Entomologist and TV presenter Dr George McGavin looks at the weird and wonderful world of insects and reveals how they created our world and how they could shape our future. Insects conquered the Earth long before we did and will remain here long after we are gone. They outnumber us in the billions and are essential to keep many of the natural processes that keep us alive and that we take for granted, and every page is a very readable argument that we should appreciate the hidden world of six-legged creatures far more. McGavin takes a deep dive to reveal the unknown truths about the most successful and enduring animal groups the world has ever seen and explores not only the incredible traits that insects have evolved to possess, such as dragonflies that can fly across oceans without resting, or beetles that can lay their eggs exclusively in corpses, but also the vital lessons we have learned from them, including how therapy using maggots can save lives, and how bees can help grow rich tomato yields. The four distinct groups are millipedes and centipedes with elongated bodies and lots of pairs of legs, eight legged species such as mites and scorpions, crustaceans such as shrimp, crabs and lobsters and barnacles with a few terrestrial species such as woodlice and the fourth and by far biggest group are the Insecta, which comprise ¾ of all animal species, and well over half of all known species and their total biomass is at least ten times that of all humans and our livestock combined. Let's let that fact sink in... Crawling with detail and glowing with extraordinary facts and rich with humour and personality. 266pp.

Just the word makes you smile, let alone the shape, the look or if you're lucky the feel of them! Here line art boobs are sweaty, veiny, freckly, tiny-nippled, close set, teardrop, bell shape, round, relaxed, athletic, peachy, long, wide, enormous, medium sized, little sized, to reconstructed, hairy, double-mastectomy, half fed and squirty boobs, pregnant boobs and tan lined boobs. Pictured in fun, focussed cartoons in different shades, this is a real ice breaker of a book which ends on a more serious notes of how to check your breasts. 'This book is a call to celebrate the story our boobs have to tell and come to love what's on our chests.' Colour illus.
Click YouTube icon to see this book come to life on video.

Mind and bottom-blowing facts from history, science, sport and the universe by the bestselling author of Does Anything Eat Wasps? Did you know that ostriches don't bury their heads in the sand, that powdered rice is used as cement in the Great Wall of China, what 60% of the human population cannot smell and what on earth rhinotillexomania is? From flatulence, the solar system and the Universe, history, life on Earth, food, maths, science, the ocean, transport, arts, music and films, sport, the weather, royalty, religion, politics, human body, there are huge scientific questions and a quest for knowledge and the seemingly trivial has never been more fascinating. 208pp, paperback.

Understand your genetic code and a lot more about evolution, ancestry, health, genomics and epigenetics with a leading consultant from Guy's and St Thomas' Hospital who specialises in rare diseases and conditions with a genetic cause. In the big colour graphic layout Haynes Publishing is renowned for, explained simplistically but accurately is the history of DNA discovery, the law of dominance, segregation and independent assortment, inheritance patterns, gametes and zygosity. The DNA molecule is a double helix made up of two strands each containing a backbone of sugar and phosphate. Chromosomes are structures found inside the cell nucleus, tightly coiled strands of DNA, twisted around special proteins called histones. We should each have 46 chromosomes in total, 23 from our mother and 23 from our father. Females have two X chromosomes and males have one X and one Y chromosome. The X chromosome contains about 800 genes and in comparison the Y has only about 70 including the so-called sex-determining genes that makes someone with a Y male. There are sections on sequencing the human genome, genetic disorders, gene editing and outstanding breakthroughs in archaeology and science which are informing us about our past and defining our future. The book tracks DNA's fates in defining many aspects of our lives today, includes practical experiments, DNA in crime investigation, human evolution and medical science and the latest debates on cloning, commercial genetic testing and the microbiome. In this way the book brings together all the fascinating strands of genetic science and how DNA is being mapped, classified, utilised and understood. 160 very large pages, 21.6 x 28cm approx. Hundreds of colour illus. and diagrams and flow charts.

Computers rule the world. Data floods from everything we do. Robots are building our products in factories. Our homes are computerised and we can talk to these digital home assistants, receiving detailed and coherent replies. Behind the scenes, artificial intelligence is making everything work and you cannot live in the modern world without it or being impacted by AI and robots. Every time you make a purchase, AIs are handling your money, checking for fraud, using your data to understand you better, recommending new products. Inside our homes we have smart TVs, computerised fridges, washing machines, central heating, air conditioning systems all AI robotic devices. Decisions about whether we should or should not be accepted for financial products are made by AIs. Our future anti-viral and antibacterial drugs are being designed by AI. Internet connections, utilities and mobile phones are all adjusted by smart AI algorithms that try to optimise supply while minimising waste. The book takes us on a short journey through the strange world of computers, robots and building brains and the surprisingly long life and ups and downs AI has already had. Leading expert Professor J. Bentley breaks down the fast-moving world of computers in the time of automata into 10 pivotal lessons, presenting the reader with the essential information, the origins and motivation behind AI and robotics, the smart algorithms that allow us to build good computers, how computers interpret sensory information and the challenges of emotional intelligence, unpredictable environments and imagination. 192pp, line art and short biographies of important figures such as Michael Maudlin or 'Fuzzy' and his creation, the Lycos web search engine and portal, launched in 1994.

A companion to code 94840 10 Short Lessons in Artificial Intelligence & Robotics, here a research scientist in mathematics and astrophysics provides a timely look at the essential lessons learned from our voyages into outer space. In an era of rapidly developing technology and renewed ambition, the 21st century has ushered in an exciting new age of space flight, but what has brought us to this point in our exploration of the universe? Soon space travel will open itself up to paying members of the public and this short and essential guide describes how we will leave the planet, stay alive in space, when to let machines take over, space is big business, the next giant leap which has already begun, the small solar system and coverage of unmanned satellites and the chances of reaching the stars. Glossary, 184pp, line art and other illus.

