Science

Science PDF Author: Patricia Fara
Publisher: OUP Oxford
ISBN: 0191655570
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 782

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Book Description
Science: A Four Thousand Year History rewrites science's past. Instead of focussing on difficult experiments and abstract theories, Patricia Fara shows how science has always belonged to the practical world of war, politics, and business. Rather than glorifying scientists as idealized heroes, she tells true stories about real people - men (and some women) who needed to earn their living, who made mistakes, and who trampled down their rivals in their quest for success. Fara sweeps through the centuries, from ancient Babylon right up to the latest hi-tech experiments in genetics and particle physics, illuminating the financial interests, imperial ambitions, and publishing enterprises that have made science the powerful global phenomenon that it is today. She also ranges internationally, illustrating the importance of scientific projects based around the world, from China to the Islamic empire, as well as the more familiar tale of science in Europe, from Copernicus to Charles Darwin and beyond. Above all, this four thousand year history challenges scientific supremacy, arguing controversially that science is successful not because it is always right - but because people have said that it is right.

Science

Science PDF Author: Patricia Fara
Publisher: OUP Oxford
ISBN: 0191655570
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 782

Get Book

Book Description
Science: A Four Thousand Year History rewrites science's past. Instead of focussing on difficult experiments and abstract theories, Patricia Fara shows how science has always belonged to the practical world of war, politics, and business. Rather than glorifying scientists as idealized heroes, she tells true stories about real people - men (and some women) who needed to earn their living, who made mistakes, and who trampled down their rivals in their quest for success. Fara sweeps through the centuries, from ancient Babylon right up to the latest hi-tech experiments in genetics and particle physics, illuminating the financial interests, imperial ambitions, and publishing enterprises that have made science the powerful global phenomenon that it is today. She also ranges internationally, illustrating the importance of scientific projects based around the world, from China to the Islamic empire, as well as the more familiar tale of science in Europe, from Copernicus to Charles Darwin and beyond. Above all, this four thousand year history challenges scientific supremacy, arguing controversially that science is successful not because it is always right - but because people have said that it is right.

A Little History of Science

A Little History of Science PDF Author: William Bynum
Publisher: Yale University Press
ISBN: 0300189427
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 271

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Book Description
Science is fantastic. It tells us about the infinite reaches of space, the tiniest living organism, the human body, the history of Earth. People have always been doing science because they have always wanted to make sense of the world and harness its power. From ancient Greek philosophers through Einstein and Watson and Crick to the computer-assisted scientists of today, men and women have wondered, examined, experimented, calculated, and sometimes made discoveries so earthshaking that people understood the world—or themselves—in an entirely new way. This inviting book tells a great adventure story: the history of science. It takes readers to the stars through the telescope, as the sun replaces the earth at the center of our universe. It delves beneath the surface of the planet, charts the evolution of chemistry's periodic table, introduces the physics that explain electricity, gravity, and the structure of atoms. It recounts the scientific quest that revealed the DNA molecule and opened unimagined new vistas for exploration. Emphasizing surprising and personal stories of scientists both famous and unsung, A Little History of Science traces the march of science through the centuries. The book opens a window on the exciting and unpredictable nature of scientific activity and describes the uproar that may ensue when scientific findings challenge established ideas. With delightful illustrations and a warm, accessible style, this is a volume for young and old to treasure together.

A People's History of Science

A People's History of Science PDF Author: Clifford D Conner
Publisher: Bold Type Books
ISBN: 0786737867
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 570

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Book Description
We all know the history of science that we learned from grade school textbooks: How Galileo used his telescope to show that the earth was not the center of the universe; how Newton divined gravity from the falling apple; how Einstein unlocked the mysteries of time and space with a simple equation. This history is made up of long periods of ignorance and confusion, punctuated once an age by a brilliant thinker who puts it all together. These few tower over the ordinary mass of people, and in the traditional account, it is to them that we owe science in its entirety. This belief is wrong. A People's History of Science shows how ordinary people participate in creating science and have done so throughout history. It documents how the development of science has affected ordinary people, and how ordinary people perceived that development. It would be wrong to claim that the formulation of quantum theory or the structure of DNA can be credited directly to artisans or peasants, but if modern science is likened to a skyscraper, then those twentieth-century triumphs are the sophisticated filigrees at its pinnacle that are supported by the massive foundation created by the rest of us.

Scientifica Historica

Scientifica Historica PDF Author: Brian Clegg
Publisher: Ivy Press
ISBN: 1782408789
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 277

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Book Description
Scientifica Historica is an illustrated, essay-based review of those books that marked the development of science from ancient civilizations to the new millennium. The book is divided into five eras and explores the leading scientific pioneers, discoveries and books within them: Ancient World – looks at the beginnings of language, plus the first ever scientific documents produced and translated Renaissance in Print – explores the effects of the invention of the printing press and the exploration of the seas and skies Modern Classical – surveys the nineteenth century and the development of science as a profession Post-Classical – dissects the twentieth century and the introduction of relativity, quantum theory and genetics The Next Generation – reviews the period from 1980 to the modern day, showing how science has become accessible to the general public Plus an introduction to the history and development of writing and books in general, and a list of the 150 greatest science books published. From carvings and scrolls to glossy bound tomes, this book beautifully illustrates the evolution of scientific communication to the world. By recounting the history of science via its key works—those books written by the keenest minds our world has known—this book reflects the physical results of brilliant thought manifested in titles that literally changed the course of knowledge.

