Enigmas

Arising from the 2020 Darwin College Lectures, this book presents eight essays from prominent public intellectuals on the theme of Enigmas. Each author examines this theme through the lens of their own particular area of expertise, together constituting an illuminating and diverse interdisciplinary volume.

Enigmas features contributions by professor of physics Sean M. Carroll, author Jo Marchant, writer and broadcaster Adam Rutherford, professor of earth sciences Tamsin A. Mather, professor of the history of the book Erik Kwakkel, reader in cultural history Tiffany Watt Smith, mathematician and public speaker James Grime, assistant professor of positive AI J. Derek Lomas, and explorer Albert Y.-M. Lin. This volume will appeal to anyone fascinated by puzzles and mysteries, solved and unsolved.

EMILY JOAN WARD is a medieval historian examining change and continuity between the eleventh and thirteenth centuries, and a British Academy Postdoctoral Fellow at The University of Edinburgh.

ROBIN REUVERS is a mathematical physicist interested in quantum mechanics and statistical mechanics, and a tenure-track researcher at Roma Tre University.