The Trouble With Physics: The Rise of String Theory, the Fall of a Science, and What Comes Next

The Trouble With Physics: The Rise of String Theory, the Fall of a Science, and What Comes Next
Average customer rating:

Scientific progress is never cut and dried

physics from many angles

A mixed bag

The Endless Quest Continues

Outstanding piece of writing, A must-read for any science enthusiast.

The Trouble With Physics: The Rise of String Theory, the Fall of a Science, and What Comes Next
Lee Smolin
Manufacturer: Houghton Mifflin
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

20th Century | World | History | Subjects | Books
General | Science | Subjects | Books
History of Science | History & Philosophy | Science | Subjects | Books
General | Physics | Science | Subjects | Books
General | Physics | Professional Science | Professional & Technical | Subjects | Books
Look Inside History Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books
Look Inside Science Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books
Similar Items:

Not Even Wrong: The Failure of String Theory And the Search for Unity in Physical Law

The Road to Reality: A Complete Guide to the Laws of the Universe

Warped Passages: Unraveling the Mysteries of the Universe's Hidden Dimensions

The Cosmic Landscape: String Theory and the Illusion of Intelligent Design

Many Worlds in One: The Search for Other Universes

ASIN: 0618551050

Book Description

In this groundbreaking book, the renowned theoretical physicist Lee Smolin argues that physics—the basis for all other science—has lost its way. The problem is string theory, an ambitious attempt to formulate "a theory of everything" that explains all the forces and particles of nature and how the universe came to be. With its exotic new particles and parallel universes, string theory has captured the public"s imagination and seduced many physicists. But as Smolin reveals, there"s a deep flaw in the theory: no part of it has been proven, and no one knows how to prove it. As a scientific theory, it has been a colossal failure. And because it has soaked up the lion's share of funding, attracted some of the best minds, and penalized young physicists for pursuing other avenues, it is dragging the rest of physics down with it. With clarity, passion, and authority, Smolin charts the rise and fall of string theory and takes a fascinating look at what will replace it. A group of young theorists has begun to develop exciting new ideas that are, unlike string theory, testable. Smolin tells us who and what to watch for in the coming years and how we can find the next Einstein. This is a wake-up call, and Lee Smolin—a former string theorist himself— is the perfect person to deliver it.

Customer Reviews:

Scientific progress is never cut and dried.......2007-10-08

Lee Smolin presents a harsh critique of the last 30 years in theoretical physics, written by one of its practitioners. He makes the excellent point that science is a human activity like anything else. Progress is always hard to predict; scientists can and do get caught up in dead ends. Smolin thinks string theory is one such dead end, and makes a good case for it.

I think that, if anything, Smolin is a little too gentle on the field. The development of the atomic and hydrogen bombs left a tremendous impression that big money put into physics would bring big results. In recent years that hasn't happened. There are so many unanswered questions out there in science, so many important fields where solutions are desperately needed. When I consider the construction and operation of particle accelerators and other high-tech equipment, I can't help but think of the huge cost. The same amount of cash invested elsewhere might have brought much more in the way of useful results.

I am the mother of a 10-year-old boy attending public school. His instruction sometimes seems to me like a mishmash of well-meaning educational reforms that have been implemented with little or no testing to see if they worked or not. I am frankly disgusted by the quality of most research in the area of education--sample sizes too small, no proper controls, subjects followed for too short a time, etc. The cost of operating a single particle accelerator for six weeks probably exceeds all the funding for educational research around the world for the entire year. Yet which has the most potential for making major progress? Maybe it's time to back off on funding big physics projects for a while.

I would also like to point out that the building and use of instrumentation for high-energy physics is highly dependent on cheap fossil fuels. The future supply of such fuels is by no means guaranteed. The peak oil problem appears to be largely ignored by high-energy physicists today, but has the potential to significantly affect their ability to conduct experiments.

