In this collection, first published in 1951, the central theme is that everything has a history, and that we cannot fully understand anything without some knowledge of its history. Professor Haldane writes mainly on geology, astronomy and zoology, but includes a variety of other topics, including eugenics, Einstein, and C. S. Lewis. His outlines of zoology, of the geology of England, and of the evidence for astronomical theories, will be of great use to students and teachers.

Preface; Part I The History of England; Chapter 1 The Beginnings; Chapter 2 Life Reaches the Land; Chapter 3 The Age of Reptiles; Chapter 4 The Chalk and After; Chapter 5 The Battle of the Rivers; Part II Geological Essays; Chapter 6 Dating the Past; Chapter 7 Geological Revolutions; Chapter 8 Earthquakes; Chapter 9 Oil under England; Chapter 10 Exploring Subterranean England; Chapter 11 I Ask for Fossils; Chapter 12 I get Fossils; Chapter 13 We are still Suffering from the Ice Age; Chapter 14 Pollen and History; Chapter 15 Science and Prehistory; Chapter 16 Was England a Yugoslav Colony ?; Chapter 17 Cave Diving; Part III The Weather; Chapter 18 Frost; Chapter 19 Can we prevent Cold Spells?; Chapter 20 Weather Forecasts; Chapter 21 Heat and History; Chapter 22 Autumn; Chapter 23 Freezing and Thawing; Part IV The Evidence for Astronomical Theory; Chapter 24 The Earth Spins; Chapter 25 The Earth goes round the Sun; Chapter 26 The Nearer Stars; Chapter 27 Seeing the Past; Part V Astronomical Essays; Chapter 28 Common Sense about the Planets; Chapter 29 Looking for Blue Stars; Chapter 30 Radio from the Sun; Chapter 31 Cosmic Rays; Chapter 32 why the Earth is a Magnet; Part VI An Outline of Zoology; Chapter 33 The Classification and Origin of Animals; Chapter 34 The Simplest Animals; Chapter 35 Jellyfish and Polyps; Chapter 36 Worms; Chapter 37 Living in One's Skeleton; Chapter 38 Shelled Animals; Chapter 39 Fish; Chapter 40 Beasts and Birds; Part VII Zoological Essays; Chapter 41 Why Steal Beetles?; Chapter 42 Cage Birds; Chapter 43 Some Queer Beastst; Chapter 44 Counting Wild Animals; Chapter 45 Why I Admire Frogs; Chapter 46 The Hungarian Invasion; Chapter 47 A Great Event; Part VIII How Animals Behave; Chapter 48 The Robin; Chapter 49 The Starling; Chapter 50 Clever Birds; Chapter 51 How Bees Communicatet; Chapter 52 How Bees find their Way; Chapter 53 Movies for Toads; Part IX Evolution; Chapter 54 The Struggle for Life; Chapter 55 Man's Ancestry; Chapter 56 Darwinism and its Perversions; Chapter 57 The Mathematics of Evolution; Part X Great Men; Chapter 58 Langevin; Chapter 59 Hopkins; Chapter 60 Lea; Chapter 61 Jeans; Chapter 62 G. H. Hardy; Chapter 63 Einstein; Part XI Controversial; Chapter 64 Auld Hornie, f.r.s.; Chapter 65 More Anti-Lewisite; Part 12 Human Evolution: Past and Future; Chapter 66 Human Evolution: Past and Future;