History of science Books

Book SynopsisExplores the historical and scientific issues that made comparative anatomy central to 19th-century biology and fostered the development of Darwin's theory of evolution.Trade Review'Appel has illuminated brilliantly the French intellectual scene in the 19th century...Under consideration are not only biological aspects of the debate, but also its religious, social and polical backgrounds, and its later influence on evolutionary theory and other modalities of culture and intellect....This beautifully organized, elegantly written book, based on sound research, is recommended strongly to readers interested in the forms and functions of the organism that is science.' The Scientist'Long-awaited and exhilarating study... the definitive modern account... Historians are only now coming to realize how prevalent and important morphological theories were in the pre-Darwinian period. The Cuvier-Geoffroy Debate contributes substantially to this changing historical perspective. Toby Appel's masterly study is destined to become a landmark.' Nature'this is a fascinating, clearly told and meticulously documented ... This is a fine work of scholarship, deserving to be read by all who are interested in the history of biology and palaeontology. Ignore the drab dust jacket and do not be deterred by the lack of enlivening illustration; buy it, read it, and learn much!' William A.S. Sarjeant, University of Saskatchewan, Modern Geology, 1992, Vol. 16Table of ContentsA classic confrontation and its interpretations; Cuvier and Geoffroy: Collaborators on a new science; "Le legislateur de la science" Cuvier and functionalist anatomy; Geoffroy and the emergence of philosophical anatomy; The battle lines are drawn: 1820-1829; The debate before the academie; Beyond the academie: The many uses of the debate; Teleology, morphology, and evolution: The debate and the future of zoology.

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Book SynopsisUncommon Sense is an innovative and lively examination of science and its historical development as an unnatural mode of thought. This book looks at why science developed in the West and what its implications have been for our society. This book will also challenge many assumptions about the nature and role of science in our world. Professor of Physics, Alan Cromer, examines not only the history of science and its unique mode of thought but also the way that science is taught and suggests ways of restructuring the curriculum.Uncommon Sense is an illuminating look at science, filled with provocative observations. Whether challenging Thomas Kuhn''s theory of scientific revolutions, or extolling the virtues of Euclid''s Elements, Alan Cromer is always insightful, outspoken, and refreshingly original.Trade Review... this book is a healthy antidote to all the deconstructing of the remarkable achievements of Western science that is going on in modern academic life. * Harold Morowitz, Nature *Table of ContentsAspects of Science; Mind and Magic; From Apes to Agriculture; Prophets and Poets; Theorems and Planets; Sages and Scholars; Towns and Gowns; Science and Nonsense; Are we Alone?; Education for an Age of Science; Appendix A: Hindu Trigonometry; Appendix B: An Integrated Science Course.

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Book SynopsisIn the early 20th century, American earth scientists vociferously opposed the new, and highly radical, notion of continental drift. Yet 50 years later the same idea was heralded as a major scientific breakthrough, and today continental drift is accepted as a scientific fact. Why did American geologists reject so adamantly an idea that is now considered a cornerstone of the discipline? And why did they react so much more negatively than their European counterparts? This book, based primarily on archival resources, provides answers to these questions. It complements existing work on continental drift and the emergence of the theory of plate tectonics by providing the first detailed historical account of the American geological community in the 1920s. It also challenges previous historical work on this episode, much of which ascribes the rejection of continental drift to the lack of an adequate causal mechanism. Instead, the author shows that the rejection was largely based on the view thTrade ReviewOreskes's book contains much pertinent information that will be useful to those interested in the history of tectonics in the twentieth century, and she presents it lucidly, in a well-organized manner. * ISIS *Table of ContentsIntroduction ; Part 1: Not the Mechanism ; 1. Two Visions of the Earth ; 2. The Collapse of Thermal Contraction ; 3. To Reconcile Historical Geolgoy with Isotasy ; 4. Drift Mechanisms in the 1920s ; 5. From Fact to Theory ; 6. The Short Step Backward ; 7. Uniformitarianism and Unity ; Part III: A Revolution in Acceptance ; 8. Direct and Indirect Evidence ; 9. An Evidentiary and Epistemic Shift ; 10. The Depersonalization of Geology ; Epilogue: Unity and Truth ; Notes ; Bibliography

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Book SynopsisProvides an account of the relationship between mathematical advances of the 17th century and the philosophy of mathematics of the period. Starting with the Renaissance debates on the certainty of mathematics, the book explores the issues raised by the emergence of these mathematical techniques.Trade ReviewStudents of the history of mathematics and philosophers of mathematics will find this a valuable addition to the literature. * Choice *Mancosu's book shows philosophical acumen as well as high technical competence--and it makes good reading even as it explores abstruse notions or involved technicalities. For historians of early modern mathematics, it is essential reading. * Isis *Mancosu tells the story well and is good at bringing out significant points. * International Philosophical Quarterly *This is a very carefully researched and documented analysis of the rich relationship between philosophy of mathematics and mathematical practice during the 17th century. * Mathematical Reviews *Mancosu's scholarly book is very carefully researched, but it is also clearly written and fascinating to read. It is not to be missed by anyone with a serious interest in philosophy of mathematics. * Philosophia Mathematica *Table of Contents1. Philosophy of Mathematics and Mathematical Practice in the Early Seventeenth Century 1.1: The Quaestio de Certitudine Mathematicarum 1.2: The Quaestio in the Seventeenth Century 1.3: The Quaestio and Mathematical Practice 2. Cavalieri's Geometry of Indivisibles and Guldin's Centers of Gravity 2.1: Magnitudes, Ratios, and the Method of Exhaustion 2.2: Cavalieri's Two Methods of Indivisibles 2.3: Guldin's Objections to Cavalieri's Geometry of Indivisibles 2.4: Guldin's Centrobaryca and Cavalieri's Objections 3. Descartes' Géométrie 3.1: Descartes' Géométrie 3.2: The Algebraization of Mathematics 4. The Problem of Continuity 4.1: Motion and Genetic Definitions 4.2: The "Casual" Theories in Arnauld and Bolzano 4.3: Proofs by Contradiction from Kant to the Present 5. Paradoxes of the Infinite 5.1: Indivisibles and Infinitely Small Quantities 5.2: The Infinitely Large 6. Leibniz's Differential Calculus and Its Opponents 6.1: Leibniz's Nova Methodus and L'Hôpital's Alalyse des Infiniment Petits 6.2: Early Debates with Clüver and Nieuwentijt 6.3: The Foundational Debate in the Paris Academy of Sciences Appendix: Giuseppe Biancani's De Mathematicarum Natura, Translated by Gyula Klima Notes References Index

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Book SynopsisFew scientists have made lasting contributions to as many fields as Francis Galton. He was an important African explorer, travel writer, and geographer. He was the meteorologist who discovered the anticyclone, a pioneer in using fingerprints to identify individuals, the inventor of regression and correlation analysis in statistics, and the founder of the eugenics movement. Now, Nicholas Gillham paints an engaging portrait of this Victorian polymath. The book traces Galton''s ancestry (he was the grandson of Erasmus Darwin and the cousin of Charles Darwin), upbringing, training as a medical apprentice, and experience as a Cambridge undergraduate. It recounts in colorful detail Galton''s adventures as leader of his own expedition in Namibia. Darwin was always a strong influence on his cousin and a turning point in Galton''s life was the publication of the Origin of Species. Thereafter, Galton devoted most of his life to human heredity, using then novel methods such as pedigree analysis Trade ReviewA splendidly readable and informative guide to Galton's life, works and impact ... the accounts of Galton's investigations of heredity and their reception make the book so useful and so absorbing ... succeeds remarkably well at communicating the shape and content of Galton's work on the physiology and populational dynamics of inheritance ... it will be the biography for a long time to come. * Heredity *

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Book SynopsisTells the story of how long-standing notions about the body as dominated by spirit-like humors were transformed into scientific descriptions of its solid tissues. This book shows how debates over investigative methods and models of body order influence biomedicine and the broader culture.Trade ReviewAdvance Praise for The Brain Takes Shape:Scholars often pay lip service to the important roles of theological and philosophical concepts in the making of modern science and medicine. Robert Martensen has taken the platitude seriously, and his book powerfully demonstrates how our modern beliefs about mind and body were first elaborated in the seventeenth century, when philosophy, theology and science were intertwined. The result is a cultural history of biomedicine at its very best. * W.F. Bynum, Wellcome Trust Centre for the History of Medicine, University College London *Table of ContentsSelected events and historical actors ; 1. Bodies, words, and images ; 2. Matter, spirit, and the heart ; 3. The human mind and "Gland H": Cartesian models of mind, brain, and nerves ; 4. When the brain came out of the skull ; 5. Body of witnesses ; 6. Toward a new physiology of human conduct ; 7. The transformation of Eve ; 8. Mind without brain: John Locke, Thomas Syndenham, and the constitutional body of the British enlightenment ; 9. On the persistence of the cerebral body and its alternatives

