WULOLIFE
A Guide to Understanding Everything Author: (UK) Hannah Frye / (UK) Adam Rutherford Publisher: CITIC Press
A Guide to Understanding Everything Author: (UK) Hannah Frye / (UK) Adam Rutherford Publisher: CITIC Press
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Description
Introduction · · · · · ·
From mice to elephants, all mammals take about 21 seconds to empty their bladders.
If a flea were the same size as a human, the height it could jump would be... only as high as a flea.
What does a sphere look like in four-dimensional space? You might be imagining it wrong at first.
We do feel like we have free will, but how can we be sure of it?
Is it true that our understanding of the universe is not wrong?
We all thought that the way our facial muscles twist reflected our basic emotional state was a common belief. There was just one problem: the theory was wrong.
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We tend to follow our intuition, but it's a poor guide. If we take it for granted, we'll assume the world is flat, the sun revolves around the earth, and a day is exactly 24 hours long. But that's not the case.
At some point, we humans noticed that our senses were limited, that our intuition often failed to guide us in the right direction. So we developed science and mathematics to help us see the world as it really is. In this entertaining book, Hannah Fry and Adam Rutherford take us on a journey of scientific discovery: from the origin of the universe to its inevitable demise, from the origin of life on Earth to the possibility of strange alien life elsewhere in the universe, from the darkest depths of the vast expanse of space to the brightest corners of our minds...
Along the way, the authors answer questions that have long plagued us, such as: Where does time come from? Do we have free will? Does my dog love me? They share stories of genius and hard work, as well as bungling, misguided paths, dead ends, luck, and some downright stupid decisions. Put them together to form the ultimate story: a mostly hairless ape with a unique innate curiosity who decided not to be satisfied with understanding the appearance of everything, but to explore the inner structure of the universe and everything in it.
Reality is not what it seems, but if you are ready and willing to set out to find the truth, this book can be your guide.
About the Author
Hannah Fry is an associate professor of mathematics at City, University College London. In her day job, she uses mathematical models to study patterns of human behaviour, and has worked with governments, police, health analysts and supermarkets. Her TED talks have been watched by millions, she has also made TV documentaries for the BBC and hosted the long-running science podcast The Curious Case of Rutherford and Fry.
Adam Rutherford: British science writer and broadcaster, PhD graduate from University College London, editor of Nature magazine, has participated in the creation and production of many television documentaries and served as a scientific consultant for many films.
