Here are the best new science books.
The Math of Life and Death
by Kit Yates
The Math of Life and Death, by Kit Yates, a senior lecturer in mathematical biology at the University of Bath, is an excellent popular maths book, demonstrating the many times math plays a critical role in our daily lives—often without us even knowing it.
We spoke to the author to find out more:
The Art of Statistics: Learning from Data
by David Spiegelhalter
Statistics can be a double-edged sword. On the one hand, they have all the guise of a hard objective fact. They can often clinch an argument by providing evidence to substantiate a claim. And yet, we are all too aware of how they can be weaponised in order to manipulate people. And, more benignly, they can just be incredibly confusing. With all this in mind, developing our statistical literacy seems more urgent than ever.
Step forward, The Art of Statistics: Learning from Data by world-renowned statistician Sir David Spiegelhalter — Winton Professor of the Public Understanding of Risk at the University of Cambridge since October 2007. In this new work aimed at the general reader, he aims to teach you the essential principles of how to gain knowledge from data. Preferring concrete real-life examples to dense mathematical formulae, Spiegelhalter introduces the key skills of data analysis, including how to spot questionable methodologies, in an accessible and enjoyable way.
David Spiegelhalter spoke to Five Books about the best books on statistics and risk.
Something Deeply Hidden: Quantum Worlds and the Emergence of Spacetime
by Sean M Carroll
Quizzical about the quantum? Convinced you can’t get your head around this seemingly baffling yet crucial area of modern science? The upcoming book Something Deeply Hidden: Quantum Worlds and the Emergence of Spacetime may well be your new go-to guide.
In his latest book, Sean Carroll, physics professor at the California Institute of Technology, offers a detailed tour of quantum mechanics. Unpacking competing interpretations, Carroll plants himself firmly in the camp of the ‘Many-Worlds’ interpretation. In Something Deeply Hidden, he charts the history of quantum discoveries, from Einstein and Bohr up to present concerns about reconciling gravity with quantum mechanics. It has been described as “the essential guide to the most intriguing subject in science.”
Sean Carroll has spoken to Five Books about the best books on cosmology.