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Book SynopsisStinkhorns, puffballs, the corpse finder, deadly Galerina, Satan''s bolete, birch conks, black mold, the old man of the woods - the world of fungi is infinitely varied and not a little weird. Now, in Mr. Bloomfield''s Orchard, Nicholas Money introduces readers to a dazzling array of fungi, from brewer''s yeast and Penicillium to the highly lethal death cap. We learn of Madurella, which can erode bones until they look moth-eaten; Cordyceps, which wracks insects with convulsions, kills them, then sends a stalk out of the insect''s head to release more infectious spores; and Claviceps, the poisonous ergot fungus, which causes hallucinations. Money also showcases the lives of famed mycologists - including Reginald Buller who wore horse blinders as he walked to work, the better to study luminescent fungi in his dark lab, and Charles Tulasne, the Audubon of fungi, whose illustrations of specimens border on art. And he recounts his own childhood introduction to fungi in Mr. Bloomfield''s orchTrade ReviewA companionable foray into the realm of stinkhorns, black mold, yeast, and even Malassezia, the dandruff-related fungus that Head & Shoulders shampoo is designed to combat. Money is an English-born mycologist who has spent his life uncovering the secrets and lore of fungi, including varieties that thrive in solid granite, feed on human flesh, assist in crime-scene investigations, and, as in the case of a particular armillaria covering twenty-two hundred acres in Oregon, grow to become the largest organisms on earth. * The New Yorker *A forest carpeted with mushrooms; dandruff; athlete's foot; and killer diseases that attack the lungs and nervous system all come under Money's expert scrutiny as he reveals the realm of fungi in all its amazing diversity. Assuredly fascinating and highly entertaining, Money's chronicle boasts an inimitable style that mixes up factbased information and creative analogies. Stories of scientists such as A. H. R. Bullet, who recorded his discoveries in countless volumes, together with Money's curious observations * such as his attentive look at black mold growing on window frames and contemplation of the realities of flesh-penetrating organisms that do great bodily harmkeep things lively.... Definitely for science devotees who appreciate rollicking good humor.Booklist *Money's writing is accommodating and personal, with occasional chummy asides. Mr. Bloomfield's Orchard can be recommended to all nature lovers, regardless of background, who want to know more about fungi. * Nature *Mr. Bloomfield's Orchard drives home the fundamental lesson of biology: life is weird. Fungi and animals are kissing cousins on the tree of life, and yet it would be hard to imagine creatures more alien and bizarre than the mushrooms and molds that Nicholas Money introduces us to. Best of all, he introduces them with wit and insight, making his book a pleasure. * Carl Zimmer, author of Parasite Rex and Evolution: The Triumph of an Idea *A book for anyone who has ever marveled at a mushroom in the lawn, or shuddered at a tale of intractable fungal infection. Fungi are Nik Moneys passion, and he presents them with the empathy of the naturalist and the erudition of the scholar. At once informative and entertaining, he has produced a splendid read. * Franklin M. Harold, author of The Way of the Cell *Every major group of living organisms has its own fascination and enticement, although some of us reckon this to be particularly true for the fungi. Money's book substantiates this point with clarity, wisdom, and elegance. To be savored by beginners and experts alike, this book is a safe-conduct to the world of fungal biology and the manifold roles that fungi play in human affairs. * Elio Schaechter, Author, In the Company of Mushrooms *A witty and wonderful book. In lively prose, Nik Money tells of tramping through the woods in search of mold hermaphrodites, or to stick thermometers into wild mushrooms so as to measure their internal temperature. He also presents lurid descriptions of fungal diseases. The enzymatic vomit of one species can make your hair fall out; the cells of another species cement scalp grease into dandruff. Spores of a fungus that loves bird droppings can get into your lungs and turn your body into soup. I've never read better descriptions of the complicated sex lives and life cycles of fungal pathogens. This book should be required reading for anyone fascinated by the natural world. * Joan W. Bennett, Editor-in-Chief of Mycologia *Table of Contents1: Offensive Phalli and Frigid Caps 2: Insidious Killers 3: What Lies Beneath 4: Metamorphosis 5: The Odd Couple 6: Ingold's Jewels 7: Siren Songs 8: Angels of Death 9: Mr. Bloomfield's Orchard Notes Index

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Book SynopsisMichael Polanyi was one of the great figures of European intellectual life in the 20th century. A highly acclaimed physical chemist in the first period of his career who became a celebrated philosopher after World War II, Polanyi taught in Germany, England, and the United States. This biography focuses on Polanyi and his work.Trade Reviewvery informative...The apparently objective description of Polanyi's relationship to religion is one of the special values of this book. * Istvan Hargittai, Structural Chemistry *The work is triply welcome: It is the first biographical book on Polanyi; its panoramic scope will make more scholars aware of the magnitude of his achievements; and - meticulously researched, most accessible, and replete with fascinating details - the text is of a particularly high standard. * Struan Jacobs, Sophia *This book will be found valuable both by scholars and by the general reader. scoherent, congenial, yet comprehensive and compelling * Derry Jones, Chemistry World *

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Book SynopsisIf science has the equivalent of a Bloomsbury group, it is the five men born at the turn of the 20th century in the same neighborhood in Budapest: Theodore von Karman, Leo Szilard, Eugene Wigner, John von Neumann, and Edward Teller. Through immigration from Hungary to Germany to the United States, they remained friends and continued to work together and influence each other throughout their lives. As a result, their work was integral to some of the most important scientific and political developments of the 20th century.They were an extraordinary group of talents: Wigner won a Nobel Prize in theoretical physics without ever having taken a formal college-level physics course, Szilard was the first to see that a chain reaction based on neutrons was possible but left physics to try to restrict nuclear arms, von Neumann could solve problems in his head for which most people needed computers, von Karman became the first director of NASA''s Jet Propulsion Lab, and Teller was the father of thTrade ReviewThis is an important story that needs to be told, and Hargittai tells it well. Nature, November 2006.The similarities between character and fate with the Martians are not the only thing that makes Hargittai well suited to the job of writing their biographies; he also writes clearly and with dry humour. 3-2006, Lab Times, p55.Table of ContentsPreface ; Acknowledgements ; List of Plates ; Introduction ; 1. Arrival and Departure ; 1.1 Family Origin and Early Childhood ; 1.2 Gem and Less: Gimnazium Experience ; 1.3 Background in Hungary and First Transition ; 2 Turning Points in Germany ; 3 Second Transition: to the United States ; 4 "To Protect and Defend": World War II ; 5 To Deter: Cold War ; 6 Being Martian ; 6.1 Comparisons ; 6.1.1 Szilard and Fermi ; 6.1.2 Teller and Oppenheimer ; 6.2 Traits ; 6.3 Religion and Jewishness ; 6.4 Being Hungarian ; Epilogue ; Greatness in Science ; Had They Lived ; Conclusion ; Appendix: Quotable Martians ; Notes ; Select Bibliography ; Annotated Name Index ; Subject Index

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Book SynopsisAttractively illustrated with over a hundred halftones and drawings, this volume presents a series of vibrant profiles that trace the evolution of our knowledge about the brain.Beginning almost 5000 years ago, with the ancient Egyptian study of the marrow of the skull, Stanley Finger takes us on a fascinating journey from the classical world of Hippocrates, to the time of Descartes and the era of Broca and Ramon y Cajal, to modern researchers such as Sperry. Here is a truly remarkable cast of characters. We meet Galen, a man of titanic ego and abrasive disposition, whose teachings dominated medicine for a thousand years; Vesalius, a contemporary of Copernicus, who pushed our understanding of human anatomy to new heights; Otto Loewi, pioneer in neurotransmitters, who gave the Nazis his Nobel prize money and fled Austria for England; and Rita Levi-Montalcini, discoverer of nerve growth factor, who in war-torn Italy was forced to do her research in her bedroom. For each individual, FingerTrade ReviewThis book is entertaining and informative with plenty of personal detail and insights into the working practices and conditions of some of the major contributors to what we now call neuroscience. * Advances in Clinical Neuroscience & Rehabilitation *Table of Contents1. Introduction: a voyage across time ; 2. An ancient Egyptian physician: the dawn of neurology ; 3. Hippocrates: the brain as the organ of mind ; 4. Galen: The birth of experimentation ; 5. Andreas Vesalius: the new 'human' neuroanatomy ; 6. Rene Descartes: the mind-body problem ; 7. Thomas Willis: the functional organization of the brain ; 8. Luigi Galvani: electricity and the nerves ; 9. Franz Joseph Gall: the cerebral organs of the mind ; 10. Paul Broca: Cortical localization and cerebral dominance ; 11. David Ferrier and Eduard Hitzig: the experimentalists map the cerebral cortex ; 12. Jean-Martin Charcot: clinical neurology comes of age ; 13. Santiago Ramon y Cajal: from nerve nets to neuron doctrine ; 14. Charles Scott Sherrington: the integrated nervous system ; 15. Edgar D. Adrian: coding in the nervous s#stem ; 16. Otto Loewi and Henry Dale: the discovery of neurotransmitters ; 17. Roger W. Sperry and Rita Levi-Montalcini: from neural growth to 'Split Brains' ; 18. Pioneers and discoveries in the brain sciences