With a passion for engineering history, John Hannavy has written extensively on railways, steam-powered machines, the history of photography and the Industrial Revolution of Victorian and Edwardian Britain. Power without control is unusable power, and long after the invention of the steam engine, finding ways of applying that power to tasks where consistency was of paramount importance was the Holy Grail which many steam engineers sought to find. It was the centrifugal governor which brought precision to the application of steam power, and its story can be traced back to 17th century Holland and Christiaan Huygens' development of both the pendulum clock and system controls for windmills. Governors are still at the heart of sophisticated machinery today, albeit electronic rather than mechanical. As machine speed increased, the governor had to evolve to keep pace with the demands for greater precision. Over 100 British patents were applied for in the 19th century alone for 'improvements' in governor design, many of which could be fitted or retro-fitted to engines from every large manufacturer. This is the first book to deal with the subject, telling the story of the evolution of the original 'spinning-ball' governor from its first appearance to the point where it became a small device entirely enclosed in a housing to keep it clean, and thus hidden from view. Over 200 photographs, engravings, plans and diagrams, one of which is a series of colour photographs of one of the few large mill engines to survive, Wigan's 2500hp Trencher Field Mill Engine and some of the more than 60,000 spindles in operation, all belt-driven from the massive steam engine. Chapters include James Watt Harnessing Steam, Selected Patents 1698-1913, British Governor Makers and Suppliers and Places to See Governors at Work including Showman's Road Locomotive No.3555 the Busy Bee, pumping stations, Twyford Waterworks, the Robey Trust's New Perseverance Ironworks in Tavistock or the shiny red balls of the Armstrong Engines which provided hydraulic power at Ellesmere Port, now the National Waterways Museum. Packed with colour, 160 large pages, 21.6 x 28cm.
Click YouTube icon to see this book come to life on video.

"...a monumental survey... The Computer is a richly illustrated history of society's ever-evolving relationship with the silicon chip."-- "Wallpaper". "Almost pop art history of the technology". The story of the evolution of machines in computer history is full of the disruptive innovations that have led to today's world. From the early beginnings of computing to the bulky mainframe to the personal computer era, we now live in an almost entirely digital age. This visual tome explores steps from the first ideas of a calculating machine in the 19th century and early experiments with autonomous driving in the 1920s to oversized office computers in the 1950s to laptops and wearables of today. Tracing the stories of tech visionaries, pioneers, and entrepreneurs, the book combines compelling visuals, historical documents, and in-depth explanations to reveal significant events in computer history. Encompassing the invention of machines, coding, and software development, as well as technology's influence on today's political landscape, this incredible survey presents creations from Ada Lovelace, Charles Babbage, Alan Turing, Grace Hopper, Bill Gates, and Steve Jobs. Showcasing forgotten gadgets and prototypes connecting iconic products such as the Apple Macintosh and the Sony Play Station as well as remembering milestones in software development, videogaming, and the web. Infographics explain wireless communication and other fundamental technical concepts, while the history of corporations such as IBM, Apple, Microsoft, Atari, Amazon, and Google is retraced through rare photographs and advertising campaigns. A fascinating read, this book acknowledges the computer's stupendous power and social impact. For techies and everyone interested in culture, economics, politics, and science. 24.6 x 37.2 cm, a weighty 3.89 kg, 472 pages. Text in English, Italian and Spanish.

What is the secret that links the Great Pyramid of Giza to Chartres cathedral? How was ancient man, with use of sound, able to lift huge slabs of granite over 85 tonnes in weight? How and where is the body of Jesus to be seen in Egypt? Did you know that the term Nazarene relates to a mystical Order rather than the place Nazareth, and that long before Jesus, Pythagoras and Buddha were members of this Order? Why does it all lead back to the great pyramid at Giza and to strange patterns within the sand that respond to certain types of sound? The book reveals one of the greatest secrets to be told. It is the key to some of the most puzzling enigmas of world history, religion and mythology. Everything that exists does so because of vibration. But understand the science of vibration, learn how to use it and you will have the key to, well, everything. Knowledge like that would be worth a lot of money. The Templars became immensely wealthy after their search for knowledge in the Middle East. If we wish to know what knowledge they found, we only have to look at what happened next - cathedrals, scores of them, erected across Europe. The Ancients knew the science of vibration and also the power of names, holy names such as Jesus, Mary, Anna. Versions of these three names can be found world-wide, predating Christianity by several thousand years. Elkington's astonishing book will change the way we regard the world, its history - and its future. Rich with colour plates including the Eagle Nebula and other illus, 525 pages.

16 of today's greatest unsolved mathematical puzzles in a story-driven illustrated volume that invites readers to peek over the edge of the unknown. Understandable by anyone with elementary maths skills, these intriguing mysteries are presented as puzzles that have time-travelled from Camelot, preserved in the notebook of Merlin, the wise magician in King Arthur's court. Our guide is Mage Maryam (named in honour of the brilliant young mathematician, the late Maryam Mirzakhani), a distant descendant of Merlin. Each mystery is presented across two beautifully illustrated pages providing mathematical and historical context afterwards. They involve tinker toys (a present for Camelot's princesses from the sorceress Morgana), cake-slicing at a festival, Lancelot's labyrinth, a vault for the Holy Grail, the Lady of the Lake, 33 tree tombs, a knight's square formation, Stone Henge tapestries and more. Each mystery is a sword awaiting removal from its stone, capturing the beauty and power of mathematics. 101 pages, beautifully decorated in colour.