World

Amoral, cunning, ruthless, and instructive, this piercing work distills 3,000 years of the history of power into 48 well-explicated laws....

Winner of the Pulitzer Prize, Guns, Germs and Steel examines the rise of civilization and the issues its development has raised throughout history....

An eminent scientist and pioneer in the discovery of retroviruses challenges the widely accepted belief that HIV is the cause of AIDS....

The mutiny on HMS Bounty, in the South Pacific on 28 April 1789, is one of history's truly great stories - a tale of human drama, intrigue and adventure of the highest order - and in the hands of Peter FitzSimons it comes to life as never before. Commissioned by the Royal Navy to collect breadfruit plants from Tahiti and take them to the West Indies, the Bounty's crew found themselves in a tropical paradise. Five months later, they did not want to leave.

The Battle of Le Hamel on 4 July 1918 was an Allied triumph and strategically very important in the closing stages of WWI. A largely Australian force, commanded by the brilliant Sir John Monash, fought what has been described as the first modern battle....

For most of its 5,000-year existence, China has been the largest, most populous, wealthiest, and mightiest nation on Earth....

Harry Potter: A History of Magic reveals some of the hidden stories behind real-world magic and explores some of J.K. Rowling's magical inventions alongside their folkloric, cultural and historical forebears....

In August of 1914, the British ship Endurance set sail for the South Atlantic. In October 1915, still half a continent away from its intended base, the ship was trapped, then crushed in the ice

Political disintegration is a persistent feature of world history. The Collapse of Complex Societies, though written by an archaeologist, will therefore strike a chord throughout the social sciences.

The story begins in 1629, when the pride of the Dutch East India Company, the Batavia, is on its maiden voyage en route from Amsterdam to the Dutch East Indies, laden down with the greatest treasure to leave Holland....

A lively and engaging narrative history showing the common threads in the cultures that gave birth to our own....

In the wake of the dissolution of the Soviet empire in 1989, many believed that we had arrived at the ‘End of History’—that the global dominance of liberal democracy had been secured forever.....

January 1991. IRAQ. Eight members of the SAS regiment embark upon a top secret mission to infiltrate deep behind enemy lines....

Geoffrey Blainey is well-placed to introduce us to the people who have played a part and to guide us through the events which have created the Australian identity....

Drawing on startling new evidence from the mapping of the genome, an explosive new account of the genetic basis of race and its role in the human story. Human evolution, the consensus view insists, ended in prehistory....

Australia's Greatest Escapes is a collection of stories about the most hazardous aspect of the prisoner of war experience - escape....

Girt. No word could better capture the essence of Australia.... In this hilarious history, David Hunt reveals the truth of Australia's past....

A New York Times-bestselling historian charts how and why societies from ancient Greece to the modern era chose to utterly destroy their foes, and warns that similar wars of obliteration are possible in our time....

In 1864, Captain Thomas Musgrave and his crew of four aboard the schooner Grafton wreck on the southern end of Auckland Island....

Thomas Cahill tells the story of how Europe evolved from the classical age of Rome to the medieval era. Without Ireland, the transition could not have taken place. When the seeds of culture were replanted on the European continent, it was from Ireland that they were germinated....

A lavish ode to the joys of Tuscany’s people, food, landscapes, and art, from the bestselling author of Under the Tuscan Sun and See You in the Piazza....

Here in a single volume is the entire, unabridged recording of Gibbon's masterpiece....

In an attempt to appeal to the Medici family during the Italian Renaissance, Machiavelli outlines the way to acquire and retain political power, and how great men should behave in a princely government....

Throughout human history, certain drinks have done much more than just quench thirst....

Learn how a single tongue spoken 150,000 years ago evolved into the estimated 6,000 languages used around the world today....

Toys and games have long been a part of childhood, but the 20th century saw the rise of an entire industry devoted to the business of play, one that would constantly evolve over the years. In the six lectures of The History of Toys, 1900 to the Present, consultant and toy industry expert Chris Byrne—also known as The Toy Guy®—will take you on a journey through the world of toys from the Edwardian era to our current moment. Beginning with the birth of the mass-market toy industry, you’ll trace the many transformations of toys and our shifting theories of play and childhood development.