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Book SynopsisQuarrelsome and quirky, a disheveled recluse who ate little, slept less, and yet had an iron constitution, Isaac Newton rose from a virtually illiterate family to become one of the towering intellects of science. Now, in this fast-paced, colorful biography, Gale E. Christianson paints an engaging portrait of Newton and the times in which he lived. We follow Newton from his childhood in rural England to his student days at Cambridge, where he devoured the works of Copernicus, Kepler, and Galileo, and taught himself mathematics. There ensued two miraculous years at home in Woolsthorpe Manor, where he fled when plague threatened Cambridge, a remarkably fertile period when Newton formulated his theory of gravity, a new theory of light, and calculus--all by his twenty-fourth birthday. Christianson describes Newton''s creation of the first working model of the reflecting telescope, which brought him to the attention of the Royal Society, and he illuminates the eighteen months of intense labTrade ReviewProf. Christianson has done a great service to the science community and many others including students and the educated public. He has written an easy to read, enjoyable short biography on Newton that will that will attract not only students of science but also many others. * Current Engineering Practice *

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Book SynopsisImagine you are fluent in a magical language of prophecy, a language so powerful it can accurately describe things you cannot see or even imagine. Einstein''s Heroes takes you on a journey of discovery about just such a miraculous language--the language of mathematics--one of humanity''s most amazing accomplishments. Blending science, history, and biography, this remarkable book reveals the mysteries of mathematics, focusing on the life and work of three of Albert Einstein''s heroes: Isaac Newton, Michael Faraday, and especially James Clerk Maxwell, whose work directly inspired the theory of relativity. Robyn Arianrhod bridges the gap between science and literature, portraying mathematics as a language and arguing that a physical theory is a work of imagination involving the elegant and clever use of this language. The heart of the book illuminates how Maxwell, using the language of mathematics in a new and radical way, resolved the seemingly insoluble controversy between Faraday''s idTrade ReviewOpen-minded students will come away from reading Einstein's Heroes with a newfound appreciation of the role of scientific inquiry and insight in the larger human enterprise-and hopefully, will acquire a hankering to 'take to the field' themselves. * The Mathematical Association of America *Arianrhod's achievement is to so masterfully combine history, biography, and mathematics as to absorb and enlighten even the mathematically maladroit. * Booklist *Arianrhod is an infectiously enthusiastic writer, keen for her audience both to admire Einstein's heroes and to understand their contributions to fundamental mathematical physics. * Nature Physics *An intriguing blend of science, history, and biography.... Arianrhod's well-written, fascinating discussion of intertwined topics not usually presented in one book aimed at general readers is highly recommended. * Library Journal (starred review) *Offers readers an engaging intellectual exercise combining physics, language, mathematics, and biography. * Science News *A thrilling story.... Arianrhod is an easy author to like, and not simply for the clarity of her narrative. She brings out the human side of the scientists. She also is a student of imaginative prose: Her explication of a novel by the Australian David Malouf helps introduce ideas about mathematics, and she quotes the poet William Blake to crystallize a thought about Maxwell.... Scientists' quest for knowledge is exhilarating to Arianrhod, and she conveys that to the reader. * bloombergnews.com *On one level, Robyn Arianrhod's Einstein's Heroes is about the crowning achievement of classical physics * James Clerk Maxwell's understanding of electricity, magnetism, and light. But on another level, Arianrhod adeptly examines a much deeper idea: why is mathematics the language of nature and how do physicists tap the hidden power of numbers to understand the physical world? Einstein's Heroes does an admirable job of explaining the strange allure that mathematics holds over the scientists who so dramatically altered the way we look at the universe.Charles Seife, New York University, author of Zero: The Biography of a Dangerous Idea *With exceptional skill, Arianrhod makes her subject clearly understood through metaphor, example, and story. She has given us a treasure - a combination of history, biography, and essay that clearly shows how and why the language of mathematics is essential to imagination in modern physics. Her unique book deserves high praise and should be read by anyone who enjoys science writing at its best. * Science and Spirit *

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Book SynopsisIn the last fifteen years a controversial new theory of the origins of biological complexity and the nature of the universe has been fomenting bitter debates in education and science policy across North America, Europe, and Australia. Backed by intellectuals at respectable universities, Intelligent Design Theory (ID) proposes an alternative to accepted accounts of evolutionary theory: that life is so complex, and that the universe is so fine-tuned for the appearance of life, that the only plausible explanation is the existence of an intelligent designer. For many ID theorists, the designer is taken to be the god of Christianity. Niall Shanks has written the first accessible introduction to, and critique of, this controversial new intellectual movement. Shanks locates the growth of ID in the last two decades of the twentieth century in the growing influence of the American religious right. But as he shows, its roots go back beyond Aquinas to Ancient Greece. After looking at the historTrade Review[A] cogent and well-argued alarum...Shanks deftly skewers the scientific pretensions of intelligent design creationists. * Science *

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Book SynopsisIf science has the equivalent of a Bloomsbury group, it is the five men born at the turn of the 20th century in the same neighborhood in Budapest: Theodore von Karman, Leo Szilard, Eugene Wigner, John von Neumann, and Edward Teller. Through immigration from Hungary to Germany to the United States, they remained friends and continued to work together and influence each other throughout their lives. As a result, their work was integral to some of the most important scientific and political developments of the 20th century. They were an extraordinary group of talents: Wigner won a Nobel Prize in theoretical physics without ever having taken a formal college-level physics course, Szilard was the first to see that a chain reaction based on neutrons was possible but left physics to try to restrict nuclear arms, von Neumann could solve problems in his head for which most people needed computers, von Karman became the first director of NASA''s Jet Propulsion Lab, and Teller was the father of tTrade Review"What a story! Five brilliant Jewish-Hungarian kids burst out of the great secondary schools of Hungary, learn their physics in Germany, and give their all to America in WWII István Hargittai, a Jewish Hungarian like his heroes, tells the remarkable story of five immigrants of vastly different politics, without whom American science (and the world) would not be the same."--Roald Hoffman, Nobel Laureate, Ithaca, New York "István Hargittai traces the turbulent lives of five uniquely creative scientists who survived, succeeded, and changed the world."--Arno Penzias, Nobel laureate, San Francisco "This is an important story that needs to be told, and Hargittai tells it well."--Nature "Hargittai's book is subtle and thoughtful."--Physics Today Charlie Munger of WESCO Financial Corporation recommended this book at the 2007 WESCO Annual Meeting: "It is a hell of a book about five Hungarian physicists driven to the U.S. by Hitler, who contributed much to science here. I can't recommend it enough."--Charlie Munger "fascinating and informative"--Chemical HeritageTable of ContentsIntroduction ; 1. Arrival and Departure ; 2. Turning Points in Germany ; 3. Second Transition: to the United States ; 4. To protect and defend: World War II ; 5. To Deter: Cold War ; 6. Being Martian ; Epilogue ; Greatness in Science ; Had They Lived ; Conclusion ; Appendix: Quotable Martians ; Notes ; Select Bibliography ; Annotated Name Index ; Subject Index

