History of science Books

Book SynopsisTrade Review"Paleoceanography, Rohling’s area of expertise, is the study of ancient oceans and ancient climates as they changed and developed together over geologic time. It involves analyzing data like layers of sediment taken from the seabed. Much alarming information can be learned this way, as Rohling demonstrates, about how today’s oceans are likely to respond to climate change--with greater acidification, sea-level rise, mass extinction and so forth. But because storms leave no geological record, the precise effect of global warming on hurricanes is harder to gauge. Still, Rohling is confident that the combination of rising sea levels and some form of increased storm intensity 'spells doom' for the world’s coastal regions. For surfers, rooting for hurricane swell may be increasingly difficult to rationalize."---James Ryerson, New York Times"Rohling's work is extensive and informative." * Publishers Weekly *"The Oceans is extremely thorough, appropriately so for a topic of such profundity. The book also covers a tremendous amount of ground with dizzying speed." * Foreword Reviews *"If you want to understand the planet and climate change, this book is for you."---John R. Platt, EcoWatch"For science readers looking for something new, [The Oceans] is a treat."---John Farrell, Forbes.com"The density of information and Rohling’s clear, concise explanations make for exhilarating reading, not least because his delight in his subject matter is so palpable. Most importantly though, Rohling’s long view makes clear the vast scope of the transformation of the oceans taking place around us, underlining not just the effect on ecosystems and biodiversity, but also its geological scale."---James Bradley, The Australian"In an incredibly detailed 262-page hardcover volume titled The Oceans: A Deep History, Rohling shakes up every reader who . . . [dives] into the massive amount of worrisome information"---Judy Siegel-Itzkovich, The Jerusalem Post"The Oceans: A Deep History oozes with the enthusiasm and passion that Eelco has for geology and palaeoceanography and the awe that he has for how the Earth came to be what it is today. . . . A brilliantly masterminded book, full of necessary detail that builds a compelling argument from 4.6 billion years of evidence and which culminates in an undeniable conclusion."---Jennifer D. Stanford, The Holocene"This book is not only an invaluable introduction to the cutting-edge science of palaeoceanography but also a crucially important text for students approaching all different fields of marine sciences."---Roberto Danovaro, Current Biology Magazine"Very informative, extensive, and full of necessary detail . . . . this book clearly teaches the many relevant lessons needed to understand the climate change of today and what happens when our atmosphere and oceans change."---Miguel Furtado, Conservation Biology

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Book SynopsisA foremost thinker on science and religion argues that an adequate understanding of cosmic history requires attention to the emergence of interiority, including religious aspirationTrade Review“I have no doubt that The New Cosmic Story will enrich many and produce fruitful dialogues for years to come.” —John P. Slattery, Science & Christian BeliefWinner of the Outstanding Academic Title for 2018 award sponsored by Choice"A compelling argument for a broader understanding of religion in relation to our cosmic story."—Mary Evelyn Tucker, coauthor of Journey of the Universe"Haught offers a coherent framework that gives value to the whole cosmic story revealed by science, while situating science and traditional religion together in a road map to a hopeful future in our still-unfinished cosmos."—Daryl P. Domning, professor of anatomy, Howard University“This book, John F. Haught’s summa, will become a permanent contribution to the religion and science literature.”—Holmes Rolston, III, Templeton Prize winner "A profound work that expands Haught's contributions to understanding religion in a universe that is still coming to be.”— Ilia Delio, Villanova University "A significant antidote to the 'cosmic pessimism' so prevalent in academic circles! Haught champions a hopeful narrative of our unfinished universe that informs and enlivens all facets of belief and refreshes the conversation between science and faith."—Robert E. Ulanowicz, University of Maryland

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Book SynopsisThe periodic table of elements is among the most recognizable image in science. It lies at the core of chemistry and embodies the most fundamental principles of science. In this new edition, Eric Scerri offers readers a complete and updated history and philosophy of the periodic table. Written in a lively style to appeal to experts and interested lay-persons alike, The Periodic Table: Its Story and Its Significance begins with an overview of the importance of the periodic table and the manner in which the term element has been interpreted by chemists and philosophers across time. The book traces the evolution and development of the periodic table from its early beginnings with the work of the precursors like De Chancourtois, Newlands and Meyer to Mendeleev''s 1869 first published table and beyond. Several chapters are devoted to developments in 20th century physics, especially quantum mechanics and and the extent to which they explain the periodic table in a more fundamental way. Other chapters examine the formation of the elements, nuclear structure, the discovery of the last seven infra-uranium elements, and the synthesis of trans-uranium elements. Finally, the book considers the many different ways of representing the periodic system and the quest for an optimal arrangement.Trade ReviewAs a whole, this book is not highly technical, and it has the attractiveness of providing material that doesn't appear in typical school textbooks ... This book will appeal to scholars and science readers alike, especially those interested in history of science, chemistry, physics, and philosophy. * Maria Elvira Callapez, ChemTexts *This second edition comprises 14 chapters, four of them new or modified versions of chapters in the first edition. The periodic table has evolved over the last 150 years, even over the last decade, so both editions of this book are valuable. * R. E. Buntrock, Choice *In this second edition of his classic tome, there is depth, lucidity, and comprehensiveness, making this book a must-buy for anyone who wants to completely understand the history and implications of the Periodic Table. Many of the readers of this review will already own a copy of the first edition and will wonder whether it is necessary to purchase the second edition. In the opinion of this reviewer, the answer is an emphatic "Yes." * Geoff Rayner-Canham, Memorial University, Canada, Centaurus *The concentrated wave of scholarship accompanying 150-year celebrations of the discovery of the periodic system, of course, is of value for those who want to expand their knowledge on a staple icon such as the periodic table ... * Karoliina Pulkkinen, Metascience *As a whole, this book is not highly technical, and it has the attractiveness of providing material that doesn't appear in typical school textbooks. Generally, those textbooks present the last triumphant version, not the unsuccessful episodes' history and context. Only a few experts know the "dark side" of the story, so this book fills in many useful parts of that bigger picture. This book will appeal to scholars and science readers alike, especially those interested in history of science, chemistry, physics, and philosophy. * Maria Elvira Callapez, ChemTexts *Scerri's book is one that I trust will find its way on to the shelves of all libraries, be they real or virtual, and no doubt it will be consulted by generations to come, as it well it deserves to be. * John Emsley, Foundations of Chemistry *The periodic table continues to generate new thoughts as the list of elements grows, its foundations are refined, and new portrayals are developed. Eric Scerri captures all these innovations in this timely updating of his very readable account of the origin, structure, and interpretation of the table. * Peter Atkins, University of Oxford *The 2nd edition of Eric's Scerri's journey through the periodic table is up-to-date, readable, and intellectually enticing. This icon of chemistry has never had a better expositor! * Roald Hoffmann, Cornell University *This second edition is a revised and expanded take on the philosophical and historical aspects of the periodic table that made his first edition such a worthy successor to van Spronsen's classic history. * Carmen Giunta, , Le Moyne College *Written to a high standard of scholarship, The Periodic Table is the best book on this subject currently available. It gives both an historical and philosophical perspective to the development of this key to the elements, as well as including all the recent additions to the table. * John Emsley, author of Nature's Building Blocks *Since Eric Scerri's The Periodic Table was the definitive book on the topic when it first appeared, it is wonderful to see that status claimed anew by this second edition during the International Year of the Periodic Table. The story is still unfolding, thanks in large part to the ingenuity of today's element-makers, and the additions bring this volume right up to date. It remains as clear, balanced and thoughtful as ever, and is the best guide to this iconic formulation of nature's atomic building blocks. * Philip Ball, author of Elements: A Very Short Introduction *Table of ContentsIntroduction Chapter 1: The Periodic System Chapter 2: Quantitative Relationships among the Elements and the Origins of the Periodic Table Chapter 3: Discoverers of the Periodic System Chapter 4: Mendeleev Chapter 5: Prediction and Accommodation: The Acceptance of Mendeleev's Periodic System Chapter 6: The Nucleus and the Periodic Table: Radioactivity, Atomic Number, and Isotopy Chapter 7: The Electron and Chemical Periodicity Chapter 8: Electronic Explanations of the Periodic System Developed by Chemists Chapter 9: Quantum Mechanics and the Periodic Table Chapter 10: Astrophysics, Nucleosynthesis Chapter 11: The Missing Seven Elements Chapter 12: Synthetic Elements Chapter 13: Alternative Forms of the periodic table Chapter 14: More Chemistry Appendix Index Bibliography

