The ability to understand science as a totality - matter, space, energy, life, weather, information and the future - will enhance your understanding of all the challenges facing humanity, as well as allow you to go deeper into specific technologies.

This book, complete with worked examples and key facts, forms a course which will take you from novice level to a competent understanding of the hottest topics in science. It includes step-by-step explanations of subjects as complex as the birth of life and plate tectonics, with suggestions for further reading and summaries to help you understand the key points.

Chapters cover: the Big Bang, the solar system, the birth of life, evolution, DNA, the genome, genetics and cloning, the structure of Earth, earthquakes and volcanoes, weather, energy, the microprocessor, artificial intelligence, space exploration, scientific fraud, scientific controversies, climate change, and the future of science