Synopses & Reviews
Synopsis
A brief history of breathtaking ambition, capturing the story of life, the universe, and everything in between In this thrilling, fast-paced history, David Baker captures the longest-possible timespan--from the Big Bang, 13.8 billion years ago, to the present day--in an astonishingly concise retelling. Along the way, Baker grapples with the improbable sequence of events that--over the span of billions of years--created our universe as we know it. Baker's highlight-reel timeline includes the "rise of complexity" in the cosmos and the creation of the first atoms; the origin of all galaxies, stars, and our solar system; and the emergence and evolution of life on Earth, from tiny single-celled organisms to the development of human beings.
With laser focus on the key concepts, and weaving together insights across the sciences, from chemistry, physics, and biology, to archaeology and anthropology, Baker answers the fundamental questions: How did time begin? Why does matter exist? What made life on Earth the way it is? And then he takes us one step further, making the case that we live in a moment unlike any other in our world's history. Never before has life on Earth been forced to so rapidly adjust to a changing climate, nor has one species ever been responsible for such sudden change. Baker believes his long view of history offers the clearest-possible picture of what may come next--and the role we can still play in our planet's fate.
Synopsis
A brief history of breathtaking ambition, capturing the story of life, the universe, and everything in between. The Shortest History books deliver thousands of years of history in one riveting, fast-paced read. In this thrilling, fast-paced history, David Baker captures the longest-possible timespan--from the Big Bang, 13.8 billion years ago, to the present day--in an astonishingly concise retelling. Along the way, Baker grapples with the improbable sequence of events that--over the span of billions of years--created our universe as we know it. His highlight-reel timeline includes the "rise of complexity" in the cosmos and the creation of the first atoms; the origin of all galaxies, stars, and our solar system; and the emergence and evolution of life on Earth, from tiny single-celled organisms to the development of human beings.
With laser focus on the key concepts, and weaving together insights across the sciences, from chemistry, physics, and biology, to archaeology and anthropology, Baker answers the fundamental questions: How did time begin? Why does matter exist? What made life on Earth the way it is? And then he takes us one step further, making the case that we live in a moment unlike any other in our world's history. Never before has life on Earth been forced to so rapidly adjust to a changing climate, nor has one species ever been responsible for such sudden change. Baker believes his long view of history offers the clearest-possible picture of what may come next--and the role we can still play in our planet's fate.
Synopsis
A complete history of the universe, spanning 13.8 billion years in an ultra-accessible, uncommonly illuminating, exhilarating chronicle of key events
In this thrilling history, David Baker captures the longest-possible time span--from the Big Bang to the present day--in an astonishingly concise retelling. His impressive timeline includes the "rise of complexity" in the cosmos and the creation of the first atoms; the origin of all galaxies, stars, and our solar system; and the evolution of life on Earth, from tiny single-celled organisms to human beings.
Weaving together insights across the sciences--including chemistry, physics, biology, archaeology, and anthropology--Baker answers the fundamental questions: How did time begin? Why does matter exist? What made life on Earth the way it is? He also argues that never before has life on Earth been forced to adjust to a changing climate so rapidly, nor has one species ever been responsible for such sudden change. Baker's grand view offers the clearest picture of what may come next--and the role we can still play in our planet's fate.
Synopsis
National Book Critics Circle Award--2017 Nonfiction Finalist
"Nothing less than a tour de force--a heady amalgam of science, history, a little bit of anthropology and plenty of nuanced, captivating storytelling."--The New York Times Book Review, Editor's Choice
A National Geographic Best Book of 2017
In our unique genomes, every one of us carries the story of our species--births, deaths, disease, war, famine, migration, and a lot of sex. But those stories have always been locked away--until now. Who are our ancestors? Where did they come from? Geneticists have suddenly become historians, and the hard evidence in our DNA has blown the lid off what we thought we knew. Acclaimed science writer Adam Rutherford explains exactly how genomics is completely rewriting the human story--from 100,000 years ago to the present.
Synopsis
A complete history of the universe, spanning 13.8 billion years in an ultra-accessible, uncommonly illuminating, exhilarating chronicle of key events "Baker introduces us not only to the history of our species and our planet, but the history of our vast universe."--from the foreword by John Green, author of The Anthropocene Reviewed and The Fault in Our Stars
In this thrilling history, David Baker captures the longest-possible time span--from the Big Bang to the present day--in an astonishingly concise retelling. His impressive timeline includes the "rise of complexity" in the cosmos and the creation of the first atoms; the origin of all galaxies, stars, and our solar system; and the evolution of life on Earth, from tiny single-celled organisms to human beings.
Weaving together insights across the sciences--including chemistry, physics, biology, archaeology, and anthropology--Baker answers the fundamental questions: How did time begin? Why does matter exist? What made life on Earth the way it is? He also argues that never before has life on Earth been forced to adjust to a changing climate so rapidly, nor has one species ever been responsible for such sudden change. Baker's grand view offers the clearest picture of what may come next--and the role we can still play in our planet's fate.
Synopsis
In this thrilling history, David Baker captures the longest-possible time span--from the Big Bang to the present day--in an astonishingly concise retelling. His impressive timeline includes the "rise of complexity" in the cosmos and the creation of the first atoms; the origin of all galaxies, stars, and our solar system; and the evolution of life on Earth, from tiny single-celled organisms to human beings.
Weaving together insights across the sciences--including chemistry, physics, biology, archaeology, and anthropology--Baker answers the fundamental questions: How did time begin? Why does matter exist? What made life on Earth the way it is? He also argues that never before has life on Earth been forced to adjust to a changing climate so rapidly, nor has one species ever been responsible for such sudden change. Baker's grand view offers the clearest picture of what may come next--and the role we can still play in our planet's fate.