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Book SynopsisThis book looks at how three kinds of strongly electric fishes literally became electrical, and how they helped to change the sciences and medicine. These fishes are the flat torpedo rays common to the Mediterranean, the electric catfishes of Africa, and an eel from South America. The discovery of the electrical nature of these fishes in the second half of the 18th century was the starting point of the two fundamental advances in the sciences: on the physiological side, the demonstration that nerve conduction and muscle excitation are electrical phenomena, and on the physical side, the invention of the electric battery. Starting with catfish tomb drawings from Ancient Egypt and colorful descriptions of torpedoes from the Classical Era, the authors show how these fishes were both fascinating and mysterious to the ancients. After all, not only could they produce torpor and temporary numbness when touched, they could stun through intermediaries, such as wet nets and spears. Various explanTrade ReviewThe book is more than a history of the electric fish; it is also a survey of the history of science, introducing all themes and approaches in this discipline in a relevant chronological sequence. This detailed work will be most useful to professional scientists/ historians in ichthyology neurobiology, and the history of the medical sciences. * CHOICE *Table of ContentsPART I: INTRODUCTION ; 1- The Allure of Electric Fishes: Humboldt's Obsession ; PART II: ANCIENT CULTURES ; 2- The Shocking Catfish of the Nile ; 3- Torpedoes in the Greco-Roman World: ; Pt. 1. Wonders of Nature Between Science and Myth ; 4- Torpedoes in the Greco-Roman World: ; Pt. 2. From Therapeutic Shocks to Theories of the Discharge ; 5- Byzantine and Islamic Writings ; PART III: MIDDLE AGES TO THE EARLY MODERN PERIOD ; 6- Torpedoes: From the Scholastics through the Renaissance ; 7- Rediscovering The Torporific Catfishes ; 8- The "Eels" of South America ; 9- From the Occult to Mechanical Theories of the Discharge ; PART IV: THE EMERGENCE OF FISH ELECTRICITY ; 10- The Electrical World of Benjamin Franklin ; 11- Animal Spirits and Physiology ; 12- First Steps Toward Fish Electricity ; 13- The Dutch, the Eel, and Electricity ; PART V: THE ROYAL SOCIETY AND THE COVETED SPARK ; 14- Edward Bancroft's Guiana Eels and London Connections ; 15- John Walsh's Scientific Journey ; 16- The Royal Society and Interdisciplinary Science ; 17- Out of the Guianas: The American Philosophical Society and the Eel ; 18- Alexander Garden: A Linnaean in South Carolina and Captain Banker's Eels ; 19- Sparks in Darkness and the Eel's Electrical Sense ; 20- Public Knowledge: Newspapers, Magazines, and "Shocking" Poetry ; PART VI: FROM FISH TO NERVE PHYSIOLOGY AND BACK ; 21- Galvani's Animal Electricity ; 22- Electric Fishes in Volta's Path to the Battery ; 23- Galvanism Contra "Voltaism": Electric Fishes and the "Unsolvable" Dilemma ; 24- Electric Fishes in the Nineteenth Century ; 25- The Changing Neurohysiological Setting ; 26- Understanding the Shock Mechanisms: A Twentieth Century Odyssey ; EPILOGUE ; APPENDIX I: Names with Birth and Death Dates ; REFERENCES

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Book SynopsisStudents of particle physics often find it difficult to locate resources to learn calculational techniques. Intermediate steps are usually not given in the research literature. To a certain extent, this is the case even in some of the established textbooks. In this book of worked problems enough details are provided so that the beginner will understand the solution in each particular case. With this step-by-step guidance, students (after first attempting the solution themselves) can develop their skills and confidence in their ability to work out particle theory problems. Besides being a problems/solutions addition to the well established textbook by Cheng & Li, this book introduces several new topics. It provides the reader with a self-contained approach to the subject, suitable even for those not familiar with the textbook. All problems have been given a descriptive title, enabling the reader to select according to his preferences.Table of Contents1. Field Quantization ; 2. Renormalization ; 3. Renormalization Group ; 4. Group Theory and the Quark Model ; 5. Chiral Symmetry ; 6. Renormalization and Symmetry ; 7. The Parton Model and Scaling ; 8. Gauge Symmetries ; 9. Quantum Gauge Theory ; 10. Quantum Chromodynamics ; 11. Electroweak Theory ; 12. Electroweak Phenomenology ; 13. Topics in Flavourdynamics ; 14. Grand Unification ; 15. Magnetic Monopoles ; 16. Instantons

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Book SynopsisThe oldest known mathematical table was found in the ancient Sumerian city of Shuruppag in southern Iraq. Since then, tables have been an important feature of mathematical activity; table making and printed tabular matter are important precursors to modern computing and information processing. This book contains a series of articles summarising the technical, institutional and intellectual history of mathematical tables from earliest times until the late twentieth century. It covers mathematical tables (the most important computing aid for several hundred years until the 1960s), data tables (eg. Census tables), professional tables (eg. insurance tables), and spreadsheets - the most recent tabular innovation.The book is presented in a scholarly yet accessible way, making appropriate use of text boxes and illustrations. Each chapter has a frontispiece featuring a table along with a small illustration of the source where the table was first displayed. Most chapters have sidebars telling aTrade ReviewThe book itself is the fruit of a very good idea of the British Society for the History of Mathematics, which was to have a conference and then a book on the theme of mathematical tables, and the editors are to be congratulated on a handsome volume on the social history of mathematics. * Notes and Records of The Royal Society *Table of ContentsIntroduction ; Table and tabular formatting in Sumer, Babylonia and Assyria, 2500 BCE - 50 CE ; The making of logarithm tables ; The computation factory: de Prony's project for making tables in the 1790's ; Difference engines: from Muller to Comrie ; The 'unerring certainty of mechanical agency': machines and table making in the nineteenth century ; Table making in astronomy ; The General Registry Office and the tabulation of data, 1837 - 1939 ; Table making by committee; British table maker 1871 - 1965 ; Table making for the relief of labour ; The making of astronomical tables in H.M. Nautical Almanac Office ; The rise and rise of the spreadsheet ; Biographical Notes

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Book SynopsisThis is an account of the history of the development of Euclidean, non-Euclidean and relativistic ideas of the shape of the universe. The material, which has been revised and updated for this edition, includes a chapter on the Arabic contribution to mathematical history.Trade ReviewReviews of this edition 'a very readable book that is stimulating and thought provoking.' New ScientistFrom reviews of the first edition `Jeremy Gray has provided a superb exposition which tells a good story.' Mathematics Teaching'This promises to become a classic text for those interested in considering changing mathematical perceptions of space. Gray's book is a pleasure to read.' Historia Mathematica`An admirable exposition for well-educated laymen of the evolution of geometrical thought from before Euclid to black holes.' American Mathematical MonthlyTable of ContentsPART I: Early geometry; Euclidean geometry and the parallel postulate; Investigations by Islamic mathematicians. PART II: Saccheri and his Western Predecessors; J H Lambert's work; Legendre's work; Gauss' contribution; Trigonometry; the first new geometries; the discoveries of Lobachevskii and Bolyai; Curves and surfaces; Riemann on the foundations of geometry; Beltrami's ideas; New models and old arguments; Resume. PART III: Non-Euclidean mechanics; The question of absolute space; Space, time and space-time; Paradoxes of special relativity; Gravitation and non-Euclidean geometry; Speculations; Some last thoughts.

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Book SynopsisThis text contains a translation of the "Nine Chapters". The "Nine Chapters" contains math problems and solutions, which fall into nine categories based on practical needs. There are methods for solving problems in areas such as land measurement, construction, agriculture, commerce, and taxation.Trade Reviewa rich compilation of attractive problems telling wonderful fairy tales full of imaginative and delightful connections * Zentralbaltt Mathematik *Table of ContentsIntroduction ; Liu Hui's Preface to his Running Commentary on the Nine Chapters ; 1. Field measurement ; 2. Millet and rice ; 3. Distribution by proportion ; 4. Short width ; 5. Construction consultations ; 6. Fair levies ; 7. Excess and deficit ; 8. Rectangular arrays ; 9. Right-angled triangles ; Appendix ; References ; Index

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Book SynopsisThis book presents the life and personality, the scientific and philosophical work of Ludwig Boltzmann, one of the great scientists who marked the passage from 19th- to 20th-Century physics. His rich and tragic life, ending by suicide at the age of 62, is described in detail. A substantial part of the book is devoted to discussing his scientific and philosophical ideas and placing them in the context of the second half of the 19th century. The fact that Boltzmann was the man who did most to establish that there is a microscopic, atomic structure underlying macroscopic bodies is documented, as is Boltzmann''s influence on modern physics, especially through the work of Planck on light quanta and of Einstein on Brownian motion.Boltzmann was the centre of a scientific upheaval, and he has been proved right on many crucial issues. He anticipated Kuhn''s theory of scientific revolutions and proposed a theory of knowledge based on Darwin. His basic results, when properly understood, can also Trade ReviewIt is valuable, not only for the wealth and scope of information it provides, but for offering an up-to-date view, accessible to all, of Boltzmann's scientific ideas. * Studies in History and Philosophy of Modern Physics *Carlo Cercignani has made an important contribution to our understanding of the man and his work in the context of his times... Much of the book will be interesting for the general reader. * George Fleck, The Chemical Intelligencer *I can warmly recommend the book to everybody who is interested in the history of science. * Dieter Flamm, Physics World *Table of ContentsForeword ; Preface ; Introduction ; 1. A short biography of Ludwig Boltzmann ; 2. Physics before Boltzmann ; 3. Kinetic theory before Boltzmann ; 4. The Boltzmann equation ; 5. Time irreversibility and the H-theorem ; 6. Boltzmann's relation and the statistical interpretation of entropy ; 7. Boltzmann, Gibbs and equilibrium statistical mechanics ; 8. The problem of polyatomic molecules ; 9. Boltzmann's contributions to other branches of physics ; 10. Boltzmann as a philosopher ; 11. Boltzmann and his contemporaries ; 12. The influence of Boltzmann's ideas on the science and technology of the twentieth century ; Epilogue ; Chronologys ; "A German professor's journey to Eldorado" ; Appendices

