''A dazzling, vibrant, vision-changing book. I ended it wonderstruck at the fungal world. A remarkable work by a remarkable writer'' Robert Macfarlane, author of Underland The more we learn about fungi, the less makes sense without them. Neither plant nor animal, they are found throughout the earth, the air and our bodies. They can be microscopic, yet also account for the largest organisms ever recorded. They enabled the first life on land, can survive unprotected in space and thrive amidst nuclear radiation. In fact, nearly all life relies in some way on fungi. These endlessly surprising organisms have no brain but can solve problems and manipulate animal behaviour with devastating precision. In giving us bread, alcohol and life-saving medicines, fungi have shaped human history, and their psychedelic properties have recently been shown to alleviate a number of mental illnesses. Their ability to digest plastic, explosives, pesticides and crude oil is being harnessed in break-through technologies, and the discovery that they connect plants in underground networks, the ''Wood Wide Web'', is transforming the way we understand ecosystems. Yet over ninety percent of their species remain undocumented. Entangled Life is a mind-altering journey into a spectacular and neglected world, and shows that fungi provide a key to understanding both the planet on which we live, and life itself. ''One of those rare books that can truly change the way you see the world around you. Astounding'' Helen MacDonald, author of H Is for Hawk
Bill Bryson describes himself as a reluctant traveller, but even when he stays safely in his own study at home, he can't contain his curiosity about the world around him. This book is his quest to understand everything that has happened from the Big Bang to the rise of civilization.
Research is the driving force behind all innovation. Yet, for a long time, the research building, the nucleus of social change, languished as a purely functional building, ignored by architectural discourse. However, today there is consensus that structures for research and knowledge transfer can do and must do more than just provide workplaces and experimental areas. They are actually spaces of communication and inspiration, a reflection of our times.
In Architecture for Science, Christine Nickl-Weller and Hans Nickl share their wealth of experience in planning research and science buildings. They initiate a discourse on social significance, work-environment demands, and future challenges. Buildings dedicated to science are regarded within the context of urban structures, as highly specialized building styles, in their dimension as working and living environments, as well as regarding innovation in research and construction. An interdisciplinary approach is a key factor of this discussion, and thus this volume includes articles not only by architects, urban developers, and specialist planners, but also by experts from a wide range of research areas.
Projects:
New SupraFABR Research Building, Free University Berlin, Germany (Nickl & Partner) ;
Novartis Campus in Basel, Switzerland (Vittorio Magnano Lampugnani) ;
Masdar Institute of Science and Technology in Abu Dhabi, UAE (Foster + Partners) ;
Essays:
Planned flexibility in laboratory construction ;
We need extremely good architecture!
Experimental zone ;
Innovative façade systems ;
Intuitive signage for all senses ;
Buildings as laboratories for robotics ;
WINNER OF THE 2015 COSTA BIOGRAPHY AWARD WINNER OF THE ROYAL SOCIETY SCIENCE BOOK PRIZE 2016 'A thrilling adventure story' Bill Bryson 'Dazzling' Literary Review 'Brilliant' Sunday Express 'Extraordinary and gripping' New Scientist 'A superb biography' The Economist 'An exhilarating armchair voyage' GILES MILTON, Mail on Sunday Alexander von Humboldt (1769-1859) is the great lost scientist - more things are named after him than anyone else. There are towns, rivers, mountain ranges, the ocean current that runs along the South American coast, there's a penguin, a giant squid - even the Mare Humboldtianum on the moon. His colourful adventures read like something out of a Boy's Own story: Humboldt explored deep into the rainforest, climbed the world's highest volcanoes and inspired princes and presidents, scientists and poets alike. Napoleon was jealous of him; Simon Bolivar's revolution was fuelled by his ideas; Darwin set sail on the Beagle because of Humboldt; and Jules Verne's Captain Nemo owned all his many books. He simply was, as one contemporary put it, 'the greatest man since the Deluge'. Taking us on a fantastic voyage in his footsteps - racing across anthrax-infected Russia or mapping tropical rivers alive with crocodiles - Andrea Wulf shows why his life and ideas remain so important today. Humboldt predicted human-induced climate change as early as 1800, and The Invention of Nature traces his ideas as they go on to revolutionize and shape science, conservation, nature writing, politics, art and the theory of evolution. He wanted to know and understand everything and his way of thinking was so far ahead of his time that it's only coming into its own now. Alexander von Humboldt really did invent the way we see nature.
