This library brings together books and materials that the NEXA authors have read, enjoyed, and felt were worth sharing. Some are directly about nuclear energy, others have nothing to do with the field. But all of them say something about how to think, about science, or about the world in a way that made a difference to us.
It also includes books we haven't read yet, but that are here because we intend to and because we think it's worth noting them before we do.
It's not a required reading list, but an honest collection of what has marked us and what we still want to discover.
If you are a researcher, professor, or work at an institution in the field and have public materials you'd like to suggest, get in touch.
Curated technical and scientific references on nuclear energy, physics, and the future of energy.
Energy is the only universal currency — everything that happens in the world depends on it. In this monumental book, Vaclav Smil traces how each energy revolution shaped human society: from fire and agriculture to steam, electricity, and fossil fuels. The central argument is direct: it wasn't empires, ideologies, or leaders that defined the course of civilization. It was energy.
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Hawking chose to speak to anyone curious about the universe, exploring what time is, what exists inside a black hole, and how the universe began. It stayed 237 consecutive weeks on the Sunday Times bestseller list. Not because it's easy, but because Hawking knew that the right questions don't need formulas to make sense.
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The thesis is provocative: nuclear power is inherently cheap. What makes it expensive is a regulatory regime built to increase costs, not to protect the public. Devanney taught Ocean Engineering at MIT and is the principal architect of the ThorCon molten salt reactor. Worth reading carefully, especially if you already have a firm opinion about nuclear energy.
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In 1637, Pierre de Fermat scribbled a claim in the margins of a book and left a note: the proof is obvious, but the margin is too small. It took 358 years and Andrew Wiles' obsessive work — seven years in secret — for someone to finally prove Fermat was right. Singh reconstructs that journey as if it were a thriller.
My favorite subject in school has always been math. Beyond, of course, enjoying solving problems, something I also really love is learning the stories behind the great formulas and the mathematicians who created them. This book is full of that, and that's what drew me to it.
Quantum computers aren't faster computers — they're a different category of machine, capable of solving problems classical computers could never tackle in any reasonable time. Kaku traces the path from theoretical quantum mechanics to the machines Google, IBM, and dozens of startups are building right now, and what that means for nuclear reaction simulation, drug discovery, and cryptography.
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From the infinitely small to the infinitely large: subatomic particles, large-scale cosmic structures, and the questions physics still hasn't been able to answer. Tyson and Walker try to show why these questions matter, and what it means to live in an era when they are being asked seriously.
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A pragmatic, data-driven analysis of how humanity can achieve rapid global decarbonization in time to contain the climate crisis. The authors examine real success stories to show how expanding nuclear energy, combined with renewables, offers the most viable and economically scalable path to replace fossil fuels.
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A deep investigation into the global geopolitical reconfiguration driven by the new dynamics of the energy market and by climate pressures. Yergin analyzes how phenomena like the U.S. shale revolution, the rise of renewables, and the electrification of transport are reshaping power relations, supply chains, and sovereignty disputes among powers like the United States, China, and Russia.
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A collection of essays that seeks to move beyond ideological dogmatism and foster a pragmatic, impartial debate about the role of atomic energy in Brazil's energy matrix. Bringing together specialists from fields such as nuclear physics, economics, and the environment, the book examines in detail the risks, costs, and socio-environmental benefits of expanding thermonuclear power in the face of the imminent depletion of fossil fuels and the country's need for secure national development.
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An illustrated guide to the gods and goddesses of Ancient Greece. Lawrence writes with the precision of someone who did the research and the enthusiasm of someone who genuinely loves the subject. Flora Kirk's illustrations complement the text without competing with it. Not every book has to be about science to belong here.
Greek mythology is a subject I've been following for a long time. Like many students, I believe, I read the Iliad during elementary school, and I think that's where my interest in the subject was born. Beyond the myths, what interests me most are the different interpretations of each character: how the same story changes depending on who tells it. What I also find peculiar about Greek mythology is the human air it gives to its gods — mystical beings and at the same time flawed, jealous, passionate. Pantheon organizes all of that carefully, addressing both the myths and the physical and personal traits of each god of Ancient Greece.
Hawking chose to speak to anyone curious about the universe, exploring what time is, what exists inside a black hole, and how the universe began. It stayed 237 consecutive weeks on the Sunday Times bestseller list. Not because it's easy, but because Hawking knew that the right questions don't need formulas to make sense.
I've been a Hawking fan for a long time, very likely because of his appearances on The Big Bang Theory 😄. In his book, he chose to write about the questions physics still hasn't been able to answer, or that maybe will never have a definitive answer. I really enjoy philosophy, and for that reason I think these debatable subjects are the ones that interest me the most. Beyond that, Hawking's humor also caught me by surprise. It's subtle, almost understated, but it's there, and I think that says a lot about who he was beyond his work.
What Vitória is reading — inside and outside of physics.
The story unfolds in a world inspired by East Asian history. After using her shamanic powers and the destructive invocation of the Phoenix to save her nation (Nikan) in the first book, Rin has committed unforgivable atrocities and now lives with hallucinations and a severe opium addiction.
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The book examines the classical thesis that the individual pursuit of profit and self-interest, although often driven by selfish instincts, ends up generating prosperity and development for society as a whole.
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