Eureka!: 50 Scientists Who Shaped Human History
Galileo, Einstein, Curie, Darwin, Hawking - we know the names, but how much do we really know about these people? Galileo gained notoriety over his battle with the Vatican, but did you know that this father of modern science was also an accomplished lute player? And Darwin of course discovered the principle by which new species are formed, but his bold curiosity extended to the dinner table as well. (And how many people can say they've eaten an owl!) From lutes and owls to astronomy and evolution, Eureka! explains how these scientific geniuses have shaped our understanding - and how they spent their free time as well.
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Eureka!: 50 Scientists Who Shaped Human History
Galileo, Einstein, Curie, Darwin, Hawking - we know the names, but how much do we really know about these people? Galileo gained notoriety over his battle with the Vatican, but did you know that this father of modern science was also an accomplished lute player? And Darwin of course discovered the principle by which new species are formed, but his bold curiosity extended to the dinner table as well. (And how many people can say they've eaten an owl!) From lutes and owls to astronomy and evolution, Eureka! explains how these scientific geniuses have shaped our understanding - and how they spent their free time as well.
17.99 In Stock
Eureka!: 50 Scientists Who Shaped Human History

Eureka!: 50 Scientists Who Shaped Human History

by John Grant

Narrated by Mark Meadows

Unabridged — 8 hours, 22 minutes

Eureka!: 50 Scientists Who Shaped Human History

Eureka!: 50 Scientists Who Shaped Human History

by John Grant

Narrated by Mark Meadows

Unabridged — 8 hours, 22 minutes

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Overview

Galileo, Einstein, Curie, Darwin, Hawking - we know the names, but how much do we really know about these people? Galileo gained notoriety over his battle with the Vatican, but did you know that this father of modern science was also an accomplished lute player? And Darwin of course discovered the principle by which new species are formed, but his bold curiosity extended to the dinner table as well. (And how many people can say they've eaten an owl!) From lutes and owls to astronomy and evolution, Eureka! explains how these scientific geniuses have shaped our understanding - and how they spent their free time as well.

Editorial Reviews

From the Publisher

[A] rich and lively history of scientific innovation. “–Publishers Weekly

“The author realizes [his subjects] with vivacity, lucidly describing their significant achievements and also drawing connections.”—Kirkus Reviews

“This is a comprehensive collective biography of the most formative people in human intellectual history, each selected because without their personal contributions the modern world would not exists as readers know it. . . bring[s] a relatability to these highly intelligent people that will keep readers engaged.”–Booklist

NOVEMBER 2016 - AudioFile

Collective biographies, while fine in print, can present problems for audiobook narrators, which is the case in this production. The author’s writing on 50 great scientists is fluent. And narrator Mark Meadows injects energy and just the right authoritative tone into his reading of the short biographies. He pronounces the names of Arabic, French, German, Dutch, and Russian scientists smoothly and with appropriate accents. However, the conclusion of each mini-biography is followed by a section of trivia and recommended reading that is introduced with the words “But there’s more . . .” It would be easy to overlook those three words while reading a print version, but they’re repeated 50 times throughout the audiobook. To his credit, Meadows varies his delivery slightly, but the repetition still detracts from the production. This is one audiobook that works better in print. C.M.A. © AudioFile 2016, Portland, Maine

Kirkus Reviews

2016-06-22
A lively parade of cranks, mystics, rebels, obsessives, and geniuses, humble or otherwise, whose discoveries and insights shaped today's science and technology.Grant's choices for inclusion are, unsurprisingly, nearly all male, dead, and white. Moving chronologically, he begins with "semi-legendary Mediterranean mystic" Pythagoras and ends with climate-change activist James Hansen. In between he trots out luminaries from Hypatia (murdered by a Christian patriarch's "Rent-a-Mob") to the "totally unscrupulous toad" Francis Bacon, from James Clerk Maxwell, the "Scottish Einstein," to Einstein himself. Nine women make the cut, but only Abu Ali al-Hasan ibn al-Haytham and Subrahmanyan Chandrasekhar represent the world beyond Europe and North America. Still, Howard Florey, who actually found ways to produce the antibiotic that Alexander Fleming only happened to notice, isn't the only figure here who's not one of the usual suspects. Moreover, conventional as his selections are, the author realizes them with vivacity, lucidly describing their significant achievements and also drawing connections—between the ideas of Leibnitz in the 17th century and of visionary mathematician Riemann in the 19th to Einstein's in the 20th, for instance. Each entry includes an old or photographic portrait and an afterword with leads to more information, plus references to novels, films, lunar craters, rock bands, and other pop-culture links. Culturally blinkered but refreshingly opinionated and not without a few pleasant surprises. (index) (Collective biography. 12-16)

Product Details

BN ID: 2940175763424
Publisher: Dreamscape Media
Publication date: 08/02/2016
Edition description: Unabridged
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