We stand at the beginning of a new era. What was once science fiction is fast becoming reality, as AI transforms war, crime, justice, jobs and society-and, even, our very sense of what it means to be human. More than any other technology, AI has the potential to revolutionize our collective future - and there's nobody better situated to explore that future than Max Tegmark, an MIT professor and co-founder of the Future of Life Institute, whose work has helped mainstream research on how to keep AI beneficial. In this deeply researched and vitally important new book, Tegmark takes us to the heart of thinking about AI and the human condition, bringing us face to face with the essential questions of our time. What sort of future do we want? Life 3.0 gives us the tools to join what may be the most important conversation of our time.
"À la fin du XIXe siècle, les sciences sociales aux États-Unis théorisent la nécessité de restructurer le pouvoir publique en Amérique, en soumettant toute politique à un contrôle « rationnel » et techniquement mesurable sur la base de paramètres précis, qu'on a par la suite développés (ouvrage en langue anglaise). - "
La fantastique épopée de la première station de recherche zéro émission À l'aube d'un nouveau millénaire, un petit groupe de personnes, dirigé par Alain Hubert, explorateur polaire visionnaire, a décidé de bâtir une station de recherche belge en Antarctique. Il s'agissait de construire une station exemplaire qui respecte l'esprit autant que les règles du protocole sur l'environnement du traité sur l'Antarctique. L'équipe s'est appuyée sur de solides études techniques pour mettre en place un prototype « zéro émission », puissant et de surcroît esthétique. La station est devenue le symbole d'une nouvelle façon de penser la gestion des impacts environnementaux. Les images à couper le souffle de l'étendue sauvage polaire servent de cadre à cette glorieuse aventure contemporaine.
There are some mathematical problems whose significance goes beyond ordinary - like Fermat's Last Theorem - they are enigmas which define mathematics. This book explains why these problems exist, why they matter, what drives mathematicians to incredible lengths to solve them and where they stand in context of mathematics and science as a whole.
L'un des obstacles majeurs à la promotion des langues nationales est l'insuffisance, dans ces langues, d'outils terminologiques ou lexicographiques appropriés. Le développement des sciences et des techniques, la multiplication des communications spécialisées ont fait qu'un petit nombre de langues véhiculent aujourd'hui la modernité à l'aide d'un vocabulaire propre, les autres se contentant d'emprunter ce vocabulaire. Il est évident que si une langue veut participer à cette modernité, elle doit s'impliquer d'une manière profonde dans le processus de l'apprentissage des concepts scientifiques afin de consolider ses acquis et d'acquérir une capacité plus accrue dans la manipulation des savoirs scientifiques. Pour cela la langue amazighe a besoin d'enrichir son lexique, de le développer, de l'améliorer et de l'adapter aux nouvelles technologies afin qu'elle puisse suivre l'évolution du monde. Car la langue et la connaissance sont étroitement liées : elles avancent en parallèle et se soutiennent mutuellement. C'est donc afin de répondre à ces nouveaux besoins terminologiques et à une demande sociale pressante que nous avions décidé d'entreprendre ce travail, plus spécifiquement consacré à la terminologie scientifique. En effet, nous avons traduit plus de 3600 notions se rapportant au domaine du génie électrique.
Don't understand anything about Artificial Intelligence (AI)? Afraid that devious robots will take over the world? Interested in what AI and new technologies can do but want to hear another side to the story? This book is for you.
