Author:Jean-Claude Carrière,John Brownjohn
A young woman enters a building in a nameless contemporary European city. She walks into a waiting room where a dozen other people, with briefcases or sheaves of documents, are gathered. Ushered into a large office, she meets Albert Einstein, who is engaged in trying to figure out the equation that explains the universe. He is charmed by her, and agrees to answer her questions.
Einstein and the young woman begin discussing the concepts of time and space. He explains his theories about relativity and his responsibility in the creation of nuclear weapons. Einstein also talks about the problem of being famous, about his life in Nazi Germany and how his dreams of worldwide peace were shattered. He appears bright, witty, hugely sympathetic, but also tormented and dreamy.
A thought-provoking introduction to Einstein and quantum theory
—— John Williams , Mail on SundayCarrière's humane sensibility makes him the ideal man to humanise Einstein
—— Peter Forbes , IndependentSince the 1960s, Carrière has had his finger on the pulse of Europe's imagination...In Carrière's story...undecidability and doubt have leached out of science and into ethics
—— Lisa Jardine , The Times[A] coruscating, yet gently whimsical, tour ...Carriére...has an impeccable pedigree in science publishing...There are some sharp incidental pleasures and some witty reflections to be enjoyed
—— Victoria Neumark , Times Educational SupplementDuhigg brings impressive reportorial and narrative skills to the project.
—— SpectatorCharles has some wonderful advice for increasing productivity … the tips he highlights have most definitely played a huge part in helping me to build the Virgin brand.
—— Richard BransonOffers readers a glimpse into how the most productive people function … [Duhigg] distills all his research into eight key takeaways that anyone can use, at work and at home.
—— Business Books You Should Be Reading This Summer, World Economic Forum blogSlick.
—— iVery slick.
—— Evening StandardDuhigg knows his stuff — the book is packed with an intimidating amount of knowledge and research … Duhigg takes our most subtle habits and breaks them down in a way that’s obvious and digestible
—— Life Hacker[An] ideal book for someone who loves both stories and career-related self-improvement . . . An enjoyable and potentially very useful read.
—— BookbagA terrific read.
—— Money LifeEd Yong has done something beautiful, and unlikely: he’s rendered the unseen world of bacteria thrilling, captivating and highly entertaining. This is a much-needed guide to the hidden kingdom that dominates life on Earth. It cuts through all the buzzwordy hooey and flakey hype of microbiomes with a scientifically steady hand, but told with an infectious sense of awe.
—— Adam Rutherford, broadcaster and author of CreationYong vividly describes the intricate alliances forged by microbes with every other organism on the planet… The most delightful part of Yong’s book is that he does not just tell the stories of microbiomes, he also introduces readers to dozens of the scientists studying them… Their stories and conversations radiate the excitement of unlocking new secrets.
—— Susan Perkins , Science‘I Contain Multitudes is wonderful. Deeply strange, true, funny, beautifully written’
—— William Gibson[It] bowls along wonderfully... His hero, Sir David [Attenborough], would surely approve.
—— The EconomistEd Yong’s magnificent revaluation of bacteriology, I Contain Multitudes, counsels humility for student doctors like me: modern medicine’s pathogens may be the future’s therapeutics.
—— Kate Womersley , SpectatorA science journalist’s first book is an excellent, vivid introduction to the all-enveloping realm of our secret sharers.
—— Editor's Choice , New York Time Book Review[A] fascinating and lively study.
—— Michael Prodger , The TimesBeautiful, smart, and sometimes shocking
—— WiredYong delves into our deepest, darkest nooks and crannies to shed new light on what it is to be human.
—— Stuart Blackman , BBC WildlifeCompelling
—— Adrian Woolfson , NatureEd Yong has written a riveting account of the microbes that make the world work. I Contain Multitudes will change the way you look at yourself --- and just about everything else.
