers and mathematicians transformed the idea of chance from a mystery into the discipline of probability, setting...

A fun and lively look at the mathematical ideas concealed in video gamesDid you know that every time you pick up the controller to your PlayStation or Xbox, you are entering a world steeped in mathematics? Matthew Lane reveals the hidden mathematics in...

Explaining the science behind science fiction and fantasy-from the probable to the impossibleFrom space elevators to interstellar travel, science fiction and fantasy writers have come up with some brilliant, innovative ideas. Yet how plausible are these...

From two of the world's leading authorities on dogs, an imaginative journey into a future of dogs without peopleWhat would happen to dogs if humans simply disappeared? Would dogs be able to survive on their own without us? A Dog's World imagines a...

Modern cosmology began a century ago with Albert Einstein's general theory of relativity and his notion of a homogenous, philosophically satisfying cosmos. Cosmology's Century is the story of how generations of scientists built on these...

The story of a neural impulse and what it reveals about how our brains workWe see the last cookie in the box and think, can I take that? We reach a hand out. In the 2.1 seconds that this impulse travels through our brain, billions of neurons communicate...

The cutting-edge science that is taking the measure of the universe.The 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,...

Science News, Favorite Books of 2020In Great Adaptations, Kenneth Catania presents an entertaining and engaging look at some of nature's most remarkable creatures. Telling the story of his biological detective work, Catania sheds light on the...

"This little book is big fun."-Michael Pollan An illustrated mini-encyclopedia of fungal lore, from John Cage and Terence McKenna to mushroom sex and fairy rings Fungipedia presents a delightful A-Z treasury of mushroom lore. With more...

An authoritative interdisciplinary account of the historic discovery of gravitational waves.In 1915, Albert Einstein predicted the existence of gravitational waves - ripples in the fabric of spacetime caused by the movement of large masses - as part of...

Journey into the vast depths of the observable universe by visualising the most spectacular images in astronomy in stereoscopic 3D.Welcome to the Universe in 3D takes you on a grand tour of the observable universe, guiding you through the most...

The essential introduction to the principles and applications of feedback systems - now fully revised and expanded This textbook covers the mathematics needed to model, analyse, and design feedback systems. Now more user-friendly than ever, this...

A comprehensive look at four of the most famous problems in mathematics. Tales of Impossibility recounts the intriguing story of the renowned problems of antiquity, four of the most famous and studied questions in the history of mathematics. First posed...

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...

""Following the Wild Bees" is both a unique meditation on the pleasures of the natural world and a guide to the ingenious methods that compose the craft of the bee hunter... Drawing on decades of experience as a bee hunter and bee biologist, Seeley...

Menstruation is something half the world does for a week at a time, for months and years on end, yet it remains largely misunderstood. Scientists once thought of an individual's period as useless, and some doctors still believe it's unsafe for a...

Leading scholars take stock of Darwin's ideas about human evolution in the light of modern science In 1871, Charles Darwin published The Descent of Man, a companion to Origin of Species in which he attempted to explain human evolution, a topic...

How science changed the way artists understand reality Exploring the Invisible shows how modern art expresses the first secular, scientific worldview in human history. Now fully revised and expanded, this richly illustrated book describes two...

A groundbreaking guide to flower flies in North America This is the first comprehensive field guide to the flower flies (also known as hover flies) of northeastern North America. Flower flies are, along with bees, our most important pollinators. Found in...

The classic case for why government must support science - with a new essay by physicist and former congressman Rush Holt on what democracy needs from science today Science, the Endless Frontier is recognised as the landmark argument for the...

The legendary Renaissance math duel that ushered in the modern age of algebraThe Secret Formula tells the story of two Renaissance mathematicians whose jealousies, intrigues, and contentious debates led to the discovery of a formula for the solution of...

New perspectives on the iconic physicist's scientific and philosophical formationAt the end of World War II, Albert Einstein was invited to write his intellectual autobiography for the Library of Living Philosophers. The resulting book was his uniquely...

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...

Explaining the mathematics of cryptographyThe Mathematics of Secrets takes readers on a fascinating tour of the mathematics behind cryptography-the science of sending secret messages. Using a wide range of historical anecdotes and real-world examples,...

Biological evolution is a fact-but the many conflicting theories of evolution remain controversial even today. When Adaptation and Natural Selection was first published in 1966, it struck a powerful blow against those who argued for the concept of group...

How you can become better at solving real-world problems by learning creative puzzle-solving skillsWe solve countless problems-big and small-every day. With so much practice, why do we often have trouble making simple decisions-much less arriving at...

How Birds Evolve explores how evolution has shaped the distinctive characteristics and behaviours we observe in birds today. Douglas Futuyma describes how evolutionary science illuminates the wonders of birds, ranging over topics such as the meaning and...

The essential primer for physics students who want to build their physical intuitionPresented in A. Zee's incomparably engaging style, this book introduces physics students to the practice of using physical reasoning and judicious guesses to get at the...

Financial Times Best Books of 2020: ScienceWaterstones Best Books of 2020: Popular ScienceSymmetry Magazine Top Physics Books of 2020Shining a light on the most profound insights revealed by modern physics, Jim Al-Khalili invites us all to understand...

What neurobiology and artificial intelligence tell us about how the brain builds itselfHow does a neural network become a brain? While neurobiologists investigate how nature accomplishes this feat, computer scientists interested in artificial...