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Book SynopsisExplore the beauty and awe of the heavens through the rich celestial prints and star atlases offered in this third edition book. The author traces the development of celestial cartography from ancient to modern times, describes the relationships between different star maps and atlases, and relates these notions to our changing ideas about humanity’s place in the universe. Also covered in this book are more contemporary cosmological ideas, constellation representations, and cartographic advances.The text is enriched with 226 images (141 in color) from actual, antiquarian celestial books and atlases, each one with an explanation of unique astronomical and cartographic features. This never-before-available hardcover edition includes two new chapters on pictorial style maps and celestial images in art, as well over 50 new images. Additionally, the color plates are now incorporated directly into the text, providing readers with a vibrant, immersive look into the history of star maps.Trade Review“I found this to be a very fascinating aspect of this comprehensive work. I have read a number of books on the history of celestial cartography, but none with the depth and wealth of information on this important part of the history of astronomy. … I highly recommend this book to students of the history of astronomy or anyone interested in observing the night sky.” (Robert Garfinkle, Journal of the Association of Lunar and Planetary Observers, Vol. 63 (4), 2021)“This third edition has certainly profited from the changes and additions, all of which ensure that Kanas’s work remains the primary reference compendium for celestial cartography, just as it continues to offer an enjoyable initiation into the history of astronomy.” (Thomas Horst and Luís Tirapicos, Imago Mundi, Vol. 73 (1), 2021)“As an often-awe-struck observer of the heavens and a map enthusiast who has always admired the beauty of celestial maps, I think Nick Kanas’s book is a useful resource for any collector of celestial maps, anyone with more than a passing or casual interest in astronomy, anyone with a keen interest in the history of astronomy and astronomical instruments, or any combination thereof.” (Gretchen Hause, The Portolan, Issue 110, Spring, 2021)“This is a work that contains many items of relevance to astronomers, who will find the illustrations of atlases and charts of particular interest, albeit with many failings in the text and descriptions. It is probably of more interest to collectors of antiquarian maps (and even they will have some problems using it).” (Storm Dunlop, The Observatory, Vol. 140 (1278), October, 2020)“You get a real bang for your buck with Kanas’s tome. Now in its third edition, the book is well written, thoroughly researched, and beautifully illustrated with 226 images (141 in color) from actual antiquarian books and atlases. … Star Maps should greatly appeal to amateur astronomers, map collectors, and historians of astronomy and art.” (Peter Tyson, Sky & Telescope, August, 2020)“Star Maps’s comprehensiveness, for all its jackdaw tendencies, is on balance a virtue. Like a curiosity shop packed to the rafters, it almost certainly has what you’re looking for tucked away somewhere.” (Jonathan Crowe, Calafia Journal, Issue 01, 2020)“Star Maps excels in the clarity of its writing, is highly accurate throughout, and will serve as the authoritative work on its subject for a very long time to come. This reviewer has a growing collection of astronomy books of well over a thousand in number now, and would include Star Maps as one among a small selection of books from his library he would say deserves to be read by every person interested in the history of astronomy.” (Alan Agrawal, Diablo Moonwatch, January, 2020)Table of ContentsPreface to Third Edition.- Foreword to First Edition.- Preface to First Edition.- Acknowledgments.- List of Figures.- List of Tables.- List of abbreviations and acronyms.- Chapter 1: What is a star map?.- Chapter 2: Non-European cosmology and constellation development.- Chapter 3: European cosmology.- Chapter 4: European constellation development.- Chapter 5: Early European star maps.- Chapter 6: The "Big Four" of the Golden Age of imaged star maps.- Chapter 7: Other important star maps of the Golden Age.- Chapter 8: Special topics.- Chapter 9: Mapping the stars in early America.- Chapter 10: The transition to non-imaged star maps.- Chapter 11: Terrestrial and celestial pictorial maps.- Chapter 12: Celestial images in artistic paintings.- Appendices.- Appendix A: Collecting celestial maps and prints.- Appendix B: Supplementary reference catalog.- Appendix C: Indices of major constellation atlases.- Appendix D: The British Library "Kings's" edition.- Appendix E: Glossary.- Index.

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Book SynopsisLukas Rieppel shows how dinosaurs gripped the popular imagination and became emblems of America’s industrial power and economic prosperity during the Gilded Age. Spectacular fossils were displayed in museums financed by North America’s wealthiest tycoons, to cement their reputation as both benefactors of science and fierce capitalists.Trade ReviewA penetrating study of legitimacy and capitalism in the realm of fossils. It traces the parallel growth of paleontology and the public museums in which dinosaur fossils often end up being housed…Perhaps what Rieppel is studying, really, is the way museums distinguish themselves, intellectually and economically, from the Barnum-like hustle of their dime-museum predecessors…The museum seems now to be a more purified place. And yet it’s worth reading Rieppel on the work of legacy-laundering before you stop by to see the newest T. rex in its David H. Koch Dinosaur Wing. -- Verlyn Klinkenborg * New York Review of Books *Assembling the Dinosaur is a solid entry into the growing body of literature on Gilded Age American paleontology, but it is particularly valuable for its contribution to enhancing our understanding of how science and its representation during that period were influenced by, and in turn affected, society as a whole. By incorporating cultural, economic, and scientific developments, Rieppel shines new light on the history of both American paleontology and museum exhibition practice. -- Ilja Nieuwland * Science *Rieppel traces the commingling of capitalism and science…Thrilling museum fossil displays burnished the reputations of philanthropists who backed the institutions, such as Andrew Carnegie and J. P. Morgan—even as the tycoons twisted the dinosaurs’ demise into a metaphor for the advance of ‘enlightened’ corporate culture. * Nature *[A] beautiful first book…This is the cultural history of science at its best, revealing the rigging, both material and conceptual, with which not only the dinosaur but also the scientific process have come to be held in place…Rieppel’s book will be required reading for students of both the history of modern science and the history of capitalism precisely because he convincingly shows that you cannot have one without the other. -- Henry M. Cowles * Isis *A brilliant, original history of dinosaurs set within the landscape of American science, capitalism, and culture. Rieppel integrates the practices and ambitions of vertebrate paleontologists, the patronage they found among wealthy industrialists, and the public’s fascination with these colossal creatures from the deep past—from the discovery of fossil remains in the American West at the turn of the twentieth century through their assembly in emergent museums of natural history. Resting on extensive archival research and apt illustrations, Assembling the Dinosaur is an altogether authoritative and captivating work. -- Daniel J. Kevles, Living Properties: Making Knowledge and Controlling Ownership in the History of BiologyThis innovative book reinterprets the discovery of dinosaurs in the American West as a compelling aspect of the country’s culture at a time of dramatic economic expansion. Highly recommended as a stimulating account of science during the Gilded Age and beyond. -- Janet Browne, author of Charles Darwin: VoyagingThe nineteenth century saw the simultaneous rise of industrial capitalism and the discovery of dinosaurs. These hulking creatures, expensive to excavate and to display, became a perfect match for the self-presentation of the rising economic elite in the United States. Connecting the history of capitalism and the history of science, this important book traces how the shifting presentation of these fossils—from massive, slow moving, and solitary to agile and social—mirrored the transition from giant corporations to nimble startups. -- Sven Beckert, author of Empire of Cotton: A Global HistoryResting on broad erudition and an expansive historical imagination, Assembling the Dinosaur explores the relationship of science, culture, and economy in the Gilded Age. It is a unique contribution to our understanding of the making of modern America. -- Michael Zakim, author of Accounting for Capitalism: The World the Clerk MadeHighly recommended for anyone interested in the cultural-historical aspects of the study of prehistory. -- Justin Mullis * AiPT! Science *Complex and thought provoking…It demonstrates how dinosaur discovery has affected both science and society. * Choice *Readers with an interest in the history of palaeontology will be particularly well-served by this book. * Inquisitive Biologist *Tracing the entwined relationship of dinosaurs, capitalism, and culture during the Gilded Age, Rieppel reveals the outsized role these giant reptiles played during one of the most consequential periods in American history. * Southeastern Naturalist *

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Book SynopsisIn Deep Freeze, Dian Olson Belanger tells the story of the pioneers who built viable communities, made vital scientific discoveries, and established Antarctica as a continent dedicated to peace and the pursuit of science, decades after the first explorers planted flags in the ice. In the tense 1950s, even as the world was locked in the Cold War, U.S. scientists, maintained by the Navy's Operation Deep Freeze, came together in Antarctica with counterparts from eleven other countries to participate in the International Geophysical Year (IGY). On July 1, 1957, they began systematic, simultaneous scientific observations of the south-polar ice and atmosphere. Their collaborative success over eighteen months inspired the Antarctic Treaty of 1959, which formalized their peaceful pursuit of scientific knowledge. Still building on the achievements of the individuals and distrustful nations thrown together by the IGY from mutually wary military, scientific, and political cultures, science prospers today and peace endures. The year 2007 marked the fiftieth anniversary of the IGY and the commencement of a new International Polar Year - a compelling moment to review what a singular enterprise accomplished in a troubled time. Belanger draws from interviews, diaries, memoirs, and official records to weave together the first thorough study of the dawn of Antarctica's scientific age. Deep Freeze offers absorbing reading for those who have ventured onto Antarctic ice and those who dream of it, as well as historians, scientists, and policy makers.

