Popular science

Its hard to imagine a world without numbers in this day and age, when our whole life is centered around commerce and money, and it is the only language that is the same the world over.

We may remember their equations and discoveries from school, but do we remember who the men behind the maths were?

For those whose memories of learning science at school consist of burning magnesium and playing with iron filings and a magnet, and whose brains shut down as soon as things start to sound too technical, I Used to Know That: General Science is here to remind you of everything youve forgotten or should have learned.

How to identify and avoid 50 common mistakes caused by uncertainty.

A lucid, balanced and engaging tour of one of the most important phenomena of this century.

Since ancient times, we have tried to make sense of our universe by observing objects far beyond our abilities to see or touch from the smallest atom to the farthest star.

The periodic table, created in the early 1860s by Russian chemist Dmitri Mendeleev, marked one of the most extraordinary advances in modern chemistry.

A lively and highly readable account of the origins, invention and discovery of just about everything on the planet, the truly global coverage of The First of Everything ranges from the Big Bang to driverless cars.

A fascinating and comprehensive guide to the sun our home star which remains the greatest mystery in the solar system, and why understanding it is pivotal to our future existence here on Earth.