Author: Satya Nadella
Publisher: HarperCollins
ISBN: 0062652516
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 153
Book Description
“At the core, Hit Refresh, is about us humans and the unique quality we call empathy, which will become ever more valuable in a world where the torrent of technology will disrupt the status quo like never before.” – Satya Nadella from Hit Refresh “Satya has charted a course for making the most of the opportunities created by technology while also facing up to the hard questions.” – Bill Gates from the Foreword of Hit Refresh The New York Times bestseller Hit Refresh is about individual change, about the transformation happening inside of Microsoft and the technology that will soon impact all of our lives—the arrival of the most exciting and disruptive wave of technology humankind has experienced: artificial intelligence, mixed reality, and quantum computing. It’s about how people, organizations, and societies can and must transform and “hit refresh” in their persistent quest for new energy, new ideas, and continued relevance and renewal. Microsoft’s CEO tells the inside story of the company’s continuing transformation, tracing his own personal journey from a childhood in India to leading some of the most significant technological changes in the digital era. Satya Nadella explores a fascinating childhood before immigrating to the U.S. and how he learned to lead along the way. He then shares his meditations as a sitting CEO—one who is mostly unknown following the brainy Bill Gates and energetic Steve Ballmer. He tells the inside story of how a company rediscovered its soul—transforming everything from culture to their fiercely competitive landscape and industry partnerships. As much a humanist as engineer and executive, Nadella concludes with his vision for the coming wave of technology and by exploring the potential impact to society and delivering call to action for world leaders. “Ideas excite me,” Nadella explains. “Empathy grounds and centers me.” Hit Refresh is a set of reflections, meditations, and recommendations presented as algorithms from a principled, deliberative leader searching for improvement—for himself, for a storied company, and for society.
Hit Refresh
Author: Satya Nadella
Publisher: HarperCollins
ISBN: 0062652516
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 153
Book Description
“At the core, Hit Refresh, is about us humans and the unique quality we call empathy, which will become ever more valuable in a world where the torrent of technology will disrupt the status quo like never before.” – Satya Nadella from Hit Refresh “Satya has charted a course for making the most of the opportunities created by technology while also facing up to the hard questions.” – Bill Gates from the Foreword of Hit Refresh The New York Times bestseller Hit Refresh is about individual change, about the transformation happening inside of Microsoft and the technology that will soon impact all of our lives—the arrival of the most exciting and disruptive wave of technology humankind has experienced: artificial intelligence, mixed reality, and quantum computing. It’s about how people, organizations, and societies can and must transform and “hit refresh” in their persistent quest for new energy, new ideas, and continued relevance and renewal. Microsoft’s CEO tells the inside story of the company’s continuing transformation, tracing his own personal journey from a childhood in India to leading some of the most significant technological changes in the digital era. Satya Nadella explores a fascinating childhood before immigrating to the U.S. and how he learned to lead along the way. He then shares his meditations as a sitting CEO—one who is mostly unknown following the brainy Bill Gates and energetic Steve Ballmer. He tells the inside story of how a company rediscovered its soul—transforming everything from culture to their fiercely competitive landscape and industry partnerships. As much a humanist as engineer and executive, Nadella concludes with his vision for the coming wave of technology and by exploring the potential impact to society and delivering call to action for world leaders. “Ideas excite me,” Nadella explains. “Empathy grounds and centers me.” Hit Refresh is a set of reflections, meditations, and recommendations presented as algorithms from a principled, deliberative leader searching for improvement—for himself, for a storied company, and for society.