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Book SynopsisTrade Review"This authoritative centenary edition is a fitting tribute to Einstein’s efforts to make his concepts accessible—in turn, helping to raise the profile of basic science and modern physics on a global scale."---Mary Craig, Nature

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Book SynopsisThomas Harriot (1560-1621) was a pioneer in both the figurative and literal sense. Navigational adviser and loyal friend to Sir Walter Ralegh, Harriot took part in the first expedition to colonize Virginia. Not only was he responsible for getting Ralegh''s ships safely to harbor in the New World, once there he became the first European to acquire a working knowledge of an indigenous language (he also began a lifelong love of tobacco, which may have been his undoing). Harriot''s abilities were seemingly unlimited and nearly awe-inspiring. He was the first to use a telescope to map the moon''s craters, and, independently of Galileo, discovered and recorded sunspots. He preceded Newton (whose fame eclipsed his) in his discovery of the properties of the prism. He was arguably the best mathematician of his age, and one of the finest experimental scientists of all time. Yet Harriot has traditionally remained a tantalizingly elusive character. He had no close family to pass down records, and Trade ReviewWhile other historians less literate in science and mathematics might have written Harriot's biography in a different manner, she has provided to us a well-written guide to this mysterious scientist who measured everything during the six productive decades of his life. * Larry E. Tise, East Carolina University and Philadelphia, North Carolina Historical Review *"As Robyn Arianrhod's important biography makes abundantly clear, Harriot truly deserves the title "Renaissance Man"Robyn Arianrhod's diligent research establishes Harriot's reputation as a harbinger of modernity, but perhaps history has left us a more specific clue as to the true nature of his legacy." Times Literary Suppliment"In a largely harmonious meld of biography and science writing, Arianrhod furthers the drive to resurrect the reputation of English mathematician Thomas Harriot (1560-1621).The author, a research fellow at Monash University in Melbourne, writes with the authority of a distinguished professor, placing Harriot's achievements in the context of his era and of the evolution of science... A significant achievement that builds on previous works and takes the next step in establishing Harriot's genius." --Kirkus, *Starred* Review[A] readable and important book which can only be recommended to introduce Thomas Harriot to a wider audience. * Thomas Sonar, Braunschweig, zbMATH *I learned much from the many enjoyable hours I spent reading this captivating book. In embarking on this wellcrafted literary work you will soon develop a confident sense that either Harriot is with you in the room, or you are with him on the high seas on Sir Walter Raleigh's Tiger. The elegant writing gracefully guides us past mathematical and scientific hurdles in a joyful time-traveling page-turner that never slows down. When you get to the last page and look back, you will feel that you know the man, a fellow so energetic and so guided by formidable curiosity that you wonder how such a person could possibly have disappeared from history. You will remember this book as a time journey in reverse with the wind in your sails all the way through. * Joseph Mazur, The Mathematical Intelligencer *Robyn Arianrhod's biography of Thomas Harriot (1560{1621) is well researched and well written, and it will be read with pleasure by scholar and layperson alike. * William R. Shea, Mathematical Reviews Clippings *this is a marvelous book because of the engaging way it is told, very much unlike a dull biography with an enumeration of facts. Moreover it is also well documented by additional material to be found in the last 100 pages of the book ... On this canvas Arianrhod paints the bubbling emergence of the Scientific Revolution to which Harriot was a silent contributor. * Adhemar Bultheel, European Mathematical Society *"Arianrhod's seamless blend of storytelling and science puts Harriot into full historical context. Though he inhabited a world of court intrigues, plague, and political upheaval, Harriot's unflagging intellectual curiosity set him apart then, and makes him more than worthy of respect now, as this fascinating biography amply proves." --Publishers Weekly"At long last a first-rate biography of Thomas Harriot. Though unknown to many, Harriot's scientific work casts a long shadow, and for 'Harrioteers,' as his fans are known, Robyn Arianrhod's beautifully written and deeply researched book is the one we've been waiting for. A triumph and a must read!" --Jimmy Soni, author of Mind at Play"Explorer, navigator, astronomer, linguist, mathematician, and natural scientist, Thomas Harriot was all of these and more. His accomplishments rivaled Galileo and Kepler, but his reluctance to publish doomed him to relative obscurity. With beautiful prose, astute historical understanding, and impeccable mastery of a near-inexhaustible array of fields, Robyn Arianrhod resurrects the life and works of this enigmatic Renaissance man. The world of an Elizabethan sage who was an intimate of the greatest soliders, scholars, and poets of the age springs to life in Arianrhod's pulsating narrative." --Amir Alexander, UCLA, author of Infinitesimal"Robyn Arianrhod restores Harriot to his rightful place alongside Galileo and Kepler in the pantheon of pioneering early modern scientists and shows how, as one friend put it, he was 'robbed of glory.' Thomas Harriot: A Life in Science is a wonderful combination of biography, history, and popular science that pulses with the spirit of its time." --Jessie Childs, author of God's TraitorsThe story of Thomas Harriot's life and works, was it not so well documented by such a respected scholar as Dr. Arianrhod, could easily be thought a work of pure fiction - and extravagant, scarcely believable fiction at that. Yet it is all true. That Dr. Arianrhod has devoted the time and effort in bringing him back to us through this absolutely captivating biography is something for which we should all be deeply grateful, and in similar gratitude, we owe it to the memory, indeed, the unrelentingly curious and inquiring spirit, of Thomas Harriot himself, to read it. * The Well-Read Naturalist *Table of ContentsPrologue Chapter 1: Harriot's London Chapter 2: Sea Fever Chapter 3: The Science of Sea and Sky Chapter 4: Practical Navigation (and Why the Winds Blow) Chapter 5: America at Last Chapter 6: Preparing for "Virginia" Chapter 7: Roanoke Island Chapter 8: After Roanoke Chapter 9: War, and a New Calendar Chapter 10: New Chances Chapter 11: Setback Chapter 12: Royal Refraction Chapter 13: Spirals and Turmoil Chapter 14: Changing of the Guard Chapter 15: Algebra, Rainbows, and Tragedy Chapter 16: Solving the Rainbows Chapter 17: Conversations with Kepler Chapter 18: Atomic Speculations Chapter 19: Searching the Skies Chapter 20: Gravity Chapter 21: Mathematics, Jamestown, Guiana Chapter 22: The End of an Era Chapter 23: All Things Must Pass Epilogue: Resurrecting Harriot

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Book SynopsisTrade Review“This work provides an enjoyable tour through Einstein’s scientific career and discoveries. This is not so much a straightforward biography of Einstein as a presentation of his thought processes, and a pleasant, informative, and well-paced description of what Einstein accomplished as a scientist.”—Donald Goldsmith, author of Einstein’s Greatest Blunder?“Steven Gimbel is one of a kind. He can explain the science, the philosophy, and the personal and professional life of Einstein, and do so with clarity, sophistication, and panache.”—Peter Achinstein, author of Evidence and Method

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Book SynopsisExamines 100 extraordinary projects, theories and experiments that have been conducted in the name of science. From spider monkeys to human cyborgs, and from swimming in syrup to chaos theory, the author places each experiment and discovery in its scientific context.Table of Contents1. The Brain • 2. The Human Body and Medicine • 3. Society, Communications, Technology and Sociology • 4. The Planet, Global Warming, Oceans and Atmosphere • 5. The Universe, Space and Particle Accelerators

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Book SynopsisDrawing upon art, science, philosophy, and the history of culture, this title explains the origin of the machine age and traces its social results, asserting that the development of modern technology had its roots in the Middle Ages rather than the Industrial Revolution.Trade Review"The questions posed in the first paragraph of Technics and Civilization still deserve our attention, nearly three-quarters of a century after they were written." - Technology and Culture "A brilliant historical and critical account of the effect of the artificial environment on man and of man on the environment, a necessary account, one for which we have waited too long in English." - New York Times"

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Book SynopsisTrade Review"James Peebles, Co-Winner of the Nobel Prize in Physics""Finalist for the PROSE Award in Cosmology and Astronomy, Association of American Publishers""It's hard to imagine anyone better placed to recount the inside story of modern cosmology. . . . For anyone seriously interested in the ways of science and how we came to understand our place in the Universe, this is essential reading."---Giles Sparrow, BBC Sky at Night Magazine"As expected, the quality is top-notch. . . . [Cosmology's Century] is also very well written. The book is essential reading for anyone interested in the first hundred years of modern cosmology."---Phillip Helbig, The Observatory

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Book SynopsisNOW A MAJOR SERIES 'GENIUS' ON NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC, PRODUCED BY RON HOWARD AND STARRING GEOFFREY RUSHEinstein is the great icon of our age: the kindly refugee from oppression whose wild halo of hair, twinkling eyes, engaging humanity and extraordinary brilliance made his face a symbol and his name a synonym for genius. He was a rebel and nonconformist from boyhood days. His character, creativity and imagination were related, and they drove both his life and his science. In this marvellously clear and accessible narrative, Walter Isaacson explains how his mind worked and the mysteries of the universe that he discovered. Einstein's success came from questioning conventional wisdom and marvelling at mysteries that struck others as mundane. This led him to embrace a worldview based on respect for free spirits and free individuals. All of which helped make Einstein into a rebel but with a reverence for the harmony of nature, one with just the right blend of imagination and wisdom to transform our understanding of the universe. This new biography, the first since all of Einstein's papers have become available, is the fullest picture yet of one of the key figures of the twentieth century. This is the first full biography of Albert Einstein since all of his papers have become available -- a fully realised portrait of this extraordinary human being, and great genius.Praise for EINSTEIN by Walter Isaacson:- 'YOU REALLY MUST READ THIS.' Sunday Times 'As pithy as Einstein himself.’ New Scientist ‘[A] brilliant biography, rich with newly available archival material.’ Literary Review ‘Beautifully written, it renders the physics understandable.’ Sunday Telegraph ‘Isaacson is excellent at explaining the science. ' Daily Express

