From clay tablets to the printing press. From the pencil to the internet. From the Epic of Gilgamesh to Harry Potter. This is the true story of literature -- of how great texts and technologies have shaped cultures and civilizations and altered human history. The inventions of paper, the printing press and the world wide web are usually considered the major influences on the way we share stories. Less well known is the influence of Greek generals, Japanese court ladies, Spanish adventurers, Malian singers and American astronauts, and yet all of them played a crucial role in shaping and spreading literature as we know it today. The Written World tells the captivating story of the development of literature, where stories intersect with writing technologies like clay, stone, parchment, paper, printing presses and computers. Central to the development of religions, political movements and even nations, texts spread useful truths and frightening disinformation, and have the power to change lives. Through vivid storytelling and across a huge sweep of time, The Written World offers a new and enticing perspective on human history. .

From clay tablets to the printing press. From the pencil to the internet. From the Epic of Gilgamesh to Harry Potter. This is the true story of literature -- of how great texts and technologies have shaped cultures and civilizations and altered human history. The inventions of paper, the printing press and the world wide web are usually considered the major influences on the way we share stories. Less well known is the influence of Greek generals, Japanese court ladies, Spanish adventurers, Malian singers and American astronauts, and yet all of them played a crucial role in shaping and spreading literature as we know it today. The Written World tells the captivating story of the development of literature, where stories intersect with writing technologies like clay, stone, parchment, paper, printing presses and computers. Central to the development of religions, political movements and even nations, texts spread useful truths and frightening disinformation, and have the power to change lives. Through vivid storytelling and across a huge sweep of time, The Written World offers a new and enticing perspective on human history. .

From Aristotle to Ada Lovelace: a brief history of the mathematical ideas that have forever changed the world and the everyday people and pioneers behind them. The story of our best invention yet. From our ability to calculate the passing of time to the algorithms that control computers and much else in our lives, numbers are everywhere. They are so indispensable that we forget how fundamental they are to our way of life. In this international bestseller, Mickael Launay mixes history and anecdotes from around the world to reveal how mathematics became pivotal to the story of humankind. It is a journey into numbers with Launay as a guide. In museums, monuments or train stations, he uses the objects around us to explain what art can reveal about geometry, how Babylonian scholars developed one of the first complex written languages, and how ‘Arabic’ numbers were adopted from India. It All Adds Up also tells the story of how mapping the trajectory of an eclipse has helped to trace the precise day of one of the oldest battles in history, how the course of the modern-day Greenwich Meridian was established, and why negative numbers were accepted just last century. This book is a vital compendium of the great men and women of mathematics from Aristotle to Ada Lovelace, which demonstrates how mathematics shaped the written word and the world. With clarity, passion and wisdom, the author unveils the unexpected and at times serendipitous ways in which big mathematical ideas were created. Supporting the belief that – just like music or literature – maths should be accessible to everyone, Launay will inspire a new fondness for the numbers that surround us and the rich stories they contain.

Euclid's Elements of Geometry was a book that changed the world. In this sweeping history, Benjamin Wardhaugh traces how the ancient Greek text on mathematics - often hailed as the world's first textbook - shaped two thousand years of art, philosophy and literature, as well as science and maths. With stories of influence on every continent, and encounters with the likes of Ptolemy and Isaac Newton, Hobbes and Lewis Carroll, Wardhaugh gives dramatic life to the evolution of mathematics. Previously published as The Book of Wonders

How have our emotions shaped the course of human history? And how have our experience and understanding of emotions evolved with us? We humans like to think of ourselves as rational creatures, who, as a species, have relied on calculation and intellect to survive. But many of the most important moments in our history had little to do with cold, hard facts and a lot to do with feelings. Events ranging from the origins of philosophy to the birth of the world's major religions, the fall of Rome, the Scientific Revolution, and some of the bloodiest wars that humanity has ever experienced can't be properly understood without understanding emotions. In A Human History of Emotion, Richard Firth-Godbehere takes readers on a fascinating and wide-ranging tour of the central and often under-appreciated role emotions have played in human societies around the world and throughout history - from Ancient Greece to Gambia, Japan, the Ottoman Empire, Britain, and beyond. Drawing on psychology, neuroscience, philosophy, art and religious history, A Human History of Emotion vividly illustrates how our understanding and experience of emotions has changed over time, and how our beliefs about feelings - and our feelings themselves - profoundly shaped us and the world we inhabit.

