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The Ups and Downs of Physics
Regular price $29.95 Save $-29.95“This is science made eclectic and entertaining.”—Publishers Weekly
A spectacular and humorous guide to the physics of everyday life—perfect for readers of Storm in a Teacup and The Disappearing Spoon.
Why do bridges sway in the wind? Why do doorknobs sometimes produce a shock? Where does lightning actually come from—and more importantly, what should we do if we’re suddenly surrounded by it? The Ups and Downs of Physics explores the physics of the world around us: from dropped cell phone calls to falling objects, radioactivity, alternating currents, and humidity. The book also examines the ethical implications of scientific decision-making by recounting cases such as the Challenger disaster and the Goiânia radioactive accident. And while physics can sometimes cause us problems, the underlying principles are elegant and fascinating—and with this book, we can learn how to harness them to our advantage.
Told in a charming, conversational voice by the husband-and-wife duo Marcus Weber, a celebrated physicist, and Judith Weber, an acclaimed science communicator, this book interweaves fascinating facts about pistol shrimp and electrostatic charge with chatty stories and experiments readers can try at home. Marcus and Judith discuss everything from a cycling holiday in Cuba, to a cracked window in their home, to figuring out why an experiment they designed for a science television show damaged the iPhone of a famous celebrity …
Who knew physics could be so much fun!?
Gut
Regular price $17.95 Save $-17.95
The Hidden Kingdom of Fungi
Regular price $18.95 Save $-18.95“Fans of Merlin Sheldrake’s Entangled Life and Suzanne Simard’s Finding the Mother Tree will enjoy Seifert’s latest... A perspective-shifting guide to our microfungal matrix.”—Kirkus
Even though we can’t always see them, fungi exist all around us. From forests and farms to food and medicine—and even our homes and bodies—fungal connections shape how we live.
In this illuminating book, readers will “discover how these marvels of nature enrich (and sometimes threaten) our lives.”(Peter Wohlleben, New York Times-bestselling author of The Hidden Life of Trees.
Esteemed career mycologist Keith Seifert reveals the important role that microscopic fungi, including yeasts, molds, and slimes, play in our lives, all while remaining invisible to the naked eye. Divided into sections, each one exploring a different environment where fungi thrive, The Hidden Kingdom of Fungi introduces readers to the fascinating world of mycology, with information on:
- How fungi are at the heart of life-changing medical breakthroughs, including the development of antibiotics such as penicillin and organ transplant drugs.
- Where fungi live in our homes and how they influence our health, from our gut to our scalps.
- How fungi add important vitamins to our diet and make our favorite foods and drinks possible, including wine, cheese, chocolate, and beer.
- The essential role fungi are playing in innovative technologies, such as creating alternative energy sources, reducing plastic pollution, cleaning up toxins from oil spills, and even building architecture for a Mars colony.
The Petroleum Papers
Regular price $18.95 Save $-18.95"An essential read."—The Washington Post
"Essential… This book belongs on the shelf next to Merchants of Doubt, Dark Money, and Kochland." —Roy Scranton, author of Learning to Die in the Anthropocene
"The petroleum industry is guilty of a Big Tobacco–style public cover-up, according to this vivid exposé."—Publishers Weekly STARRED Review
Burning fossil fuels will cause catastrophic global warming: this is what top American oil executives were told by scientists in 1959. But they ignored that warning. Instead, they developed one of the biggest, most polluting oil sources in the world—the oil sands in Alberta, Canada. As investigative journalist Geoff Dembicki reveals in this explosive book, the decades-long conspiracy to keep the oil sands flowing into the U.S. would turn out to be one of the biggest reasons for the world’s failure to stop the climate crisis.
In The Petroleum Papers, Dembicki draws from confidential oil industry documents to uncover for the first time how companies like Exxon, Koch Industries, and Shell built a global right-wing echo chamber to protect oil sands profits—a misinformation campaign that continues to this day. He also tells the high-stakes stories of people fighting back: a Seattle lawyer who brought down Big Tobacco and is now going after Big Oil, a Filipina activist whose family drowned in a climate disaster, and a former Exxon engineer pushed out for asking hard questions.
With experts now warning we have less than a decade to get global emissions under control, The Petroleum Papers provides a step-by-step account of how we got to this precipice—and the politicians and companies who deserve our blame.
Published in Partnership with the David Suzuki Institute
Inner Sense
Regular price $29.95 Save $-29.95“A fascinating look at the power of the body to influence our mind—and even affect how we see the world.”—Janice Kaplan, New York Times bestselling author of The Gratitude Diaries and What Your Body Knows About Happiness
Discover your elusive “sixth sense”—your brain’s ability to perceive and interpret bodily sensations like hunger and thirst—and how to rewire your mind-body connection for optimal health.
Are you able to recognize your own heartbeat? What about thirst? In Inner Sense, science communicator Caroline Williams explains that some people are so insensitive to internal cues that they struggle to recognize basic needs like hunger or fatigue. While others only notice their body’s signals when they become overwhelming. This disconnect between the brain’s predictions and the body’s sensations can lead to mental and physical health challenges, from chronic fatigue, to anxiety, to eating disorders.
If this sounds like you—don’t worry. It’s not too late to tap into your interoceptive awareness. In this practical, science-backed book, you will learn …
- How to harness one of the most important functions of your body: its sixth sense, known to scientists as interoception.
- How the mind-body connection is a two-way street, with the brain and body in a constant flow of communication.
- How to perceive and interpret physical processes like heartbeat and breath.
- How to pick up on and respond to physical cues like hunger and thirst.
- How to identify emotions that express themselves physically such as panic or rage.
- How pain works in your body and in your brain.
- How internal sensations influence your thoughts and actions—and how to learn and harness interoceptive awareness.
Inner Sense delves into the fascinating field of interoception, speaking with doctors, scientists, and researchers about how our internal sensations influence our thoughts and actions—and how we can harness interoceptive awareness to improve health, relationships, and society as a whole. Williams explores cutting-edge interventions like mindfulness, biofeedback, targeted exercise, and even psychedelic therapy, which hold the potential to help us regulate emotions, reduce stress, and live better lives.
Geology of British Columbia
Regular price $15.99 Save $-15.99
Adventures in Memory
Regular price $17.95 Save $-17.95A novelist and a neuroscientist uncover the secrets of human memory.
What makes us remember? Why do we forget? And what, exactly, is a memory?
With playfulness and intelligence, Adventures in Memory answers these questions and more, offering an illuminating look at one of our most fascinating faculties. The authors—two Norwegian sisters, one a neuropsychologist and the other an acclaimed writer—skillfully interweave history, research, and exceptional personal stories, taking readers on a captivating exploration of the evolving understanding of the science of memory from the Renaissance discovery of the hippocampus—named after the seahorse it resembles—up to the present day. Mixing metaphor with meta-analysis, they embark on an incredible journey: “diving for seahorses” for a memory experiment in Oslo fjord, racing taxis through London, and “time-traveling” to the future to reveal thought-provoking insights into remembering and forgetting. Along the way they interview experts of all stripes, from the world’s top neuroscientists to famous novelists, to help explain how memory works, why it sometimes fails, and what we can do to improve it.
Filled with cutting-edge research and nimble storytelling, the result is a charming—and memorable—adventure through human memory.
The Carbon Footprint of Everything
Regular price $18.95 Save $-18.95“I can’t remember the last time I read a book that was more fascinating and useful and enjoyable.”—Bill Bryson
Reduce your carbon footprint and understand the issue with this “up-to-date life guide for carbon-conscious readers.”—Kirkus
- Calculate your carbon footprint: with an item-by-item breakdown.
- Meet your company’s carbon goals: using the latest research.
- Covid-19 and the carbon battle: understand the new global supply chain.
The Carbon Footprint of Everything breaks items down by the amount of carbon they produce, creating a calorie guide for the carbon-conscious. With engaging writing, leading carbon expert Mike Berners-Lee shares new carbon calculations based on recent research. He considers the impact of the pandemic on the carbon battle—especially the embattled global supply chain—and adds items we didn’t consider a decade ago, like bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies.
Supported by solid research, cross-referenced with other expert sources, illustrated with easy-to-follow charts and graphs, and written with Berners-Lee’s trademark sense of humor, The Carbon Footprint of Everything should be on everyone’s bookshelf.
The Carbon Footprint of Everything is an extensively revised and updated edition of How Bad Are Bananas.
The Inner Life of Animals
Regular price $16.95 Save $-16.95From the New York Times-bestselling author of The Hidden Life of Trees.
“The Inner Life of Animals will rock your world. This book shows us that animals think, feel and know in much the same way as we do.”—Sy Montgomery, bestselling author of The Soul of an Octopus
Through vivid stories of devoted pigs, two-timing magpies, and scheming roosters, The Inner Life of Animals weaves the latest scientific research into how animals interact with the world with Peter Wohlleben's personal experiences in forests and fields. We learn that horses feel shame, deer grieve, and goats discipline their kids. Ravens call their friends by name, rats regret bad choices, and butterflies choose the very best places for their children to grow up.
In this captivating book, Peter Wohlleben follows the hugely successful The Hidden Life of Trees with insightful stories into the emotions, feelings, and intelligence of animals around us. Animals are different from us in ways that amaze us—and they are also much closer to us than we ever would have thought.
“Wry, avuncular, careful and kind. . . Each story adds to a widening vision of intelligence, emotion and relationship.”—The Guardian
Published in Partnership with the David Suzuki Institute
The Hot Topic
Regular price $15.95 Save $-15.95A persuasive and practical guide that offers solutions to-and hope in the face of-the undeniable threat of global warming.
Last year, awareness about global warming reached a tipping point. Now one of the most dynamic writers and one of the most respected scientists in the field of climate change offer the first concise guide to both the problems and the solutions. Guiding us past a blizzard of information and misinformation, Gabrielle Walker and Sir David King explain the science of warming, the most cutting-edge technological solutions from small to large, and the national and international politics that will affect our efforts.
While there have been many other books about the problem of global warming, none has addressed what we can and should do about it so clearly and persuasively, with no spin, no agenda, and no exaggeration. Neither Walker nor King is an activist or politician, and theirs is not a generic green call to arms. Instead they propose specific ideas to fix a very specific problem. Most important, they offer hope: this is a serious issue, perhaps the most serious that humanity has ever faced. But we can still do something about it. And they'll show us how.
