World Innovation

Award-winning author William Rosen tells the story of the men responsible for the Industrial Revolution and the machine that drove it: the steam engine.

Under the aegis of machine learning in our data-driven machine age, computers are programming themselves and learning about - and solving - an extraordinary range of problems, from the mundane to the most daunting. Today it is machine learning programs that enable Amazon and Netflix to predict what users will like, Apple to power Siri's ability to understand voices, and Google to pilot cars.

Brilliant offers a sweeping view of a surprisingly revealing aspect of human history - from the stone lamps of the Pleistocene to the LEDs embedded in fabrics of the future. Jane Brox plumbs the class implications of light - who had it, who didn't - through the many centuries when crude lamps and tallow candles constricted waking hours. Brillant is infused with human voices, startling insights, and - only a few years before it becomes illegal to sell most incandescent light bulbs in the United States - timely questions about how our future lives will be shaped by light.

Phosphorus has played a critical role in some of the most lethal substances on earth: firebombs, rat poison, nerve gas. But it’s also the key component of one of the most vital: fertilizer, which has sustained life for billions of people.

Since the Gutenberg Bible first went on sale in 1455, printing has been viewed as one of the highest achievements of human innovation. But the march of progress hasn't been smooth; downright bizarre is more like it. Printer's Error chronicles some of the strangest and most humorous episodes in the history of Western printing. Take, for example, the Gutenberg Bible. While the book is regarded as the first printed work in the Western world, Gutenberg's name doesn't appear anywhere on it.

In Nature's Wild Ideas, Kristy Hamilton goes behind the scenes of some of our most unexpected innovations. She traverses frozen waterfalls, treks through cloudy forests, discovers nests in the Mojave desert, scours intertidal zones, and takes us to the deepest oceans and near volcanoes to introduce us to the animals and plants that have inspired everything from cargo routing systems to non-toxic glues, and the men and women who followed that first spark of "I wonder" all the way to its conclusion, sometimes against all odds.

How Creativity Rules the World shows that, despite contrary beliefs, creativity can be taught and learned by anyone. Creativity is an inexhaustible resource that is the key to thriving in the business world and beyond. This timeless guide promises to make the creative process of successful seven-figure artists and billion-dollar entrepreneurs—as well as Maria’s own—accessible and actionable for you to take the power of their ideas to the next level.

Behind the scenes in Silicon Valley, Reid Hoffman (founder of LinkedIn, investor at Greylock) is a sought-after adviser to heads of companies and heads of state. On each episode of his podcast, Masters of Scale, he sits down with a guest from an all-star list of visionary founders and leaders, digging into the surprising strategies that power their company’s growth. In this book, he draws on their most riveting, revealing stories - as well as his own experience as a founder and investor - to distill the secrets behind the most extraordinary success stories of our times.

Dive into the mesmerizing world of art with "The Visual Revolution," an enthralling eBook that takes you on a journey through the groundbreaking art movements that shaped our world. Discover the pivotal artists, daring trends, and revolutionary ideas that forever changed the course of art history. Unravel the fascinating story of late 19th-century art movements that set the stage for the birth of modernism, as "The Visual Revolution" leads you through Art Nouveau, Symbolism, and the revolutionary work of Paul Cézanne. Delve into the vibrant world of German Expressionism and the unique ...

“As Albert Einstein almost certainly never said, everyone is a genius—but if you judge a fish by its ability to climb a tree, it will live its whole life believing that it is stupid.” So begins Katie Spalding’s spunky takedown of the Western canon, and how genius may not be as irrefutably great as we commonly understand. While most of us may never become Einstein, it may surprise you to learn that there’s probably a bunch of stuff you can do that Einstein couldn’t. And, as Spalding shows, the famous prodigies she explores here were quite odd by any definition.

Based on 10 years of research and interviews with 80 top executives, the award-winning The Samsung Way is the first definitive guide to the groundbreaking management principles that transformed a lagging electronics company into one of the most successful brands in the world.