A dramatic and intriguing history of how Scotland produced the institutions, beliefs and human character that have made the West into the most powerful culture in the world. Arthur Herman argues that Scotland's turbulent history, from William Wallace to the Presbyterian Lords of the Covenant, laid the foundations for 'the Scottish miracle'. Within one hundred years, the nation that began the eighteenth century dominated by the harsh and repressive Scottish Kirk had evolved into Europe's most literate society, producing an idea of modernity that has shaped much of civilisation as we know it. He follows the lives and work of thinkers such as Adam Smith and David Hume, writers such as Burns and Boswell, as well as architects, technicians and inventors, and traces their legacy into the twentieth century. Written with wit, erudition and clarity, The Scottish Enlightenment claims the Scots' rightful place in the history of the western world.

An engrossing history of ancient Chinese philosophy and culture from an eminent Cambridge expert. We are often told that the twenty-first century is bound to become China’s century. Never before has Chinese culture been so physically, digitally, economically or aesthetically present in everyday Western life. But how much do we really know about its origins and key beliefs? How did the ancient Chinese think about the world? In this enlightening book, Roel Sterckx, one of the foremost experts in Chinese thought, takes us through centuries of Chinese history, from Confucius to Daoism to the Legalists. The great questions that have occupied China’s brightest minds were not about who and what we are, but rather how we should live our lives, how we should organise society and how we can secure the well-being of those who live with us and for whom we carry responsibility. With evocative examples from philosophy, literature and everyday life, Sterckx shows us how the ancient Chinese have shaped the thinking of a civilization that is now influencing our own.

An engrossing history of ancient Chinese philosophy and culture from an eminent Cambridge expert We are often told that the twenty-first century is bound to become China's century. Never before has Chinese culture been so physically, digitally, economically or aesthetically present in everyday Western life. But how much do we really know about its origins and key beliefs? How did the ancient Chinese think about the world? In this enlightening book, Roel Sterckx, one of the foremost experts in Chinese thought, takes us through centuries of Chinese history, from Confucius to Daoism to the Legalists. The great questions that have occupied China's brightest minds were not about who and what we are, but rather how we should live our lives, how we should organise society and how we can secure the well-being of those who live with us and for whom we carry responsibility. With evocative examples from philosophy, literature and everyday life, Sterckx shows us how the ancient Chinese have shaped the thinking of a civilization that is now influencing our own.

An engrossing history of ancient Chinese philosophy and culture from an eminent Cambridge expert. We are often told that the twenty-first century is bound to become China’s century. Never before has Chinese culture been so physically, digitally, economically or aesthetically present in everyday Western life. But how much do we really know about its origins and key beliefs? How did the ancient Chinese think about the world? In this enlightening book, Roel Sterckx, one of the foremost experts in Chinese thought, takes us through centuries of Chinese history, from Confucius to Daoism to the Legalists. The great questions that have occupied China’s brightest minds were not about who and what we are, but rather how we should live our lives, how we should organise society and how we can secure the well-being of those who live with us and for whom we carry responsibility. With evocative examples from philosophy, literature and everyday life, Sterckx shows us how the ancient Chinese have shaped the thinking of a civilization that is now influencing our own.

Britain is a small country but it has a long history. Two thousand years ago it was part of the Roman Empire. In the 1930s the British Empire was the biggest empire in world history. In the past, kings and queens fought to rule Britain. Discover how wars, revolutions and religion have changed its history. Read about the different countries of the United Kingdom – and the great men and women who have shaped the British nation.

The world comes to us in colour. But colour lives as much in our imaginations as it does in our surroundings, as this scintillating book reveals. Each chapter immerses the reader in a single colour, drawing together stories from the histories of art and humanity to illuminate the meanings it has been given over the eras and around the globe. Showing how artists, scientists, writers, philosophers, explorers and inventors have both shaped and been shaped by these wonderfully myriad meanings, James Fox reveals how, through colour, we can better understand their cultures, as well as our own. Each colour offers a fresh perspective on a different epoch, and together they form a vivid, exhilarating history of the world. 'We have projected our hopes, anxieties and obsessions onto colour for thousands of years,' Fox writes. 'The history of colour, therefore, is also a history of humanity.'

