Rakuten Kobo

Shopping Cart

Item(s) unavailable for purchase

Please review your cart. You can remove the unavailable item(s) now or we'll automatically remove it at Checkout.

itemsitem

- Includes eBooks
  
  Includes audiobooks
  
  Includes 30 hours of listening time
  
  No commitment, cancel anytime at kobo.com/account/subscriptions
  
  Get 1 credit every month for the audiobook of your choice
  
  No commitment, cancel anytime at kobo.com/account/subscriptions
  
  Includes eBooks
  
  Includes audiobooks
  
  Includes 30 hours of listening time
  
  No commitment, cancel anytime at kobo.com/account/subscriptions
  Audiobook
  by ,
  
  Available:
  
  . No commitment, cancel anytime at kobo.com/account/subscriptions.
  
  Pre-order
  1 audiobook monthly
  
  + FREE 30-day trial
  
  Special Offer
  
  Get 1 credit every month to exchange for an audiobook of your choice
  
  *No commitment, cancel anytime
  
  FREE

itemsitem

Includes eBooks

Includes audiobooks

Includes 30 hours of listening time

No commitment, cancel anytime at kobo.com/account/subscriptions

Get 1 credit every month for the audiobook of your choice

No commitment, cancel anytime at kobo.com/account/subscriptions

Includes eBooks

Includes audiobooks

Includes 30 hours of listening time

No commitment, cancel anytime at kobo.com/account/subscriptions
Audiobook
by ,

Available:
. No commitment, cancel anytime at kobo.com/account/subscriptions.

Pre-order
1 audiobook monthly

+ FREE 30-day trial

Special Offer

Get 1 credit every month to exchange for an audiobook of your choice

*No commitment, cancel anytime

FREE

Recommended For You

Skip side bar filters

How the World Really Works

The Science Behind How We Got Here and Where We're Going

by Vaclav Smil ...

**INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER“Provocative but perceptive . . . You can agree or disagree with Smil—accept or doubt his ‘just the facts’ posture—but you probably shouldn’t ignore him.”—The Washington PostAn essential analysis of the modern science and technology that makes our twenty-first century lives possible—a scientist's investigation into what science really does, and does not, ... Read more

$9.99 USD

Also available as: Audiobook

**INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER“Provocative but perceptive . . . You can agree or disagree with Smil—accept or doubt his ‘just the facts’ posture—but you probably shouldn’t ignore him.”—The Washington PostAn essential analysis of the modern science and technology that makes our twenty-first century lives possible—a scientist's investigation into what science really does, and does not,
... Read more

Also available as: Audiobook
Creating and Transforming the Twentieth Century, Revised and Expanded

Technical Innovations and Their Lasting Impact

by Vaclav Smil ...

Creating and Transforming the Twentieth Century combines two of Vaclav Smil's seminal works in a revised and expanded edition. Creating the Twentieth Century explores the period between 1867 and 1914, a time of unparalleled innovation that laid the groundwork for modern civilization. It investigates the birth of an expansive society driven by the synergy of fuels, science, and technical innovation ... Read more

$28.79 USD

Creating and Transforming the Twentieth Century combines two of Vaclav Smil's seminal works in a revised and expanded edition. Creating the Twentieth Century explores the period between 1867 and 1914, a time of unparalleled innovation that laid the groundwork for modern civilization. It investigates the birth of an expansive society driven by the synergy of fuels, science, and technical innovation
... Read more
Oil

A Short History

by Vaclav Smil ...

Oil. Without it there are no planes, no plastics, no petrol.It has started and ended wars. It is the lifeblood of the modern world – and the leading cause of climate change.As humanity faces a reckoning with its dependence upon oil, Vaclav Smil explores the contentious history – and future – of the ‘black stuff’, from ancient origins to the political and economic shockwaves it has triggered. ... Read more

$11.99 USD

PRE-ORDER

Oil. Without it there are no planes, no plastics, no petrol.It has started and ended wars. It is the lifeblood of the modern world – and the leading cause of climate change.As humanity faces a reckoning with its dependence upon oil, Vaclav Smil explores the contentious history – and future – of the ‘black stuff’, from ancient origins to the political and economic shockwaves it has triggered.
... Read more
Energy

A Short History

by Vaclav Smil ...

