An acclaimed Harvard geologist presents a narrative chronicle of the Earth's 4.6-billion-year evolution that places the environmental crises of today's world in a context that explains the planet's fragile capacity to support life.

"Our true origins are not just human, or even terrestrial, but in fact cosmic. Drawing on recent scientific breakthroughs and the current cross-pollination among geology, biology, astrophysics, and cosmology, Origins explains the soul-stirring leaps in our understanding of the cosmos. From the first image of a galaxy birth to Spirit Rover's exploration of Mars, to the discovery of water on one of Jupiter's moons, coauthors Neil deGrasse Tyson and...

Explores the roots of humanity searching for insights into the future of modern society.

Examines the accrued scientific knowledge of the universe in the twenty-first century, features NASA images from space exploration voyages to Saturn and Mars, and describes comet and asteroid impacts throughout the universe, Mar's polar caps, the solar system's largest volcano, and more.

Our long-held myths are exploding. Recent discoveries of astonishing accomplishments from the Neolithic Age -- in art, technology, writing, math, science, religion, medicine, and exploration -- demand a fundamental rethinking of human history before the dawn of civilization. As Richard Rudgley puts it, "The prehistory of mankind is no mere prelude to history, rather history is a colorful and eventful afterword to the Stone Age." In this fascinating...

"A breakout bestseller in Italy, now available for American readers for the first time, Genesis: The Story of How Everything Began is a short, humanistic tour of the origins of the universe, earth, and life-drawing on the latest discoveries in physics to explain the seven most significant moments in the creation of the cosmos"--

Once in a generation a book such as African Exodus emerges to transform the way we see ourselves. This landmark book, which argues that our genes betray the secret of a single racial stock shared by all of modern humanity, has set off one of the most bitter debates in contemporary science. "We emerged out of Africa," the authors cont, "less than 100,000 years ago and replaced all other human populations." Employing persuasive fossil and genetic evidence...