Publisher: HarperCollins
ISBN: 0062652516
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 153
Book Description
“At the core, Hit Refresh, is about us humans and the unique quality we call empathy, which will become ever more valuable in a world where the torrent of technology will disrupt the status quo like never before.” – Satya Nadella from Hit Refresh “Satya has charted a course for making the most of the opportunities created by technology while also facing up to the hard questions.” – Bill Gates from the Foreword of Hit Refresh The New York Times bestseller Hit Refresh is about individual change, about the transformation happening inside of Microsoft and the technology that will soon impact all of our lives—the arrival of the most exciting and disruptive wave of technology humankind has experienced: artificial intelligence, mixed reality, and quantum computing. It’s about how people, organizations, and societies can and must transform and “hit refresh” in their persistent quest for new energy, new ideas, and continued relevance and renewal. Microsoft’s CEO tells the inside story of the company’s continuing transformation, tracing his own personal journey from a childhood in India to leading some of the most significant technological changes in the digital era. Satya Nadella explores a fascinating childhood before immigrating to the U.S. and how he learned to lead along the way. He then shares his meditations as a sitting CEO—one who is mostly unknown following the brainy Bill Gates and energetic Steve Ballmer. He tells the inside story of how a company rediscovered its soul—transforming everything from culture to their fiercely competitive landscape and industry partnerships. As much a humanist as engineer and executive, Nadella concludes with his vision for the coming wave of technology and by exploring the potential impact to society and delivering call to action for world leaders. “Ideas excite me,” Nadella explains. “Empathy grounds and centers me.” Hit Refresh is a set of reflections, meditations, and recommendations presented as algorithms from a principled, deliberative leader searching for improvement—for himself, for a storied company, and for society.
Refresh, Refresh
Author: Benjamin Percy
Publisher: Graywolf Press
ISBN: 155597015X
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 255
Book Description
The war in Iraq empties the small town of Tumalo, Oregon, of men—of fathers—leaving their sons to fight among themselves. But the boys' bravado fades at home when, alone, they check e-mail again and again for word from their fathers at the front. Often from fractured homes and communities, the young men in these breathless stories do the unthinkable to prove to themselves—to everyone—that they are strong enough to face the heartbreak in this world. Set in rural Oregon with the shadow of the Cascade Mountains hanging over them, these stories bring you face-to-face with a mad bear, a house with a basement that opens up into a cave, a nuclear meltdown that renders the Pacific Northwest into a contemporary Wild West. Refresh, Refresh by Benjamin Percy is a bold, fiery, and unforgettable collection that deals with vital issues of our time.
Publisher: Graywolf Press
ISBN: 155597015X
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 255
Book Description
The war in Iraq empties the small town of Tumalo, Oregon, of men—of fathers—leaving their sons to fight among themselves. But the boys' bravado fades at home when, alone, they check e-mail again and again for word from their fathers at the front. Often from fractured homes and communities, the young men in these breathless stories do the unthinkable to prove to themselves—to everyone—that they are strong enough to face the heartbreak in this world. Set in rural Oregon with the shadow of the Cascade Mountains hanging over them, these stories bring you face-to-face with a mad bear, a house with a basement that opens up into a cave, a nuclear meltdown that renders the Pacific Northwest into a contemporary Wild West. Refresh, Refresh by Benjamin Percy is a bold, fiery, and unforgettable collection that deals with vital issues of our time.
Tools and Weapons
Author: Brad Smith
Publisher: Penguin
ISBN: 1984877712
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 370
Book Description
The instant New York Times bestseller. From Microsoft's president and one of the tech industry's broadest thinkers, a frank and thoughtful reckoning with how to balance enormous promise and existential risk as the digitization of everything accelerates. “A colorful and insightful insiders’ view of how technology is both empowering and threatening us. From privacy to cyberattacks, this timely book is a useful guide for how to navigate the digital future.” —Walter Isaacson Microsoft President Brad Smith operates by a simple core belief: When your technology changes the world, you bear a responsibility to help address the world you have helped create. This might seem uncontroversial, but it flies in the face of a tech sector long obsessed with rapid growth and sometimes on disruption as an end in itself. While sweeping digital transformation holds great promise, we have reached an inflection point. The world has turned information technology into both a powerful tool and a formidable weapon, and new approaches are needed to manage an era defined by even more powerful inventions like artificial intelligence. Companies that create technology must accept greater responsibility for the future, and governments will need to regulate technology by moving faster and catching up with the pace of innovation. In Tools and Weapons, Brad Smith and Carol Ann Browne bring us a captivating narrative from the cockpit of one of the world's largest and most powerful tech companies as it finds itself in the middle of some of the thorniest emerging issues of our time. These are challenges that come with no preexisting playbook, including privacy, cybercrime and cyberwar, social media, the moral conundrums of artificial intelligence, big tech's relationship to inequality, and the challenges for democracy, far and near. While in no way a self-glorifying "Microsoft memoir," the book pulls back the curtain remarkably wide onto some of the company's most crucial recent decision points as it strives to protect the hopes technology offers against the very real threats it also presents. There are huge ramifications for communities and countries, and Brad Smith provides a thoughtful and urgent contribution to that effort.