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Book SynopsisConstructing Quantum Mechanics is the first of two volumes on the genesis of quantum mechanics. This volume traces the early contributions by Planck, Einstein, and Bohr, all showing the need for drastic changes to the physics of their day. It examines the efforts by Sommerfeld and others to develop a new theory, now known as the old quantum theory. After some striking successes, this theory ran into serious difficulties and ended up serving as the scaffold on which the arch of modern quantum mechanics was built. This volume breaks new ground, both in its treatment of the work of Sommerfeld and his associates, and by offering new perspectives on classic papers by Planck, Einstein, Bohr, and others. Paying close attention to both primary and secondary sources, Constructing Quantum Mechanics provides an in-depth analysis of the heroic struggle to come to terms with the wealth of mostly spectroscopic data that eventually gave us modern quantum mechanics.Trade ReviewAn excellent work which innovatively combines conceptual clarity with penetrating analysis of relevant theory. * Helge Kragh, Annals of Science *Engineers and scientists from across the board will get a kick out of being able to read about the origins of their everyday toolkits - this is lucid historical reasoning about one of the great accomplishments of modern science. After seeing the author's track the launch of the old quantum theory, I'm looking forward to their account of full-blown quantum mechanics to come in volume 2! * Peter Galison, Harvard University *Clearly written, by highly competent authors, giving full reasoning and calculations for all important developments. * Olivier Darrigol, CNRS, France *This will be a widely read book and used in many physics and history of physics courses at the undergraduate college-university level. It will be greeted most enthusiastically by scholars and teachers alike. * Roger H. Stuewer, University of Minnesota *Indeed a very important and valuable contribution to the history of quantum mechanics. * Michael Eckert, Deutsches Museum, Muenchen *What seemed a good piece of work at the start is magisterial. This is the book I have been waiting to see for a long time. * Steven N. Shore, University of Pisa *This book will very likely become a new point of reference for everyone working on the history of quantum physics. * Christian Joas, Niels Bohr Archive *Table of Contents1: Introduction to Volume One Part I: Early Developments 2: Planck, the Second Law, and Black-Body Radiation 3: Einstein, Equipartition, Fluctuations, and Quanta 4: The Birth of the Bohr Model Part II: The Old Quantum Theory 5: Guiding Principles 6: Successes 7: Failures Appendices A: Classical Mechanics B: Spectroscopy

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Book SynopsisWhy did science emerge in the West and how did scientific values come to be regarded as the yardstick for all other forms of knowledge? Stephen Gaukroger shows just how bitterly the cognitive and cultural standing of science was contested in its early development. Rejecting the traditional picture of secularization, he argues that science in the seventeenth century emerged not in opposition to religion but rather was in many respects driven by it. Moreover, science did not present a unified picture of nature but was an unstable field of different, often locally successful but just as often incompatible, programmes. To complicate matters, much depended on attempts to reshape the persona of the natural philosopher, and distinctive new notions of objectivity and impartiality were imported into natural philosophy, changing its character radically by redefining the qualities of its practitioners.The West''s sense of itself, its relation to its past, and its sense of its future, have been prTrade ReviewGaukroger's book is a historical reconstruction that brackets historical context (social, practical, political etc.) and offers a plethora of studies on intellectual history on a variety of subjects that deserve attention in any investigation of the emergence of the scientific culture of the West. * Wolfgang Lefèvre ISIS d *The thesis of his substanial and impreesive book is that Christianity indeed played a major, not, as often proposed, through the dissociation of science from religious concerns, but through a reconstituted partnership between Christianity and (a reconstructed) natural philosophy...I am not aware of any other treatment of these themes that combines so magisterially a discerning account of changing boundaries between disciplines with a dispassionate analysis of the changing relations between theology and the sciences. The result is a scholarly exploration on a grand scale. * John Hedley Brooke British Journal for the History of Science *Gaukroger's book is a historical context (social, practical, political, etc.) and offers a plethora of studies in intellectual history on a variety of subjects that deserve attention in any investigation of the emergence of the scientidic culture of the West. * Wolfgang Lefèvre ISIS *This impressive and wide-ranging book is the first of a quintet devoted to the question: how in the (Western) world did all cognitive values come to be associated with scientific ones?... Gaukroger's grand beginning of an even grander five-volume narrative is an exceptional book. Its structure of scientific authority, as it were, is certain to stimulate long and lively discussions among academics of every stripe. * Michael H. Shank, Renaissance Quarterly *[A] substantial and impressive book...I am not aware of any other treatment of these themes that combines so magisterially a discerning account of changing boundaries between disciplines with a dispassionate analysis of the changing relations between theology and the sciences. The result is a scholarly exploration on the grand scale. * John Hedley Brooke, British Journal for the History of Science *especially useful to philosophers looking for the historical context of particular arguments. Few historians have the ambition to attempt a synoptic treatment of the entire history of Western science at anything more than an introductory level. Certainly, no one has undertaken such a project in recent years, when so much has been added to the secondary literature. Gaukroger's book is a comprehensive, narrative overview of the state of the art...[this book] and its companion volumes will fill an empty niche on scholars' bookshelves. * David Marshall Miller, Notre Dame Philosophical Reviews *A careful reading of this outstanding treatise by Gaukroger brings to life not only 500 crucial years that yielded the emergence of science in the west, but also the religious ferment and motivations that forwarded the new scientific culture. * T. Eastman, Choice *Gaukroger provides an insightful analysis...[and] the book's...content also reminds us of its author's accomplishments as a historian of philosophy. * Peter Dear, Nature, Vol. 446 *a project of breathtaking ambition... an impressive performance...and synthesizes a lot of difficult material into a coherent body. * Times Literary Supplement *Table of ContentsPART I ; PART II ; PART III ; PART IV ; PART V

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Book SynopsisThe system of numbering the years AD (Anni Domini, Years of the Lord) originated with Dionysius Exiguus. Dionysius drafted a 95-year table of dates for Easter beginning with the year 532 AD. Why Dionysius chose the year that he did to number as ''1'' has been a source of controversy and speculation for almost 1500 years. According to the Gospel of Luke (3.1; 3.23), Jesus was baptized in the 15th year of the emperor Tiberius and was about 30 years old at the time. The 15th year of Tiberius was AD 29. If Jesus was 30 years old in AD 29, then he was born in the year that we call 2 BC. Most ancient authorities dated the Nativity accordingly.Alden Mosshammer provides the first comprehensive study of early Christian methods for calculating the date of Easter to have appeared in English in more than one hundred years. He offers an entirely new history of those methods, both Latin and Greek, from the earliest such calculations in the late second century until the emergence of the Byzantine eraTrade Reviewif you have a taste for abstruse learning, classical theological, and calendrical, the sort of taste which inspires the compilers of those useful annual ecclesiastical calendars that help us out so much, this is the Paschal book for you. * Robin Ward, Church Times *Table of ContentsI: CONTEXTS ; 1. Introduction ; 2. Chronological Systems ; 3. Easter and the Passover Moon ; II: THE EASTER TABLES OF DIONYSIUS EXIGUUS ; 4. The Letters to Boniface and Petronius ; 5. The Structure of the 19-year Cycle ; 6. The Computistical Rules ; III: PASCHAL CALCULATIONS IN EARLY CHRISTIANITY ; 7. The 8-year Cycle and the Invention of the Epacts ; 8. The 19-year cycle of Anatolius ; 9. Athanasius and the Council of Sardica ; 10. The Classical Alexandrian Cycle ; 11. Paschal Calculations at Rome ; 12. Paschal Calculations in the Eastern Empire ; 13. The Chronicon Paschale and the origins of the Byzantine era ; IV: THE ORIGINS OF THE CHRISTIAN ERA ; 14. Evidence for the chronology of Jesus ; 15. The Christian era of Dionysius Exiguus ; 16. The Christian era of Panodorus ; 17. The Christian era of Julius Africanus ; 18. Anatolius and the Christian era ; Bibliography ; Index

