Publishers Weekly
10/31/2022
Musician Mainwaring takes a deep dive into the “extraordinary world of vibration, waves, and frequency” in his zippy debut. As he writes, “from communicating where the next meal is to drumming out a courtship dance... living things rely on hertz.” His tour through the auditory world sees him explain that until the 20th century, an A note could be “anything from Handel’s 422 Hz to Beethoven’s 455 Hz” depending on the country; that understanding frequencies enabled the development of Polaroid cameras and printers; and that the frequency of a honeybee’s wings whirring is 250 Hz, which makes the note of B. He routinely ties frequencies to various pieces of popular music: Brahms’s “Lullaby” helps “illustrate the pitches” of WWII air-raid sirens, for example, and the bonds that join the atoms in nitrous oxide vibrate at a frequency the same as Andy Williams’s opening note of “Moon River.” Though he can get a bit into the weeds (“A frequency of 5,000 Hz... will have a peak hair cell sensitivity around ten millimeters along the cochlea”), Mainwaring’s well-tuned sense of humor and ample use of puns help the jargon go down. Music-minded readers won’t regret tuning in. (Dec.)
From the Publisher
"You'll never listen to the world the same way again. A truly ear-opening experience!" — Chris Ferrie, award-winning physicist and author of Where Did the Universe Come From? And Other Cosmic Questions
"Mainwaring's book brilliantly connects the expansive science of frequency to the familiar tones and music of everyday life. Readers will find themselves humming along and imagining themselves in concert with a black hole, a lonely whale, or a speeding train as they learn about the rich mix of vibrations that permeate the world around us." — Emily Levesque, award-winning astronomer and author of The Last Stargazers
"Musician Mainwaring takes a deep dive into the 'extraordinary world of vibration, waves, and frequency' in his zippy debut... Music-minded readers won’t regret tuning in." — Publishers Weekly
award-winning astronomer and author of The Last St Emily Levesque
Mainwaring’s book brilliantly connects the expansive science of frequency to the familiar tones and music of everyday life.”
award-winning physicist and author of Where Did th Chris Ferrie
You’ll never listen to the world the same way again. A truly ear-opening experience!”
Library Journal
07/01/2022
Musician/composer Mainwaring discusses the science of frequency, which involves a whole lot more than your favorite song. From buildings that shake when, say, a dance class tunes into its natural frequency, to the use of frequency in medicine and a source of religion's inspiration, to the famous "world's loneliest whale" with its unique call, frequency is of vital importance in everything.
