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Royal Society Prize 2010

Read more about this year's prestigious Royal Society Prize, arguably the best popular science books published in 2009. All these books are worth a look - it's a superb collection, but also take a look at our alternative list (which we think is even better!). And why not sign up to our newsletter to win a copy of every book on the long list (UK addresses only)?

Click on the book name to see the review. We are yet to review books without a rating below, but you can still click on the Amazon buttons to find out more. For books we have reviewed, click on the review or the book name to find out more or buy at Amazon.

We need to talk about Kelvin	Marcus Chown	Uses everyday observations to plunge into quantum theory, thermodynamics and cosmology. Great fun and very readable.	Shortlist
Why Does E=mc²	Brian Cox & Jeff Forshaw	Explanation of the derivation of the world's most famous equation, exploration of the standard model master equation and great exposition of Higgs - but too technical for the general reader.	Shortlist
Why Evolution is true	Jerry A. Coyne	A persuasive and plain-spoken summary of the evidence for evolution by natural selection, with some minor conceptual problems.	Long list
John Gribbin	In Search of the Multiverse	A speculative but highly entertaining trip around the different concepts that take us beyond a single universe to a multiverse.	Long list
Everyday Practice of Science	Frederick Grinnell	Excellent as an academic study of the real nature of the scientific method, but hopeless as popular science. What were they thinking???	Long list
God's Philosophers	James Hannam	Highly informative and surprisingly readable book filling in just what developments were made in the history of science during the medieval period.	Short list
Storms of my Grandchildren	James Hansen		Long list
Darwin's Island	Steve Jones		Long list
Life Ascending	Nick Lane		Short list
The Master and his Emissary	Iain McGilchrist		Long list
Complexity: a guided tour	Melanie Mitchell	Enjoyable and engaging exploration of complexity, genetic algorithms, networks and more.	Long list
A World without Ice	Henry Pollack		Short list

Our own longlist

The Royal Society Prize longlist doesn't necessarily cover the best popular science books out in 2009 - as well as the five star books above, take a look at some additional books that should have made it, but didn't:

Atomic: the first war of physics	Jim Baggott	Riveting and detailed history of the development of nuclear weapons in Germany, the UK, the US and Russia. Fascinating in its depth and the lost possibilities for alternatives to nuclear proliferation.	Overview
Before the Big Bang	Brian Clegg	The latest ideas on how the universe began, the limitations of the Big Bang theory and more in excellent popular history of how humans understand the universe.	Cosmology
Dazzled and Deceived	Peter Forbes	Excellent book on the fascinating topic of mimicry and camouflage, covering both the natural world and military attempts. Great insights into evolutionary mechanisms.	Biology, technology
Heatstroke	Anthony Barnosky	Excellent exploration of the impact of climate change on species, and how the present global warming could devastate nature.	Earth science, biology
Microcosm	Carl Zimmer	Fascinating study of the bacterium E. coli with plenty of lessons for the understanding of life as a whole, and our attitude to human genetic material.	Biology

The judges

Maggie Philbin, Radio and television presenter (Chair); Professor Tim Birkhead, Fellow of the Royal Society; Tracy Chevalier, author; Robin Ince, stand-up comedian, writer and actor; Dr Janet Anders, Royal Society Dorothy Hodgkin Fellow.

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