Bøger i Macmillan Science serien

Considering questions such as 'Where did language come from?' and 'Do animals know they exist?', Michael Hanlon explores possible theories and dispatches a few of the less likely ones in his quest to fill the gaping holes that science is littered with.

At a time when women were excluded from science, a young girl made a discovery that marked the birth of paleontology and continues to feed the debate about evolution to this day.

The decline of infections, starvation, warfare, heart attack and stroke has allowed people to reach extreme old age but ushered in disability, dementia and degenerative disease, with profound consequences for the self and society. Dr Guy Brown explores these vital issues at various levels, from the cell, to the whole body, to society.

This book is about how we make choices. Drawing together evidence from 21st century chemistry to Victorian politics, enlightenment philosophy, Roman drama and beyond, it is a compelling hunt for the nature of free will.

What makes a face attractive? Why are we attracted to certain faces and not others? In this highly readable account from the frontiers of psychology, the author explains how the human face evolved and how our perceptions of the face affect our judgments of others' personality, health, trustworthiness, and suitability as a friend or lover.

Despite the medical advances of the last century, the science behind cancer and its treatment remains a mystery to many people. In Betrayed by Nature, Robin Hesketh provides a concise and comprehensive history of both the science and the medical advances. It is also an illuminating look at the future of one of the world's oldest killers.

Jonathan Balcombe's follow-up to his successful first book, Pleasurable Kingdom, is an eloquent and scientifically informed account, which shatters the myth that animals eat and reproduce mindlessly and shows how we humans have to learn to treat them as sentient beings capable of feelings and pain and emotions.

Drawing on the latest fossil evidence Taylor argues, that every step of the way, humans made choices that assumed greater control over their own evolution. This is a process that continues today as we push the frontiers of scientific technology creating a new form of artificial humans.

Ranging from topics that cover every season and every climate, Extreme Weather introduces the reader to the best course of action during weather emergencies, including what to have in emergency safety kits as well as how to make a family disaster plan.

A classic collection of correspondence between two Nobel Prize winners, The Born-Einstein Letters , is also highly topical: scientists continue to struggle with quantum physics, their role in wartime and the public's misunderstanding.

Sir Norman Lockyer left Nature , the world's leading scientific journal, as his lasting memorial. But his life, and controversial theories, are an important part of science history. His ideas were at the forefront of public debate, and ranged from brilliant to perverse. This entertaining book is a fascinating insight into his eventful life

Venomous Earth is the story of the worst chemical disaster in history. It starts in Ancient Greece, touches down in today's North America and takes in William Morris, alchemy, farming, medicine, mining and a cosmetic that killed two popes.

50,000 years ago - merely a blip in evolutionary time - our Homo sapiens ancestors were competing for existence with several other human species. Yet something about our species separated it from the pack, and led to its survival while the rest became extinct. So just what was it that allowed Homo sapiens to become Masters of the Planet?

Considering questions such as 'Where did language come from?' and 'Do animals know they exist?', Michael Hanlon explores possible theories and dispatches a few of the less likely ones in his quest to fill the gaping holes that science is littered with.

This is the compelling story of the two biggest events in the evolution of ideas: the revolutions of Galileo and Darwin. Mark Brake captures the adventure and excitement of these two scientists in this is a timely examination of the ways in which faith and science clash, and how the battle for 'truth' is a perennial one.

It has become received wisdom that our world is doomed. Mike Hanlon believes that not only is humankind not doomed, but that we may be around for millions, if not hundreds of millions of years. Humans will survive. Our future is in many ways bizarre, surreal and sometimes depressing - but it will still be our world, populated by us.

The status of sport, and of its greatest protagonists, has never before flown so high. This project utilizes current thoughts within the sport, behavioural, and cognitive sciences, in order to present a distinct and original perspective on the origins of elite sporting ability.

'Never since the Black Death has such a plague swept over the face of the world,' commented the Times , '[and] never, perhaps, has a plague been more stoically accepted.' When the Great Influenza pandemic finally ended, in April 1919, 228,000 people in Britian alone were dead. This book tells the story of the Great Influenza pandemic.

Human evolution explains how we have found ourselves in the wrong place at the wrong time. Issues of modern living; depression, obesity, and environmental destruction, can be understood in relation to our evolutionary past. An awareness of this past and its relation to the present can help limit their impact on the future.

Now available in paperback following huge critical acclaim. In a frank, edgy and entertaining style that pulls no punches, Michael Stebbins says what most scientists and politicians are afraid to about what research can and, perhaps more importantly, cannot deliver. He debunks the myths surrounding some of the most controversial topics in science.

What is the Turin Shroud? When were the Pyramids built? Why did the dinosaurs die out? How did the Earth take shape? With questions like these, says Chris Turney, time is of the essence. And understanding how we pinpoint the past, he cautions, is crucial to putting the present in perspective and planning for the future.

Each year thousands of people die from bacteria resistant to antibiotics. Alternative drugs are urgently needed. A surprising ray of hope from the past are viruses that kill bacteria, but not us. Award-winning science journalist Thomas Hausler investigates how these long-forgotten cures may help sick people today.

This is the first biography of William Shockley, founding father of Silicon Valley - one of the most significant and reviled scientists of the 20th century. Drawing upon unique access to the private Shockley archives, veteran technology historian and journalist Joel Shurkin gives an unflinching account of how such promise ended in such ignominy.

The fully updated 2nd edition of this critically acclaimed book covers the exciting developments in light science of the past five years. Light Years is an engaging survey of everything we know of the universe's most enigmatic phenomenon and the remarkable people who have been captivated by it.

Between the microscopic world of quarks and atoms, and the macroscopic (observable) one of pebbles and planets, there is another world, strangely neglected by science. It is inhabited by things like pollen, DNA and viruses. Physicist Mark Haw tells the story of how scientists finally saw the restless middle world, having ignored it for so long.

Each year thousands of people die from bacteria resistant to antibiotics. Alternative drugs are urgently needed. A surprising ray of hope from the past are viruses that kill bacteria, but not us. Award-winning science journalist Thomas Hausler investigates how these long-forgotten cures may help sick people today.

Alternative medicine is a fifty billion dollar per year industry. But is it all nonsense? The Whole Story rounds up the latest evidence on the placebo effect, the randomized control trial, personalized genetic medicine, acupuncture, homeopathy, osteopathy and more.

Packed with provocative case studies, calculations and lifestyle comparisons, this entertaining and authoritative book makes the complexities of climatology understandable and challenges readers to rethink their notions of 'doing their bit'. The paperback edition features a new preface from Mark Lynas, author of High Tide: News From a Warming World