What We Are Reading Today: ‘In Asian Waters’ by Eric Taliacozzo

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Updated 21 May 2025
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What We Are Reading Today: ‘In Asian Waters’ by Eric Taliacozzo

In the centuries leading up to our own, the volume of traffic across Asian sea routes—an area stretching from East Africa and the Middle East to Japan—grew dramatically, eventually making them the busiest in the world.

The result was a massive circulation of people, commodities, religion, culture, technology, and ideas.

In this book, Eric Tagliacozzo chronicles how the seas and oceans of Asia have shaped the history of the largest continent for the past half millennium, leaving an indelible mark on the modern world in the process.


What We Are Reading Today: ‘How the Universe Got Its Spots’

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Updated 02 January 2026
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What We Are Reading Today: ‘How the Universe Got Its Spots’

  • Nimbly explaining geometry, topology, chaos, and string theory, Levin shows how the pattern of hot and cold spots left over from the big bang may one day reveal the size of the cosmos

Author: JANNA LEVIN 

Is the universe infinite or just really big? With this question, cosmologist Janna Levin announces the central theme of this book, which established her as one of the most direct, unorthodox, and creative voices in contemporary science.

As Levin sets out to determine how big “really big” may be, she offers a rare intimate look at the daily life of an innovative physicist, complete with jet lag and the tensions between personal relationships and the extreme demands of scientific exploration.

Nimbly explaining geometry, topology, chaos, and string theory, Levin shows how the pattern of hot and cold spots left over from the big bang may one day reveal the size of the cosmos.