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Book SynopsisTrade Review"DeSilva's volume provides a welcome opportunity to reflect on the history of evolutionary theory as a legacy complicated by Darwin's prescience as well as prejudice."---Erika Lorraine Milam, Science"Together with ten colleagues, DeSilva courageously takes up this perennially red-hot founding text of his discipline."---Jessica Riskin, New York Review of Books"A fascinating, comprehensive, and accessible collection of essays. . . . A Most Interesting Problem gives credit to Darwin where credit is due, but is unabashed in its systematic rejection of outdated science."---Lydia Pyne, JSTOR Daily"In this ‘tribute to how science operates,’ 10 contributors revisit Descent on the 150th anniversary of its publication in a ‘quest for understanding the origin, biological variation, behavior, and evolution of humans.’ . . . Each of the contributors adds something valuable to the conversation." * Kirkus Reviews *"This important new collection of commentaries on what is perhaps the most challenging of Darwin's books in our own time, takes up the evidence for human evolution, our place in the family tree, the origins of civilization, of human races, and of sex differences in ways that are both meaningful as well as accessible to those both inside and outside of the scholarly world who are interested in reading and wrestling with this important and core work of Charles Darwin for themselves."---Johannes E. Riutta, The Well-Read Naturalist"[A] unique presentation of the many scientific ideas and hypotheses of Darwin’s “Descent of Man”. [A Most Interesting Problem] is a very interesting book about how sometimes scientific beliefs that have existed for decades can easily be debunked using modern technology."---Molly Gabler-Smith, Integrative and Comparative Biology"This is an especially important and timely project because Darwin’s volume is chock-full of creative, thought-provoking arguments and speculations about human evolution that span an extremely wide range of subjects, and after 150 years, many of these are overdue for a fresh reconsideration."---Jason Winning, Quarterly Review of Biology"This summary of Darwin's contributions to understanding human evolution should interest not only biologists and anthropologists but all concerned about the fate of the human species."---J. S. Schwartz, CHOICE"A Most Interesting Problem is a fantastic run-down of today’s understanding of human evolution and a great showcase of the scientific process."---Tibi Puiu, ZME Science"Fascinating reading about the development of science, and the cultural blindspots than can misdirect even the most brilliant scientists."---Ian Angus, Climate & Capitalism

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Book SynopsisThe human body is a marvel - but what happens when it comes under attack? A fascinating guide to why we get sick and how we get better.The human body is a marvel - but what happens when it comes under attack? A fascinating guide to why we get sick and how we get better. ‘Lovely, warm, erudite and, above all, chatty.’ Chris van Tulleken, author of Ultra Processed People Nature wants you dead. Not just you, but your children and everyone you have ever met and everyone they have ever met; in fact, everyone. It wants you to cough and sneeze and poop yourself into an early grave. It wants your blood vessels to burst and pustules to explode all over your body. And - until recently - it was really good at doing this… The subject of infection and how to fight it grows more urgent every day. How do pathogens cause disease? And what tools can we give our bodies to do battle? Infectious is not onlyTrade Review‘Tregoning is a gifted writer of popular science. He has a knack for explaining the intricacies of vaccines and immunity without dumbing them down, and he moves things briskly along with a barrage of often self-deprecating humor.’ * Wall Street Journal *‘This book catapults us to the frontier of the vital science of infections and immune responses. Tregoning is a perfect guide, writing with wit and intelligence about a subject that surely everyone feels the importance of now. Brilliant and right on the zeitgeist.’ -- Daniel M. Davis, author of The Beautiful Cure‘Packed with fascinating facts, intriguing anecdotes and more than a few Dad jokes, Infectious is an expertly guided, pacey tour through the world of all the stuff that’s trying to kill us and how our immune systems and human ingenuity are fighting back.’ -- Dr Kat Arney, science communicator and author of Rebel Cell‘What a book! A book for everyone, an expert, or an interested lay person, young or retired or somewhere in the middle. Informed, engaging, generous and superbly written. If you have secretly wondered about some of the information of the last year (as we all have) and want one book to explain it all with total clarity – this is the book for you. I started it and could not put it down. The best, most accessible, high-quality science book I have read this year. Utterly brilliant.’ -- Jeremy Farrar, Director of the Wellcome Trust‘To call this book timely would be yet another contender for understatement of this strange decade. As the pandemic has upended the world and ravaged the population, it’s a duty for all of us civilians to turn to experts like Dr Tregoning with due humility, and educate ourselves about what’s happening to us, how we got here, how we’ve dealt with similar events in the past, and how we might get through this. This book is thorough, engaging, entertaining and utterly vital.’ -- Frank Turner, singer-songwriter‘Lovely, warm, erudite and, above all, chatty.’ -- Chris van Tulleken‘Despite the serious subject, Tregoning (who got COVID-19) maintains a sense of humor… This is a fascinating and timely account of often unheralded scientists heroically battling bacteria and viruses.’ * Booklist *

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Book Synopsis"As every amateur toxicologist knows, the difference between a poison and medicine is often simply the dose."There is no weapon as insidious, as seductive or as mysterious as poison. In this terrifying account of history's silent assassin, discover the gripping tales of users, abusers and victims of these mysterious substances, from Cleopatra and Catherine de' Medici to contemporary secret service agents and terrorists.Documenting royal scandal, political upheaval and personal tragedies, Poison details a gruesome thread that runs often undetected through human history.Table of ContentsIntroduction: Poison - 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 SynopsisAdvances in technology often rely on a world of photons as the basic units of light. Increasingly one reads of photons as essential to enterprises in Photonics and Quantum Technology, with career and investment opportunities. Notions of photons have evolved from the energy-packet crowds of Planck and Einstein, the later field modes of Dirac, the seeming conflict of wave and particle photons, to the ubiquitous laser photons of today. Readers who take interest in contemporary technology will benefit from learning what photons are now considered to be, and how our views of photons have changed -- in learning about the various operational definitions that have been used for photons and their association with a variety of quantum-state manipulations that include Quantum Information, astronomical sources and crowds of photons, the boxed fields of Cavity Quantum Electrodynamics and single photons on demand, the photons of Feynman and Glauber, and the photon constituents of the Standard Model of Particle Physics. The narrative points to contemporary photons as causers of change to atoms, as carriers of messages, and as subject to controllable creation and alteration -- a considerable diversity of photons, not just one kind. Our Changing Views of Photons: A Tutorial Memoir presents those general topics as a memoir of the author''s involvement with physics and the photons of theoretical Quantum Optics, written conversationally for readers with no assumed prior exposure to science. It offers lay readers a glimpse of scientific discovery -- of how ideas become practical, as a small scientific community reconsiders its assumptions and offers the theoretical ideas that are then developed, revised, and adopted into technology for daily use. For readers who want a more detailed understanding of the theory, three substantial appendices provide tutorials that, assuming no prior familiarity, proceed from a very elementary start to basics of discrete states and abstract vector spaces; Lie groups; notions of quantum theory and the Schrödinger equation for quantum-state manipulation; Maxwell''s equations for electromagnetism, with wave modes that become photons, possibly exhibiting quantum entanglement; and the coupling of atoms and fields to create quasiparticles. The appendices can be seen as a companion to traditional textbooks on Quantum Optics.Trade ReviewUnderstandable by anyone with an interest in science. * Christian Brosseau, Optics and Photonics News, Nov 2021 *Table of ContentsPreface The Cartoons Introduction Section 1: Basic Background: Everyday Physics and Its Maths Section 2: The Photons of Planck, Einstein and Bohr Section 3: The Photons of Dirac Section 4: Photons as Population Changers Section 5: Photon Messengers Section 6: Manipulating Photons Section 7: Overview; Ways of Regarding Photons Section 8: Finale Appendix A: Atoms and Their Mathematics Appendix B: Radiation and Photons Appendix C: Couples Atom and Field Equations References Index

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Book SynopsisTrade Review“Readers who want to know more about physics but are intimidated by the subject’s complexity will want to turn to The Physics Book” —Booklist

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Book SynopsisTrade ReviewIf science and medicine were a theme park, Luke O'Neill is the best company on the wildest rides . . . serious and fun . . . expansive and detailed . . . a disruptive professor in his own class -- BonoLuke's brilliant wit and infectious passion makes for a fascinating and hugely entertaining read...a timely reminder of just why science and the scientists who have shaped our lives matter -- Liz BonninA lively, gossipy, story-filled delight, filled with fascinating factoids * Sunday Independent *Even the scientifically illiterate, like myself, could get it and have a whole new understanding of all kinds of things * Brendan O’Connor *

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Book SynopsisThe Renaissance, scholars have long argued, was a period beset by the loss of philosophical certainty. In Possible Knowledge, Debapriya Sarkar argues for the pivotal role of literature—what early moderns termed poesie—in the dynamic intellectual culture of this era of profound incertitude. Revealing how problems of epistemology are inextricable from questions of literary form, Sarkar offers a defense of poiesis, or literary making, as a vital philosophical endeavor. Working across a range of genres, Sarkar theorizes “possible knowledge” as an intellectual paradigm crafted in and through literary form. Sixteenth- and seventeenth-century writers such as Spenser, Bacon, Shakespeare, Cavendish, and Milton marshalled the capacious concept of the “possible,” defined by Philip Sidney as what “may be and should be,” to construct new theories of physical and metaphysical reality. These early modern thinkers mobilized the imaginative habits of thought constitutive to major genres of literary writing—including epic, tragedy, romance, lyric, and utopia—in order to produce knowledge divorced from historical truth and empirical fact by envisioning states of being untethered from “nature” or reality. Approaching imaginative modes such as hypothesis, conjecture, prediction, and counterfactuals as instruments of possible knowledge, Sarkar exposes how the speculative allure of the “possible” lurks within scientific experiment, induction, and theories of probability. In showing how early modern literary writing sought to grapple with the challenge of forging knowledge in an uncertain, perhaps even incomprehensible world, Possible Knowledge also highlights its most audacious intellectual ambition: its claim that while natural philosophy, or what we today term science, might explain the physical world, literature could remake reality. Enacting a history of ideas that centers literary studies, Possible Knowledge suggests that what we have termed a history of science might ultimately be a history of the imagination.Trade Review"This pathbreaking book will be at the vanguard of a new movement in literature and science studies." * Jenny C. Mann, New York University *"An ambitious, brilliant, and genuinely original account of the constitutive relationship between poesy and science in early modernity." * Vin Nardizzi, University of British Columbia *"This important book provides compelling evidence that early modern literature in the age of the new science helped readers develop sophisticated forms of knowing about what existed in the world, and, more crucially, what might possibly come to be." * Mary Thomas Crane, Boston College *

