6 books on science Mark Zuckerberg thinks everyone should read

In January 2015, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg made it his mission to read one book roughly every two weeks. He called it A Year of Books.

The goal was to learn more about the world and humanity's place in it, so he set about recommending books on culture, history, and science. Many of his recommendations spanned the entirety of human history, ranging from topics like the history of violence to evolution to artificial intelligence.

We've rounded up the books on science Zuckerberg thinks everyone should read.

'Sapiens' by Yuval Noah Harari

'On Immunity' by Eula Biss

The anti-vaxxer movement sweeping across the US and Europe prompted Biss, a non-fiction writer, to investigate the benefits of vaccination.

Zuckerberg wrote that public-health workers recommended " target="_blank"On Immunity" to him, given all the science in favor of vaccinations. As vaccines lead to individuals contracting fewer infectious diseases, herd immunity kicks in and communities as a whole enjoy greater health.

'The Player of Games' by Iain M. Banks

Banks' 1988 science-fiction novel " target="_blank"The Player of Games" isn't exactly a science book, but it imagines what would happen if humanity conquered the galaxy and enjoyed untold wealth and pleasure thanks to super-intelligent robotics.

Not a huge fan of sci-fi — perhaps since the genre sometimes avoids scientific rigor — Zuckerberg picked the title as a "change of pace," he wrote on Facebook.

Zuckerberg isn't alone in the recommendation. Tesla CEO Elon Musk has also said he recommends "The Player of Games" for its forward-thinking application of imaginary technology.

'The Structure of Scientific Revolutions' by Thomas S. Kuhn

First published in 1962, " target="_blank"The Structure of Scientific Revolutions" is a seminal text in the history of science writing. It proposes a new way of thinking about breakthroughs in research, arguing that leaps forward occur separately from the minutiae of day-to-day work.

'Genome' by Matt Ridley

The first of two books by Ridley that Zuckerberg would go on to recommend, "Genome" target="_blank" traces one of the most important discoveries in recent history: the mapping of the human genome.

The ability to pin down exactly which genes encode which diseases and predispose people to a given illness has revolutionized the way researchers investigate medicine and doctors practice it.

'The Beginning of Infinity' by David Deutsch