Publisher: Penguin
ISBN: 1984877712
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 370
Book Description
The instant New York Times bestseller. From Microsoft's president and one of the tech industry's broadest thinkers, a frank and thoughtful reckoning with how to balance enormous promise and existential risk as the digitization of everything accelerates. “A colorful and insightful insiders’ view of how technology is both empowering and threatening us. From privacy to cyberattacks, this timely book is a useful guide for how to navigate the digital future.” —Walter Isaacson Microsoft President Brad Smith operates by a simple core belief: When your technology changes the world, you bear a responsibility to help address the world you have helped create. This might seem uncontroversial, but it flies in the face of a tech sector long obsessed with rapid growth and sometimes on disruption as an end in itself. While sweeping digital transformation holds great promise, we have reached an inflection point. The world has turned information technology into both a powerful tool and a formidable weapon, and new approaches are needed to manage an era defined by even more powerful inventions like artificial intelligence. Companies that create technology must accept greater responsibility for the future, and governments will need to regulate technology by moving faster and catching up with the pace of innovation. In Tools and Weapons, Brad Smith and Carol Ann Browne bring us a captivating narrative from the cockpit of one of the world's largest and most powerful tech companies as it finds itself in the middle of some of the thorniest emerging issues of our time. These are challenges that come with no preexisting playbook, including privacy, cybercrime and cyberwar, social media, the moral conundrums of artificial intelligence, big tech's relationship to inequality, and the challenges for democracy, far and near. While in no way a self-glorifying "Microsoft memoir," the book pulls back the curtain remarkably wide onto some of the company's most crucial recent decision points as it strives to protect the hopes technology offers against the very real threats it also presents. There are huge ramifications for communities and countries, and Brad Smith provides a thoughtful and urgent contribution to that effort.
Hello Life!
Author: Marcus Butler
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
ISBN: 1501129996
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 256
Book Description
Popular British YouTube star Marcus Butler “speaks with both honesty and sincerity” (Booklist) in this irreverent memoir and big-brotherly advice book on how to be an almost-adult. For a twenty-three-year-old, Marcus Butler knows a lot about life—and not just from his own experiences, but from the millions of followers on YouTube who chat with him on his irreverent channel, known for its mix of hilarious sketches, light-hearted banter, and deeply empathetic take on serious issues. In this funny, colorful handbook, the warm and totally down-to-earth star shares his trademark big-brotherly advice for navigating the trickier aspects of modern living. Inside you’ll find Marcus’s thoughts on: -Being healthy—including his nutritious eating tips, favorite gym-free exercises, and butt-kicking hacks for getting in shape -Dating—from finding the courage to be yourself, to banishing first-date nerves, to rebooting a broken heart -Surviving life crises—such as his parents’ difficult divorce, the pain of watching a close friend spiral into anorexia and self-harm, and his regrets over giving in to bullies and giving up on a sport he loved -Getting the life you want—lessons for staying organized, handling pressure, thinking positively, and breaking world records! Part autobiography, part self-help guide, Hello Life! is a candid and playful look inside Marcus Butler’s life—the failures, the successes, and the lessons he’s learned along the way.
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
ISBN: 1501129996
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 256
Book Description
Popular British YouTube star Marcus Butler “speaks with both honesty and sincerity” (Booklist) in this irreverent memoir and big-brotherly advice book on how to be an almost-adult. For a twenty-three-year-old, Marcus Butler knows a lot about life—and not just from his own experiences, but from the millions of followers on YouTube who chat with him on his irreverent channel, known for its mix of hilarious sketches, light-hearted banter, and deeply empathetic take on serious issues. In this funny, colorful handbook, the warm and totally down-to-earth star shares his trademark big-brotherly advice for navigating the trickier aspects of modern living. Inside you’ll find Marcus’s thoughts on: -Being healthy—including his nutritious eating tips, favorite gym-free exercises, and butt-kicking hacks for getting in shape -Dating—from finding the courage to be yourself, to banishing first-date nerves, to rebooting a broken heart -Surviving life crises—such as his parents’ difficult divorce, the pain of watching a close friend spiral into anorexia and self-harm, and his regrets over giving in to bullies and giving up on a sport he loved -Getting the life you want—lessons for staying organized, handling pressure, thinking positively, and breaking world records! Part autobiography, part self-help guide, Hello Life! is a candid and playful look inside Marcus Butler’s life—the failures, the successes, and the lessons he’s learned along the way.