—— Elizabeth Kolbert, author of the Pulitzer Prize-winning The Sixth ExtinctionOffer[s] engrossing—and gross—details about how an invisible world shapes our species…Mr. Yong’s book lives up to its title, containing multitudes of facts presented in graceful, accessible prose….The author wonderfully turns to the humanities again and again to enrich the book’s scientific detail…And he’s funny.
—— Wall Street JournalI Contain Multitudes changes you the way all great science writing does. You become disoriented, looking at the world around you in a new way. With vivid tales and graceful explanations, Ed Yong reveals how the living things we see around us are wildly complex collectives.
—— Carl Zimmer, author of Parasite RexYong has captured the essence of this exciting field, expressing the enthusiasm and wonder that the scientific community feels when working with the microbiome. It is rare that a writer has the capacity to speak to the public and the scientific world with equanimity; Yong has succeeded in delivering a compelling and informative exploration of a vast research field and a fundamental work that can stand as textbook and a rip-roaring read!
—— Professor Jack Gilbert, University of ChicagoWith a simply wonderful book, Ed Yong opens the doorway to a hidden world around and inside us. He's smart, he's witty, and he's at the cutting edge. You could not get a better guide.
—— Tim Harford, author of The Undercover Economist Strikes Back and MessyEd Yong is one of our finest young explainers of science—wicked smart, broadly informed, sly, savvy, so illuminating. And this is an encyclopedia of fascinations—a teeming intellectual ecosystem, a keen book on the intricacies of the microbiome and more.
—— David Quammen, author of The Song of the Dodo and SpilloverThis compelling and beautifully written book will change the way people look at the world around, and within, them. It provides an insight into the latest research in the field, and into the people doing the work, that is unmatched by any other book on the microbiome to date. Certainly among the best books in an increasingly crowded field and written with a true passion for and understanding of the microbiome.
—— Professor Rob Knight, University of CaliforniaA whistle-stop tour of the microbial world for the non-expert… Yong has won numerous awards for his science writing…it doesn’t take long to realise why.
—— Florence Greatix , Chemistry WorldA marvellous book! Ed Yong’s brilliant gift for storytelling and precise writing about science converge in I Contain Multitudes to make the invisible and tiny both visible and mighty. A unique, entertaining, and smart read.
—— Jeff Vandermeer, author of the Southern Reach Trilogy[A] magnificent revaluation of bacteriology.
—— Kate Womersley , SpectatorThis is a book of wonder.
—— BooksellerA state-of-the art look at what we know about microbes… Yong makes difficult concepts and scientific terms easy to understand – and his excitement at the variety and wonder of nature makes him an enthusiastic and engaging writer’
—— Kate Whiting , UK Press SyndicationThe complex relationships between microbes and their environments are explored with rigour and humour.
—— Bridie Pritchard , Northern EchoA deep and sensible dive in to this complex and fascinating dimension of biology.
—— Irish Times, Book of the Year[It] is superbly judged. It brilliantly synthesises the surprising and recently-revealed inter-dependencies of visible and invisible organisms… Look out for it on numerous book prize shortlists in 2017.
—— Guardian, Book of the YearYong will make you think about yourself – and the world around you – in a different way.
—— Brad Davies , iIt is a fascinating account of the unseen creatures that live within and all around us. Yong takes us on this journey through the microscope to discover the most recent research from scientists all round the world and tell us of the secrets that are being discovered about microbes… Yong writes with an engaging and eloquent style and makes the science in here really accessible. Well worth reading.
—— Paul Cheney , NudgeYong’s enthusiasm for bacteria is infectious, as he describes the beauty of luminescent bacteria in the Hawaiian bobtail squid and the benefits of our microscopic neighbours.
—— Jane Shilling , Daily MailA master class in popular scientific education.
—— Simon Shaw , Mail on SundayYong made me think “wow” over and over again. He tells us that there is a universe of tiny things. We should think about them.
—— William Leith , Evening Standard