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Book SynopsisTHE INTERNATIONAL BESTSELLERBest Books of the Year, GuardianThe poignant story of the visionary surgeon who rebuilt the faces of the First World War''s injured heroes, and in the process ushered in the modern era of plastic surgeryFrom the moment the first machine gun rang out over the Western Front, one thing was clear: mankind''s military technology had wildly surpassed its medical capabilities. The war''s new weaponry, from tanks to shrapnel, enabled slaughter on an industrial scale, and given the nature of trench warfare, thousands of soldiers sustained facial injuries. Medical advances meant that more survived their wounds than ever before, yet disfigured soldiers did not receive the hero''s welcome they deserved.In The Facemaker, award-winning historian Lindsey Fitzharris tells the astonishing story of the pioneering plastic surgeon Harold Gillies, who dedicated himself to restoring the faces - and the identities - of a brutalized generation. Gillies, a Cambridge-educated New Zealander, became interested in the nascent field of plastic surgery after encountering the human wreckage on the front. Returning to Britain, he established one of the world''s first hospitals dedicated entirely to facial reconstruction in Sidcup, south-east England. There, Gillies assembled a unique group of doctors, nurses and artists whose task was to recreate what had been torn apart. At a time when losing a limb made a soldier a hero, but losing a face made him a monster to a society largely intolerant of disfigurement, Gillies restored not just the faces of the wounded but also their spirits.Meticulously researched and grippingly told, The Facemaker places Gillies''s ingenious surgical innovations alongside the poignant stories of soldiers whose lives were wrecked and repaired. The result is a vivid account of how medicine and art can merge, and of what courage and imagination can accomplish in the presence of relentless horror.Trade ReviewIn this fascinating book, Fitzharris reminds us there is nothing superficial about plastic surgery's ability to heal minds as well as bodies. Five stars -- Kathryn Hughes * Mail on Sunday *Scholarly yet deeply moving... This is a fascinating book about a remarkable man, and of how teamwork is such an important part of good surgery. Despite the grim subject matter, it is a deeply moving and uplifting story -- Henry Marsh * New Statesman *Careful... sensitive... [Fitzharris] has successfully pieced together the story of a team of doctors, hospital workers and patients "battling" together during the First World War to modernize reconstructive plastic surgery... Fitzharris constructs a variegated and tender account of the First World War, its brutality and its narratives of human redemption... Tenderness and pathos pervade the personal stories of surgery and recovery, as well as Fitzharris's engagement with the ethics of facial difference and display -- Christine Slobogin * TLS *The Facemaker is an engaging biography of a masterful surgeon as well as a heartening account of medical progress * Economist *Meticulously researched... Five stars -- Catharine Arnold * Telegraph *Sometimes distressing, sometimes thrilling, The Facemaker had me gripped; it is elegantly written and endlessly fascinating. Employing just the right balance between diligent research and ingenious reanimation, Fitzharris brings to life a neglected slice of medical history, telling both Gillies' story as well as that of many of the men whose faces - and lives - he saved -- Lucy Scholes * Financial Times *Engrossing... Fitzharris presents an intensely moving and hugely enjoyable story about a remarkable medical pioneer and the men he remade -- Wendy Moore * Guardian *A skilled storyteller, Fitzharris takes the reader back to the front, making them trudge and slide through mud filled with missing limbs to find the people who stagger into Gillies's casebooks... Properly contextualised, these faces become not objects of horror or surgery, as they have been all too often used, but pathways into understanding what it is to lose a face, and with it, not only the ability to eat, drink and breathe, but also social acceptance and love -- Fay Bound Alberti * The Lancet *With rich, glossy strokes The Facemaker restores a sense of immediacy to the daily struggles facing Gillies and his colleagues as they improvised under constant pressure -- James Riding * The Times *Out of war's most awful wounds, out of gore and terror and pain, Lindsey Fitzharris has - like Sir Harold Gillies himself - crafted something inspiring and downright miraculous. I cannot imagine the sweat and sleuthing and doggedness that went into gathering the details and building the narratives of these men's struggles. This book is riveting. It is gruesome but it is also uplifting. For as much as there is blood and bone and pus in these pages, there is heart. As Fitzharris shows us, the scalpel is mightier than the grenade, and the pen is mightiest of all. What a triumph this book is -- Mary RoachLike Harold Gillies himself, Lindsey Fitzharris has taken something we might think of as grim and transformed it into something beautiful. Gillies will be an unsung hero no more -- Sam KeanWow, what a book. Enthralling. Harrowing. Heartbreaking. And utterly redemptive. Lindsey Fitzharris hit this one out of the park -- Erik Larson, author of THE SPLENDID AND THE VILEHere is that rare thing: a little-known story of the Great War, featuring a pioneering surgeon every bit as daring as the soldiers he saved. Beautifully written, illuminating, and bursting with fascinating detail, The Facemaker is a groundbreaking work that deserves its own genre: medical noir. You won't be able to put it down -- Karen Abbott, author of THE GHOSTS OF EDEN PARKI was an admirer of Fitzharris's award-winning first book, The Butchering Art, about Joseph Lister. This is her absorbing account of another surgeon: Harold Gillies, who established one of the world's first hospitals dedicated entirely to facial reconstruction -- Editor's pick * The Bookseller *Equal parts devastating and inspiring. The horrors of war are laid bare here, but the stories of each of the soldiers, doctors, nurses, and artists are incredibly poignant and fascinating. I couldn't put it down -- Jenny LawsonAn extraordinary story about a remarkable man whose work, determination and skill changed countless lives -- Peter Frankopan, author of THE SILK ROADSGraphic yet inspiring, engaging... [Fitzharris] delivers a consistently vivid account... An excellent biography of a genuine miracle worker -- Starred review * Kirkus *Wonderful... It was written with a clarity that I loved - although the book is packed with fascinating information, it read as easily as a novel... It is really inspiring and beautifully written -- Lucy Nathan * Bookbrunch *A fascinating portrait of pioneering plastic surgeon Harold Gillies and the soldiers whose faces he rebuilt during WWI... Meticulously researched and compulsively readable, this exceptional history showcases how compassion and innovation can help mitigate the terrible wounds of war * Starred Review, Publishers Weekly *Sometimes, you just know. From the moment I read The Facemaker's excellent prologue, I knew I had a book on my hands... Fitzharris is a gifted storyteller and delights in just about the right amount of detail -- Matthew Shipsey * Irish Times *Informative... A powerful portrait of a gifted man -- Oliver-James Campbell * New Scientist *The Facemaker conveys the emotional, physical and psychical effects of having an injured and altered face, directly from those who had to deal with them... Powerful -- Sharrona Pearl * Washington Post *In The Facemaker, Fitzharris rescues another vital yet largely forgotten figure from history. Blending scrupulous research with a novelist's eye, the author charts Gillies's extraordinary contribution to reconstructive surgery and weaves in touching accounts of the soldiers he treated. Stark and occasionally unsettling, the book reveals Gillies as both a craftsman and an artist, and underlines how by restoring the faces of the maimed Gillies was also restoring their lives and identities -- Brendan Daly * Business Post *Vividly thrilling * Nature *

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Book SynopsisJohn Forrester’s passionate yet probing engagement with Freud and psychoanalysis is legendary. Here, in six introductory lectures delivered to his students at the University of Cambridge, his range and lucidity bring the evolution of Freud’s thinking and the nature of Freud’s discoveries into sharp focus. With an historian’s eye for context, Forrester explores Freud’s biography, the scientific moment, the radical subject matter of the field itself – sex, dreams, desire, the unconscious, childhood, language – as well as Freud’s development of a new clinical practice. Forrester also explores both the growth of the psychoanalytic movement and the question of what kind of beast it might be as it travels through time and geography. He illuminates the cultural and revolutionary impact of psychoanalytic thinking – not only Freud’s, but that of some of his progeny in the many places where the movement flourished. Freud and Psychoanalysis takes us from Vienna to London, from Paris to New York and Hollywood, from the lab to the couch, to the campus, to film and to literature. This is a slim book that packs a big punch. It invites any curious reader into a field and a way of thinking that shaped the twentieth century.Trade Review"Clear and compelling, these lectures are at once more than accessible and often startlingly informative. In his characteristically lucid and incisive way, Forrester makes Freud new and intriguing. This book is that rare thing: a collection as much for the curious as for the knowledgeable, and the best book on Freud for many years."Adam Phillips“[Psychoanalysis is] our inheritance. It will always be there for us. To understand it, we can do no better than to look to Forrester.” Chronicle of Higher EducationTable of ContentsEditor’s Preface Lisa AppignanesiForeword Darian LeaderLecture One: A Whole Climate of OpinionLecture Two: The Historical Foundations of PsychoanalysisLecture Three: Dreams and SexualityLecture Four: Psychoanalysis as a Theory of CultureLecture Five: Psychoanalysis as a MovementLecture Six: The Significance of Psychoanalysis in the Twentieth CenturyEndnotesFurther Reading

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Book SynopsisOn 21 December 1872, HMS Challenger set sail from Portsmouth, England, to begin a global voyage of deep-sea exploration, unique for the scale of its ambition and scope. Made possible by technological and scientific developments, extensive international cooperation and supported by a team of researchers and naval officers, the expedition was part of a concerted nineteenth-century drive to map the ocean floors and search for life in the abyss. By the time the ship returned to Britain in 1876, the scientific team on board had amassed what was then the largest collection of examples of life from the deep sea. But their work was not finished and over the next two decades a global network of researchers prepared the results for publication, culminating in a 50-volume series that is considered the intellectual foundation of modern oceanography.