I really enjoyed Smolin's chapters on looking for seers rather than technicians in science. I especially liked his description of how unconventional scientists have built a career without a university job. Smolin points out that a typical professor spends a majority of his week on teaching, grant proposals, administrative tasks, and the like, leaving a surprisingly small amount of time available for actual research. Having a day job outside the field is not as big a hurdle as it might seem.

I tend to agree with Smolin that the big advances of the future are likely to come from completely unexpected directions. I can't wait to see what they are.

physics from many angles.......2007-10-05

This book provided several discussions pf physics and quantum theory. its good because the author speaks of the history the the originators of physics theory and the current champions of thought.

A mixed bag.......2007-10-04

At the moment, string theory appears to have many (possibly an infinite number) of "metastable vacua", each of which would allow for a universe with its own laws of physics. (For a brief, comic, yet essentially correct summary of the history of this idea, see Peter Shor's review here. For those who don't know, Shor is a celebrated quantum-information theorist.) According to the (far from established) inflationary model of cosmology, there is a vast collection of universes (the "multiverse") with diverse laws of physics. Which universe we find ourselves in is a matter of random selection, but of course we must be in a "biofriendly" universe, one whose laws of physics allow for the appearance of intelligent life.

The core argument of this book is presented on page 164-165 (US hardcover edition), where Smolin writes, "when it comes to the biofriendliness of our universe, we have at least three possibilities:

"1. Ours is one of a vast collection of universes with random laws.

"2. There was an intelligent designer.

"3. There is a so-far-unknown mechanism that will both explain the biofriendliness of our universe and make testable predictions by which it can be confirmed or falsified.

"Given that the first two possibilities are untestable in principle, it is most rational to hold out for the third possibility. Indeed, that is the only possibility we should consider as scientists, because accepting either of the first two would mean the end of our field."

I find this to be an astonishing argument. First of all, I don't know what "most rational" is supposed to mean. More importantly, to reject a scientific hypothesis for purely personal reasons (it "would mean the end of our field") is at best novel, and at worst absurd.

Very few string theorists are happy that #1 seems, at this point, to be the most likely outcome of string theory, and many hope that #3 will somehow eventually emerge. But to throw out the whole framework, simply because we don't like the result, cannot be said to be a scientific attitude.

One thing you won't learn in this book (unless you read it very carefully, and between the lines) is that the other approaches to quantum gravity advocated by Smolin have not come any closer to predicting specific experimental results than string theory has. Smolin talks about possible violations of special relativity, but these are not (as he admits on page 237) a definite prediction of loop quantum gravity. He has said (on Peter Woit's blog) that any quantum field theory in any number of dimensions is compatible with loop quantum gravity. If true, this would make loop quantum gravity even less capable than string theory of picking out our particular laws of physics.

Smolin also discusses issues of sociology in physics. On page 335-336, he asserts that the all the truly negative characterizations of job candidates that he has ever heard have had a component of racism and/or sexism. I am on the faculty of the physics department of a research university, and I can only say that my experience has been entirely different. I have simply never heard a racist or sexist denigration of one scientist by another, nor have I ever felt that anyone was being evaluated by criteria other than merit. I think that there are definitely issues of culture and how we can construct scientific communities that have broader appeal, and that there are physicists who are not as sensitive to these issues as they might be, but I cannot accept Smolin's claim that the relatively small percentage of women and blacks in physics is due to "blatant prejudice".

Finally, Smolin discusses the issues of "seers" vs "craftspeople" in science, and argues that we should be supporting more "seers". Among the existing seers, he lists some (such as Roger Penrose and Gerard 't Hooft) who made their reputations primarily as craftspeople ('t Hooft received the Nobel Prize for his work on the renormalization of gauge theories, and Penrose did celebrated work on the singularity theorems of general relativity). Their record as seers has been less successful; none of their recent ideas on modifications of quantum mechanics have panned out as yet. Smolin laments the fact that more attention is not paid to these forays into alternatives to quantum mechanics. But 't Hooft and Penrose do not agree on what modifications are needed. Other seers identified by Smolin propose violations of special relativity, rather than (or in addition to) violations of quantum mechanics. Perhaps this is all deep thought, but there is little to decide, at this point, which if any of these avenues should be pursued. Most physicists have therefore sensibly adopted a "wait and see" attitude.