Science and Technology in World History

Science and Technology in World History PDF Author: James Edward McClellan
Publisher: JHU Press
ISBN: 9780801883590
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 504

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Book Description
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History and Science of Knots

History and Science of Knots PDF Author: J C Turner
Publisher: World Scientific
ISBN: 9814499641
Category : Mathematics
Languages : en
Pages : 464

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Book Description
This book brings together twenty essays on diverse topics in the history and science of knots. It is divided into five parts, which deal respectively with knots in prehistory and antiquity, non-European traditions, working knots, the developing science of knots, and decorative and other aspects of knots. Its authors include archaeologists who write on knots found in digs of ancient sites (one describes the knots used by the recently discovered Ice Man); practical knotters who have studied the history and uses of knots at sea, for fishing and for various life support activities; a historian of lace; a computer scientist writing on computer classification of doilies; and mathematicians who describe the history of knot theories from the eighteenth century to the present day. In view of the explosion of mathematical theories of knots in the past decade, with consequential new and important scientific applications, this book is timely in setting down a brief, fragmentary history of mankind's oldest and most useful technical and decorative device — the knot. Contents:Prehistory and Antiquity:Pleistocene KnottingWhy Knot? — Some Speculations on the First KnotsOn Knots and Swamps — Knots in European PrehistoryAncient Egyptian Rope and KnotsNon-European Traditions:The Peruvian QuipuThe Art of Chinese Knots Works: A Short HistoryInuit KnotsWorking Knots:Knots at SeaA History of Life Support KnotsTowards a Science of Knots?:Studies on the Behaviour of KnotsA History of Topological Knot Theory of KnotsTramblesCrochet Work — History and Computer ApplicationsDecorative Knots and Other Aspects:The History of MacraméA History of LaceHeraldic KnotsOn the True Love Knotand other papers Readership: Mathematicians, archeologists, social historians and general readers. keywords:Antiquit;Braiding;Climbing;Heraldry;History;Knots;Lace;Mariners;Prehistory;Quipus;Science;Theory;Topology;Knotting, Pleistocene;Egyptian;Inuit;Chinese;Mountaineering, Topological Knot Theory;Knot Theories;Quipo Knot Mathematics;Knot Strength Efficiency;Heraldic;True Love;Crochet;Computer Aided Design;Trambles “… it is a veritable compendium of information about every aspects of knots, from their links with quantum theory to attempts to measure their strength when tying climbing ropes together … the huge scope of this book makes it one I have turned to many times, for many different purposes.” New Scientists “I enjoyed browsing through all the chapters. They contain material that a mathematician would not normally come across in his work.” The Mathematical Intelligencer

Technoscience in History

Technoscience in History PDF Author: Ursula Klein
Publisher: MIT Press
ISBN: 0262539292
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 331

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Book Description
The relationship of the current technosciences and the older engineering sciences, examined through the history of the “useful” sciences in Prussia. Do today's technoscientific disciplines—including materials science, genetic engineering, nanotechnology, and robotics—signal a radical departure from traditional science? In Technoscience in History, Ursula Klein argues that these novel disciplines and projects are not an “epochal break,” but are part of a history that can be traced back to German “useful” sciences and beyond. Klein's account traces a deeper history of technoscience, mapping the relationship between today's cutting-edge disciplines and the development of the useful and technological sciences in Prussia from 1750 to 1850. Klein shows that institutions that coupled natural-scientific and technological inquiry existed well before the twentieth century. Focusing on the science of mining, technical chemistry, the science of forestry, and the science of building (later known as civil engineering), she examines the emergence of practitioners who were recognized as men of science as well as inventive technologists—key figures that she calls “scientific-technological experts.” Klein describes the Prussian state's recruitment of experts for technical projects and manufacturing, including land surveys, the apothecary trade, and porcelain production; state-directed mining, mining science, and mining academies; the history and epistemology of useful science; and the founding of Prussian scientific institutions in the nineteenth century, including the University of Berlin, the Academy of Building, the Technical Deputation, and the Industrial Institute.

A History of Science in Society

A History of Science in Society PDF Author: Lesley Cormack
Publisher: University of Toronto Press
ISBN: 1442604484
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 842

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Book Description
A History of Science in Society is a concise overview that introduces complex ideas in a non-technical fashion. Andrew Ede and Lesley B. Cormack trace the history of science through its continually changing place in society and explore the link between the pursuit of knowledge and the desire to make that knowledge useful. In this edition, the authors examine the robust intellectual exchange between East and West and provide new discussions of two women in science: Maria Merian and Maria Winkelmann. A chapter on the relationship between science and war has been added as well as a section on climate change. The further readings section has been updated to reflect recent contributions to the field. Other new features include timelines at the end of each chapter, 70 upgraded illustrations, and new maps of Renaissance Europe, Captain James Cook's voyages, the 2nd voyage of the Beagle, and the main war front during World War I.

Companion to the History of Modern Science

Companion to the History of Modern Science PDF Author: G N Cantor
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1000158853
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 754

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Book Description
The 67 chapters of this book describe and analyse the development of Western science from 1500 to the present day. Divided into two major sections - 'The Study of the History of Science' and 'Selected Writings in the History of Science' - the volume describes the methods and problems of research in the field and then applies these techniques to a wide range of fields. Areas covered include: * the Copernican Revolution * Genetics * Science and Imperialism * the History of Anthropology * Science and Religion * Magic and Science. The companion is an indispensable resource for students and professionals in History, Philosophy, Sociology and the Sciences as well as the History of Science. It will also appeal to the general reader interested in an introduction to the subject.

Ways of Knowing

Ways of Knowing PDF Author: John V. Pickstone
Publisher: Manchester University Press
ISBN: 9780719059940
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 288

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Book Description
This classic MUP text discusses the historical development of science, technology and medicine in Western Europe and North America from the Renaissance to the present. Combining theoretical discussion and empirical illustration, it redefines the geography of science, technology and medicine.