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Book SynopsisTheodore Gray has become a household name among fans, both young and old, of popular science and mechanics with his bestselling trilogy of books: The Elements, Molecules, and Reactions. In How Things Work, he explores the mechanical underpinnings of dozens of types of machines, from the cotton gin to the wristwatch to an industrial loom, and shares his deep, firsthand appreciation and knowledge of the world''s most essential mechanical systems. Filled with stunning original photographs by Nick Mann, How Things Work is a must-have exploration of stuff-large and small-for any builder, maker or lover of mechanical things.

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Book SynopsisAn award-winning historian’s revisionary account of the early modern world, showing how apocalyptic ideas stimulated political, religious, and intellectual transformationsTrade Review“Martin’s case that the apocalypse is the midwife of modernity seems self-evidently right to me. My main frustration is that we need a second volume, on how the apocalypse has fared since 1800.”—Alec Ryrie, Financial Times“[A] beautifully produced book. . . . Martin’s book ends beautifully as it begins, its apocalypse in the eternal now.”—Jonathan Locke Hart, Renaissance and Reformation“What does it mean to live near the end of time and await the world’s rebirth, as generations of Jews, Christians and Muslims did? A Beautiful Ending is a masterful synthesis of the prognostications of faith, knowledge, and politics on a global stage. Martin’s book illuminates one of the enduring themes that shaped the medieval and early modern world.”—Paula E. Findlen, Stanford University“In his elegantly braided analysis of the apocalyptic imagination among Christian, Muslim, and Jewish thinkers, John Jeffries Martin recasts the world-making events of the late medieval and early modern periods. A Beautiful Ending is a beautiful book.”—Alan Mikhail, author of God’s Shadow: Sultan Selim, His Ottoman Empire, and the Making of the Modern World“Martin’s masterful and wide-ranging study places ideas about the end of the world in their historical context, demonstrating how the apocalyptic imagination allowed historical actors to confront difficult and often frightening circumstances. Their experiences inform our own contemporary historical moment.”—Elizabeth Horodowich, New Mexico State University“A sweeping history of early modern apocalyptic and millenarian thought among Christians, Muslims, and Jews, when the end of history brought expectations of a golden age of peace. Martin provides a powerful history of the hopes and horrors produced by these apocalyptic fantasies with an eye to their continuity into our own times. Few books make early modern history more relevant to the present.”—Stuart Schwartz, Yale University“In his richly detailed new book, John Jeffries Martin advances the striking hypothesis that apocalyptic thinking not only did not go away with the advent of modernity; it was one of the key forces that gave us our modern world. If he’s right, much of what we thought we knew bears rethinking.”—Benjamin M. Friedman, author of Religion and the Rise of Capitalism “Engaging and profoundly original, A Beautiful Ending treats Christian, Jewish, and Muslim thought about End Times as a source of modernity. Martin’s deft argument convinces that the proverbial rise of modern secularism is a myth.”—Edward Muir, Northwestern University

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Book SynopsisTrade ReviewWinner * Presidents Book Award, Social Science History Association, 2020 *"One of the many merits of Mr. Poskett's book is that it rejects the standard view of phrenology as something that was almost accidentally invented in Europe and then came to flourish in the therapy-obsessed United States. Instead, Mr. Poskett paints the picture of a globe crisscrossed by phrenological exhibits and ephemera." * Wall Street Journal *"Materials of the Mind, a material culture travelogue through phrenology's truly global popularity in the nineteenth century, asks us to look a bit more closely at what is right under our noses. . . . The book's six chapters each focus on a type of material object, an unusual structure that makes for a wonderfully thematic read. . . . Poskett's contribution to this 'global history of science' is to 're-entangle' phrenology's objects with the sheer scale of colonial violence that had to occur before phrenology could have any meaning at all. . . . The 'materials of the mind' in this story exist in the ephemera of personal letters; the fragile but often meticulously cared for plaster casts; the elaborate books and the out-of-date periodicals. All of these pay some degree of homage, even in distant memory, to the violence once visited upon the enduring skull." * Global Intellectual History *"Well-written, rich, broad-scoped, and politically provocative . . . . While one of the book's strengths lies in the material it explores, it also partially suspends its judgment of the subject, thereby allowing the strange, horrific, and violent nature of phrenology to emerge as a feature of modern history of science." * Metascience *"A work of truly ambitious scope. . . . This is an undeniably important book, offering fresh and stimulating new perspectives on the history of phrenology. As a history of phrenology in the global nineteenth-century Anglosphere and its colonial outposts, with a few enlightening forays beyond these limits, it is exemplary." * Nineteenth-Century Contexts *"For those readers looking for an entirely new approach to the once-faddish pseudoscience of phrenology, [Poskett] presents just such an addition . . . . With engaging writing, many illustrations, and extensive references for historians, there is much to recommend in Materials of Mind, a scholarly and uniquely social approach to the phrenological movement. . . . A fascinating subject that should appeal to more than just specialists interested in phrenology or, more generally, the history of science." * Journal of the History of the Neurosciences *"In Materials of the Mind, [Poskett] studies the discredited 19th-century 'science' of phrenology. . . . [He] covers his subject in chapters on skulls, casts, books, letters, periodicals, and photographs. . . . Recommended." * CHOICE *"Materials of the Mind brings race to the forefront of the history of phrenology, long overdue. Race was astonishingly absent from many earlier scholarly treatments of phrenology, despite its centrality and explicit discussion in phrenological texts and its inseparability from British colonialism and western imperialism. Poskett vividly demonstrates how phrenological objects were material means for communicating racial differences, and as a result, that materials played a significant part in the subjugation and exploitation of peoples around the globe. We can now better grasp how the history of skull collecting and cranial study was inextricable from colonial and plantation violence. Materials of the Mind also opens up the history of phrenology by incorporating the voices and dissent of people who were the objects of phrenological study. . . . Poskett's book is a true achievement, binding the history of materials and race to the politics of phrenology and making a powerful case for the global history of science." * Social History of Medicine *"A bold take on a fascinating subject. By any measure, this is an extraordinarily ambitious project involving substantial archival research, international travel, and translations from at least six languages. The resulting book encourages readers to take phrenology seriously as a worldwide social and scientific movement, its current status as pseudoscience notwithstanding. . . . Essential reading for anyone interested in Victorian psychology and the global circulation of ideas." * Victorian Studies *"Taking place on a thoroughly globalized stage, highlighted by tragedies both banal and spectacular, and populated by a host of actors well and lesser known, Poskett's history transforms phrenology's status from that of scientific footnote to one of near‐Shakespearian significance. . . . Poskett has written an important book. In it, he demonstrates how scientific actors the world over use and are used by competing and complementary racial agendas. And in doing so, Poskett effectively spotlights much that has been consigned to science's darker corners. His stage is a contested one. His script was simultaneously familiar and strange. And his actors? As epistemological and transactional subjects and objects, Poskett's phrenological entities are compelling, disturbing, and eminently familiar. They are, after all, the unembraced forefathers and mothers of today's human scientists." * Journal of the History of the Behavioral Sciences *"[An] insightful and richly illustrated book. . . . An important milestone." * British Journal for the History of Science *"It is perhaps unsurprising that phrenology already occupies a fairly well-explored area in the history of science. This valuable and engaging book, however, breaks new scholarly ground. James Poskett uses the material cultures of phrenology—such as skulls, letters, and photography—to generate an interconnected transnational history that transforms a familiar pseudoscience into a complex and multifaceted global process. As it examines phrenology’s many global pathways, interchanges and permutations, Materials of the Mind remains attuned to power but explicitly works against the constraints imposed by units of analysis such as nations and empires, offering instead a materially based and iterative model for a global history of science. As a global history, this work offers a wide-ranging and erudite analysis of how transnational flows of material and material cultures shaped phrenology. . . . Every chapter of this book is distinguished by impressive archival work across many collections in numerous global locations and languages. Detail, references, and illustrations abound, supporting Poskett’s fundamental commitment to exploring material culture’s role in shaping a global history of science. . . . As both an exploration of phrenology specifically and as a scholarly work interested in advancing the question of what it means to write a global history of science, Materials of the Mind comes out ahead." * Journal of British Studies *"Poskett has taken two new approaches in the history of science—a focus on materials and a global approach—and successfully applied them to phrenology: the book moves the historiography of phrenology in a new direction and places the discipline of phrenology firmly in the nineteenth-century context of globalization, imperialism, and racial thinking... This book shows that phrenology is an excellent discipline to think with. Poskett's book brings the historiography of phrenology up to date with the latest insights and paints a rich and varied picture of how phrenology worked." * Isis: A Journal of the History of Science Society *"Today we can laugh at the idea that our personalities and attributes can be measured by the bumps on our heads, but phrenology was the most widely practiced mind science of the Victorian era. . . . Not just a fascination in Europe and America, Poskett show the wide reach of the 'science' through its objects and ephemera—skulls and charts and books and the like—travelled the globe and found receptive audiences wherever they landed." * New York Society Library *"An exemplary history of objects, this book is also a global history of the mind. Poskett clarifies the material culture through which ideas about phrenology--and materialism itself--translated and travelled across continents and languages. The freshest history of the strangest science." -- Alison Bashford, author of Global Population: History, Geopolitics, and Life on Earth"In this ambitious and riveting book, James Poskett tracks the global in so many senses: as a category among phrenologists who were concerned with the scales and spaces of work and with the nature of comparison and racial imagination; as a physical possibility among those who transferred skulls, letters, printed text, and casts; as a lumpy and uneven set of links across the span of the world; and finally, as a way in which we talk about our present moment in the historiography of the sciences. It is precisely because Poskett combines all of this globular talk, and because phrenology is such a good discipline with which to range across these globals, that Materials of the Mind should be vital reading on some of the most urgent concerns facing the world history of science." -- Sujit Sivasundaram, University of Cambridge"This terrific book explores the global turn in the Victorian science of phrenology and sets the topic firmly inside the expanding imperial and racial concepts of the day. It shows how the ideas and objects associated with the popular activity of measuring heads circulated across the globe while making a substantial contribution to understanding the universalizing properties of science and technology in history." -- Janet Browne, Harvard UniversityTable of ContentsIntroduction 1. Skulls 2. Casts 3. Books 4. Letters 5. Periodicals 6. Photographs Epilogue List of Figures Acknowledgments Notes Bibliography Index

