Polymath's Library

The Polymath's Library is a list of the best non-fiction books that explain a specific topic area (e.g., geography, history, law, biology, physics).

Please suggest and rank books, from any publication date, that you think are world class in distilling a topic area (e.g., Geography = Guns, Germs and Steel; History = The Lessons of History; Military Strategy = On War)

To guide your thinking - imagine your bright young (grand)daughter is about to go on a long and isolated journey (e.g., colonizing Mars, sailing around the world, starting a prison sentence). If her entire education had to come from the library you provided….what books would you recommend so she would return with a world class understanding of the core knowledge areas.

Please share suggestions in the following categories: Archaeology, Biology, Chemistry, Computer Science, Economics, Engineering, Geography, History, Law, Mathematics, Music, Philosophy, Physics, Psychology, Statistics.

Thanks,
Dylan