Published in partnership with the David Suzuki Foundation.
Angry Weather
Regular price $18.95 Save $-18.95From leading climate scientist Dr. Friederike Otto, this gripping book reveals the revolutionary science that definitively links extreme weather events—including deadly heat waves, forest fires, floods, and hurricanes—to climate change.
“Meet the forensic scientists of climate change; if you like CSI, you’ll be equally enthralled with the skill and speed these folks exhibit. But the stakes are infinitely higher!” —Bill McKibben, author of Falter and The End of Nature
Tied with Hurricane Katrina as the costliest cyclone on record, Hurricane Harvey caused catastrophic flooding and over a hundred deaths in 2017. Angry Weather tells the compelling, day-by-day story of the World Weather Attribution unit—a team of scientists that studies extreme weather events while they’re happening—and their race to track the connection between the hurricane and climate change. As the hurricane unfolds, Otto reveals how attribution science works in real time, and determines that Harvey’s terrifying floods were three times more likely to occur due to human-induced climate change.
At the forefront of cutting-edge climate science, Friederike Otto uncovers how the new ability to determine climate change’s role in extreme weather events can dramatically transform how we view the climate crisis: from how it will affect those of us who are most vulnerable, to the corporations and governments that may find themselves held accountable in the courts. The research laid out in Angry Weather will have profound impacts, both today and for the future of humankind.
Published in Partnership with the David Suzuki Institute.
Climate Capitalism
Regular price $28.95 Save $-28.95“An important read for anyone in need of optimism about our ability to build a clean energy future.”—BILL GATES
“Illuminating, incisive, and deeply reported.”—DAVID WALLACE-WELLS, New York Times-bestselling author of The Uninhabitable Earth
Our age will be defined by the climate emergency. Contrary to the doomist narrative that's taken hold about the climate emergency, the world has already begun deploying the solutions needed to deal with it. On a journey across five continents, Climate Capitalism tracks the unlikely heroes driving the fight against climate change. From the Chinese bureaucrat who did more to make electric cars a reality than Elon Musk, to the Danish students who helped to build the world's longest-operating wind turbine, or the American oil executive building the technology that can reverse climate damages, we meet the people working to scale technologies that are finally able to bend the emissions curve.
Through stories that bring people, policy and technology together, Akshat Rathi reveals how the green economy is not only possible, but profitable. This inspiring blend of business, science, and history provides the framework for ensuring that future generations can live in prosperity and that the wheels of progress don't falter.
The Greatest Polar Expedition of All Time
Regular price $28.95 Save $-28.95For readers of Madhouse at the End of the Earth, Endurance, and other seafaring adventure stories comes a thrilling account of a 21st-century Arctic mission.
“ A contemporary classic!”—Ken McGoogan, author of Fatal Passage
“Show-stopping.”—Publisher’s Weekly STARRED Review
The Greatest Polar Expedition of All Time vividly describes one year aboard the Polarstern, a powerful ice-breaker ship that journeyed deep into the Arctic in 2019, carrying over 100 scientists and crew known as the MOSAiC Expedition. Hailing from across the world, they would become the largest expedition to ever survive a polar winter. Their purpose? To understand—and predict—the impacts of climate change on the Arctic.
Written by the expedition’s leader, the renowned atmospheric scientist Markus Rex, this page-turner reads like a captain’s log of daily life aboard the Polarstern. Living in one of the most remote, dangerous, and electrifying places on earth, Rex describes incredible sights: polar bears playing with scientific equipment, Christmas parties in the bitter cold, frostbitten scientists, and hair-raising storms that threaten to break the Polarstern’s cables and send it flying across the ice. He also reveals breathtaking science from deep inside the sea ice.
Filled with sobering, heart-warming, and bone-chilling moments, The Greatest Polar Expedition of All Time is a testament to Rex’s extraordinary drive to save a precious ecosystem. It’s also an ode to a place that has beguiled sailors and explorers for centuries.
Hope Matters
Regular price $17.95 Save $-17.95“This book comes at just the right moment. It is NOT too late if we get together and take action, NOW.” —Jane Goodall
Fears about climate change are fueling an epidemic of despair across the world: adults worry about their children’s future; thirty-somethings question whether they should have kids or not; and many young people honestly believe they have no future at all.
In the face of extreme eco-anxiety, scholar and award-winning author Elin Kelsey argues that our hopelessness—while an understandable reaction—is hampering our ability to address the very real problems we face. Kelsey offers a powerful solution: hope itself.
Hope Matters boldly breaks through the narrative of doom and gloom to show why evidence-based hope, not fear, is our most powerful tool for change. Kelsey shares real-life examples of positive climate news that reveal the power of our mindsets to shape reality, the resilience of nature, and the transformative possibilities of individual and collective action. And she demonstrates how we can build on positive trends to work toward a sustainable and just future, before it’s too late.
Praise for Hope Matters
“Whether you consider yourself a passionate ally of nature, a busy bystander, or anything in between, this book will uplift your spirits, helping you find hope in the face of climate crisis.”
—Veronica Joyce Lin, North American Association for Environmental Education “30 Under 30”
“A tonic in hard times.”
—Claudia Dreyguis, author of Scientific Conversations: Interviews on Science from the New York Times
“Beautifully written and an effective antidote against apathy and inaction.”
—Christof Mauch, Director, Rachel Carson Center for the Environment and Society
Published in Partnership with the David Suzuki Institute.
Geology of British Columbia
Regular price $21.95 Save $-21.95This updated edition has been extensively revised to reflect the current thinking about plate tectonics and the geological history of British Columbia. There are also seven new maps and a number of new photographs. An appendix lists the various types of rock in British Columbia.
The Petroleum Papers
Regular price $27.95 Save $-27.95"An essential read."—The Washington Post
"Essential… This book belongs on the shelf next to Merchants of Doubt, Dark Money, and Kochland." —Roy Scranton, author of Learning to Die in the Anthropocene
"The petroleum industry is guilty of a Big Tobacco–style public cover-up, according to this vivid exposé."—Publishers Weekly STARRED Review
Burning fossil fuels will cause catastrophic global warming: this is what top American oil executives were told by scientists in 1959. But they ignored that warning. Instead, they developed one of the biggest, most polluting oil sources in the world—the oil sands in Alberta, Canada. As investigative journalist Geoff Dembicki reveals in this explosive book, the decades-long conspiracy to keep the oil sands flowing into the U.S. would turn out to be one of the biggest reasons for the world’s failure to stop the climate crisis.
In The Petroleum Papers, Dembicki draws from confidential oil industry documents to uncover for the first time how companies like Exxon, Koch Industries, and Shell built a global right-wing echo chamber to protect oil sands profits—a misinformation campaign that continues to this day. He also tells the high-stakes stories of people fighting back: a Seattle lawyer who brought down Big Tobacco and is now going after Big Oil, a Filipina activist whose family drowned in a climate disaster, and a former Exxon engineer pushed out for asking hard questions.
With experts now warning we have less than a decade to get global emissions under control, The Petroleum Papers provides a step-by-step account of how we got to this precipice—and the politicians and companies who deserve our blame.
Published in Partnership with the David Suzuki Institute
How to Be Hopeful
Regular price $28.95 Save $-28.95“How to Be Hopeful is a beautifully executed explanation of why hope is so needed in the environmental space.”—Leah Thomas, author of The Intersectional Environmentalist
"Kelsey's nourishing work reminds us that being human and managing complex emotions is a part of the process in healing the Earth and sprouting hope around the world."—Isaias Hernandez, @QueerBrownVegan
“Are you hopeful?” That is the question elin kelsey is most often asked when she speaks to young people about the emotions and anxiety wrought by the climate crisis. How to Be Hopeful is kelsey’s answer, an inspiring exploration of hope as an active, evidence-based response to climate change and environmental degradation. Hope is not merely a passive feeling but an active choice, a stance that must be nurtured despite the ever-present sense of despair and hopelessness that often accompanies the state of the world.
Through personal reflections, scientific insights, and practical exercises, How to Be Hopeful emphasizes emotional awareness, community collaboration, and the agency of both humans and non-human species. Some of the practices described in the book include:
- Accepting your fears without fatalism
- Sourcing solutions-focused news and tracking positive trends
- Acting from your unique gifts
- Practicing interspecies etiquette
- Gathering strength from your circles of support
A seminal contribution to the field of environmental justice, How to Be Hopeful empowers readers to confront their own emotional landscapes, engage in collective action, envision a sustainable future, and ultimately, cultivate a hopeful and resilient response to the pressing issues of our time.
Published in Partnership with the David Suzuki Institute
On the Edge
Regular price $32.95 Save $-32.95This book provides an up-to-date picture of the health of the world’s tropical forests. Claude Martin, an eminent scientist and conservationist, integrates information from remote imaging, ecology, and economics to explain deforestation and forest health throughout the world. He explains how urbanization, an increasingly global economy, and a worldwide demand for biofuels put new pressure on rainforest land. He examines the policies and market forces that have successfully preserved forests in some areas and discusses the economic benefits of protected areas. Using evidence from ice core records and past forest cover patterns, he predicts the most likely effects of climate change.
Claude Martin brings his wealth of experience as an ecologist, director of the WWF, and advistor to various conservation organizations to bear on the latest research from around the world. Contributions from eight leading experts provide additional insight.
Chemistry for Breakfast
Regular price $18.95 Save $-18.95FINALIST for the Subaru Prize for Excellence in Science Books
“This book shows that chemistry is not just relevant to life; it’s really, really interesting.”—Foreword Reviews, STARRED review
A perfect book for readers of The Physics of Everyday Things and Storm in a Teacup
Have you ever wondered why your alarm clock sends you spiraling? Or how toothpaste works on your teeth? Why do cakes and cookies sometimes turn out dry? (Hint: you may not be adding enough sugar.) In Chemistry for Breakfast, award-winning chemist and science communicator Mai Thi Nguyen-Kim reveals the amazing chemistry behind everyday things (like baking and toothpaste) and not-so-everyday things (like space travel). With a relatable, funny, and conversational style, she explains essential chemical processes everyone should know—and turns the ordinary into extraordinary.