With one famous equation, E=mc2, Einstein proved all matter can be described as energy. It is everywhere and everything.‘There is no author whose books I look forward to more than Vaclav Smil.’ Bill GatesTurn on a light. Start the car. Boil water. Eat. Move. Breathe. Everything is energy. But what exactly is it? And how can we best harness it without destroying the planet in the process?Renowned ... Read more

$11.99 USD

PRE-ORDER

With one famous equation, E=mc2, Einstein proved all matter can be described as energy. It is everywhere and everything.‘There is no author whose books I look forward to more than Vaclav Smil.’ Bill GatesTurn on a light. Start the car. Boil water. Eat. Move. Breathe. Everything is energy. But what exactly is it? And how can we best harness it without destroying the planet in the process?Renowned
... Read more
Size

How It Explains the World

by Vaclav Smil ...

From the New York Times bestselling author of How the World Really Works, a wide-ranging look at the most fundamental governing principle of our world: size, whose laws, limits, and peculiarities offer the key to understanding health, wealth, and even happiness“No one writes about the great issues of our time with more rigor or erudition than Vaclav Smil.” — Elizabeth KolbertTo answer the most ... Read more

$6.99 USD

Also available as: Audiobook

From the New York Times bestselling author of How the World Really Works, a wide-ranging look at the most fundamental governing principle of our world: size, whose laws, limits, and peculiarities offer the key to understanding health, wealth, and even happiness“No one writes about the great issues of our time with more rigor or erudition than Vaclav Smil.” — Elizabeth KolbertTo answer the most
... Read more

Also available as: Audiobook
Speed

How It Explains the World

by Vaclav Smil ...

A data-driven, scientific account of our need for speed—exploring a wide range of topics including evolution, transportation, and technologyIn a world obsessed with efficiency, perhaps nothing is valued as highly as being fast. Some of our greatest achievements include building planes that break the sound barrier and creating computers that process data at the touch of a button. With signature ... Read more

$14.99 USD

Also available as: Audiobook

A data-driven, scientific account of our need for speed—exploring a wide range of topics including evolution, transportation, and technologyIn a world obsessed with efficiency, perhaps nothing is valued as highly as being fast. Some of our greatest achievements include building planes that break the sound barrier and creating computers that process data at the touch of a button. With signature
... Read more

Also available as: Audiobook
Energy and Civilization

A History

by Vaclav Smil ...

**A BILL GATES “BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR”A comprehensive account of how energy has shaped 10,000 years of human history, from pre-agricultural foraging societies through today’s fossil fuel–driven civilization.**Energy is the only universal currency; it is necessary for getting anything done. The conversion of energy on Earth ranges from terra-forming forces of plate tectonics to cumulative erosive ... Read more

$17.99 USD

Also available as: Audiobook

**A BILL GATES “BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR”A comprehensive account of how energy has shaped 10,000 years of human history, from pre-agricultural foraging societies through today’s fossil fuel–driven civilization.**Energy is the only universal currency; it is necessary for getting anything done. The conversion of energy on Earth ranges from terra-forming forces of plate tectonics to cumulative erosive
... Read more

Also available as: Audiobook
Numbers Don't Lie

71 Stories to Help Us Understand the Modern World

by Vaclav Smil ...

**"Vaclav Smil is my favorite author… Numbers Don't Lie takes everything that makes his writing great and boils it down into an easy-to-read format. I unabashedly recommend this book to anyone who loves learning."—Bill Gates, GatesNotesFrom the author of How the World Really Works, an essential guide to understanding how numbers reveal the true state of our world—exploring a wide range of topics ... Read more

$8.99 USD

Also available as: Audiobook

**"Vaclav Smil is my favorite author… Numbers Don't Lie takes everything that makes his writing great and boils it down into an easy-to-read format. I unabashedly recommend this book to anyone who loves learning."—Bill Gates, GatesNotesFrom the author of How the World Really Works, an essential guide to understanding how numbers reveal the true state of our world—exploring a wide range of topics
... Read more

Also available as: Audiobook
Numbers Tell Stories

How Data Can Reveal the Surprising Truths about Our World from the Bestselling Author

by Vaclav Smil ...