The Microsoft Story
Author: Dan Good
Publisher: HarperCollins Leadership
ISBN: 1400223911
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 241
Book Description
Imagine?if you could see the playbook that returned a struggling tech empire to the top of the tech leaderboard.?The Microsoft Story?will help you understand and adopt the competitive strategies, workplace culture, and daily business practices that enabled the tech company to become a leading tech innovator once again. It wasn’t so long ago that Microsoft and its Windows operating system dominated the tech industry so much so that they faced antitrust charges for what was perceived by many to be predatory, monopolistic practices. Less than a decade later, the tide had turned and Microsoft lost its dominance in the personal tech marketplace amidst the launch of the iPhone, the rise of Google, and the cloud computing phenomenon. But, now, Microsoft is back on top. The company’s value is soaring and once again Microsoft is being recognized as a tech leader once again. What changed? The company culture has become one of creativity and innovation, no longer requiring that all products revolve around Windows. The company has reevaluated their business lines, getting rid of underperforming initiatives such as smartphones, and focused on the area of growth where the company excelled: the cloud. Through the story of Microsoft, you’ll learn: How to build a nimble company culture that supports innovation and growth. How to return a forgotten brand to the spotlight. How to recognize and build upon successful business lines, while letting go of underperforming initiatives. When to change the entire?way?you do business. Discover how this iconic organization got it right and created a successful long-lasting business, and how you can do the same for your company.
Publisher: HarperCollins Leadership
ISBN: 1400223911
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 241
Book Description
Imagine?if you could see the playbook that returned a struggling tech empire to the top of the tech leaderboard.?The Microsoft Story?will help you understand and adopt the competitive strategies, workplace culture, and daily business practices that enabled the tech company to become a leading tech innovator once again. It wasn’t so long ago that Microsoft and its Windows operating system dominated the tech industry so much so that they faced antitrust charges for what was perceived by many to be predatory, monopolistic practices. Less than a decade later, the tide had turned and Microsoft lost its dominance in the personal tech marketplace amidst the launch of the iPhone, the rise of Google, and the cloud computing phenomenon. But, now, Microsoft is back on top. The company’s value is soaring and once again Microsoft is being recognized as a tech leader once again. What changed? The company culture has become one of creativity and innovation, no longer requiring that all products revolve around Windows. The company has reevaluated their business lines, getting rid of underperforming initiatives such as smartphones, and focused on the area of growth where the company excelled: the cloud. Through the story of Microsoft, you’ll learn: How to build a nimble company culture that supports innovation and growth. How to return a forgotten brand to the spotlight. How to recognize and build upon successful business lines, while letting go of underperforming initiatives. When to change the entire?way?you do business. Discover how this iconic organization got it right and created a successful long-lasting business, and how you can do the same for your company.
Reprogramming the American Dream
Author: Kevin Scott
Publisher: HarperCollins
ISBN: 0062879898
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 274
Book Description
** #1 Wall Street Journal Bestseller ** In this essential book written by a rural native and Silicon Valley veteran, Microsoft’s Chief technology officer tackles one of the most critical issues facing society today: the future of artificial intelligence and how it can be realistically used to promote growth, even in a shifting employment landscape. There are two prevailing stories about AI: for heartland low- and middle-skill workers, a dystopian tale of steadily increasing job destruction; for urban knowledge workers and the professional class, a utopian tale of enhanced productivity and convenience. But there is a third way to look at this technology that will revolutionize the workplace and ultimately the world. Kevin Scott argues that AI has the potential to create abundance and opportunity for everyone and help solve some of our most vexing problems. As the chief technology officer at Microsoft, he is deeply involved in the development of AI applications, yet mindful of their potential impact on workers—knowledge he gained firsthand growing up in rural Virginia. Yes, the AI Revolution will radically disrupt economics and employment for everyone for generations to come. But what if leaders prioritized the programming of both future technology and public policy to work together to find solutions ahead of the coming AI epoch? Like public health, the space program, climate change and public education, we need international understanding and collaboration on the future of AI and work. For Scott, the crucial question facing all of us is this: How do we work to ensure that the continued development of AI allows us to keep the American Dream alive? In this thoughtful, informed guide, he offers a clear roadmap to find the answer.