The rise of China's tech companies and intense competition from the sector is just beginning. This will present an ongoing management and strategy challenge for companies for many years to come. Tech Titans of China is the go-to-guide for companies (and those interested in competition from China) seeking to understand China's grand tech ambitions, who the players are, and what their strategy is. Fannin, an expert on China, is an internationally recognized journalist, author, and speaker. In this book, she provides listeners with the ammunition they need to prepare and compete.

David Rowan travels the globe in search of the most exciting and pioneering start-ups building the future. He’s got to know the founders of WhatsApp, LinkedIn, Google, Spotify, Xiaomi, Didi, Nest, Twitter and countless other ambitious entrepreneurs disrupting businesses in almost every sector. And yet too often the companies they’re disrupting don’t get it. They think they can innovate through jargon: with talk of change agents and co-creation gurus, ideas portals and webinars, make-a-thons and hackfests, paradigm shifts and pilgrimages to Silicon Valley.

Unleash the potential and let the entrepreneur in you soar high with our new eBook "From Hobbyist to Entrepreneur." Discover how an everyday hobby can catalyze into a phenomenal business venture! Our eBook will guide you through the fascinating world of consumer 3D printing. It acquaints you with the birth of consumer 3D Printing, its evolution, and how it transitioned from being a mere hobby to a lucrative business. Explore the anatomy of 3D printers, understand their types, their quality, and the diverse materials used. Immerse yourself in fun-filled, absorbing chapters which elucidate ...

The Spark of Genius: 20 Inventions That Changed the World 💡 Explore the fascinating stories behind 20 world-changing inventions, from the wheel to artificial intelligence. 📜 Uncover the human struggles, breakthroughs, and bold ideas that fueled history’s greatest innovations. 🧠 Meet the brilliant minds and unsung heroes who shaped our world through creativity and determination. 🛠️ From the printing press to the internet, learn how each invention redefined what was possible. 🚀 See how innovation drives progress, transforming societies, economies, and daily life. 🔍 ...

In The Geography of Genius, acclaimed travel writer Weiner sets out to examine the connection between our surroundings and our most innovative ideas. He explores the history of places, like Vienna of 1900, Renaissance Florence, ancient Athens, Song Dynasty Hangzhou, and Silicon Valley, to show how certain urban settings are conducive to ingenuity.

A big-picture look at how the latest trends in information management and technology are impacting business models and innovation worldwide.... With all of the recent emphasis on "big data", analytics and visualization, and emerging technology architectures such as smartphone networks, social media, and cloud computing, the way we do business is undergoing rapid change. The right business model can create overnight sensations - think of Groupon, the iPad, or Facebook.

Written by Robert Hannigan, the former Director of GCHQ, this book explores the role of the counter-intelligence services in history and today’s world – from the codebreakers and problem solvers, to innovation and creativity, secrecy and transparency and the global tech community. It will trace the history of counter-intelligence – from the early days of Bletchley Park, to the ongoing work of GCHQ – while reflecting on some of the unique characteristics of the engineers, mathematicians and other problem-solvers that make up the world’s intelligence community.

Innovation isn’t something you do after you get your work done. It’s how you do your work. Organizations all over the world are shedding jobs in record numbers. Yet today they are desperately in need of people with the abilities and skills to think ahead of the curve, delight customers, motivate colleagues, slash costs, and achieve unconventional results.In this practical road map to becoming irreplaceable, global innovation guru and best-selling author Robert B. Tucker reveals why honing your I-Skills (Innovation Skills) may be the smartest career move you’ll make.

One of the world's leading historians provides a revolutionary tour of the Ancient World, dusting off the classics for the twenty-first century. Mary Beard, drawing on thirty years of teaching and writing about Greek and Roman history, provides a panoramic portrait of the classical world, a book in which we encounter not only Cleopatra and Alexander the Great, Julius Caesar and Hannibal, but also the common people - the millions of inhabitants of the Roman Empire, the slaves, soldiers, and women.