Even if we accept Smolin's argument that we need new seers, how are we to find them? Smolin writes (page 353) that in order to discover "the visionaries who ignore the mainstream and follow their own ambitious programs", we should "find at least one accomplished person in the candidate's field who is deeply excited about what the candidate is trying to do". So, the candidate's program had better not be *too* far off the mainstream; there has to be at least one "accomplished person" who is "deeply excited" about it. But if one deeply excited professional is good, wouldn't more be better? Wouldn't that up the odds that the program was, indeed, worthwhile? Oh wait, that would be just what we have now ... a system where there is constant debate, emergent consensus on the most promising approaches, and distribution of research funds primarily (but by no means exclusively!) to those approaches that appear, in the consensus view, to be most promising. To paraphrase Winston Churchill on democracy, this system for distributing funds for science may be the worst ever devised, except for all the others.

So, should you buy the book? I feel that it gives a distorted picture, by emphasizing the weak points of string theory while ignoring the (many more, in my view) weak points of the alternatives. It seems to me that the essence of the book's argument against string theory is captured by the excerpts above, and by Shor's review. Then there is a lot of discussion of groupthink in scientific culture. For me, it doesn't add up to an appealing package, but your mileage may vary.

The Endless Quest Continues .......2007-10-04

I like Lee Smolin and this is a good exposition of the current quandary in Physics. When the mathematicians "hijacked" physics in the 1920's, they created ever-so elegant formulas and abstraction upon abstraction upon abstraction. "Just give me a formula!" was their mantra, and what it all really "means" was not their concern. This is the essence of Bohr's position (no pun intended), and Einstein was not able to answer, even though he knew something was missing.

String theory has many intriguing ideas, and it's supporters should not be easily dismissed. Again and again, we come back to the basic question...particle or wave? Wavicle? Partiwave? String?

Outstanding piece of writing, A must-read for any science enthusiast........2007-09-22

I found this book to be superbly written and full of fascinating insights. I really loved reading it. Many of the longer reviews here do a great job of reviewing the content of the book, so I'll stick to offering my opinion.

I will no doubt read this book again in the future as much of the content was way over my head. However, as with any great book on any subject, this did not prevent me from thoroughly enjoying it and learning a lot. What makes it so great is that each time I read it I will learn more.

I want to thank Lee Smolin for putting the current state of his field in some perspective. I highly, highly recommend this book!

History: Fiction or Science? (Chronology, No. 1)

Average customer rating:

Calculations are only as good as your numbers
Pants on fire?
Accepted History & Chronology Must Be Changed.
Very Interesting
History as Science Fiction

History: Fiction or Science? (Chronology, No. 1)
Anatoly Fomenko
Manufacturer: Mithec
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Chinese | Ethnic & National | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books

Irish | Ethnic & National | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books

Japanese | Ethnic & National | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books

Women | Specific Groups | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books

Doctors & Medicine | Humor | Entertainment | Subjects | Books

Lawyers & Criminals | Humor | Entertainment | Subjects | Books

Love, Sex & Marriage | Humor | Entertainment | Subjects | Books

Assyria, Babylonia & Sumer | Ancient | History | Subjects | Books

Early Civilization | Ancient | History | Subjects | Books

General | Ancient | History | Subjects | Books

Historiography | Historical Study | History | Subjects | Books

General | World | History | Subjects | Books

French | Erotica | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books

Victorian | Erotica | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books

Epic | Poetry | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books

German | Poetry | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books

Russian | Poetry | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books

Spanish | Poetry | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books

Chinese | Classics | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books

Conspiracy Theories | Current Events | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books

War on Drugs | Crime & Criminals | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books

English (All) | Dictionaries & Thesauruses | Reference | Subjects | Books

Science | Dictionaries & Thesauruses | Reference | Subjects | Books

Online Research | Genealogy | Reference | Subjects | Books

Native American | Earth-Based Religions | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books