From the internationally bestselling author, a revealing look at the surprising numbers that uncover the hidden forces shaping our world‘There is perhaps no other academic who paints pictures with numbers like Smil’ GuardianWhat do marriage, milk and the black market tell us about the state of humanity? Most people would say, not much at all. But the numbers reveal startling truths about who we ... Read more

$18.79 USD

Also available as: Audiobook

From the internationally bestselling author, a revealing look at the surprising numbers that uncover the hidden forces shaping our world‘There is perhaps no other academic who paints pictures with numbers like Smil’ GuardianWhat do marriage, milk and the black market tell us about the state of humanity? Most people would say, not much at all. But the numbers reveal startling truths about who we
... Read more

Also available as: Audiobook
How to Feed the World

The History and Future of Food

by Vaclav Smil ...

An indispensable analysis of how the world really produces and consumes its food—and a scientist's exploration of how we can successfully feed a growing population without killing the planetWe have never had to feed as many people as we do today. And yet, we misunderstand the essentials of where our food really comes from, how our dietary requirements shape us, and why this impacts our planet in ... Read more

$7.99 USD

Also available as: Audiobook

An indispensable analysis of how the world really produces and consumes its food—and a scientist's exploration of how we can successfully feed a growing population without killing the planetWe have never had to feed as many people as we do today. And yet, we misunderstand the essentials of where our food really comes from, how our dietary requirements shape us, and why this impacts our planet in
... Read more

Also available as: Audiobook
Invention and Innovation

A Brief History of Hype and Failure

by Vaclav Smil ...

Tour the history of human invention—and its attendant breakthroughs and busts—in this history book from the New York Times-bestselling author of How the World Really Works.A BILL GATES RECOMMENDED BOOK: “Every Smil book that I own is marked up with lots of notes that I take while reading. Invention and Innovation is no exception.”The world is never finished catching up with Vaclav Smil, author of ... Read more

$15.99 USD

Also available as: Audiobook

Tour the history of human invention—and its attendant breakthroughs and busts—in this history book from the New York Times-bestselling author of How the World Really Works.A BILL GATES RECOMMENDED BOOK: “Every Smil book that I own is marked up with lots of notes that I take while reading. Invention and Innovation is no exception.”The world is never finished catching up with Vaclav Smil, author of
... Read more

Also available as: Audiobook
Prime Movers of Globalization

The History and Impact of Diesel Engines and Gas Turbines

by Vaclav Smil ...

The story of how diesel engines and gas turbines, used to power cargo ships and jet airplanes, made today's globally integrated economy possible.The many books on globalization published over the past few years range from claims that the world is flat to an unlikely rehabilitation of Genghis Khan as a pioneer of global commerce. Missing from these accounts is a consideration of the technologies ... Read more

$21.99 USD

The story of how diesel engines and gas turbines, used to power cargo ships and jet airplanes, made today's globally integrated economy possible.The many books on globalization published over the past few years range from claims that the world is flat to an unlikely rehabilitation of Genghis Khan as a pioneer of global commerce. Missing from these accounts is a consideration of the technologies
... Read more

Rakuten Kobo

eReaders

Apps

Accessories

What is Kobo Super Points?

Reward Yourself

Shopping Cart

You're getting the VIP treatment!

Your Shopping Cart is empty

Available:

1 audiobook monthly

+ FREE 30-day trial

Available:

1 audiobook monthly

+ FREE 30-day trial

Recommended For You

Top Series in United States

Beginner's Guides

Routledge Revivals

Food, Health, and the Environment

Asia's Transformations/Critical Asian Scholarship

Bolinda Beginner Guides

How the World Really Works

Creating and Transforming the Twentieth Century, Revised and Expanded

Oil

Energy

Size

Speed

Energy and Civilization

Numbers Don't Lie

Numbers Tell Stories

How to Feed the World

Invention and Innovation

Prime Movers of Globalization

eReaders

Apps

Accessories

Shopping Cart

You're getting the VIP treatment!

Your Shopping Cart is empty

Available:

1 audiobook monthly

+ FREE 30-day trial

Available:

1 audiobook monthly

+ FREE 30-day trial

Recommended For You

Top Series in United States

Beginner's Guides

Routledge Revivals

Food, Health, and the Environment

Asia's Transformations/Critical Asian Scholarship

Bolinda Beginner Guides

Show: