Everything around us – trees, buildings, food, light, water, air and even ourselves – is composed of minute particles, smaller than a nanometre (a billionth of a metre). Quantum physics is the science of these particles and without it, none of our electronic devices, from smartphones to computers and microwave ovens, would exist.But quantum physics also pushes us to the very boundaries of what we know about science, reality and the structure of the universe. The world of quantum physics is an amazing place, where quantum particles can do weird and wonderful things, acting totally unlike the objects we experience in day-to-day life. How can atoms exist in two places at once? And just how can a cat be dead and alive at the same time? Find out more with this entertaining illustrated guide to the fascinating, mysterious world of quantum physics.Topics include: quanta, light, waves and particles, mass, photons, atoms, molecules, spectra, wave-particle duality, matter and antimatter, Schrödinger’s cat, the Uncertainty Principle, probability waves, quantum entanglement, radioactivity and quarks.

Einstein’s theory of relativity is one of the cornerstones of modern physics but it requires a total rethink of our notions of time and space. Strange things happen in a relative universe: length and time are not fixed and depend upon your frame of reference. If you move at high speed, time slows down, space contracts and weight increases. So a period of time for someone on Earth that lasts for hundreds of years may only be a couple of hours for someone travelling in a rocket close to the speed of light. It’s mind-boggling stuff, but the theory of relativity has a real impact on our world today. A car’s GPS navigation system, for example, uses information received from orbiting satellites and is designed to account for the fact that time ticks at a different rate on these satellites than it does on the ground. Without allowing for relativity’s effects, after just a day, your whereabouts according to GPS could be up to 8km from your actual location. So to find out more about how our universe works and how space and time are connected, look no further than this fascinating, illustrated guide to relativity.

My First Book of the Cosmos is the latest title from the awarding winning illustrator and author duo Eduard Altarriba and Sheddad Kaid-Salah Ferrón. Cosmology is closely related to astronomy and studies the origin and evolution of the universe. As with Eduard and Sheddad’s first book published by Button Books My First Book of Quantum Physics, My First Book of the Cosmos introduces children to what is an incredibly complex subject in a fun and entertaining way, using highly attractive and absorbing illustrations to explain the basic principals and concepts of this complex and fascinating subject.

You’ll discover what they are, where they come from and what they do, as well as which ones are good and which can be harmful. Especially pertinent are the clear explanations about how viruses spread, the role of antibodies and the importance of vaccines – essential understanding for us all during this time of the COVID-19 pandemic; in fact, there’s a whole spread dedicated to COVID-19. Packed with clever analogies that make understanding a difficult topic easy, this STEM title is perfect for young budding scientists with an active and enquiring mind and for people of any age who are interested in learning about the natural world and the human body.

Nowadays, electricity and magnetism are all around us and we use them for nearly everything. In fact, it’s hard to find anything that works without them. But what actually is electricity? What has it got to do with magnets? What is magnetism? And the most fascinating thing of all, what has all this got to do with light? All these questions are answered in this introduction to the fabulous world of electromagnetism.My First Book of Electromagnetism tells the story of humankind’s growing understanding of the forces around us, from Thales of Miletus’s first experiments with magnetic attraction in 600 BCE to Michael Faraday and James Clerk Maxwell unifying the fields of magnetism and electricity to develop the theory of electromagnetism. At various stages in this fascinating journey the reader can find out how to make their own experiments, including making their own electroscope to test for electric charge and how to construct a working motor from safety pins, wire, sticky tape, a magnet and a battery.Bestselling My First Book of Science series by award-winning illustrator and author duoIntroduces children aged 8 and up to a complex area of science in a fun and entertaining wayAdults are likely to enjoy the content and find that it increases their understandingEasy-to-follow, bite-size text – uses different colours to draw out key words and information, making them easier to absorb and remember

When did life first appear on Earth? How did humans evolve? How did giraffe’s necks get longer? Are humans now perfectly designed?My First Book of Evolution answers these and many more questions about evolution and how it works in a fun and entertaining way.Simple concepts such as what is a family tree, what is a species, what is a cell and more complex ideas of natural selection, adaptation, speciation and the inheritance of traits are explained clearly using imaginative and appealing charts, graphics and illustrations accompanied by simple, bite-size nuggets of explanatory text.

The human race’s desire to explore the boundaries of the known world drove our ancestors to climb the tallest mountains, conquer the poles and cross vast uncharted oceans before ultimately reaching out into space in the 1960s. Huge rockets were built to allow our space pioneers to travel beyond Earth’s orbit and land on the Moon. But there is another frontier that we have yet to set foot on – Mars. The Red Planet is our next destination; it will be a long process, starting with small scientific bases hidden among craters and ending with enormous self-sustaining cities. But what will the journey from Earth to Mars be like? What will we find when we land? Where will we get oxygen and food? In this book, you will find answers to all these questions about day-to-day life in a Martian city. Mars offers us the opportunity to start anew – are you ready for lift-off?

Only 12 humans have ever set foot on the Moon, and the last lunar explorer landed over 50 years ago, but that’s all set to change in the next few years with new manned missions to the Moon being planned. However, this time the goal isn’t just to visit the Moon, the long-term plan is to set up a colony that could serve as a springboard to allow us to explore Mars and eventually the rest of our Solar System.Written by the authors of the award-winning Moving to Mars, this book will take you on your own journey to explore the Moon. There is a history of our relationship with the Moon, from its role in ancient folklore through to President Kennedy and the Space Race. You’ll discover how it was formed, why landing on it first became the ultimate prize of the Space Race, what would happen to Earth if the Moon weren’t there, and how it might – in the not-so-distant future – become a base from which we may one day use to explore other planets. So, climb into your space suit and get ready to take your first small step on the Moon!

Everything around us – trees, buildings, food, light, water, air and even ourselves – is composed of minute particles, smaller than a nanometre (a billionth of a metre). Quantum physics is the science of these particles and without it, none of our electronic devices, from smartphones to computers and microwave ovens, would exist.But quantum physics also pushes us to the very boundaries of what we know about science, reality and the structure of the universe. The world of quantum physics is an amazing place, where quantum particles can do weird and wonderful things, acting totally unlike the objects we experience in day-to-day life. How can atoms exist in two places at once? And just how can a cat be dead and alive at the same time? Find out more with this entertaining illustrated guide to the fascinating, mysterious world of quantum physics.Topics include: quanta, light, waves and particles, mass, photons, atoms, molecules, spectra, wave-particle duality, matter and antimatter, Schrödinger’s cat, the Uncertainty Principle, probability waves, quantum entanglement, radioactivity and quarks.

Einstein’s theory of relativity is one of the cornerstones of modern physics but it requires a total rethink of our notions of time and space. Strange things happen in a relative universe: length and time are not fixed and depend upon your frame of reference. If you move at high speed, time slows down, space contracts and weight increases. So a period of time for someone on Earth that lasts for hundreds of years may only be a couple of hours for someone travelling in a rocket close to the speed of light. It’s mind-boggling stuff, but the theory of relativity has a real impact on our world today. A car’s GPS navigation system, for example, uses information received from orbiting satellites and is designed to account for the fact that time ticks at a different rate on these satellites than it does on the ground. Without allowing for relativity’s effects, after just a day, your whereabouts according to GPS could be up to 8km from your actual location. So to find out more about how our universe works and how space and time are connected, look no further than this fascinating, illustrated guide to relativity.

My First Book of the Cosmos is the latest title from the awarding winning illustrator and author duo Eduard Altarriba and Sheddad Kaid-Salah Ferrón. Cosmology is closely related to astronomy and studies the origin and evolution of the universe. As with Eduard and Sheddad’s first book published by Button Books My First Book of Quantum Physics, My First Book of the Cosmos introduces children to what is an incredibly complex subject in a fun and entertaining way, using highly attractive and absorbing illustrations to explain the basic principals and concepts of this complex and fascinating subject.

You’ll discover what they are, where they come from and what they do, as well as which ones are good and which can be harmful. Especially pertinent are the clear explanations about how viruses spread, the role of antibodies and the importance of vaccines – essential understanding for us all during this time of the COVID-19 pandemic; in fact, there’s a whole spread dedicated to COVID-19. Packed with clever analogies that make understanding a difficult topic easy, this STEM title is perfect for young budding scientists with an active and enquiring mind and for people of any age who are interested in learning about the natural world and the human body.

Nowadays, electricity and magnetism are all around us and we use them for nearly everything. In fact, it’s hard to find anything that works without them. But what actually is electricity? What has it got to do with magnets? What is magnetism? And the most fascinating thing of all, what has all this got to do with light? All these questions are answered in this introduction to the fabulous world of electromagnetism.My First Book of Electromagnetism tells the story of humankind’s growing understanding of the forces around us, from Thales of Miletus’s first experiments with magnetic attraction in 600 BCE to Michael Faraday and James Clerk Maxwell unifying the fields of magnetism and electricity to develop the theory of electromagnetism. At various stages in this fascinating journey the reader can find out how to make their own experiments, including making their own electroscope to test for electric charge and how to construct a working motor from safety pins, wire, sticky tape, a magnet and a battery.Bestselling My First Book of Science series by award-winning illustrator and author duoIntroduces children aged 8 and up to a complex area of science in a fun and entertaining wayAdults are likely to enjoy the content and find that it increases their understandingEasy-to-follow, bite-size text – uses different colours to draw out key words and information, making them easier to absorb and remember

When did life first appear on Earth? How did humans evolve? How did giraffe’s necks get longer? Are humans now perfectly designed?My First Book of Evolution answers these and many more questions about evolution and how it works in a fun and entertaining way.Simple concepts such as what is a family tree, what is a species, what is a cell and more complex ideas of natural selection, adaptation, speciation and the inheritance of traits are explained clearly using imaginative and appealing charts, graphics and illustrations accompanied by simple, bite-size nuggets of explanatory text.

The human race’s desire to explore the boundaries of the known world drove our ancestors to climb the tallest mountains, conquer the poles and cross vast uncharted oceans before ultimately reaching out into space in the 1960s. Huge rockets were built to allow our space pioneers to travel beyond Earth’s orbit and land on the Moon. But there is another frontier that we have yet to set foot on – Mars. The Red Planet is our next destination; it will be a long process, starting with small scientific bases hidden among craters and ending with enormous self-sustaining cities. But what will the journey from Earth to Mars be like? What will we find when we land? Where will we get oxygen and food? In this book, you will find answers to all these questions about day-to-day life in a Martian city. Mars offers us the opportunity to start anew – are you ready for lift-off?

Only 12 humans have ever set foot on the Moon, and the last lunar explorer landed over 50 years ago, but that’s all set to change in the next few years with new manned missions to the Moon being planned. However, this time the goal isn’t just to visit the Moon, the long-term plan is to set up a colony that could serve as a springboard to allow us to explore Mars and eventually the rest of our Solar System.Written by the authors of the award-winning Moving to Mars, this book will take you on your own journey to explore the Moon. There is a history of our relationship with the Moon, from its role in ancient folklore through to President Kennedy and the Space Race. You’ll discover how it was formed, why landing on it first became the ultimate prize of the Space Race, what would happen to Earth if the Moon weren’t there, and how it might – in the not-so-distant future – become a base from which we may one day use to explore other planets. So, climb into your space suit and get ready to take your first small step on the Moon!