It all started in 1956 at the Dartmouth conference, when John McCarthy persuaded his colleagues to use the term «Artificial» Intelligence to describe what was then only a twenty-year-old discipline, which began when Alan Turing proposed his automata theory. All the fantasies and false notions we hear about AI today come, in my opinion, from this unfortunate choice of term. What is intelligence anyway? Turing himself acknowledged that it was far too difficult to define.
In this book, I invite you to follow me from my small village near Toulouse, France, to the Silicon Valley, chasing after this infamous idea of «Artificial Intelligence» about which we hear so much nonsense and false promises, to understand what it is exactly and to explore what it could bring us in the future.
D'une perspective scientifique, cet ouvrage en langue anglaise contribue au débat sur l'enseignement des méthodes de la recherche en sciences sociales au niveau universitaire, sur la base des expérience pédagogiques des auteurs.
The French physicist Hippolyte Fizeau was the first to have directly measured the velocity of light in 1849. He discovered the shift in wavelength produced by the relative velocity of a light or sound source and an observer independently from Doppler. But it is not generally known that he was also a pioneer of photography, that he performed with Léon Foucaults magnificent interference experiments, in particular in the infrared, and also that several of his other experiments put his successors on the track to Relativity. Fizeau also imagined, in 1851, that the apparent diameter of stars could be measured by interferometry, opening the way for developments that are presently experiencing enormous success. This book is the very first devoted to the scientific work of this great physicist.
Most of the experimental notes of Fizeau have been preserved as well as many of his instruments, making it possible to reconstruct the processes of his research in an exceptionally precise and detailed manner. The book, illustrated with numerous autographs and featuring important unpublished texts, is written in a lively and easily accessible way.
BEFORE WORLD WAR II there were no regular international physics conferences, with the notable exception of seven « SOLVAY COUNCILS ». The first Council in 1911 was the result of a miraculous chain of events. Impressed by Einstein's specific heat paper, Nernst wanted its quantum basis to be discussed by international experts. By a series of coincidences the planned « summit » was convened by Solvay, the Belgian industrialist and Maecenas. Thanks to chairman Lorentz, the meeting was so successful that to this day similar Councils have been convened by the International Physics Institute, founded by Solvay and supported by his family. Lorentz chaired five Councils that testify to the transition from classical to modern physics. The first stimulated the physicists' interest in the quantum problem. The fifth, in 1927, solved the problem by marking, according to Heisenberg, the completion of Quantum Mechanics. The book focuses on the personal relations between the physicists who actively participated in the quantum revolution. These relations came under great strain during the Great War, but the Councils survived thanks to Lorentz's and Solvay's faith in the universality of science.
This is the definitive edition of the hugely popular collection of Einstein quotations that has sold tens of thousands of copies worldwide and been translated into twenty-five languages. The Ultimate Quotable Einstein features roughly 1,600 quotes in all. This paperback edition includes sections unique to the ultimate collection--"On and to Children," "On Race and Prejudice," and "Einstein's Verses: A Small Selection"--as well as a chronology of Einstein's life and accomplishments, Freeman Dyson's authoritative foreword, and commentary and descriptive source notes by Alice Calaprice.
The Short Story of Science is a new introduction to the complete subject of science. Covering 60 key experiments, from Archimedes' investigations of buoyancy to the discovery of dark matter, and then linking these to the history of science, as well as to the key theories and methods, the book simplifies and explains all the key breakthroughs.
Accessible and concise, generously illustrated throughout, and with all the essential information presented without jargon, readers are given all the tools they need to enjoy the fascinating history of scientific knowledge.
This is the first full-scale biography of Leonhard Euler (1707-83), one of the greatest mathematicians and theoretical physicists of all time. In this comprehensive and authoritative account, Ronald Calinger connects the story of Euler's eventful life to the astonishing achievements that place him in the company of Archimedes, Newton, and Gauss. Drawing chiefly on Euler's massive published works and correspondence, which fill more than eighty volumes so far, this biography sets Euler's work in its multilayered context--personal, intellectual, institutional, political, cultural, religious, and social. It is a story of nearly incessant accomplishment, from Euler's fundamental contributions to almost every area of pure and applied mathematics--especially calculus, number theory, notation, optics, and celestial, rational, and fluid mechanics--to his advancements in shipbuilding, telescopes, ballistics, cartography, chronology, and music theory. The narrative takes the reader from Euler's childhood and education in Basel through his first period in St.
Petersburg, 1727-41, where he gained a European reputation by solving the Basel problem and systematically developing analytical mechanics. Invited to Berlin by Frederick II, Euler published his famous Introductio in analysin infinitorum, devised continuum mechanics, and proposed a pulse theory of light. Returning to St. Petersburg in 1766, he created the analytical calculus of variations, developed the most precise lunar theory of the time that supported Newton's dynamics, and published the best-selling Letters to a German Princess--all despite eye problems that ended in near-total blindness. In telling the remarkable story of Euler and how his achievements brought pan-European distinction to the Petersburg and Berlin academies of sciences, the book also demonstrates with new depth and detail the central role of mathematics in the Enlightenment.
Retracez l'évolution des machines dans cette étude visuelle de l'ère de l'information, de l'analogique au numérique, des macroordinateurs aux téléphones mobiles. L'exploration de Jens Müller comprend des photographies, des publicités et des dessins préliminaires d'inventions qui ont inauguré l'ère numérique, révélant comment des créations comme le bipper, l'Internet et l'ordinateur ont transformé notre monde de façon irréversible.
A novel, integrative approach to cities as complex adaptive systems, applicable to issues ranging from innovation to economic prosperity to settlement patterns.
Human beings around the world increasingly live in urban environments. In Introduction to Urban Science, Luis Bettencourt takes a novel, integrative approach to understanding cities as complex adaptive systems, claiming that they require us to frame the field of urban science in a way that goes beyond existing theory in such traditional disciplines as sociology, geography, and economics. He explores the processes facilitated by and, in many cases, unleashed for the first time by urban life through the lenses of social heterogeneity, complex networks, scaling, circular causality, and information.
Though the idea that cities are complex adaptive systems has become mainstream, until now those who study cities have lacked a comprehensive theoretical framework for understanding cities and urbanization, for generating useful and falsifiable predictions, and for constructing a solid body of empirical evidence so that the discipline of urban science can continue to develop. Bettencourt applies his framework to such issues as innovation and development across scales, human reasoning and strategic decision-making, patterns of settlement and mobility and their influence on socioeconomic life and resource use, inequality and inequity, biodiversity, and the challenges of sustainable development in both high- and low-income nations. It is crucial, says Bettencourt, to realize that cities are not zero-sum games and that knowledge, human cooperation, and collective action can build a better future.
In order to reduce the seismic risk facing many densely populated regions worldwide, including Canada and the United States, modern earthquake engineering should be more widely applied. But current literature on earthquake engineering may be difficult to grasp for structural engineers who are untrained in seismic design. In addition no single resource addressed seismic design practices in both Canada and the United States until now. Elements of Earthquake Engineering and Structural Dynamics was written to fill the gap. It presents the key elements of earthquake engineering and structural dynamics at an introductory level and gives readers the basic knowledge they need to apply the seismic provisions contained in Canadian and American building codes. But the scope of this book is not limited to structural analysis and design; it also discusses the basics of other relevant topics such as seismology, seismic risk analysis and geotechnical engineering, to help structural engineers work efficiently with other specialists on earthquake-resistant construction projects. Chapters end with a set of problems giving readers an insight into practical aspects of the subject.
Charles Darwin's ideas about evolution caused both outrage and wonder, and quickly made him one of the most famous men in history. From his early days at school to his five-year voyage aboard the HMS Beagle and 20 years of study and research, follow Darwin on his adventure to prove a theory that would change the world.
From artists to aviators and scientists to revolutionaries, the Little Guides to Great Lives series tells the stories of the most amazing people from all over the world and across history, with colourful illustrations that will engage young readers and bring their incredible stories to life.
