As a science fiction author, reading excellent science nonfiction is like taking my mind on a trip to an unknown land, there to wander, sightsee, and reimagine my own fictional plots. During the past few years of COVID-restricted isolation, these books have replaced travel as a source of mind-expanding inspiration, affording me a refuge from the tempest of current events and leaving my brain churning with visions of future worlds. The choices below reflect a common thread: each is written or edited by an expert in the field, and the authors possess that rare combination of deep knowledge and the ability to communicate it in an engaging way.
Iām a biochemist, not a physicist. But as a science fiction writer, I yearned to grasp the strange language of theoretical physics. In his opening chapters, Carlo Rovelli deftly navigates the intersection of poetry, philosophy, physics, and mathematics to present the most accessible picture Iāve encountered of currently accepted theory, starting with the atom and working through Newton, Faraday, Maxwell, and Einstein to end with quantum physics. Things get more speculative as he then delves into his own field, loop quantum gravity, portraying a universe that is finite not only at the cosmic level of Einsteinās curved spacetime but also at a minute, granular level, where time does not exist and everything we think we know is relational. Whether or not you agree with him, Rovelli opened whole new vistas for newbies like me!
'The physicist transforming how we see the universe' (Financial Times)
'An utter joy' (Adam Rutherford)
'A hugely engaging book... Rovelli is a charming, thought-provoking tour guide' (Manjit Kumar Prospect)
Do space and time truly exist? What is reality made of? Can we understand its deep texture? Scientist Carlo Rovelli has spent his whole life exploring these questions and pushing the boundaries of what we know. In this mind-expanding book, he shows how our understanding of reality has changed throughout centuries, from Democritus to loop quantum gravity. Taking us on a wondrous journey, he invites us to imagine a whole newā¦
In the book Reality is Not What It Seems, Carlo Rovelli exhorts us to āStop dreaming of new fields and strange particles; supplementary dimensions, other symmetries, parallel universes, strings, and whatever else.āOh, but I wanted to dream, and Michio Kaku always takes me on such a fun ride! I loved Kakuās The Future of the Mind, which inspired me as I wrote my own science fiction novel. So I turned to him again when I wanted to learn more about string theory, the competing theory to Rovelliās loop quantum gravity and Kakuās own area of expertise. It was well worth it. At least now I can plumb the allure of that symmetry, the wonder of those parallel worlds, and the fullness of those eleven dimensionsāeven if I may never see them proven out in my lifetime.
#1 NEW YORK TIMES BEST SELLER ā¢ The epic story of the greatest quest in all of scienceāthe holy grail of physics that would explain the creation of the universeāfrom renowned theoretical physicist and author of The Future of the Mind and The Future of Humanity
When Newton discovered the law of gravity, he unified the rules governing the heavens and the Earth. Since then, physicists have been placing new forces into ever-grander theories.
But perhaps the ultimate challenge is achieving a monumental synthesis of the two remaining theoriesārelativity and the quantum theory. This would be the crowning achievement ofā¦
With Franklin Rooseveltās death in April 1945, Vice President Harry Truman and Senator Arthur Vandenberg, the Republican leader on foreign policy, inherited a world in turmoil. With Europe flattened and the Soviets emerging as Americaās new adversary, Truman and Vandenberg built a tight, bipartisan partnership at a bitterly partisan timeā¦
So many have decried the current state of our planet. But in this Anthropocene Age, weāre not in a fight to save the planetāweāre in a fight to maintain the delicate balance of the life on it, including our own. Project Drawdown takes on this uniquely human struggle, offering ammunition and courage. This book is chock full of ideas about what our future can and should look likeāin areas such as energy, agriculture and land use, transport, architecture, and equity for women. A great reference for those like me who are looking to realize a future world full of hope.
The 100 most substantive solutions to reverse global warming, based on meticulous research by leading scientists and policymakers around the world
āAt this point in time, the Drawdown book is exactly what is needed; a credible, conservative solution-by-solution narrative that we can do it. Reading it is an effective inoculation against the widespread perception of doom that humanity cannot and will not solve the climate crisis. Reported by-effects include increased determination and a sense of grounded hope.ā āPer Espen Stoknes, Author, What We Think About When We Try Not To Think About Global Warmingā¦
How did the first life form emerge from the chaos of Earth, billions of years ago? How did we come to be? Nick Lane systematically debunks the idea of a primordial soup, instead painting an equally amazing picture of alkaline hydrothermal vents acting like ancient bioreactors deep in the sea, their porous walls forming what might be thought of as the first biological membranes; the evolution of the proton pump, fueling all that happened afterward; and the improbable endosymbiosis between an archaeon and a bacterium that sparked the origins of the mitochondrion and the birth of complex life. Whether or not Laneās theories prove true in every detail, I came away with a deep appreciation of the wondrous series of coincidences required for our evolutionāand wondering too about the probability that such unlikely events might already have occurred elsewhere in our universe.
The Earth teems with life: in its oceans, forests, skies and cities. Yet there's a black hole at the heart of biology. We do not know why complex life is the way it is, or, for that matter, how life first began. In The Vital Question, award-winning author and biochemist Nick Lane radically reframes evolutionary history, putting forward a solution to conundrums that have puzzled generations of scientists.
For two and a half billion years, from the very origins of life, single-celled organisms such as bacteria evolved without changing their basic form. Then, on just one occasion in four billionā¦
The first and only full-length biography of Hazel Ying Lee, an unrecognized pioneer and unsung World War II hero who fought for a country that actively discriminated against her gender, race, and ambition.
This unique hidden figure defied countless stereotypes to become the first Asian American woman in United Statesā¦
As Perseverance made its way toward Mars, I found myself looking for ways to design some of my own future characters: What sorts of people are consumed by the search for extraterrestrial life? What do they hope to find, and how will they interpret what they find? Traversing the boundaries between nonfiction and autobiography, this lovely book chronicles not only the history of humansā fascination with the red planet, but also a personal journey for its author. Through her lens, it offers an in-depth comparison of our own precious Earth to the now-dead planet with which we are endlessly obsessedāa place where we hope to find clues not only to the origins of our own life, but to ālife as we donāt know it.ā
As a new wave of interplanetary exploration unfolds, a talented young planetary scientist charts our centuries-old obsession with Mars.
'Beautifully written, emotive - a love letter to a planet' DERMOT O'LEARY, BBC Radio 2
Mars - bewilderingly empty, coated in red dust - is an unlikely place to pin our hopes of finding life elsewhere. And yet, right now multiple spacecraft are circling, sweeping over Terra Sabaea, Syrtis Major, the dunes of Elysium and Mare Sirenum - on the brink, perhaps, of a discovery that would inspire humankind as much as any in our history.
In the year 2054, a boy named Kai is born alone in Americaās desert Southwest, his only companion his motherāa super-soldier robot. The Mother Code is the story of how Kai and his Mother grow to better understand both themselves and the world that made them. It ends with a decision: Will Kai break his bond with his Mother, or fight to save the only parent he has ever known?
The authoritative but accessible history of the birth of modern American intelligence in World War II that treats not just one but all of the various disciplines: spies, codebreakers, saboteurs.
Told in a relatable style that focuses on actual people, it was a New Yorker "Best of 2022" selection andā¦
The Model Spy is based on the true story of Toto Koopman, who spied for the Allies and Italian Resistance during World War II.
Largely unknown today, Toto was arguably the first woman to spy for the British Intelligence Service. Operating in the hotbed of Mussolini's Italy, she courted dangerā¦