Publisher: HarperCollins
ISBN: 0062879898
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 274
Book Description
** #1 Wall Street Journal Bestseller ** In this essential book written by a rural native and Silicon Valley veteran, Microsoft’s Chief technology officer tackles one of the most critical issues facing society today: the future of artificial intelligence and how it can be realistically used to promote growth, even in a shifting employment landscape. There are two prevailing stories about AI: for heartland low- and middle-skill workers, a dystopian tale of steadily increasing job destruction; for urban knowledge workers and the professional class, a utopian tale of enhanced productivity and convenience. But there is a third way to look at this technology that will revolutionize the workplace and ultimately the world. Kevin Scott argues that AI has the potential to create abundance and opportunity for everyone and help solve some of our most vexing problems. As the chief technology officer at Microsoft, he is deeply involved in the development of AI applications, yet mindful of their potential impact on workers—knowledge he gained firsthand growing up in rural Virginia. Yes, the AI Revolution will radically disrupt economics and employment for everyone for generations to come. But what if leaders prioritized the programming of both future technology and public policy to work together to find solutions ahead of the coming AI epoch? Like public health, the space program, climate change and public education, we need international understanding and collaboration on the future of AI and work. For Scott, the crucial question facing all of us is this: How do we work to ensure that the continued development of AI allows us to keep the American Dream alive? In this thoughtful, informed guide, he offers a clear roadmap to find the answer.
Clean
Author: Chris Beckman
Publisher: Hazelden Publishing
ISBN: 9781592851829
Category : Self-Help
Languages : en
Pages : 164
Book Description
Clean
Publisher: Hazelden Publishing
ISBN: 9781592851829
Category : Self-Help
Languages : en
Pages : 164
Book Description
Clean
Hire Purpose
Author: Deanna Mulligan
Publisher: Columbia University Press
ISBN: 0231553129
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 307
Book Description
A WALL STREET JOURNAL BUSINESS BESTSELLER The future of work is already here, and what this future looks like must be a pressing concern for the current generation of leaders in both the private and public sectors. In the next ten to fifteen years, rapid change in a post-pandemic world and emerging technology will revolutionize nearly every job, eliminate some, and create new forms of work that we have yet to imagine. How can we survive and thrive in the face of such drastic change? Deanna Mulligan offers a practical, broad-minded look at the effects of workplace evolution and automation and why the private sector needs to lead the charge in shaping a values-based response. With a focus on the power of education, Mulligan proposes that the solutions to workforce upheaval lie in reskilling and retraining for individuals and companies adapting to rapid change. By creating lifelong learning opportunities that break down boundaries between the classroom and the workplace, businesses can foster personal and career well-being and growth for their employees. Drawing on her own experiences, historical examples, and reports from the frontiers where these issues are unfolding, Mulligan details how business leaders can prepare for and respond to technological disruption. Providing a framework for concrete and meaningful action, Hire Purpose is an essential read about the transformations that will shape the next decade and beyond.
Publisher: Columbia University Press
ISBN: 0231553129
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 307
Book Description
A WALL STREET JOURNAL BUSINESS BESTSELLER The future of work is already here, and what this future looks like must be a pressing concern for the current generation of leaders in both the private and public sectors. In the next ten to fifteen years, rapid change in a post-pandemic world and emerging technology will revolutionize nearly every job, eliminate some, and create new forms of work that we have yet to imagine. How can we survive and thrive in the face of such drastic change? Deanna Mulligan offers a practical, broad-minded look at the effects of workplace evolution and automation and why the private sector needs to lead the charge in shaping a values-based response. With a focus on the power of education, Mulligan proposes that the solutions to workforce upheaval lie in reskilling and retraining for individuals and companies adapting to rapid change. By creating lifelong learning opportunities that break down boundaries between the classroom and the workplace, businesses can foster personal and career well-being and growth for their employees. Drawing on her own experiences, historical examples, and reports from the frontiers where these issues are unfolding, Mulligan details how business leaders can prepare for and respond to technological disruption. Providing a framework for concrete and meaningful action, Hire Purpose is an essential read about the transformations that will shape the next decade and beyond.