Though perhaps less well-known today than the great empires that surrounded them, the historic peoples of Central Asia—such as the Scythians, the Sogdians, the Xiongnu nomads of Mongolia, the Turkic peoples, and many others—produced cultures of major significance. In the 24 lectures of Crossroads of Civilization: A History of Central Asia, taught by Professor Eren Tasar, you will embark on a wide-ranging journey into the majestic landscapes, steppe and desert cultures, resplendent cities, and epic conquests that characterized this mysterious part of the world.

La storia di come le reti di informazione hanno fatto e disfatto il nostro mondo, dall’autore del bestseller mondiale Sapiens. Negli ultimi centomila anni, noi Sapiens abbiamo accumulato un enorme potere. Eppure, nonostante tutte le nostre scoperte, invenzioni e conquiste, oggi ci troviamo in una crisi esistenziale. Il mondo è sull’orlo del collasso ecologico. La disinformazione dilaga. E ci stiamo buttando a capofitto nell’era dell’intelligenza artificiale, una nuova rete di informazioni che minaccia di annientarci. Perché siamo così autodistruttivi?

Du Big Bang à nos jours, notre Terre n’a cessé de se transformer sous les effets des mouvements tectoniques, des variations climatiques, de l’activité du Soleil ou encore des éruptions volcaniques. Comment ces changements ont-ils affecté l’histoire humaine ? Comment notre espèce s’est-elle adaptée à un environnement profondément modifié par les glaciations ou les périodes de réchauffement ? Pour répondre à ces interrogations, Peter Frankopan s’est engagé dans une entreprise majeure et inédite.

From about 3400-2600 BCE, the Yamnaya culture stretched from southeastern Europe into central Asia, greatly affecting other contemporary cultures in Europe and the Near East. The hallmarks of Yamnaya culture adopted by other cultures in the Near East and Europe include the use of metal tools and weapons.

During the reign of the Artaxiad dynasty, Armenia became a hub of trade and commerce, connecting the Silk Road and the Mediterranean world. The Armenian kings encouraged the development of agriculture, commerce, and arts, and the kingdom became renowned for its skilled artisans, writers, and philosophers. Of course, given its central location, the dynasty also faced numerous challenges, including repeated invasions by the Roman and Parthian empires, internal conflicts, and economic hardships.

Embark on an epic journey into the captivating world of Norse mythology, where gods, goddesses, and mythical creatures come alive with rich detail and vibrant storytelling. Whether you're a curious newcomer or a seasoned enthusiast, this book offers a fresh, accessible gateway into the lore that shaped Viking heritage. Struggling to untangle the complexities of Odin, Thor, and Loki’s adventures? Overwhelmed by dry or overly dense texts? Norse Mythology Unleashed bridges the gap, combining accurate research with engaging narratives that breathe life into ancient tales.

After the extinction of the dodo and Carolina parakeet and the collapse of the American bison population, naturalists expected many more vulnerable species to die out with spread of industrialization. This triggered a race to collect rare species of animals expected soon to be lost forever. Established in 1893, Chicago's Field Museum aimed to become a global center of study. Zoologist Daniel Giraud Elliot persuaded museum patrons to fund an immediate expedition to British Somaliland (contemporary Somalia). There, his team hunted and killed hundreds of animals for the growing collection.

Have you ever wondered how robots learn to think like humans? Or why the human brain is more powerful than any supercomputer? What about the secrets hidden in your favorite foods or the mysteries of the universe beyond our galaxy? Find the answers to these questions and so much more in The Amazing Big Book of Fun Facts! This ultimate trivia book is packed with engaging and educational tidbits to entertain curious minds of all ages while expanding your knowledge about the world and beyond.

More than half a century after the Vietnam War, a riveting, true story emerges. The author embarks on a journey to bridge the silent gap between himself and his estranged father, whose memories of the war are deeply buried. This quest for understanding leads him to a close-knit brotherhood of Marine combat veterans who become the voice for the untold stories, filling the void left by his father's unspoken past.