If there were one popular science book I would recommend, currently I need go no further than this one.
Not only is it (as has been discussed above), an almost complete history of science, it's an charmingly honest tour of the people and personalities behind scientific discovery, an honest and open look at how science and scientists work (and sometimes, quite frankly, how sometimes those people fail to work together!) It's written with tender care and wit, it's an almost affectionate look at understanding our world, written for a general, curious reader who wants to learn how we got to our understanding of the sciences. He covers it all, from how atoms work through earth sciences, paleontology, physics, cosmology, almost everything, including some philosophy of science. Along the way you see the personalities (warts and all!) of the people behind the discoveries. You read about the arguments
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