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Book SynopsisExamining the ideas and attitudes that encourage scientists to experiment on living creatures, what their justifications are, and how these have changed over time. Experimentation on animalsparticularly humansis often assumed to be a uniquely modern phenomenon. But the ideas and attitudes that encourage biological and medical scientists to experiment on living creatures date from the earliest expressions of Western thought. In Experimenting with Humans and Animals, Anita Guerrini looks at the history of these practices and examines the philosophical and ethical arguments that justified them. Guerrini discusses key historical episodes in the use of living beings in science and medicine, including the discovery of blood circulation, the development of smallpox and polio vaccines, and recent research in genetics, ecology, and animal behavior. She also explores the rise of the antivivisection movement in Victorian England, the modern animal rights movement, and current debates over genTrade ReviewI was impressed by Guerrini's vast knowledge of the historical development of biomedical science, including the events that matter to ethical issues around use of animal and human subjects in research.—Perspectives in Science and Christian Faith...a valuable, insightful, and useful book, covering a vast time span and a weighty theme.—Journal of the History of BiologyTable of ContentsAcknowledgmentsIntroductionChapter 1. Bodies of Evidence: Experimentation and Philosophical Debate in Premodern EuropeChapter 2. Animals, Machines, and MoralsChapter 3. Disrupting God's PlanChapter 4. Cruelty and KindnessChapter 5. The Microbe HuntersChapter 6. Polio and PrimatesChapter 7. From Nuremberg to CRISPR: New Rules and New SciencesConclusionSuggested Further ReadingNotesIndex

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Book SynopsisBousquet’s landmark book examines the impact of key technologies and scientific ideas on the theory and practice of warfare and the handling of the perennial tension between order and chaos on the battlefield. Spanning the entire modern era, from the Scientific Revolution to the present, it offers a systematic account of modern warfare as the constitution of increasingly complex assemblages of bodies and machines whose integration rests upon a military assimilation of scientific thought. Reflecting the pervasive influence of scientific conceptual frameworks upon warfare, modern armies have been successively organised by reference to the paradigmatic technologies of the clock, engine, computer, and network. Conversely, major scientific developments and technological breakthroughs have become intertwined with the experience of war, especially since the Second World War’s unprecedented mobilisation of scientific rationality and technical expertise. This increasingly tight symbiosis between science, technology, and war is at the heart of both the tremendous powers and enduring pathologies displayed by the contemporary military machine. In this new and revised edition, Bousquet extends the analysis to encompass the latest developments in the scientific way of warfare in the midst of renewed great power competition and a wave of technological innovation in artificial intelligence and robotics.Trade Review'The most lucid and well-developed history of the growing affinity between science and military practice available. Essential reading for the student of modern military affairs.' -- Army History'The Scientific Way of Warfare is a remarkable work of synthesis, drawing on the contemporary writing of Manuel Castells, Paul Edwards, John Arquilla, and (especially) Martin Van Creveld. The book's broad historical sweep doesn't get caught up in the finer details, though, which might frustrate readers looking for a more detailed military history. Instead, it boils its subject down to "four distinct regimes of the scientific way of warfare, each of which is characterized by a specific theoretical and methodological constellation: mechanistic, thermodynamic, cybernetic, and chaoplexic warfare." At the heart of each, he writes, "we find an associated paradigmatic technology, respectively the clock, the engine, the computer and the network." * Wired *'This is a remarkable work. Bousquet does for the history of science as military metaphor what Marc Buchanan in Nexus: The Groundbreaking Science of Networks does for complexity science and networks in a social context: he translates a series of profound scientific developments and thought into an accessible and engaging narrative of technology as artefact and metaphor. Bousquet writes with greater eloquence and texture, while simultaneously treating complex theoretical issues with the light touch that will ensure this book a larger audience.' * Michael Innes, Syracuse University *'An intellectual feast to which we are all invited, an intellectual frontier we are free to explore. The range of this work is truly impressive, yet it never obscures the unifying theme: the quest through the centuries for order on the battlefield. In Iraq and Afghanistan the West has found such order more elusive than ever, yet the quest has never been more urgent.' * Christopher Coker, London School of Economics *Table of Contents1: Introduction 2: Technoscientific Regimes of Order in Warfare - A Theoretical and Methodological Framework 3: Mechanistic Warfare and the Clockwork Universe 4: Thermodynamic Warfare and the Science of Energy 5: Cybernetics and the Genesis of the Computer 6: Cybernetic Warfare: Computers at War 7: A New Informational Paradigm: Chaos Theory and Complexity Science 8: Towards Chaoplexic Warfare? Network-Centric Warfare and the Non-Linear Sciences

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Book SynopsisTHE PERFECT GIFT FOR ALL BIBLIOMANIACS A BOOK OF THE YEAR IN THE TIMES, FINANCIAL TIMES, SPECTATOR AND DAILY MAIL A WATERSTONES BEST POPULAR SCIENCE BOOK Plunge into this rich and thought-provoking A-Z compendium to discover how our fixations have taken shape, from the Middle Ages to the present day, as bestselling author Kate Summerscale deftly traces the threads between the past and present, the psychological and social, the personal and the political. 'Fascinating' Malcolm Gaskill, author of the No. 1 bestseller The Ruin of All Witches 'Fascinating' Observer 'An endlessly intriguing book ... All the bibliomanes (book nutters) I know will love it' Daily MailTrade ReviewFascinating ... Summerscale uses the same talent for elaborating on psychological tics that made her non-fiction thriller The Suspicions Of Mr. Whicher a top bestseller * Mail on Sunday *This fascinating compendium traces phobias and manias through their rich social, cultural and medical history -- Hannah Beckerman * Observer *An endlessly intriguing book * Daily Mail *Magnificent -- Marcus BerkmannThought-provoking, eloquent and entertaining * Fortean Times *Endlessly fascinating. It's a tantalising glimpse into the labyrinth of the human unconscious -- The TabletAmusing and oddly unsettling * The Times *Fascinating ... Phobias and manias create a magical space between us and the world -- Malcolm Gaskill, author of the No. 1 bestseller The Ruin of All WitchesWe are all, in some way or other, plagued by fears and desires beyond our control ... Fascinating, beautifully written and thoroughly researched * Irish Times *Thought-provoking and such fun -- Ian Mortimer, bestselling author of The Time Traveller's GuidesA fascinating book -- David CrystalA new book from Summerscale is always a treat. She does vast amounts of research, and then manages to let go of it, and take flight in prose that is both forensic and conversational ... Her sub-title - 'A History of the World in 99 Obsessions' - might echo Neil MacGregor, but this reads more like a book by Oliver Sacks, with dashes of Roald Dahl * Spectator *An intriguing guide to human fixations * Guardian *Fascinating... Exquisitely detailed and consistently insightful, this is an entertaining guide to humanity's compulsions * Publishers Weekly *99 hard-to-stop-reading histories ... from the familiar (homophobia) to surprising fears of eggs, hair, silence and everything (pantophobia) * Chicago Tribune *Informative, witty, and unique ... Summerscale, author of The Suspicions of Mr. Whicher and other well-regarded books, lists 99 fears and compulsions, and the result is a peculiarly engaging book * Kirkus *

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Book SynopsisConservative skepticism of scientific authority—contesting evolution and the climate change consensus—is constantly in the news. But liberal humanists also have their doubts, targeting “scientistic” overreach. Andrew Jewett provides the first history of Americans’ diverse and longstanding criticisms of science as a source of corrupt social values.Trade ReviewErudite and truly original. Jewett explains why so many cultural leaders came to deplore the increasing incursions of science into the realm of values, especially after World War II. A pioneering book. -- Ronald L. Numbers, author of The CreationistsJewett has thoroughly scoured the wide field of American intellectual discourse to find the misgivings, fears, and doubts aroused by the growth and influence of science. Science under Fire is strikingly relevant to pressing present-day concerns. I know of nothing else quite like it. -- Howard Brick, author of Transcending CapitalismThe continued politicization of science is rooted in the discomfort that many still feel about the banishment of ethics, humanistic values, and religion from much of public policy. Jewett’s book reminds us that this tension has a long history and that we should remain attentive to what is gained and lost as science continues to dominate how we understand the world and our place in it. -- Christopher J. Phillips * Science *Tackles the deep and persistent American intellectual tradition we might call Science-hesitant…It takes them seriously, arguing their vision was no less ‘modern’ for ranking Science lower than other human values, such as religious faith…A sweeping tour of a vast array of intellectual trends…The challenges to the authority of Science in this book are less episodes in the history of American science than episodes in the history of American religion, and readers drawn to those questions will find much to interest them here. -- Michael D. Gordin * Los Angeles Review of Books *An exceptionally well-written, detail-rich treatment of anti-science attitudes in the United States over the past century…Jewett reveals that the sprawling, wheeling sweep of his historical study is the argument: there is no single or stable ideology of anti-science…[He] starts and ends by talking about climate denialism, anti-vax, and COVID lockdown skepticism. -- Donovan O. Schaefer * Isis *The anti-science crowd ridiculed mask-wearers as sheep mindlessly following the herd. Armed crowds gathered at the homes of public-health officials across the country and hounded them from their jobs…As Andrew Jewett makes clear…the scientific enterprise in America has long drawn public hostility…Follows nearly a century of critiques of scientific cultural authority, from the 1920s to roughly the present…Given the moment we are in, Science under Fire seems particularly well timed, and it ought to be instructive. -- David Steigerwald * Origins *Deeply researched and thoughtful…The tensions he describes are entirely familiar, but they take on a fresh appearance with the historical backdrop he provides, and his nuanced portrait of the positions of the key protagonists produces a welcome respect for the complexity of ongoing intellectual and political controversies…Jewett concludes with a plea to approach science more matter-of-factly. -- John Casterline * Population and Development Review *