A concise and accessible pocket guide to the forces that have shaped world art. - Provides a compelling look at the ideas that have changed art through the millennia - Compiled as a mix of beautiful images and information text, this book covers the history of art in an innovative way - Illustrated with historical masterpieces and packed with fascinating contemporary examples - Concise edition from the bestselling 100 Ideas series - The perfect gift for art and history lovers alike From the earliest cave paintings through to the internet and street art, this inspiring book chronicles the 100 most influential ideas that have shaped the world of art. Arranged in broadly chronological order, it provides a unique and compelling take on the history of art. 100 Ideas that Changed Art shows how developments in materials and technology have radically changed the way that art is produced. Each entry explores when an idea first evolved and how it has resurfaced in the work of different artists up to the present day.

The World Economic Forum #1 book to read for context on the coronavirus outbreak This sweeping exploration of the impact of epidemic diseases looks at how mass infectious outbreaks have shaped society, from the Black Death to today, and in a new preface addresses the global threat of COVID-19. In a clear and accessible style, Frank M. Snowden reveals the ways that diseases have not only influenced medical science and public health, but also transformed the arts, religion, intellectual history, and warfare. A multidisciplinary and comparative investigation of the medical and social history of the major epidemics, this volume touches on themes such as the evolution of medical therapy, plague literature, poverty, the environment, and mass hysteria. In addition to providing historical perspective on diseases such as smallpox, cholera, and tuberculosis, Snowden examines the fallout from recent epidemics such as HIV/AIDS, SARS, and Ebola and the question of the world’s preparedness for the next generation of diseases.

See history as it happened - from the evolution of early humans to the space race - with 130 detailed maps that bring pivotal episodes of world history to life.Including a foreword by renowned broadcaster and historian Peter Snow, this history atlas shows you the history of the world in thrilling action. Follow Napoleon as he conquers Europe, explore the rise of the Roman Empire, or chart the progress of the Russian Revolution as each map presents an overview of the story then takes you, step by step, through how it developed, leaving its mark on land and ocean.With cutting-edge design and breathtaking scope, History of the World Map by Map charts ancient, medieval, and modern history in all corners of the world. Discover how patterns of global trade, exploration, conflict, and technological advances shaped key moments in human civilization, such as the success of ancient Egypt, the conquest of Peru, the decolonization of Africa and Asia, the American Civil War, and the energy and environmental challenges of the 21st century.Alongside the maps are overviews and timelines of important periods such as the age of ancient Greece, the Renaissance, and World War 2, while paintings and photographs introduce overarching themes and epoch-defining moments such as fascism and communism, and the invention of printing.

See history as it happened - from the evolution of early humans to the space race - with 130 detailed maps that bring pivotal episodes of world history to life.Including a foreword by renowned broadcaster and historian Peter Snow, this history atlas shows you the history of the world in thrilling action. Follow Napoleon as he conquers Europe, explore the rise of the Roman Empire, or chart the progress of the Russian Revolution as each map presents an overview of the story then takes you, step by step, through how it developed, leaving its mark on land and ocean.With cutting-edge design and breathtaking scope, History of the World Map by Map charts ancient, medieval, and modern history in all corners of the world. Discover how patterns of global trade, exploration, conflict, and technological advances shaped key moments in human civilization, such as the success of ancient Egypt, the conquest of Peru, the decolonization of Africa and Asia, the American Civil War, and the energy and environmental challenges of the 21st century.Alongside the maps are overviews and timelines of important periods such as the age of ancient Greece, the Renaissance, and World War 2, while paintings and photographs introduce overarching themes and epoch-defining moments such as fascism and communism, and the invention of printing.

From the very first rulers to Queen Elizabeth II, this is the story of one of the oldest monarchies in the world. Discover how Britain's history has been shaped by the lives, loves, triumphs and tragedies of its kings and queens. This comprehensive history is brought vividly to life in this stunning hardback book with majestic portraits, colourful timelines and family trees, and recommended places to visit. The perfect addition to any family bookshelf, for help with school projects or for any young history enthusiast.