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Book SynopsisThe first of its kind, this book is an in-depth history of hydrodynamics from its eighteenth-century foundations to its first major successes in twentieth-century hydraulics and aeronautics. It documents the foundational role of fluid mechanics in developing a new mathematical physics. It gives full and clear accounts of the conceptual breakthroughs of physicists and engineers who tried to meet challenges in the practical worlds of hydraulics, navigation, blood circulation, meteorology, and aeronautics, and it shows how hydrodynamics at last began to fulfill its early promise to unify the different worlds of flow. Richly illustrated, technically thorough, and sensitive to cross-cultural effects, this history should attract a broad range of historians, scientists, engineers, and philosophers and be a standard reference for anyone interested in fluid mechanics.Trade ReviewThis book deserves a place in every university library, and it will surely be read with much interest, and some surprise, by many applied mathematicians. * Alex D.D. Craik, University of St Andrews, The London Mathematical Society Newsletter 2006 *The book is a valuable contribution to its subject and is likely to provide new and perhaps useful insights to those studying fluid dynamics. It is well written and produced. * D.H. Peregrine, Mathematical Reviews *By presenting in detail the interactions between many mathematicians and engineers, and by emphasizing the different styles characteristic of scientists in different countries, Darrigol has provided a fascinating insight into the development of hydrodynamics. * J. Stewart Turner, Australian National University, Canberra, August 2006, Physics World 2006 *A fascinating and well written book. * Meccanica 2007 *Table of Contents1. The dynamical equations ; 2. Water waves ; 3. Viscosity ; 4. Vortices ; 5. Instability ; 6. Turbulence ; 7. Drag and lift

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Book SynopsisIn this outstanding book leading scholars from around the world examine the history of linguistics from ancient origins to the present. They consider every aspect of the field from language origins to neurolinguistics, explore linguistic traditions in east and west, chronicle centuries of explanations for language structures, meanings, and usage, and look at how it has been practically applied.The book is organized in six parts. The first looks at the origins of language, the invention of writing, the nature of gesture, and sign languages. Part II examines the history of the analysis and description of sound systems. Part III considers the history of linguistics in China, Korea, Japan, India, and the Middle East, as well as the history of the study of Semitic and Afro-Asiatic. Part IV examines the history of grammar and morphology in the west from the classical world to the present. Part V surveys the history of lexicography semantics, pragmatics, and text and discourse studies. Part VTrade Review[A] fine resource for scholars and teachers who want to go beyond textbook treatments in introductory courses... Highly recommended. * E. L. Battistella, Choice *this volume is destined to become an indispensable reference work for anyone wishing to delve more deeply into the history of the discipline. * The Year's Work in English Studies *Table of Contents1. The Origins and the Evolution of Language ; 2. The History of Writing as a History of Linguistics ; 3. History of the Study of Gesture ; 4. The History of Sign Language Linguistics ; 5. Orthography and the Early History of Phonetics ; 6. From IPA to PRAAT and Beyond ; 7. Nineteenth Century Study of Sound Change From Rask to Saussure ; 8. Discoverers of the Phoneme ; 9. A History of Sound Symbolism ; 10. East Asian Linguistics ; 11. Linguistics in India ; 12. From Semitic to Afro-Asiatic ; 13. From Plato to Priscian: Philosophy's legacy to grammar ; 14. Pedagogical Grammars Before the Eighteenth Century ; 15. Vernaculars and the Idea of a Standard Language ; 16. Word-based Morphology From Aristotle to Modern WP ; 17. General or Universal Grammar From Plato to Chomsky ; 18. American Descriptivism ('structuralism') ; 19. Noam Chomsky's Contribution to Linguistics: a sketch ; 20. European Linguistics Since Saussure ; 21. Functional and Cognitive Grammars ; 22. Lexicography From Earliest Times to the Present ; 23. The Logico-philosophical Tradition ; 24. Lexical Semantics From Speculative Etymology to Structuralist Semantics ; 25. Post-structuralist and Cognitive Approaches to Meaning ; 26. A Brief Sketch of teh Historic Developments of Pragmatics ; 27. Meaning in Texts and Contexts ; 28. Comparative, Historical, and Typological Linguistics Since the Eighteenth Century ; 29. Language, Culture, and Society ; 30. Language, The Mind, and The Brain ; 31. Translation: the intertranslatability of languages; translation and language teaching ; 32. Computational Linguistics ; 33. The History of Corpus Linguistics ; 34. Philosophy of Linguistics ; References ; Index

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Book SynopsisThis Handbook explores the history of mathematics under a series of themes which raise new questions about what mathematics has been and what it has meant to practise it. It addresses questions of who creates mathematics, who uses it, and how. A broader understanding of mathematical practitioners naturally leads to a new appreciation of what counts as a historical source. Material and oral evidence is drawn upon as well as an unusual array of textual sources. Further, the ways in which people have chosen to express themselves are as historically meaningful as the contents of the mathematics they have produced. Mathematics is not a fixed and unchanging entity. New questions, contexts, and applications all influence what counts as productive ways of thinking. Because the history of mathematics should interact constructively with other ways of studying the past, the contributors to this book come from a diverse range of intellectual backgrounds in anthropology, archaeology, art history, pTrade ReviewReview from previous edition "wonderful food for thought for any practitioner" * Times Higher Education Supplement *"a splendid, something-for-everybody treasure-trove of interesting, informative, challenging, well written testaments to the variety and vigor of history of mathematics in our time" * Historia Mathematica *"Well written, well edited and well rounded... a healthy contribution to a burgeoning field of newly self-aware research." * British Journal for the History of Science *Table of ContentsINTRODUCTION; GEOGRAPHIES AND CULTURES: GLOBAL; GEOGRAPHIES AND CULTURES: REGIONAL; GEOGRAPHIES AND CULTURES: LOCAL; PEOPLE AND PRACTICES: LIVES; PEOPLE AND PRACTICES: PRACTICES; PEOPLE AND PRACTICES: PRESENTATION; INTERACTIONS AND INTERPRETATIONS: INTELLECTUAL; INTERACTIONS AND INTERPRETATIONS: MATHEMATICAL; INTERACTIONS AND INTERPRETATIONS: HISTORICAL; ABOUT THE CONTRIBUTORS; INDEX

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Book SynopsisUnderstanding the emergence of a scientific culture - one in which cognitive values generally are modelled on, or subordinated to, scientific ones - is one of the foremost historical and philosophical problems with which we are now confronted. The significance of the emergence of such scientific values lies above all in their ability to provide the criteria by which we come to appraise cognitive enquiry, and which shape our understanding of what it can achieve. The period between the 1680s and the middle of the eighteenth century is a very distinctive one in this development. It is then that we witness the emergence of the idea that scientific values form a model for all cognitive claims. It is also at this time that science explicitly goes beyond technical expertise and begins to articulate a world-view designed to displace others, whether humanist or Christian. But what occurred took place in a peculiar and overdetermined fashion, and the outcome in the mid-eighteenth century was notTrade ReviewIt is impressively scholarly, interesting, and will no doubt take its place as an important contribution to the field of intellectual history. * Kurt Smith, MIND *makes a welcome contribution to the history of science * James A.T. Lancaster, British Journal for the History of Science *Table of ContentsIntroduction ; PART I ; 1. The Construction of a New World Picture ; 2. The Mathematical Principles of Natural Philosophy ; PART II ; 3. The Metaphysical Unity of Natural Philosophy ; 4. From Experimental Philosophy to Empiricism ; 5. Explaining the Phenomena ; PART III ; 6. Natural Philosophy and the Republic of Letters ; 7. The Realm of Reason ; PART IV ; 8. The Fortunes of a Unified Model of Natural Philosophy ; 9. Material Activity ; 10. Living and Dead Matter ; PART V ; 11. The Realm of Sensibility ; 12. Historical Understanding and the Human Condition ; Conclusion ; Bibliography of Works Cited ; Index

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Book SynopsisDorothy Wrinch, a complicated and ultimately tragic figure, is remembered today for her much publicized feud with Linus Pauling over the shape of proteins, known as the cyclol controversy. Pauling emerged victorious and is now seen as one of the 20th century''s greatest scientists. History has proven less kind to Wrinch. Although some of Wrinch''s theories did not pass the test of time, her contributions to the fields of Darwinism, probability and statistics, quantum mechanics, x-ray diffraction, and computer science were anything but inconsequential. Wrinch''s story is also the story of the science of crystals and the ever-changing notion of symmetry fundamental to that science.Drawing on her own personal relationship with Wrinch as well as the papers archived at Smith College and elsewhere, Marjorie Senechal explores the life of this brilliant and controversial figure in I Died for Beauty. This biography provides a coherent biographical narration, a detailed account of the cyclol controversy, and a personal memoir of the author''s relationship with Wrinch. Senechal presents a sympathetic portrait of the life and science of a luminous but tragically flawed character.Trade ReviewIt is tremendous that Senechal has excavated this story. She offers a gripping portrait of an era and of a scientist whose complications acquire a tragic glamour. It is a cautionary tale for which we must supply the moral ourselves. * Philip Ball, Nature *Table of Contentsnot yet available