Over the course of a single day, Mai shows us that chemistry is everywhere: we just have to look for it. In the morning, her partner’s much-too-loud alarm prompts a deep dive into biological clocks, fight-or-flight responses, and melatonin’s role in making us sleepy. Before heading to the lab, she explains how the stress hormone cortisol helps wake us up, and brews her morning coffee with a side of heat conduction and states of matter.
Mai continues her day with explainers of cell phone technology, food preservation, body odor, baking, the effects of alcohol, and the chemistry behind the expression “love drunk.” All the while, she shows us what it’s really like to be a working chemist, and fights against the stereotype of a nerd playing with test tubes in a lab coat.
Filled with charming illustrations, laughter, and plenty of surprises, Chemistry for Breakfast is a perfect book for anyone who wants to deepen their understanding of chemistry without having prior knowledge of the science. With Mai as your guide, you’ll find something fascinating everywhere around you.
Inner Sense
Regular price $29.95 Save $-29.95“A fascinating look at the power of the body to influence our mind—and even affect how we see the world.”—Janice Kaplan, New York Times bestselling author of The Gratitude Diaries and What Your Body Knows About Happiness
Discover your elusive “sixth sense”—your brain’s ability to perceive and interpret bodily sensations like hunger and thirst—and how to rewire your mind-body connection for optimal health.
Are you able to recognize your own heartbeat? What about thirst? In Inner Sense, science communicator Caroline Williams explains that some people are so insensitive to internal cues that they struggle to recognize basic needs like hunger or fatigue. While others only notice their body’s signals when they become overwhelming. This disconnect between the brain’s predictions and the body’s sensations can lead to mental and physical health challenges, from chronic fatigue, to anxiety, to eating disorders.
If this sounds like you—don’t worry. It’s not too late to tap into your interoceptive awareness. In this practical, science-backed book, you will learn …
- How to harness one of the most important functions of your body: its sixth sense, known to scientists as interoception.
- How the mind-body connection is a two-way street, with the brain and body in a constant flow of communication.
- How to perceive and interpret physical processes like heartbeat and breath.
- How to pick up on and respond to physical cues like hunger and thirst.
- How to identify emotions that express themselves physically such as panic or rage.
- How pain works in your body and in your brain.
- How internal sensations influence your thoughts and actions—and how to learn and harness interoceptive awareness.
Inner Sense delves into the fascinating field of interoception, speaking with doctors, scientists, and researchers about how our internal sensations influence our thoughts and actions—and how we can harness interoceptive awareness to improve health, relationships, and society as a whole. Williams explores cutting-edge interventions like mindfulness, biofeedback, targeted exercise, and even psychedelic therapy, which hold the potential to help us regulate emotions, reduce stress, and live better lives.
Rise of the Necrofauna
Regular price $21.95 Save $-21.95Jurassic Park meets The Sixth Extinction in Rise of the Necrofauna, a provocative look at de-extinction from acclaimed documentarist and science writer Britt Wray.
A New Yorker “The Books We Loved in 2017” Selection
A Science News Favorite Book of 2017
A Sunday Times "Must Read"
What happens when you try to recreate a woolly mammoth—fascinating science, or conservation catastrophe?
In Rise of the Necrofauna, Wray takes us deep into the minds and labs of some of the world's most progressive thinkers to find out. She introduces us to renowned futurists like Stewart Brand and scientists like George Church, who are harnessing the powers of CRISPR gene editing in the hopes of "reviving" extinct passenger pigeons, woolly mammoths, and heath hens. She speaks with Nikita Zimov, who together with his eclectic father Sergey, is creating Siberia's Pleistocene Park—a daring attempt to rebuild the mammoth's ancient ecosystem in order to save earth from climate disaster. Through interviews with these and other thought leaders, Wray reveals the many incredible opportunities for research and conservation made possible by this emerging new field.
But we also hear from more cautionary voices, like those of researcher and award-winning author Beth Shapiro (How to Clone a Woolly Mammoth) and environmental philosopher Thomas van Dooren. Writing with passion and perspective, Wray delves into the larger questions that come with this incredible new science, reminding us that de-extinction could bring just as many dangers as it does possibilities. What happens, for example, when we bring an "unextinct" creature back into the wild? How can we care for these strange animals and ensure their comfort and safety—not to mention our own? And what does de-extinction mean for those species that are currently endangered? Is it really ethical to bring back an extinct passenger pigeon, for example, when countless other birds today will face the same fate?
By unpacking the many biological, technological, ethical, environmental, and legal questions raised by this fascinating new field, Wray offers a captivating look at the best and worst of resurrection science.
A captivating whirlwind tour through the birth and early life of the scientific idea known as “de-extinction.”—Beth Shapiro, author of How to Clone a Mammoth: The Science of De-Extinction
Published in Partnership with the David Suzuki Institute.
The Hidden Kingdom of Fungi
Regular price $18.95 Save $-18.95“Fans of Merlin Sheldrake’s Entangled Life and Suzanne Simard’s Finding the Mother Tree will enjoy Seifert’s latest... A perspective-shifting guide to our microfungal matrix.”—Kirkus
Even though we can’t always see them, fungi exist all around us. From forests and farms to food and medicine—and even our homes and bodies—fungal connections shape how we live.
In this illuminating book, readers will “discover how these marvels of nature enrich (and sometimes threaten) our lives.”(Peter Wohlleben, New York Times-bestselling author of The Hidden Life of Trees.
Esteemed career mycologist Keith Seifert reveals the important role that microscopic fungi, including yeasts, molds, and slimes, play in our lives, all while remaining invisible to the naked eye. Divided into sections, each one exploring a different environment where fungi thrive, The Hidden Kingdom of Fungi introduces readers to the fascinating world of mycology, with information on:
- How fungi are at the heart of life-changing medical breakthroughs, including the development of antibiotics such as penicillin and organ transplant drugs.
- Where fungi live in our homes and how they influence our health, from our gut to our scalps.
- How fungi add important vitamins to our diet and make our favorite foods and drinks possible, including wine, cheese, chocolate, and beer.
- The essential role fungi are playing in innovative technologies, such as creating alternative energy sources, reducing plastic pollution, cleaning up toxins from oil spills, and even building architecture for a Mars colony.
Kingdom of Frost
Regular price $26.95 Save $-26.95An award-winning science journalist explains what Earth’s frozen waters tell us about the past, present, and future of humanity.
“The Kingdom of Frost,” or what scientists call the cryosphere, refers to all of Earth’s frozen waters. Glaciers, ice caps, and fields of Arctic snow—the cryosphere is vital to our survival. It supplies us with water and helps cool cities from Bangladesh to Bangkok, Los Angeles to Oslo.
In this captivating, eye-opening account, esteemed Norwegian writer Bjørn Vassnes interweaves brilliant climate reporting with the fascinating story of Earth’s frozen world. He draws on cultural history and anthropology to tell us how the cryosphere once helped to spark life on Earth—and how it continues to sustain us despite its shrinking size.
And he answers pressing questions such as: What will happen if it all disappears?
Ten Technologies to Save the Planet
Regular price $14.99 Save $-14.99
The Big Picture
Regular price $15.99 Save $-15.99
Scatterbrain
Regular price $17.95 Save $-17.95“[This] book will convince you that forgetting helps you remember and distractions can make you more creative.” —Adam Grant, New York Times bestselling author of Originals and Give and Take, and host of TED’s WorkLife podcast
“Illuminating, and a joy to read, [Scatterbrain] offers … a refreshingly accessible and relatable take on the brain’s inner workings that should appeal to both science buffs and casual readers.” —Publishers Weekly (Starred Review)
In this mind-bending book, an esteemed neuroscientist explains why perfectionism is pointless—and argues that mistakes, missteps, and flaws are the keys to success.
Remember that time you screwed up simple math or forgot the name of your favorite song? What if someone told you that such embarrassing “brain farts” are actually secret weapons, proof of your superiority to computers and AI?
In Scatterbrain, we learn that boredom awakens the muse, distractions spark creativity, and misjudging time creates valuable memories, among other benefits of our faulty minds. Throughout, award-winning neuroscientist Henning Beck’s hilarious asides and brain-boosting advice make for delightful reading of the most cutting-edge neuroscience our brains will (maybe never) remember.
The Curious World of Bacteria
Regular price $24.95 Save $-24.95Bacteria were the first life on Earth. But what do we really know about them? In this captivating, science-driven book, you’ll learn everything you need to know about these often misunderstood—and incredibly interesting—microbes.
In this engagingly written and scientifically rigorous book, author and scientist Ludger Wess introduces an eclectic collection of impressive, useful, weird, and dangerous bacterial species. Wess reveals everything he knows about bacteria, including their ability to survive almost anywhere, to “sleep” for millions of years before becoming active again, to maintain their own immune systems (a discovery that has led to medical breakthroughs for humans), and to—hypothetically—live on other planets.
In part two, Wess moves on to his curious compendium of bacterial species, presenting fifty fascinating portraits grouped by useful categories: bacteria that are record holders, extreme-habitat dwellers, unusual consumers, people-helpers, and people-harmers. Beautiful black-and-white illustrations accompany each portrait. At the end of this engrossing read, Wess recognizes how much we still don’t know about bacteria. But by starting here, we can come closer to understanding the first life on Earth.
The Ups and Downs of Physics
Regular price $29.95 Save $-29.95“This is science made eclectic and entertaining.”—Publishers Weekly
A spectacular and humorous guide to the physics of everyday life—perfect for readers of Storm in a Teacup and The Disappearing Spoon.
Why do bridges sway in the wind? Why do doorknobs sometimes produce a shock? Where does lightning actually come from—and more importantly, what should we do if we’re suddenly surrounded by it? The Ups and Downs of Physics explores the physics of the world around us: from dropped cell phone calls to falling objects, radioactivity, alternating currents, and humidity. The book also examines the ethical implications of scientific decision-making by recounting cases such as the Challenger disaster and the Goiânia radioactive accident. And while physics can sometimes cause us problems, the underlying principles are elegant and fascinating—and with this book, we can learn how to harness them to our advantage.