Your Computer Is on Fire
Author: Thomas S. Mullaney
Publisher: MIT Press
ISBN: 026253973X
Category : Computers
Languages : en
Pages : 417
Book Description
Technology scholars declare an emergency: attention must be paid to the inequality, marginalization, and biases woven into our technological systems. This book sounds an alarm: we can no longer afford to be lulled into complacency by narratives of techno-utopianism, or even techno-neutrality. We should not be reassured by such soothing generalities as "human error," "virtual reality," or "the cloud." We need to realize that nothing is virtual: everything that "happens online," "virtually," or "autonomously" happens offline first, and often involves human beings whose labor is deliberately kept invisible. Everything is IRL. In Your Computer Is on Fire, technology scholars train a spotlight on the inequality, marginalization, and biases woven into our technological systems.
Publisher: MIT Press
ISBN: 026253973X
Category : Computers
Languages : en
Pages : 417
Book Description
Technology scholars declare an emergency: attention must be paid to the inequality, marginalization, and biases woven into our technological systems. This book sounds an alarm: we can no longer afford to be lulled into complacency by narratives of techno-utopianism, or even techno-neutrality. We should not be reassured by such soothing generalities as "human error," "virtual reality," or "the cloud." We need to realize that nothing is virtual: everything that "happens online," "virtually," or "autonomously" happens offline first, and often involves human beings whose labor is deliberately kept invisible. Everything is IRL. In Your Computer Is on Fire, technology scholars train a spotlight on the inequality, marginalization, and biases woven into our technological systems.
Ultimate Physics
Author: Scientific American Editors
Publisher: Scientific American
ISBN: 1466859040
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 292
Book Description
The fundamental outlines of the physical world, from its tiniest particles to massive galaxy clusters, have been apparent for decades. Does this mean physicists are about to tie it all up into a neat package? Not at all. Just when you think you’re figuring it out, the universe begins to look its strangest. This eBook, “Ultimate Physics: From Quarks to the Cosmos,” illustrates clearly how answers often lead to more questions and open up new paths to insight. We open with “The Higgs at Last,” which looks behind the scenes of one of the most anticipated discoveries in physics and examines how this “Higgs-like” particle both confirmed and confounded expectations. In “The Inner Life of Quarks,” author Don Lincoln discusses evidence that quarks and leptons may not be the smallest building blocks of matter. Section Two switches from the smallest to the largest of scales, and in “Origin of the Universe,” Michael Turner analyzes a number of speculative scenarios about how it all began. Another two articles examine the mystery of dark energy and some doubts as to whether it exists at all. In the last section, we look at one of the most compelling problems in physics: how to tie together the very small and the very large – quantum mechanics and general relativity. In one article, Stephen Hawking and Leonard Mlodinow argue that a so-called “theory of everything” may be out of reach, and in another, David Deutsch and Artur Ekert question the view that quantum mechanics imposes limits on knowledge, arguing instead that the theory has an intricacy that allows for new, practical technologies, including powerful computers that can reach their true potential.
Publisher: Scientific American
ISBN: 1466859040
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 292
Book Description
The fundamental outlines of the physical world, from its tiniest particles to massive galaxy clusters, have been apparent for decades. Does this mean physicists are about to tie it all up into a neat package? Not at all. Just when you think you’re figuring it out, the universe begins to look its strangest. This eBook, “Ultimate Physics: From Quarks to the Cosmos,” illustrates clearly how answers often lead to more questions and open up new paths to insight. We open with “The Higgs at Last,” which looks behind the scenes of one of the most anticipated discoveries in physics and examines how this “Higgs-like” particle both confirmed and confounded expectations. In “The Inner Life of Quarks,” author Don Lincoln discusses evidence that quarks and leptons may not be the smallest building blocks of matter. Section Two switches from the smallest to the largest of scales, and in “Origin of the Universe,” Michael Turner analyzes a number of speculative scenarios about how it all began. Another two articles examine the mystery of dark energy and some doubts as to whether it exists at all. In the last section, we look at one of the most compelling problems in physics: how to tie together the very small and the very large – quantum mechanics and general relativity. In one article, Stephen Hawking and Leonard Mlodinow argue that a so-called “theory of everything” may be out of reach, and in another, David Deutsch and Artur Ekert question the view that quantum mechanics imposes limits on knowledge, arguing instead that the theory has an intricacy that allows for new, practical technologies, including powerful computers that can reach their true potential.