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Book SynopsisWhy did an atheist like Carl Sagan talk so much about God? Why does NASA climatologist James Hansen plead with us in his recent book not to waste Our Last Chance to Save Humanity? Because science advisors are our new prophets, Lynda Walsh argues in Scientists as Prophets: A Rhetorical Genealogy. She does not claim, as some scholars have, that these public scientists push scientism as a replacement for religion. Rather, she puts forth the provocative argument that prophetic ethos is a flexible type of charismatic authority whose function is to manufacture certainty. Scientists aren''t our only prophets, Walsh contents, but science advisors predictably perform prophetic ethos whenever they need to persuade their publics to take action or fund basic research. Walsh first charts the genealogy of this hybrid scientific-prophetic ethos back to its roots in ancient oracles before exploring its flourishing in 17th century Europe. She then tracks its performances and mutations through several iTrade ReviewOn contentious issues like climate change and the teaching of evolution in schools, public officials seek out scientific advisers for guidance, oftentimes pulling scientists into the spotlight away from their comfort zones. Some win widespread acclaim for their efforts to shape public policy, while others are denounced as subverters of traditional values. In Scientists as Prophets, Lynda Walsh shows that across history-Francis Bacon, Robert Boyle, Rachel Carson, J. Robert Oppenheimer, Steven Jay Gould, Carl Sagan-scientists who venture into public policy arenas are immersed in the discourse of prophecy. In this ambitious and insightful book, Walsh raises our appreciation of prophecy as a pragmatic and rational genre for experts doing their best to interpret the unknowable. * Davida Charney, Professor of Rhetoric and Writing, The University of Texas at Austin *Walsh shows that the prophetic function of the science adviser is as old as science itself, not a contemporary add-on. She uses an ingenious adaptation of Kenneth Burke's Pentad to trace its history and to show how the prophetic ethos has shaped contemporary controversies over nuclear security, pesticides, and global warming. The work is deeply informed, engagingly written, and convincingly argued; it enriches our understanding of the rhetoric of science and of the relations between science and the polity. * Carolyn R. Miller, SAS Institute Distinguished Professor of Rhetoric and Technical Communication, North Carolina State University *This book is interesting, nuanced and stimulating. * Jaume Navarro, British Journal for the History of Science *Table of ContentsPreface ; Chapter 1-Prelude: Scientists as Prophets and the Rhetoric of Prophecy ; Chapter 2-The Delphic Oracle and Ancient Prophetic Ethos ; Chapter 3-The Natural Magician and the Prophet: Francis Bacon's Ethical Alchemy ; Chapter 4-Confirming Signs: The Prophetic Ethos of the Early Royal Society ; Chapter 5-Interlude: Competing Ethical Models and a Catch-22 ; Chapter 6-J. Robert Oppenheimer: Cultic prophet ; Chapter 7-Rachel Carson, Kairotic Prophet ; Chapter 8-Media, Metaphor, and the <"Oracles of Science>" ; Chapter 9-Climate Change and the Technologies of Prophecy ; Chapter 10-Postlude: Problems and Solutions ; Appendix: Key Reception and Constitution Sources ; Notes ; Selected Bibliography

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Book SynopsisCrucible of Science is the story of a unique laboratory at Washington University in St. Louis, and of Carl and Gerty Cori, the biochemists who established it. Carl and Gerty met and married at medical school in Prague in the 1920s. After graduation, they immigrated to the U.S. to escape deteriorating conditions in Europe. Carl soon received an offer from Washington University to become Pharmacology Chair, and the couple settled in St. Louis. Not only did both Coris go on to win the Nobel Prize, the laboratory they established at the University has since produced some of the most outstanding scientists the U.S. has ever seen. Six laboratory scientists also won Nobel Prizes; few, if any, laboratories can claim such an impressive record. The Coris themselves were instrumental in establishing the then new science of Biochemistry in the U.S. They applied chemical approaches to elucidating the transformations of compounds such as glucose in animal tissues and defined the enzyme BIOL15GENRthaTable of ContentsINTRODUCTION ; CHAPTER 1 - CARL AND GERTY CORI ; CHAPTER 2 - SIDNEY COLOWICK - THEIR FIRST GRADUATE STUDENT ; CHAPTER 3 - HERMAN KALCKAR - THE GREAT DANE ; CHAPTER 4 - SEVERO OCHOA - SPANISH GENIUS ; CHAPTER 5 - MOVE TO ENZYMOLOGY AND WORK OF ARDA GREEN ; CHAPTER 6 - LUIS LELOIR - ONE OF ARGENTINA'S GREATEST SCIENTISTS ; CHAPTER 7 - EARL SUTHERLAND - MASTER OF INTUITION ; CHAPTER 8 - CORI'S MOVE TO THE DEPARTMENT OF BIOLOGICAL CHEMISTRY - AWARD OF NOBEL PRIZES AND CAREER OF TOM CORI ; CHAPTER 9 - SIDNEY VELICK - MODEST ENZYMOLOGIST ; CHAPTER 10 - VICTOR NAJJAR - PEDIATRICIAN AND IMMUNOCHEMIST ; CHAPTER 11 - EDWIN KREBS - ACCIDENTAL BIOCHEMIST ; CHAPTER 12 - MILDRED COHN - AGAINST ALL ODDS ; CHAPTER 13 - CHRISTIAN de DUVE - BELGIAN WITH SAVOIR FAIRE ; CHAPTER 14 - ARTHUR KORNBERG - A GIANT OF BIOCHEMISTRY ; CHAPTER 15 - HORMONE EFFECTS ON MUSCLE CARBOHYDRATE METABOLISM ; CHAPTER 16 - CHARLES PARK - ARISTOCRATIC PHYSIOLOGIST ; CHAPTER 17 - JANE HARTING PARK - ENTHUSIAST FOR SCIENCE ; CHAPTER 18 - GERTY CORI'S WORK ON GLYCOGEN STRUCTURE AND GLYCOGEN STORAGE DISEASES ; CHAPTER 19 - JOSEPH LARNER - FOCUS ON GLYCOGEN SYNTHASE ; CHAPTER 20 - CONTRIBUTIONS OF BARBARA AND DAVID BROWN ; CHAPTER 21 - WILLIAM DAUGHADAY - ALL ABOUT GROWTH ; CHAPTER 22 - ROBERT CRANE - A DECADE WITH CARL CORI ; CHAPTER 23 - ALBERTO SOLS - SPANISH ENZYMOLOGIST ; CHAPTER 24 - LUIS GLASER - THE COMPLEXITY OF CARBOHYDRATES ; CHAPTER 25 - ERNST HELMREICH - JOVIAL BAVARIAN ; CHAPTER 26 - CARL FRIEDEN - ENZYME KINETICIST ; CHAPTER 27 - DAVID KIPNIS - DIABETOLOGIST ; CHAPTER 28 - WILLIAM DANFORTH - ACADEMIC LEADER ; CHAPTER 29 - THE INFLUENCE OF THE CORIS ON WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY AND CARL CORI'S RESEARCH AT BOSTON ; CHAPTER 30 - THE HERITAGE OF THE CORIS

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Book SynopsisWhat is meant by scientific evidence, and how can a definition of this concept be applied in the sciences to determine whether observed facts constitute evidence that a given theory is true?In this book, Peter Achinstein proposes and defends several objective concepts of evidence. He then explores the question of whether a scientific method, such as that represented in the four Rules for the Study of Natural Philosophy that Isaac Newton invoked in proving his law of gravity, can be employed in demonstrating how the proposed definitions of evidence are to be applied to real scientific cases. In answering this question, he offers a new interpretation of Newton''s controversial rules. Contrary to what many methodologists assume, whether the rules, so interpreted, can be used to determine whether observed phenomena provide evidence for a theory is an empirical question, not an a priori one. Finally, in order to deal with numerous cases in which evidence is insufficient to establish a theorTrade Review[T]he renowned philosopher of science Peter Achinstein focuses on the question whether observed phenomena constitute evidence that a theory is true. ...The book is clearly written, aims at a general audience and provides valuable insights into the works of these two icons of modern science. Thus, it is warmly recommended for the readers of Science & Education. * Science & Education *a significant contribution to what philosophers of science can learn from the methodologies of Newton and Maxwell. * William L. Harper, Metascience *Table of ContentsPreface ; Chapter 1: A Problem about Evidence ; Chapter 2: Newton's Rules ; Chapter 3: Newtonian Extensions, a Rival, Justifying Induction, and Evidence ; Chapter 4: What to Do If You Cannot Establish a Theory: Maxwell's Three Methods

