Genres & Moods

Popular Science

Science writing for general readers that turns complex research into clear narratives about discovery, history and everyday life.

15 covered books

Cover of Billions and BillionsNon Fiction · Popular Science

Billions and Billions

Thoughts on Life and Death at the Brink of the Millennium

By Carl Sagan

Sagan's final essay collection connects large numbers, environmental risk, nuclear danger, public ethics, love, illness, and mortality, followed by an epilogue from Ann Druyan.

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Cover of Broca's BrainNon Fiction · Popular Science

Broca's Brain

Reflections on the Romance of Science

By Carl Sagan

A wide-ranging essay collection in which Sagan moves from Paul Broca's preserved brain to planetary exploration, pseudoscience, extraterrestrial life, scientific responsibility, and the public use of evidence.

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Cover of CosmosNon Fiction · Popular Science

Cosmos

A Personal Voyage

By Carl Sagan

Carl Sagan connects astronomy, scientific history, and human curiosity in an accessible account of how people investigate the universe.

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Cover of Homo DeusNon Fiction · Popular Science

Homo Deus

A Brief History of Tomorrow Review

By Yuval Noah Harari

Homo Deus surveys humanity’s potential futures, from algorithmic governance to bioengineered elites, with accessible big picture analysis.

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Cover of Natural QuestionsPhilosophy · Non Fiction

Natural Questions

Translated by Harry M. Hine

By Seneca

Seneca investigates rivers, weather, earthquakes, comets, lightning, and other natural phenomena while arguing that the study of nature should enlarge moral perspective rather than merely satisfy curiosity.

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Cover of Pale Blue DotNon Fiction · Popular Science

Pale Blue Dot

A Vision of the Human Future in Space Review

By Carl Sagan

A reflection on the Solar System, cosmic perspective, and the future of human exploration inspired by the Voyager image of Earth.

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Cover of Replaceable YouNon Fiction · Popular Science

Replaceable You

Adventures in Human Anatomy

By Mary Roach

Mary Roach follows surgeons, engineers, and patients trying to repair or replace damaged body parts without losing sight of the people involved.

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Cover of The Anxious GenerationNon Fiction · Popular Science

The Anxious Generation

How the Great Rewiring of Childhood Is Causing an Epidemic of Mental Illness

By Jonathan Haidt

Jonathan Haidt links the shift from play-based childhoods to phone-based childhoods with rising teen anxiety and depression, then proposes practical norms for parents and schools.

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Cover of The Dragons of EdenNon Fiction · Popular Science

The Dragons of Eden

Speculations on the Evolution of Human Intelligence

By Carl Sagan

Sagan ranges across brain evolution, dreams, language, animal intelligence, myth, and computing in a speculative 1977 account of how human minds may have developed.

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Cover of The Selfish GeneNon Fiction · Popular Science

The Selfish Gene

A Classic on Genes and Evolution

By Richard Dawkins

Dawkins's gene-centered account of evolution explains how apparently selfish replicators can produce cooperation and altruism, and why the argument still matters.

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