Everything You Know About Planet Earth is Wrong

Description

A fascinating and humorous read that debunks the surprising myths about the world we always believed. The latest addition to the popular Everything You Know series, this book will blow apart your beliefs in the world's physical and social landscape, leaving you staggered by astounding facts about geography, nature, cities and the people who inhabit them. Indulge your curiosity and you'll find a plethora of myths, legends and misquotes that have shaped the way you view the world today. Convinced the world is round? Think again! It's actually flatter at the poles. Have the Sahara down as the world's biggest desert? It's actually Antarctica. Learn how the Mayans got it wrong when they predicted the world would end in 2012 and how a heatwave in 2003 led to a worldwide shortage of wine. Brimming with facts about the world, how it works and the way we live in it, this illuminating book will guide you through the minefield of misinformation to answer questions such as whether overpopulation could be solved by colonising space (only if we were prepared to bankrupt our planet in the process!), what is the shortest geographical name in the world (the answer is 'A', a district in Sweden and Norway meaning 'river'), and why you shouldn't measure earthquakes on the Richter scale. Discovering untruths about people and places, geography and the environment, Everything You Know About The World Is Wrong provides a hugely entertaining insight into the world we live in.

Matt Brown holds degrees in Chemistry (BSc) and Biomolecular Science (MRes). He has served as a scientific editor and writer at both Reed Elsevier and Nature Publishing Group, and has contributed to several previous science books, including Defining Moments in Science (2008, Cassell) and 1001 Inventions That Changed the World (2009, Cassell). He served as the Royal Institution's quiz-master for several years, and has also put on science quizzes for the Royal Society, Manchester Science Museum, STEMPRA and the Hunterian Museum. He recently gave a lecture about Michael Faraday while rotating around the London Eye. With comedian Helen Keen, he co-hosted a series of successful 'Spacetacular!' science-themed stage shows, culminating in a sell-out 2013 show at Leicester Square Theatre. Matt is also the author of London Day and Night (2015, Batsford), as well as forthcoming books Everything You Know About London is Wrong and Everything You Know About England is Wrong (also from Batsford). He also serves as Editor-at-Large of Londonist.com.

'An Entertaining title and a good gift for adult or teenager alike.' * Popular Science Blog * 'This truly has cross-generational appeal and thus comes high on our recommendation list. You might want to check out the rest of the series too.' * How It Works * 'This truly has cross-generational appeal and thus comes high on our recommendation list. You might want to check out the rest of the series too.' * How It Works *