Told in a charming, conversational voice by the husband-and-wife duo Marcus Weber, a celebrated physicist, and Judith Weber, an acclaimed science communicator, this book interweaves fascinating facts about pistol shrimp and electrostatic charge with chatty stories and experiments readers can try at home. Marcus and Judith discuss everything from a cycling holiday in Cuba, to a cracked window in their home, to figuring out why an experiment they designed for a science television show damaged the iPhone of a famous celebrity …
Who knew physics could be so much fun!?
Heart
Regular price $17.95 Save $-17.95
The Inner Life of Animals
Regular price $16.95 Save $-16.95From the New York Times-bestselling author of The Hidden Life of Trees.
“The Inner Life of Animals will rock your world. This book shows us that animals think, feel and know in much the same way as we do.”—Sy Montgomery, bestselling author of The Soul of an Octopus
Through vivid stories of devoted pigs, two-timing magpies, and scheming roosters, The Inner Life of Animals weaves the latest scientific research into how animals interact with the world with Peter Wohlleben's personal experiences in forests and fields. We learn that horses feel shame, deer grieve, and goats discipline their kids. Ravens call their friends by name, rats regret bad choices, and butterflies choose the very best places for their children to grow up.
In this captivating book, Peter Wohlleben follows the hugely successful The Hidden Life of Trees with insightful stories into the emotions, feelings, and intelligence of animals around us. Animals are different from us in ways that amaze us—and they are also much closer to us than we ever would have thought.
“Wry, avuncular, careful and kind. . . Each story adds to a widening vision of intelligence, emotion and relationship.”—The Guardian
Published in Partnership with the David Suzuki Institute
Climate Injustice
Regular price $29.95 Save $-29.95“I can’t recommend this book highly enough. It will change how you think about the most important story of our time."—JEFF GOODELL, New York Times bestselling author of The Heat Will Kill You First
From one of the world’s most celebrated thinkers on climate change comes a groundbreaking investigation into the human costs of extreme weather.
Climate change concerns everyone, but it does not affect us all equally. In this gripping, provocative manifesto, climate scientist Friederike Otto makes the case that the world’s most vulnerable populations are the most at risk of being impacted by climate change—though they did the least to cause it.
Comparing eight extreme weather events—including heat waves in North America, floods in Pakistan, droughts in Madagascar, and wildfires in Australia—Otto shows how global inequality is exacerbating the effects of climate change and exposes uncomfortable truths about the failures of political and social infrastructures around the world. In particular, Otto examines the Global North’s extractionist view of the Global South, a view that ensures elites are protected while others bear the brunt of climate disasters.
An engrossing, deeply moving book, Climate Injustice shares the stories of real people, shining a light on the real damage extreme weather events inflict on real lives. Importantly, it shows how racism, colonialism, sexism, and climate change are interconnected, and how positive changes on one level can lead to positive effects on another. Authored by the co-founder of World Weather Attribution, a cutting-edge scientific method that pinpoints the role of climate change in extreme weather events, Climate Injustice offers a groundbreaking view on the fires, floods, heatwaves, and storms that are wreaking havoc at an alarming pace—as well as an essential change in perspective for how we might finally solve this crisis together.
Published in Partnership with the David Suzuki Institute
Kingdom of Frost
Regular price $26.95 Save $-26.95An award-winning science journalist explains what Earth’s frozen waters tell us about the past, present, and future of humanity.
“The Kingdom of Frost,” or what scientists call the cryosphere, refers to all of Earth’s frozen waters. Glaciers, ice caps, and fields of Arctic snow—the cryosphere is vital to our survival. It supplies us with water and helps cool cities from Bangladesh to Bangkok, Los Angeles to Oslo.
In this captivating, eye-opening account, esteemed Norwegian writer Bjørn Vassnes interweaves brilliant climate reporting with the fascinating story of Earth’s frozen world. He draws on cultural history and anthropology to tell us how the cryosphere once helped to spark life on Earth—and how it continues to sustain us despite its shrinking size.
And he answers pressing questions such as: What will happen if it all disappears?
Hidden Guests
Regular price $27.95 Save $-27.95What if some of your cells were not your own? What if they once belonged to someone else?
Part mind-bending medical mystery—part cutting-edge science—Hidden Guests uncovers the astonishing phenomenon of microchimerism: the presence of foreign cells inside our own bodies. The incredible story of how those cells got there—and what they do once they arrive—might change everything we know about the immune system, lineage, and identity.
We are all told the same story as children: that we grew from a single cell into a human, that all of our cells came from the first fertilized egg, and that we have one distinct genetic code. But scientists are beginning to challenge that story.
The discovery of microchimerism shows that not all our cells are our own—some of them migrated from other bodies. How did they get there? Scientists are still studying their journey, but today we know cells are exchanged in pregnancy, through transplants and blood transfusions, and possibly even through sex. But what does this mean for our daily lives—is it really such a big deal if someone else’s cell turns up in our bodies? The answer is, as author Lise Barnéoud shows in Hidden Guests, that the implications could be earth-shattering.
In Hidden Guests, Barnéoud interviews doctors, researchers, and medical experts at the forefront of microchimerism research. She interweaves their fascinating discoveries with the shocking human stories of microchimerism including:
- The story of the mother who gave birth to the genetic children of her sister … even though her sister had never been born.
- The story of the man whose DNA was found at a crime scene—only he was in prison at the time. It turned out that he had received a bone marrow transplant, and the DNA came from his donor—the actual offender.
- The story of a cancer survivor who discovered that the cells in his blood, saliva, hair, and even his semen were slowly being replaced by the cells of his organ donor
- The story of a woman whose children were nearly taken away after genetic testing showed she was not their mother—until she proved that their DNA came from a vanished twin whose cells she had absorbed in utero
Hidden Guests traces the history of this still emerging science while asking philosophical and probing questions about immunity, biology, evolution, parental testing, criminal forensics, and the concept of individual identity. Barnéoud makes the case for expanding our notions of both self and immunity: as ever-changing collectives of cells in relation, we are not unlike ecosystems. And like ecosystems, perhaps, the greater our diversity, the greater our resilience.
The Making of You
Regular price $19.95 Save $-19.95A quirky and inspired guide to your very own origin story.
This enlightening and irresistible book for adults explains how you were made—not with the standard euphemisms told to us as children, but with vivid, exacting prose that unveils all the complex processes we never knew produced human life.
With a brilliant talent for thoughtful, charming science writing, Katharina Vestre takes us from cell to human and shares surprising facts along the way—such as that sperm have a sense of smell and that hiccups were likely inherited from our ancient, underwater ancestors. She also shows why gender is more complicated than we think and reveals the questions scientists still ponder about how we came to be.
A miniature drama of cosmic significance, this is the incredible story of you.
Climate Injustice
Regular price $29.95 Save $-29.95“I can’t recommend this book highly enough. It will change how you think about the most important story of our time."—JEFF GOODELL, New York Times bestselling author of The Heat Will Kill You First
From one of the world’s most celebrated thinkers on climate change comes a groundbreaking investigation into the human costs of extreme weather.
Climate change concerns everyone, but it does not affect us all equally. In this gripping, provocative manifesto, climate scientist Friederike Otto makes the case that the world’s most vulnerable populations are the most at risk of being impacted by climate change—though they did the least to cause it.
Comparing eight extreme weather events—including heat waves in North America, floods in Pakistan, droughts in Madagascar, and wildfires in Australia—Otto shows how global inequality is exacerbating the effects of climate change and exposes uncomfortable truths about the failures of political and social infrastructures around the world. In particular, Otto examines the Global North’s extractionist view of the Global South, a view that ensures elites are protected while others bear the brunt of climate disasters.
An engrossing, deeply moving book, Climate Injustice shares the stories of real people, shining a light on the real damage extreme weather events inflict on real lives. Importantly, it shows how racism, colonialism, sexism, and climate change are interconnected, and how positive changes on one level can lead to positive effects on another. Authored by the co-founder of World Weather Attribution, a cutting-edge scientific method that pinpoints the role of climate change in extreme weather events, Climate Injustice offers a groundbreaking view on the fires, floods, heatwaves, and storms that are wreaking havoc at an alarming pace—as well as an essential change in perspective for how we might finally solve this crisis together.
Published in Partnership with the David Suzuki Institute
The Secret Wisdom of Nature
Regular price $18.95 Save $-18.95“As you read these pages you will understand why I so admire [Peter Wohlleben] and am so in love with his work.”—JANE GOODALL
Nature is full of surprises: deciduous trees affect the rotation of the Earth, cranes sabotage the production of Iberian ham, and coniferous forests can make it rain. But what are the processes that drive these incredible phenomena? And why do they matter?
In The Secret Wisdom of Nature, master storyteller and international sensation Peter Wohlleben takes readers on a thought-provoking exploration of the vast natural systems that make life on Earth possible. In this tour of an almost unfathomable world, Wohlleben describes the fascinating interplay between animals and plants and answers such questions as: How do they influence each other? Do lifeforms communicate across species boundaries? And what happens when this finely tuned system gets out of sync? By introducing us to the latest scientific discoveries and recounting his own insights from decades of observing nature, one of the world’s most famous foresters shows us how to recapture our sense of awe so we can see the world around us with completely new eyes.
Published in Partnership with the David Suzuki Institute.
Hidden Guests
Regular price $27.95 Save $-27.95What if some of your cells were not your own? What if they once belonged to someone else?
Part mind-bending medical mystery—part cutting-edge science—Hidden Guests uncovers the astonishing phenomenon of microchimerism: the presence of foreign cells inside our own bodies. The incredible story of how those cells got there—and what they do once they arrive—might change everything we know about the immune system, lineage, and identity.
We are all told the same story as children: that we grew from a single cell into a human, that all of our cells came from the first fertilized egg, and that we have one distinct genetic code. But scientists are beginning to challenge that story.
The discovery of microchimerism shows that not all our cells are our own—some of them migrated from other bodies. How did they get there? Scientists are still studying their journey, but today we know cells are exchanged in pregnancy, through transplants and blood transfusions, and possibly even through sex. But what does this mean for our daily lives—is it really such a big deal if someone else’s cell turns up in our bodies? The answer is, as author Lise Barnéoud shows in Hidden Guests, that the implications could be earth-shattering.
In Hidden Guests, Barnéoud interviews doctors, researchers, and medical experts at the forefront of microchimerism research. She interweaves their fascinating discoveries with the shocking human stories of microchimerism including:
- The story of the mother who gave birth to the genetic children of her sister … even though her sister had never been born.
- The story of the man whose DNA was found at a crime scene—only he was in prison at the time. It turned out that he had received a bone marrow transplant, and the DNA came from his donor—the actual offender.
- The story of a cancer survivor who discovered that the cells in his blood, saliva, hair, and even his semen were slowly being replaced by the cells of his organ donor
- The story of a woman whose children were nearly taken away after genetic testing showed she was not their mother—until she proved that their DNA came from a vanished twin whose cells she had absorbed in utero
Hidden Guests traces the history of this still emerging science while asking philosophical and probing questions about immunity, biology, evolution, parental testing, criminal forensics, and the concept of individual identity. Barnéoud makes the case for expanding our notions of both self and immunity: as ever-changing collectives of cells in relation, we are not unlike ecosystems. And like ecosystems, perhaps, the greater our diversity, the greater our resilience.
The Curious World of Bacteria
Regular price $24.95 Save $-24.95Bacteria were the first life on Earth. But what do we really know about them? In this captivating, science-driven book, you’ll learn everything you need to know about these often misunderstood—and incredibly interesting—microbes.
In this engagingly written and scientifically rigorous book, author and scientist Ludger Wess introduces an eclectic collection of impressive, useful, weird, and dangerous bacterial species. Wess reveals everything he knows about bacteria, including their ability to survive almost anywhere, to “sleep” for millions of years before becoming active again, to maintain their own immune systems (a discovery that has led to medical breakthroughs for humans), and to—hypothetically—live on other planets.
In part two, Wess moves on to his curious compendium of bacterial species, presenting fifty fascinating portraits grouped by useful categories: bacteria that are record holders, extreme-habitat dwellers, unusual consumers, people-helpers, and people-harmers. Beautiful black-and-white illustrations accompany each portrait. At the end of this engrossing read, Wess recognizes how much we still don’t know about bacteria. But by starting here, we can come closer to understanding the first life on Earth.
The Making of You
Regular price $24.95 Save $-24.95A quirky and inspired guide to your very own origin story.
This enlightening and irresistible book for adults explains how you were made—not with the standard euphemisms told to us as children, but with vivid, exacting prose that unveils all the complex processes we never knew produced human life.
With a brilliant talent for thoughtful, charming science writing, Katharina Vestre takes us from cell to human and shares surprising facts along the way—such as that sperm have a sense of smell and that hiccups were likely inherited from our ancient, underwater ancestors. She also shows why gender is more complicated than we think and reveals the questions scientists still ponder about how we came to be.
A miniature drama of cosmic significance, this is the incredible story of you.
Adventures in Memory
Regular price $24.95 Save $-24.95A novelist and a neuroscientist uncover the secrets of human memory.
What makes us remember? Why do we forget? And what, exactly, is a memory?
With playfulness and intelligence, Adventures in Memory answers these questions and more, offering an illuminating look at one of our most fascinating faculties. The authors—two Norwegian sisters, one a neuropsychologist and the other an acclaimed writer—skillfully interweave history, research, and exceptional personal stories, taking readers on a captivating exploration of the evolving understanding of the science of memory from the Renaissance discovery of the hippocampus—named after the seahorse it resembles—up to the present day. Mixing metaphor with meta-analysis, they embark on an incredible journey: “diving for seahorses” for a memory experiment in Oslo fjord, racing taxis through London, and “time-traveling” to the future to reveal thought-provoking insights into remembering and forgetting. Along the way they interview experts of all stripes, from the world’s top neuroscientists to famous novelists, to help explain how memory works, why it sometimes fails, and what we can do to improve it.
Filled with cutting-edge research and nimble storytelling, the result is a charming—and memorable—adventure through human memory.
The David Suzuki Reader
Regular price $22.95 Save $-22.95The David Suzuki Reader brings together for the first time the scientific and philosophical thought of North America’s leading environmentalist.
Drawing from Suzuki’s published and unpublished writings, this collection reveals the underlying themes that have informed his work for over four decades. In these incisive and provocative essays, Suzuki explores the limits of knowledge and the connectedness of all things; looks unflinchingly at the destructive forces of globalization, political shortsightedness, and greed; cautions against blind faith in science, technology, politics, and economics; and provides inspiring examples of how and where to make those changes that will matter to all of us and to future generations. He also offers a vision of hope based on our love of children and nature.
In this time of global unrest and uncertainty, Suzuki provides an important reminder of how we are all connected and of what really matters. Written with clarity, passion, and wisdom, this book is essential reading for anyone who is an admirer of David Suzuki, who wants to understand what science can and can’t do, or who wants to make a difference.
The Burning Question
Regular price $16.95 Save $-16.95Tackling global warming will mean persuading the world to abandon oil, coal and gas reserves worth many trillions of dollars at least until we have the means to put carbon back in the ground. The burning question is whether that can be done. What mix of politics, psychology, economics and technology might be required? Are the energy companies massively overvalued, and how will carbon-cuts affect the global economy? Will we wake up to the threat in time? And who can do what to make it all happen?
Published in Partnership with the David Suzuki Institute.
Rise of the Necrofauna
Regular price $17.95 Save $-17.95NAMED ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR by The New Yorker and Science News
What happens when you try to recreate a woolly mammoth—fascinating science, or conservation catastrophe? Jurassic Park meets The Sixth Extinction in Rise of the Necrofauna, a provocative look at de-extinction from acclaimed documentarist and science writer Britt Wray, PhD.
In Rise of the Necrofauna, Wray takes us deep into the minds and labs of some of the world’s most progressive thinkers to find out. She introduces us to renowned futurists like Stewart Brand and scientists like George Church, who are harnessing the powers of CRISPR gene editing in the hopes of “reviving” extinct passenger pigeons, woolly mammoths, and heath hens. She speaks with Nikita Zimov, who together with his eclectic father Sergey, is creating Siberia’s Pleistocene Park—a daring attempt to rebuild the mammoth’s ancient ecosystem in order to save earth from climate disaster. Through interviews with these and other thought leaders, Wray reveals the many incredible opportunities for research and conservation made possible by this emerging new field.
But we also hear from more cautionary voices, like those of researcher and award-winning author Beth Shapiro (How to Clone a Woolly Mammoth) and environmental philosopher Thomas van Dooren. Writing with passion and perspective, Wray delves into the larger questions that come with this incredible new science, reminding us that de-extinction could bring just as many dangers as it does possibilities. What happens, for example, when we bring an “unextinct” creature back into the wild? How can we care for these strange animals and ensure their comfort and safety—not to mention our own? And what does de-extinction mean for those species that are currently endangered? Is it really ethical to bring back an extinct passenger pigeon, for example, when countless other birds today will face the same fate?
By unpacking the many biological, technological, ethical, environmental, and legal questions raised by this fascinating new field, Wray offers a captivating look at the best and worst of resurrection science.
Published in Partnership with the David Suzuki Institute.
How Bad Are Bananas?
Regular price $13.99 Save $-13.99The book puts our decisions into perspective with entries for the big things (the World Cup, volcanic eruptions, the Iraq war) as well as the small (email, ironing, a glass of beer). And it covers the range from birth (the carbon footprint of having a child) to death (the carbon impact of cremation).
Packed full of surprises a plastic bag has the smallest footprint of any item listed, while a block of cheese is bad news the book continuously informs, delights, and engages the reader. Solidly researched and referenced, the easily digestible figures, statistics, charts, and graphs (including a section on the carbon footprint of various foods) will encourage discussion and help people to make up their own minds about their consumer choices.
The Greatest Polar Expedition of All Time
Regular price $28.95 Save $-28.95For readers of Madhouse at the End of the Earth, Endurance, and other seafaring adventure stories comes a thrilling account of a 21st-century Arctic mission.
“ A contemporary classic!”—Ken McGoogan, author of Fatal Passage
“Show-stopping.”—Publisher’s Weekly STARRED Review
The Greatest Polar Expedition of All Time vividly describes one year aboard the Polarstern, a powerful ice-breaker ship that journeyed deep into the Arctic in 2019, carrying over 100 scientists and crew known as the MOSAiC Expedition. Hailing from across the world, they would become the largest expedition to ever survive a polar winter. Their purpose? To understand—and predict—the impacts of climate change on the Arctic.
Written by the expedition’s leader, the renowned atmospheric scientist Markus Rex, this page-turner reads like a captain’s log of daily life aboard the Polarstern. Living in one of the most remote, dangerous, and electrifying places on earth, Rex describes incredible sights: polar bears playing with scientific equipment, Christmas parties in the bitter cold, frostbitten scientists, and hair-raising storms that threaten to break the Polarstern’s cables and send it flying across the ice. He also reveals breathtaking science from deep inside the sea ice.
Filled with sobering, heart-warming, and bone-chilling moments, The Greatest Polar Expedition of All Time is a testament to Rex’s extraordinary drive to save a precious ecosystem. It’s also an ode to a place that has beguiled sailors and explorers for centuries.
The Hidden Kingdom of Fungi
Regular price $27.95 Save $-27.95“Fans of Merlin Sheldrake’s Entangled Life and Suzanne Simard’s Finding the Mother Tree will enjoy Seifert’s latest... A perspective-shifting guide to our microfungal matrix.”—Kirkus
Even though we can’t always see them, fungi exist all around us. From forests and farms to food and medicine—and even our homes and bodies—fungal connections shape how we live.
In this illuminating book, readers will “discover how these marvels of nature enrich (and sometimes threaten) our lives.”(Peter Wohlleben, New York Times-bestselling author of The Hidden Life of Trees.
Esteemed career mycologist Keith Seifert reveals the important role that microscopic fungi, including yeasts, molds, and slimes, play in our lives, all while remaining invisible to the naked eye. Divided into sections, each one exploring a different environment where fungi thrive, The Hidden Kingdom of Fungi introduces readers to the fascinating world of mycology, with information on:
- How fungi are at the heart of life-changing medical breakthroughs, including the development of antibiotics such as penicillin and organ transplant drugs.
- Where fungi live in our homes and how they influence our health, from our gut to our scalps.
- How fungi add important vitamins to our diet and make our favorite foods and drinks possible, including wine, cheese, chocolate, and beer.
- The essential role fungi are playing in innovative technologies, such as creating alternative energy sources, reducing plastic pollution, cleaning up toxins from oil spills, and even building architecture for a Mars colony.
Climate Capitalism
Regular price $28.95 Save $-28.95“An important read for anyone in need of optimism about our ability to build a clean energy future.”—BILL GATES
“Illuminating, incisive, and deeply reported.”—DAVID WALLACE-WELLS, New York Times-bestselling author of The Uninhabitable Earth
Our age will be defined by the climate emergency. Contrary to the doomist narrative that's taken hold about the climate emergency, the world has already begun deploying the solutions needed to deal with it. On a journey across five continents, Climate Capitalism tracks the unlikely heroes driving the fight against climate change. From the Chinese bureaucrat who did more to make electric cars a reality than Elon Musk, to the Danish students who helped to build the world's longest-operating wind turbine, or the American oil executive building the technology that can reverse climate damages, we meet the people working to scale technologies that are finally able to bend the emissions curve.
Through stories that bring people, policy and technology together, Akshat Rathi reveals how the green economy is not only possible, but profitable. This inspiring blend of business, science, and history provides the framework for ensuring that future generations can live in prosperity and that the wheels of progress don't falter.
The Curious World of Seahorses
Regular price $26.95 Save $-26.95With the whimsy and heart of The Soul of an Octopus and the surprising details of the very best science writing, The Curious World of Seahorses brilliantly captures the ocean’s most charismatic and mysterious inhabitant.
"The seahorse has captured the human imagination for millennia... Till Hein explains the amazing qualities of these magical creatures."—Explorers Journal
"Not just a compelling read, but also a love letter to the strangest creatures of the ocean—seahorses."—Frauke Bagusche, author of The Blue Wonder
"When God created the seahorse," says one marine biologist, "he may have had one too many."
Of all the creatures in the ocean, there are none more charming and magical—or more strange—than the seahorses. Masters of disguise, graceful dancers, and romantic lovers, seahorses are found not only in the seagrass meadows and mangroves of the world, but also throughout the annals of human history and culture—surfacing everywhere from chess and Greek mythology to Disney movies like The Little Mermaid and Pokémon games.
Equipped with a pouch like a kangaroo, a long snout like an anteater, and complete with a crown unique as a human fingerprint, the seahorse defies easy categorization. The only fish to swim in an upright position, seahorses are terrible swimmers, but they make up for it with an incredible talent for holding onto seagrass or coral. They have no stomach or teeth—only intestines. Most seahorses are monogamous, and meet with their life partner every few weeks to perform a dance that can last up to nine hours. The most unique aspect of the seahorse is their reproductive cycle, as it is the male of the species who becomes pregnant.
In this entertaining and informative book, science writer Till Hein shares the most tantalizing findings from the world of seahorses, and the role they have played in human culture. He reveals their secrets, from their intriguing biological features and hunting strategy to their use in medicine throughout history, their appearances in Greek and Celtic mythology, and even the medieval belief that they descended from dragons.
Endlessly fascinating and charmingly approachable, The Curious World of Seahorses will captivate any reader looking to learn more about one of the most incredible creatures on Earth.
The Art of Physics
Regular price $29.95 Save $-29.95Can physics change your life? It already has.
"What does complex system theory teach us about getting fired? How does the study of subatomic particles help us predict elections? In his insightful and entertaining new book, Zahaan Bharmal applies lessons from physics to identify elegant explanations for our messy world."—Cal Newport, New York Times bestselling author of Slow Productivity and Deep Work
Drawing on insights from quantum mechanics, thermodynamics, chaos theory, and more, The Art of Physics reveals the surprising and sometimes beautiful ways physics can help us understand the chaos and unpredictability of our universe, answering questions such as:
- Why are some relationships unstable, while others last a lifetime?
- Why do we make irrational decisions and how can they affect climate change?
- Why is polling for an election unreliable?
- Why does it matter when I ask my son if he ate his vegetables?
Through a unique mix of personal stories, the exploration of global issues, science, and even humor, Bharmal uses physics to explain the social and political interactions that affect us all. From the physics of getting fired to using chaos theory to predict civilisation-level catastrophes, The Art of Physics helps answer some of the most important questions facing our lives and society today.
In our constant need for reason, The Art of Physics shows how we can find solace and understanding in physics.
The Secret Network of Nature
Regular price $17.95 Save $-17.95“As you read these pages you will understand why I so admire [Peter Wohlleben] and am so in love with his work.”—JANE GOODALL
Nature is full of surprises: deciduous trees affect the rotation of the Earth, cranes sabotage the production of Iberian ham, and coniferous forests can make it rain. But what are the processes that drive these incredible phenomena? And why do they matter?
In The Secret Wisdom of Nature, master storyteller and international sensation Peter Wohlleben takes readers on a thought-provoking exploration of the vast natural systems that make life on Earth possible. In this tour of an almost unfathomable world, Wohlleben describes the fascinating interplay between animals and plants and answers such questions as: How do they influence each other? Do lifeforms communicate across species boundaries? And what happens when this finely tuned system gets out of sync? By introducing us to the latest scientific discoveries and recounting his own insights from decades of observing nature, one of the world’s most famous foresters shows us how to recapture our sense of awe so we can see the world around us with completely new eyes.
Published in Partnership with the David Suzuki Institute.
The Carbon Footprint of Everything
Regular price $18.95 Save $-18.95“I can’t remember the last time I read a book that was more fascinating and useful and enjoyable.”—Bill Bryson
Reduce your carbon footprint and understand the issue with this “up-to-date life guide for carbon-conscious readers.”—Kirkus
- Calculate your carbon footprint: with an item-by-item breakdown.
- Meet your company’s carbon goals: using the latest research.
- Covid-19 and the carbon battle: understand the new global supply chain.
The Carbon Footprint of Everything breaks items down by the amount of carbon they produce, creating a calorie guide for the carbon-conscious. With engaging writing, leading carbon expert Mike Berners-Lee shares new carbon calculations based on recent research. He considers the impact of the pandemic on the carbon battle—especially the embattled global supply chain—and adds items we didn’t consider a decade ago, like bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies.
Supported by solid research, cross-referenced with other expert sources, illustrated with easy-to-follow charts and graphs, and written with Berners-Lee’s trademark sense of humor, The Carbon Footprint of Everything should be on everyone’s bookshelf.
The Carbon Footprint of Everything is an extensively revised and updated edition of How Bad Are Bananas.
Adventures in Memory
Regular price $17.95 Save $-17.95A novelist and a neuroscientist uncover the secrets of human memory.
What makes us remember? Why do we forget? And what, exactly, is a memory?
With playfulness and intelligence, Adventures in Memory answers these questions and more, offering an illuminating look at one of our most fascinating faculties. The authors—two Norwegian sisters, one a neuropsychologist and the other an acclaimed writer—skillfully interweave history, research, and exceptional personal stories, taking readers on a captivating exploration of the evolving understanding of the science of memory from the Renaissance discovery of the hippocampus—named after the seahorse it resembles—up to the present day. Mixing metaphor with meta-analysis, they embark on an incredible journey: “diving for seahorses” for a memory experiment in Oslo fjord, racing taxis through London, and “time-traveling” to the future to reveal thought-provoking insights into remembering and forgetting. Along the way they interview experts of all stripes, from the world’s top neuroscientists to famous novelists, to help explain how memory works, why it sometimes fails, and what we can do to improve it.
Filled with cutting-edge research and nimble storytelling, the result is a charming—and memorable—adventure through human memory.
Chemistry for Breakfast
Regular price $18.95 Save $-18.95FINALIST for the Subaru Prize for Excellence in Science Books
“This book shows that chemistry is not just relevant to life; it’s really, really interesting.”—Foreword Reviews, STARRED review
A perfect book for readers of The Physics of Everyday Things and Storm in a Teacup
Have you ever wondered why your alarm clock sends you spiraling? Or how toothpaste works on your teeth? Why do cakes and cookies sometimes turn out dry? (Hint: you may not be adding enough sugar.) In Chemistry for Breakfast, award-winning chemist and science communicator Mai Thi Nguyen-Kim reveals the amazing chemistry behind everyday things (like baking and toothpaste) and not-so-everyday things (like space travel). With a relatable, funny, and conversational style, she explains essential chemical processes everyone should know—and turns the ordinary into extraordinary.
Over the course of a single day, Mai shows us that chemistry is everywhere: we just have to look for it. In the morning, her partner’s much-too-loud alarm prompts a deep dive into biological clocks, fight-or-flight responses, and melatonin’s role in making us sleepy. Before heading to the lab, she explains how the stress hormone cortisol helps wake us up, and brews her morning coffee with a side of heat conduction and states of matter.
Mai continues her day with explainers of cell phone technology, food preservation, body odor, baking, the effects of alcohol, and the chemistry behind the expression “love drunk.” All the while, she shows us what it’s really like to be a working chemist, and fights against the stereotype of a nerd playing with test tubes in a lab coat.
Filled with charming illustrations, laughter, and plenty of surprises, Chemistry for Breakfast is a perfect book for anyone who wants to deepen their understanding of chemistry without having prior knowledge of the science. With Mai as your guide, you’ll find something fascinating everywhere around you.
Climate Cover-Up
Regular price $15.00 Save $-15.00
Eavesdropping on Animals
Regular price $19.95 Save $-19.95"This book is fabulous and takes you close inside the wild world, where you feel the creatures whispering your old name."—Craig Foster, My Octopus Teacher
Learn how to decode the secret conversations of wild animals all around you.
From a Yellowstone naturalist and expert in animal language comes “a tantalizing guide to revamping our approach to wild things.” (WSJ) Growing up in rural New York, as a young man George Bumann learned to track deer and turkeys as a hunter. Then everything changed. He left his hunting days behind and began an extraordinary journey into the more-than-human world …
Humans once relied on the calls of wild animals to understand the natural world and their place within it. Now, this remarkable guide reveals what our ancestors knew long ago—that tuning in to the owl in the tree, the deer in the gully, can tell us important information and help us feel connected to our wild community.