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Book SynopsisSexual Inversion was the first English medical textbook about homosexuality. It had a chequered publishing history, going through five editions between 1896 and 1915. This edition, with a long critical introduction, places the book in its intellectual and social contexts, and considers the historiography surrounding this important work.Trade Review'It is extremely important that such books are reprinted because they offer a fresh perspective on an essential moment in gay and sexological history, on the making of the homosexual and out of the ashes of sodomites, pederasts and tribades. Many scholars discuss such books and often condemn them without even having read them or understood them within the context of their time. Crozier offers us the opportunity to get intimately acquainted with a book that represented a momentous beginning for serious debates on same-sex pleasures in the English-speaking world.' - Gert Hekma, History of Psychiatry 'Ivan Crozier has done a great service in returning to historians the first English edition in all its richness. No doubt there will be an appreciative audience who will welcome Crozier's ability to combine fine history of medicine with history of sexuality...Crozier's meticulous annotation and complete references, in particular to German, French and Italian literature of the period that is missing from the original publication, enables historians to identify easily the primary sources on which Sexual Inversion was based. At the same time, these detailed annotations reveal Crozier's deep knowledge of nineteenth-century medical literature about sexual perversions, and this work will be appreciated by all historians with an eye for detail.' - Chiara Beccalossi, Social History of Medicine 'Crozier is to be congratulated for bringing to our attention an important contribution to the debate on human sexuality.' MetascienceTable of ContentsIntroduction: Havelock Ellis, John Addington Symonds and the Construction of Sexual Inversion ; I.Crozier Ellis and Symonds' Sexual Inversion chapters Ellis and Symonds Sexual Inversion Appendices Complete Bibliography

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Book SynopsisDAVID ARMITAGE is Lloyd C. Blankfein Professor of History at Harvard University, USA.MICHAEL J. BRADDICK is Professor of History at the University of Sheffield, UK.

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Book SynopsisFREDERICK TOATES is Professor of Biological Psychology at the Open University. In addition to publishing widely in peer-reviewed journals, Fred has contributed materials to several Open University course texts and is also author of Biological Psychology (Pearson Education).

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Book SynopsisIAN FAIRHOLM is Teaching Fellow in Psychology at the University of Bath, UK. He has been teaching Psychology for over 10 years predominantly at undergraduate level but has also done some A level and postgraduate teaching.Trade Review'A fascinating insight into psychology "behind the scenes". Ian Fairholm has written an authoritative and accessible account of what makes the subject of psychology really tick.' - Mike Cardwell, Senior Lecturer in Psychology, Bath Spa University, UK, and a former Chief ExaminerTable of ContentsIntroduction and Overview Ethical Issues in Psychology The Nature and Nurture Debate Gender Bias Cultural Bias Determinism and Free Will Reductionism Conclusion.

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Book SynopsisIntroduction. - 1. Origins of Technocratic Internationalism. - 2. The Power and Fragility of Experts. - 3. From Divided Europe to 'Core Europe'. - 4. Europe of the Standard Gauge. - 5. Tensions in Railway Europe 6. Canons and Cartels. - 7. Technology Cooperation in Steel Europe. - 8. Towards European Union Hegemony ConclusionTrade Review“Many studies have been done on Aristide Briand or Walter Rathenau, who led European integration efforts in France and Germany during the interwar year. There are fewer contributions on telecommunication or railway engineers, with a comparable focus on integration. Writing the Rules for Europe provides this rather neglected perspective. It is easy to read, but at the same time offers shrewd insights into the underlying technological structures of European integration, which should be valuable to scholars and the general public alike.” (Thomas Hoerber, Journal of Contemporary European Research JCER, Vol. 14 (03), 2018)“Writing the Rules of Europe provides a 150-year history of the hidden expert-driven integration of Europe, which eventually led the EU to become the most important and contested producer of rules, regulations and systems for transnational interaction in Europe. … the book connects the history of technology, perspectives from transnational and global history, and European integration history in a way that is refreshing and, for the field of European integration history, absolutely vital.” (Haakon A. Ikonomou, European History Quarterly, Vol. 47 (3), July, 2017) “The book is a guide to the processes which continue to be the hottest topics regarding Western Europe and the European Union itself. … If you are a historian of science and technology or a scholar of global and international history, you will be fascinated. If you are teaching or studying cultural history, sociology or political science consider this book as part of your reading list. … it is a book made of steel and worth reading.” (Lyubomir Pozharliev, KULT_online - Review Journal for the Study of Culture, Issue 51, July, 2017)“The book offers an exciting new history of European integration, finding its answers in Europe’s long technological trajectories. … Writing the Rules of Europe is an important new book. In dismantling the political myth of Europe, the authors unearth a long-standing institutional history of competitive, international rule-writing, by expert committees and cartels, that helped link and define Europe technically.” (Elisabeth Van Meer, Technology and Culture, Vol. 57 (2), April, 2016)Table of ContentsIntroduction. - 1. Origins of Technocratic Internationalism. - 2. The Power and Fragility of Experts. - 3. From Divided Europe to 'Core Europe'. - 4. Europe of the Standard Gauge. - 5. Tensions in Railway Europe 6. Canons and Cartels. - 7. Technology Cooperation in Steel Europe. - 8. Towards European Union Hegemony Conclusion

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Book SynopsisANNETTE THOMSON teaches psychology and sociology for the Open University, the University of the West of Scotland and the University of Glasgow in Dumfries, UK. Her research interests cover a variety of topics in social and developmental psychology.

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Book SynopsisA unique exploration of the changing ideas about the place of voluntarism and health care within society in Britain since the 1960s. By considering the work of voluntary organisations with illegal drug users, the authors provide a lens through which wider developments in the relationship between the state and civil society are examined.Trade Review'We are lucky that two such talented scholars, with such a wealth of knowledge in the field, have joined together to write this ambitious and analytically rich book.' Catherine Carstairs, University of Guelph, Social History of Medicine, vol 24, no 3, December 2011Table of ContentsPreface Introduction PART I: 1960s-1970s The 'Old': Self-help, Phoenix House and the Rehabilitation of Drug Users The 'New'? New Social Movements and Release Drug Voluntary Organisations and the State in the 1960s and 1970s PART II: 1980s Rolling Back the State? The Central Funding Initiative for Drug Services Activism and Health: The Impact of AIDS PART II: 1990s-2000s Business Models or the Revival of the State? Users: Service Users and the Drug User Movement Conclusion Bibliography

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Book SynopsisPoison documents the tales of the users and victims of these mysterious substances. Profiles of the most commonly used toxins of each era reveal how poisoners have harnessed these natural killers to achieve their ends.Table of ContentsPoison – a Recurring Story. Poisons of the Ancient World. Medieval and Renaissance Poisons. 17th and 18th Century Poisons. 19th Century Poisons. 20th Century Poisons. 21st Century Poisons.

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Book SynopsisTrade ReviewPraise for Robert Skidelsky -- -A truly innovative and radical perspective … thought-stirring and extremely refreshing -- John Gray * Guardian *Arresting insights, written – despite its complex and heavyweight subject matter – with a captivating lightness of touch -- Dominic Lawson * The Sunday Times *Crisp and pungent … deeply provocative and intellectually suggestive -- Rowan Williams * Prospect *Skidelsky is a major figure in the revival of Keynesian thought -- Martin Wolf * Financial Times *

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Book SynopsisYet Wells was already convinced that if only thinking people across the planet could somehow pull together and pool their expertise, energy, and insights into sort of cerebrum for humanity, then the world would be a saner, safer, better, fairer place.Table of ContentsCritical Introduction by W. Warren Wagar The First Futurist What Are We To Do with Our Lives? The Open Conspiracy Since Wells Endnotes The Open Conspiracy-H.G. Wells Index

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Book SynopsisAn account of how scientists came to understand that the bodies of all living things are composed of microscopic units (cells). Harris uses the primary literature to reconstruct events. He also considers contemporary social and political contexts and how these influenced the experiments.Trade Review"A book that should be read by anyone concerned with the biological sciences." The Lancet "Harris weaves a most interesting tale, from Leewenhoek and Hooke in the seventeenth century through the earliest days of the twentieth century...This book deserves to be read by anyone with an interest in history or the cell." Robert E. Peterson, American Scientist "Harris, a highly respected scientist and historian of science, has written an exceptional history of this seminal period of biology that will surely become the standard." Library Journal "A treasure trove of ideas and information." Nathan Dubowsky, Science Book and Films

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