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Book SynopsisThis updated edition includes a new afterword that identifies the role the Buck story plays in the Supreme Court's review of emerging state laws that seek to limit access to abortion. Three generations of imbeciles are enough. Few lines from U.S. Supreme Court opinions are as memorable as this declaration by Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr. in the landmark 1927 case Buck v. Bell. The ruling allowed states to forcibly sterilize residents in order to prevent feebleminded and socially inadequate people from having children. It is the only time the Supreme Court endorsed surgery as a tool of government policy. Though Buck set the stage for more than sixty thousand involuntary sterilizations in the United States and was cited at the Nuremberg trials in defense of Nazi sterilization experiments, it has never been overturned. It has been more than a decade since Paul A. Lombardo's classic Three Generations, No Imbeciles first exposed the Buck case's fraudulent roots. During that time, seveTable of ContentsPreface to Updated EditionIntroductionPrologue: The Expert Witness1. Problem Families2. Sex and Surgery3. The Pedigree Factory4. Studying Sterilization5. The Mallory Case6. Laughlin's Book7. A Virginia Sterilization Law8. Choosing Carrie Buck9. Carrie Buck versus Dr. Priddy10. Defenseless11. On Appeal: Buck v. Bell12. In the Supreme Court13. Reactions and Repercussions14. After the Supreme Court15. Sterilizing Germans16. Skinner v. Oklahoma17. Buck, at Nuremberg and After18. Rediscovering BuckEpilogue: Reconsidering BuckAfterword: Looking Back at BuckAcknowledgmentsAppendix A: The Supreme Court Opinion in Buck v. Bell, by Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr.Appendix B: Virginia Eugenical Sterilization Act, 1924Appendix C: Laws and Sterilizations by StateAppendix D: Carrie Buck's lettersNotesA Note on SourcesIndex

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Book SynopsisA deep dive into the science behind the creative ways Shakespeare killed off his characters.William Shakespeare found dozens of different ways to kill off his characters, and audiences today still enjoy the same reactions shock, sadness, fear that they did more than 400 years ago when these plays were first performed. But how realistic are these deaths, and did Shakespeare have the knowledge to back them up?In the Bard's day death was a part of everyday life. Plague, pestilence and public executions were a common occurrence, and the chances of seeing a dead or dying body on the way home from the theatre were high. It was also a time of important scientific progress. Shakespeare kept pace with anatomical and medical advances, and he included the latest scientific discoveries in his work, from blood circulation to treatments for syphilis. He certainly didn't shy away from portraying the reality of death on stage, from the brutal to the mundane, and the spectacTrade ReviewHarkup’s enjoyable and informative survey presents this somatic Shakespeare for the Horrible Histories generation. * Times Literary Supplement *Were I a school-teacher introducing phone-addicted teens to Macbeth or Romeo and Juliet, I'd go in big on Shakespeare's 'violent delights'. * Daily Mail (4 stars) *Well-written and intriguing, the book provides a rich behind-the-scenes look at science and historical fact, using the focus on death to deepen understanding of Shakespeare’s life and work. * Historical Novel Society *The author of A Is for Arsenic and Making the Monster: The Science Behind Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein continues her macabre cultural musings with an immensely readable roundup of Shakespearean death. * Smithsonian Magazine *Death By Shakespeare is a macabre but fascinating read, rich in historical context, scientific insight, and intriguing asides. * Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine *Harkup serves a delectable stew of history, science and wit that is sure to sate the appetite of any Anglophile. * Booklist *Serious scholarship meets horrid histories. Kathryn Harkup located Death by Shakespeare within the contexts of science and medicine, health and safety, crime and punishment, and in the process gives us tour de force descriptions of Juliet's deep coma, Cleopatra's asp, Ophelia's drowning and the carnage at Agincourt, among other celebrated exits. It's a good read – never morbid, and full of insights into the Tudor way of death and how far we've come. -- Professor Sir Christopher Frayling, cultural historian, writer and broadcasterLight enough to be a quick read for fun but hefty enough to educate, this is a book that any student would be happy to study for a class, and it’s a solid addition to any nonfiction or Shakespearean fan’s collection. Yet again, Harkup has delivered a satisfying, sterling examination of an iconic figure’s literary contributions to history. * Criminal Element *Table of ContentsI shall offend, either to detain or give it. The contents, as in part I understand them, are to blame. King Lear, Act 1, Scene 2 Prologue Chapter 1: Our Humble Author Chapter 2: All the World’s a Stage Chapter 3: Will You Be Cured of Your Infirmity? Chapter 4: Off With His Head! Chapter 5: Murder, Murder! Chapter 6: The Dogs of War Chapter 7: A Plague O’both Your Houses! Chapter 8: Most Delicious Poison Chapter 9: To Be, or Not to Be Chapter 10: Excessive Grief the Enemy to the Living Chapter 11: Exit Pursued by a Bear Epilogue Appendix Bibliography Acknowledgements Index

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Book SynopsisIn 1916, a nearly unknown German-born theoretical physicist named Albert Einstein had developed his theory of relativity, but hadn't yet been able to prove it. The only way to do that was through the clear view and measurement of a solar eclipse. In May of 1919, one of the longest total solar eclipses of the 20th century was visible for almost seven minutes in the Southern Hemisphere. And so, two teams of intrepid astronomers set out on a treacherous journey-one to a remote town in Brazil, the other to the small African island of Principe. Their task was to answer the question: during the eclipse, would the stars' light waves follow Newton's law of gravitation, or Einstein's new theory of relativity?Proving Einstein Right is an epic chronicle of this decade-long mission. Hindered by everything from cloudy weather to world war, and travelling halfway around the globe, four men observed a solar eclipse that would catapult Albert Einstein to fame, set the framework for the Big Bang theory, and forever change the way we look at the universe.

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Book SynopsisOne of the most controversial, cutting-edge ideas in cosmologythe possibility that there exist multiple parallel universesin fact has a long history. Tom Siegfried reminds us that the size and number of the heavens have been contested since ancient times. His story offers deep lessons about the nature of science and the quest for understanding.Trade ReviewThe best new book on the Multiverse out this year. -- Ethan Siegel * Forbes *The Number of the Heavens is a thrilling history of our quest to grasp the whole of reality and determine our place within it. Whether there is one universe or many, Siegfried's masterful prose allows us all to delight in our species' passionate urge to look up and wonder. -- Brian Greene, author of The Elegant UniverseWhile it is debatable how closer we might be to verifying the multiverse compared to Aristotle, a recounting of the history of this philosophical and scientific debate in the entertaining and often tongue-in-cheek tone of Siegfried is certainly fascinating. * Nature Astronomy *This ‘multiverse,’ a hot topic of debate in physics today, is only the latest example of how scientists have expanded our horizons…This intriguing book examines that changing understanding of the universe, and of science as well. -- Jeff Foust * Space Review *You might think this book is only about the multiverse, but it’s really about something bigger: how science has been done through the ages—and how our perspective changes along with our view of the cosmos. -- Alan Boyle * GeekWire *This clear and thoughtful work of popular science serves as a fascinating history of one of the most provocative concepts in modern physics, while also tracing its roots in ancient ideas and exploring its implications for this universe and others. * Publishers Weekly (starred review) *What sets this book by Siegfried apart from others is the quality of his writing, as well as the direct links he draws between contemporary and ancient views of the multiverse concept. * Library Journal *Starting with the ancient Greeks…chronicles how the concept of the multiverse has evolved as scientists’ understanding of the universe has expanded. * Science News *The most readable tour of cosmology from the perspective of the multiverse to date. -- Robert Schaefer * New York Journal of Books *Packed with surprising historical tidbits and witty asides, Siegfried tells the riveting tale of millennia-long efforts to define not merely the extent of existence, but also the nature of science itself. -- K. C. Cole, author of The Universe and the Teacup: The Mathematics of Truth and BeautyPrepare to enter the mysterious realm of the multiverse! The Number of the Heavens displays unusual depth across several fields of research, allowing scientists, historians, and the general public to experience firsthand a debate of great cosmological import. -- Steven J. Dick, former NASA Chief HistorianExamining the positions of medieval thinkers and today’s physicists alike, this book is a very thorough and timely study of the concept of the multiverse through the ages. -- Marcelo Gleiser, author of The Simple Beauty of the UnexpectedCombining interviews of modern physicists and philosophers with a detailed historical narrative of ancient, medieval, and Renaissance interpretations of the word ‘world,’ Siegfried’s text fills an important gap in the expanding body of multiverse literature. -- Brian Keating * Physics Today *A fast-paced account of the multiverse. -- Julius Lobo * Book Riot *

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