In Eavesdropping on Animals, George Bumann shares the fascinating stories and insights he has gained from studying wildlife around the world for more than forty years, the last twenty of which have been spent leading popular programs on animal language and intelligence in Yellowstone National Park. Bumann shares tips, tricks, and advice for readers living in urban, suburban and rural areas and clearly shows us that you don’t need an exotic vacation or a biology degree to have transformative wildlife encounters. Listening to and observing creatures in your own backyard, on nearby trails, and in local parks, seashores, fields, and forests can lead to extraordinary experiences and a profound sense of belonging.
Are you ready to eavesdrop on your wild neighbors? Are you ready to learn how to tell a warning call from a mating call, a purr of satisfaction from idle chatter? Then this book is for you!
Scatterbrain
Regular price $27.95 Save $-27.95“[This] book will convince you that forgetting helps you remember and distractions can make you more creative.” —Adam Grant, New York Times bestselling author of Originals and Give and Take, and host of TED’s WorkLife podcast
“Illuminating, and a joy to read, [Scatterbrain] offers … a refreshingly accessible and relatable take on the brain’s inner workings that should appeal to both science buffs and casual readers.” —Publishers Weekly (Starred Review)
In this mind-bending book, an esteemed neuroscientist explains why perfectionism is pointless—and argues that mistakes, missteps, and flaws are the keys to success.
Remember that time you screwed up simple math or forgot the name of your favorite song? What if someone told you that such embarrassing “brain farts” are actually secret weapons, proof of your superiority to computers and AI?
In Scatterbrain, we learn that boredom awakens the muse, distractions spark creativity, and misjudging time creates valuable memories, among other benefits of our faulty minds. Throughout, award-winning neuroscientist Henning Beck’s hilarious asides and brain-boosting advice make for delightful reading of the most cutting-edge neuroscience our brains will (maybe never) remember.
The Burning Question
Regular price $16.95 Save $-16.95Tackling global warming will mean persuading the world to abandon oil, coal and gas reserves worth many trillions of dollars at least until we have the means to put carbon back in the ground. The burning question is whether that can be done. What mix of politics, psychology, economics and technology might be required? Are the energy companies massively overvalued, and how will carbon-cuts affect the global economy? Will we wake up to the threat in time? And who can do what to make it all happen?
Published in Partnership with the David Suzuki Institute.
Eavesdropping on Animals
Regular price $27.95 Save $-27.95"This book is fabulous and takes you close inside the wild world, where you feel the creatures whispering your old name."—Craig Foster, My Octopus Teacher
Learn how to decode the secret conversations of wild animals all around you.
From a Yellowstone naturalist and expert in animal language comes “a tantalizing guide to revamping our approach to wild things.” (WSJ) Growing up in rural New York, as a young man George Bumann learned to track deer and turkeys as a hunter. Then everything changed. He left his hunting days behind and began an extraordinary journey into the more-than-human world …
Humans once relied on the calls of wild animals to understand the natural world and their place within it. Now, this remarkable guide reveals what our ancestors knew long ago—that tuning in to the owl in the tree, the deer in the gully, can tell us important information and help us feel connected to our wild community.
In Eavesdropping on Animals, George Bumann shares the fascinating stories and insights he has gained from studying wildlife around the world for more than forty years, the last twenty of which have been spent leading popular programs on animal language and intelligence in Yellowstone National Park. Bumann shares tips, tricks, and advice for readers living in urban, suburban and rural areas and clearly shows us that you don’t need an exotic vacation or a biology degree to have transformative wildlife encounters. Listening to and observing creatures in your own backyard, on nearby trails, and in local parks, seashores, fields, and forests can lead to extraordinary experiences and a profound sense of belonging.
Are you ready to eavesdrop on your wild neighbors? Are you ready to learn how to tell a warning call from a mating call, a purr of satisfaction from idle chatter? Then this book is for you!
Angry Weather
Regular price $26.95 Save $-26.95From leading climate scientist Dr. Friederike Otto, this gripping book reveals the revolutionary science that definitively links extreme weather events—including deadly heat waves, forest fires, floods, and hurricanes—to climate change.
“Meet the forensic scientists of climate change; if you like CSI, you’ll be equally enthralled with the skill and speed these folks exhibit. But the stakes are infinitely higher!” —Bill McKibben, author of Falter and The End of Nature
Tied with Hurricane Katrina as the costliest cyclone on record, Hurricane Harvey caused catastrophic flooding and over a hundred deaths in 2017. Angry Weather tells the compelling, day-by-day story of the World Weather Attribution unit—a team of scientists that studies extreme weather events while they’re happening—and their race to track the connection between the hurricane and climate change. As the hurricane unfolds, Otto reveals how attribution science works in real time, and determines that Harvey’s terrifying floods were three times more likely to occur due to human-induced climate change.
At the forefront of cutting-edge climate science, Friederike Otto uncovers how the new ability to determine climate change’s role in extreme weather events can dramatically transform how we view the climate crisis: from how it will affect those of us who are most vulnerable, to the corporations and governments that may find themselves held accountable in the courts. The research laid out in Angry Weather will have profound impacts, both today and for the future of humankind.
Published in Partnership with the David Suzuki Institute.
Eavesdropping on Animals
Regular price $19.95 Save $-19.95"This book is fabulous and takes you close inside the wild world, where you feel the creatures whispering your old name."—Craig Foster, My Octopus Teacher
Learn how to decode the secret conversations of wild animals all around you.
From a Yellowstone naturalist and expert in animal language comes “a tantalizing guide to revamping our approach to wild things.” (WSJ) Growing up in rural New York, as a young man George Bumann learned to track deer and turkeys as a hunter. Then everything changed. He left his hunting days behind and began an extraordinary journey into the more-than-human world …
Humans once relied on the calls of wild animals to understand the natural world and their place within it. Now, this remarkable guide reveals what our ancestors knew long ago—that tuning in to the owl in the tree, the deer in the gully, can tell us important information and help us feel connected to our wild community.
In Eavesdropping on Animals, George Bumann shares the fascinating stories and insights he has gained from studying wildlife around the world for more than forty years, the last twenty of which have been spent leading popular programs on animal language and intelligence in Yellowstone National Park. Bumann shares tips, tricks, and advice for readers living in urban, suburban and rural areas and clearly shows us that you don’t need an exotic vacation or a biology degree to have transformative wildlife encounters. Listening to and observing creatures in your own backyard, on nearby trails, and in local parks, seashores, fields, and forests can lead to extraordinary experiences and a profound sense of belonging.
Are you ready to eavesdrop on your wild neighbors? Are you ready to learn how to tell a warning call from a mating call, a purr of satisfaction from idle chatter? Then this book is for you!
On the Edge
Regular price $32.95 Save $-32.95This book provides an up-to-date picture of the health of the world’s tropical forests. Claude Martin, an eminent scientist and conservationist, integrates information from remote imaging, ecology, and economics to explain deforestation and forest health throughout the world. He explains how urbanization, an increasingly global economy, and a worldwide demand for biofuels put new pressure on rainforest land. He examines the policies and market forces that have successfully preserved forests in some areas and discusses the economic benefits of protected areas. Using evidence from ice core records and past forest cover patterns, he predicts the most likely effects of climate change.
The Art of Physics
Regular price $29.95 Save $-29.95Can physics change your life? It already has.
"What does complex system theory teach us about getting fired? How does the study of subatomic particles help us predict elections? In his insightful and entertaining new book, Zahaan Bharmal applies lessons from physics to identify elegant explanations for our messy world."—Cal Newport, New York Times bestselling author of Slow Productivity and Deep Work
Drawing on insights from quantum mechanics, thermodynamics, chaos theory, and more, The Art of Physics reveals the surprising and sometimes beautiful ways physics can help us understand the chaos and unpredictability of our universe, answering questions such as:
- Why are some relationships unstable, while others last a lifetime?
- Why do we make irrational decisions and how can they affect climate change?
- Why is polling for an election unreliable?
- Why does it matter when I ask my son if he ate his vegetables?
Through a unique mix of personal stories, the exploration of global issues, science, and even humor, Bharmal uses physics to explain the social and political interactions that affect us all. From the physics of getting fired to using chaos theory to predict civilisation-level catastrophes, The Art of Physics helps answer some of the most important questions facing our lives and society today.
In our constant need for reason, The Art of Physics shows how we can find solace and understanding in physics.
How to Be Hopeful
Regular price $28.95 Save $-28.95“How to Be Hopeful is a beautifully executed explanation of why hope is so needed in the environmental space.”—Leah Thomas, author of The Intersectional Environmentalist
"Kelsey's nourishing work reminds us that being human and managing complex emotions is a part of the process in healing the Earth and sprouting hope around the world."—Isaias Hernandez, @QueerBrownVegan
“Are you hopeful?” That is the question elin kelsey is most often asked when she speaks to young people about the emotions and anxiety wrought by the climate crisis. How to Be Hopeful is kelsey’s answer, an inspiring exploration of hope as an active, evidence-based response to climate change and environmental degradation. Hope is not merely a passive feeling but an active choice, a stance that must be nurtured despite the ever-present sense of despair and hopelessness that often accompanies the state of the world.
Through personal reflections, scientific insights, and practical exercises, How to Be Hopeful emphasizes emotional awareness, community collaboration, and the agency of both humans and non-human species. Some of the practices described in the book include:
- Accepting your fears without fatalism
- Sourcing solutions-focused news and tracking positive trends
- Acting from your unique gifts
- Practicing interspecies etiquette
- Gathering strength from your circles of support
A seminal contribution to the field of environmental justice, How to Be Hopeful empowers readers to confront their own emotional landscapes, engage in collective action, envision a sustainable future, and ultimately, cultivate a hopeful and resilient response to the pressing issues of our time.
Published in Partnership with the David Suzuki Institute
The Petroleum Papers
Regular price $18.95 Save $-18.95"An essential read."—The Washington Post
"Essential… This book belongs on the shelf next to Merchants of Doubt, Dark Money, and Kochland." —Roy Scranton, author of Learning to Die in the Anthropocene
"The petroleum industry is guilty of a Big Tobacco–style public cover-up, according to this vivid exposé."—Publishers Weekly STARRED Review
Burning fossil fuels will cause catastrophic global warming: this is what top American oil executives were told by scientists in 1959. But they ignored that warning. Instead, they developed one of the biggest, most polluting oil sources in the world—the oil sands in Alberta, Canada. As investigative journalist Geoff Dembicki reveals in this explosive book, the decades-long conspiracy to keep the oil sands flowing into the U.S. would turn out to be one of the biggest reasons for the world’s failure to stop the climate crisis.
In The Petroleum Papers, Dembicki draws from confidential oil industry documents to uncover for the first time how companies like Exxon, Koch Industries, and Shell built a global right-wing echo chamber to protect oil sands profits—a misinformation campaign that continues to this day. He also tells the high-stakes stories of people fighting back: a Seattle lawyer who brought down Big Tobacco and is now going after Big Oil, a Filipina activist whose family drowned in a climate disaster, and a former Exxon engineer pushed out for asking hard questions.
With experts now warning we have less than a decade to get global emissions under control, The Petroleum Papers provides a step-by-step account of how we got to this precipice—and the politicians and companies who deserve our blame.
Published in Partnership with the David Suzuki Institute
Rise of the Necrofauna
Regular price $26.95 Save $-26.95NAMED ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR by The New Yorker and Science News
What happens when you try to recreate a woolly mammoth—fascinating science, or conservation catastrophe? Jurassic Park meets The Sixth Extinction in Rise of the Necrofauna, a provocative look at de-extinction from acclaimed documentarist and science writer Britt Wray, PhD.
In Rise of the Necrofauna, Wray takes us deep into the minds and labs of some of the world’s most progressive thinkers to find out. She introduces us to renowned futurists like Stewart Brand and scientists like George Church, who are harnessing the powers of CRISPR gene editing in the hopes of “reviving” extinct passenger pigeons, woolly mammoths, and heath hens. She speaks with Nikita Zimov, who together with his eclectic father Sergey, is creating Siberia’s Pleistocene Park—a daring attempt to rebuild the mammoth’s ancient ecosystem in order to save earth from climate disaster. Through interviews with these and other thought leaders, Wray reveals the many incredible opportunities for research and conservation made possible by this emerging new field.
But we also hear from more cautionary voices, like those of researcher and award-winning author Beth Shapiro (How to Clone a Woolly Mammoth) and environmental philosopher Thomas van Dooren. Writing with passion and perspective, Wray delves into the larger questions that come with this incredible new science, reminding us that de-extinction could bring just as many dangers as it does possibilities. What happens, for example, when we bring an “unextinct” creature back into the wild? How can we care for these strange animals and ensure their comfort and safety—not to mention our own? And what does de-extinction mean for those species that are currently endangered? Is it really ethical to bring back an extinct passenger pigeon, for example, when countless other birds today will face the same fate?
By unpacking the many biological, technological, ethical, environmental, and legal questions raised by this fascinating new field, Wray offers a captivating look at the best and worst of resurrection science.
Published in Partnership with the David Suzuki Institute.
Hope Matters
Regular price $18.95 Save $-18.95“This book comes at just the right moment. It is NOT too late if we get together and take action, NOW.” —Jane Goodall
Fears about climate change are fueling an epidemic of despair across the world: adults worry about their children’s future; thirty-somethings question whether they should have kids or not; and many young people honestly believe they have no future at all.
In the face of extreme eco-anxiety, scholar and award-winning author Elin Kelsey argues that our hopelessness—while an understandable reaction—is hampering our ability to address the very real problems we face. Kelsey offers a powerful solution: hope itself.
Hope Matters boldly breaks through the narrative of doom and gloom to show why evidence-based hope, not fear, is our most powerful tool for change. Kelsey shares real-life examples of positive climate news that reveal the power of our mindsets to shape reality, the resilience of nature, and the transformative possibilities of individual and collective action. And she demonstrates how we can build on positive trends to work toward a sustainable and just future, before it’s too late.
Praise for Hope Matters
“Whether you consider yourself a passionate ally of nature, a busy bystander, or anything in between, this book will uplift your spirits, helping you find hope in the face of climate crisis.”
—Veronica Joyce Lin, North American Association for Environmental Education “30 Under 30”
“A tonic in hard times.”
—Claudia Dreyguis, author of Scientific Conversations: Interviews on Science from the New York Times
“Beautifully written and an effective antidote against apathy and inaction.”
—Christof Mauch, Director, Rachel Carson Center for the Environment and Society
Published in Partnership with the David Suzuki Institute.
Scatterbrain
Regular price $27.95 Save $-27.95“[This] book will convince you that forgetting helps you remember and distractions can make you more creative.” —Adam Grant, New York Times bestselling author of Originals and Give and Take, and host of TED’s WorkLife podcast
“Illuminating, and a joy to read, [Scatterbrain] offers … a refreshingly accessible and relatable take on the brain’s inner workings that should appeal to both science buffs and casual readers.” —Publishers Weekly (Starred Review)
In this mind-bending book, an esteemed neuroscientist explains why perfectionism is pointless—and argues that mistakes, missteps, and flaws are the keys to success.
Remember that time you screwed up simple math or forgot the name of your favorite song? What if someone told you that such embarrassing “brain farts” are actually secret weapons, proof of your superiority to computers and AI?
In Scatterbrain, we learn that boredom awakens the muse, distractions spark creativity, and misjudging time creates valuable memories, among other benefits of our faulty minds. Throughout, award-winning neuroscientist Henning Beck’s hilarious asides and brain-boosting advice make for delightful reading of the most cutting-edge neuroscience our brains will (maybe never) remember.
Angry Weather
Regular price $18.95 Save $-18.95From leading climate scientist Dr. Friederike Otto, this gripping book reveals the revolutionary science that definitively links extreme weather events—including deadly heat waves, forest fires, floods, and hurricanes—to climate change.
“Meet the forensic scientists of climate change; if you like CSI, you’ll be equally enthralled with the skill and speed these folks exhibit. But the stakes are infinitely higher!” —Bill McKibben, author of Falter and The End of Nature
Tied with Hurricane Katrina as the costliest cyclone on record, Hurricane Harvey caused catastrophic flooding and over a hundred deaths in 2017. Angry Weather tells the compelling, day-by-day story of the World Weather Attribution unit—a team of scientists that studies extreme weather events while they’re happening—and their race to track the connection between the hurricane and climate change. As the hurricane unfolds, Otto reveals how attribution science works in real time, and determines that Harvey’s terrifying floods were three times more likely to occur due to human-induced climate change.
At the forefront of cutting-edge climate science, Friederike Otto uncovers how the new ability to determine climate change’s role in extreme weather events can dramatically transform how we view the climate crisis: from how it will affect those of us who are most vulnerable, to the corporations and governments that may find themselves held accountable in the courts. The research laid out in Angry Weather will have profound impacts, both today and for the future of humankind.
Published in Partnership with the David Suzuki Institute.
Ten Technologies to Save the Planet
Regular price $17.95 Save $-17.95
The Curious World of Seahorses
Regular price $26.95 Save $-26.95With the whimsy and heart of The Soul of an Octopus and the surprising details of the very best science writing, The Curious World of Seahorses brilliantly captures the ocean’s most charismatic and mysterious inhabitant.
"The seahorse has captured the human imagination for millennia... Till Hein explains the amazing qualities of these magical creatures."—Explorers Journal
"Not just a compelling read, but also a love letter to the strangest creatures of the ocean—seahorses."—Frauke Bagusche, author of The Blue Wonder
"When God created the seahorse," says one marine biologist, "he may have had one too many."
Of all the creatures in the ocean, there are none more charming and magical—or more strange—than the seahorses. Masters of disguise, graceful dancers, and romantic lovers, seahorses are found not only in the seagrass meadows and mangroves of the world, but also throughout the annals of human history and culture—surfacing everywhere from chess and Greek mythology to Disney movies like The Little Mermaid and Pokémon games.
Equipped with a pouch like a kangaroo, a long snout like an anteater, and complete with a crown unique as a human fingerprint, the seahorse defies easy categorization. The only fish to swim in an upright position, seahorses are terrible swimmers, but they make up for it with an incredible talent for holding onto seagrass or coral. They have no stomach or teeth—only intestines. Most seahorses are monogamous, and meet with their life partner every few weeks to perform a dance that can last up to nine hours. The most unique aspect of the seahorse is their reproductive cycle, as it is the male of the species who becomes pregnant.
In this entertaining and informative book, science writer Till Hein shares the most tantalizing findings from the world of seahorses, and the role they have played in human culture. He reveals their secrets, from their intriguing biological features and hunting strategy to their use in medicine throughout history, their appearances in Greek and Celtic mythology, and even the medieval belief that they descended from dragons.
Endlessly fascinating and charmingly approachable, The Curious World of Seahorses will captivate any reader looking to learn more about one of the most incredible creatures on Earth.
The Big Picture
Regular price $19.95 Save $-19.95
Nature's Wild Ideas
Regular price $18.95 Save $-18.95A lively and endlessly fascinating deep-dive into nature and the many groundbreaking human inventions inspired by the wild.
"Delightful."—The Guardian
"Fans of Helen Scales won't want to miss this."—Publishers Weekly STARRED Review
When astronomers wanted a telescope that could capture X-rays from celestial bodies, they looked to the lobster. When doctors wanted a medication that could stabilize Type II diabetic patients, they found their muse in a lizard. When scientists wanted to drastically reduce emissions in cement manufacturing, they observed how corals construct their skeletons in the sea. This is biomimicry in action: taking inspiration from nature to tackle human challenges.
In Nature’s Wild Ideas, Kristy Hamilton goes behind the scenes of some of our most unexpected innovations. She traverses frozen waterfalls, treks through cloudy forests, discovers nests in the Mojave desert, scours intertidal zones and takes us to the deepest oceans and near volcanoes to introduce us to the animals and plants that have inspired everything from cargo routing systems to non-toxic glues, and the men and women who followed that first spark of “I wonder” all the way to its conclusion, sometimes against all odds.
While the joy of scientific discovery is front and center, Nature’s Wild Ideas is also a love letter to nature—complete with a deep message of conservation: If we are to continue learning from the creatures around us, we must protect their untamed homelands.
From Naked Ape to Superspecies
Regular price $13.99 Save $-13.99
From Naked Ape to Superspecies
Regular price $16.95 Save $-16.95