General | Science | Subjects | Books

General | History & Philosophy | Science | Subjects | Books

History of Science | History & Philosophy | Science | Subjects | Books

Magic & Wizards | Fantasy | Science Fiction & Fantasy | Subjects | Books

Sailor Moon | Popular Characters | Children's Books | Subjects | Books

Pilates | Exercise & Fitness | Health, Mind & Body | Subjects | Books

History | Fashion | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books

Look Inside Art Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books

Look Inside Biographies | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books

Look Inside Children's Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books

Look Inside Entertainment Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books

Look Inside Health Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books

Look Inside History Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books

Look Inside Fiction Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books

Look Inside Nonfiction Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books

Look Inside Reference Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books

Look Inside Religion & Spirituality Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books

Look Inside Romance Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books

Look Inside Science Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books

Look Inside Science Fiction & Fantasy Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books

All Titles | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books
Similar Items:

History: Fiction or Science? Chronology 2 (Chronology)
History: Fiction or Science? Astronomical methods as applied to chronology. Ptolemy's Almagest. Chronology III
Discovering the Mysteries of Ancient America: Lost History And Legends, Unearthed And Explored
Before the Pharaohs: Egypt's Mysterious Prehistory
They Cast No Shadows: A Collection of Essays on the Illuminati, Revisionist History, and Suppressed Technologies

ASIN: 2913621058

Book Description

Recorded history is a finely-woven magic fabric of intricate lies about events predating the sixteenth century. There is not a single piece of evidence that can be reliably and independently traced back earlier than the eleventh century. This book details events that are substantiated by hard facts and logic, and validated by new astronomical research and statistical analysis of ancient sources.

Customer Reviews:

Calculations are only as good as your numbers.......2007-08-03

Yes, we can all agree that mainstream history is nearly 100% BS due to politics, economics, ego, problems with dating techniques, and various conspiracies. Agreed. But, I've been researching the distinct possibility that human history (in terms of civilizations) are much more ancient than we've been told, so coming across this book was very interesting to me. I wondered how Fomenko could be wrong (if at all) because he is very persuasive in his presentations. Then it dawned on me. If at previous times in prehistory, due to the various catastrophies that are well documented (comets, asteroids, planetary disruptions, plasma discharge, pole reversals, etc) the Earth was in a different position in relation to the sun, different tilt on its axis, different orbit, different rotation (in terms of velocity and DIRECTION), and the continents were in different positions, then would this not cause the ancients to see the sky (constellations) differently? In other words, is Fomenko making erronious assumptions about the physics of the Earth in pre-history, which then corrupt his data with regards to dating the relevant astrology? The last event to seriously disrupt our planet occured roughly 3500 years ago, according to other good researchers, so is it possible Fomenko has been confused by this? The vastly different physics of our planet in the not so distant past may explain this confusion, which is not to say the "mainstream" version of history is correct; on the contrary. I am not an expert in these fields, but wanted to see if this idea could spark discussion.

Pants on fire?.......2007-07-19

Will people ever read before spamming? Yes, Jesuits could not rewrite world history alone, they had help. Anyway, Dr Prof Acad A.Fomenko does not point to jesuits as the driving force of world wide history manipulation in published volumes 1,2,3;, actually he barely mentions the poor devils. Check it with 'Search inside' feature, please. China is rarely mentioned either, in fact, Dr Fomenko is completely eurocentric. Right, his theory contradicts all mainstream schools of history, because in their actual state they are all built on blatantly erroneus chronology. You don't need a mysterious cabal (conspiracy) to falsify history, the falsification is its modus operandi. It is inherent to history(ians) to falsify (distort) events, as it is inherent to humans to boast as it is inherent to power (authority) to legimize itself by referrring to glorious past made to its own order. Dr Prof Fomenko and team have identified scores of instances of such manipulation in Russian, European, etc.. history, and delivered valid statistical proof thereof. His own 'reconstruction' is completely another story. Forget c14 as a valid method of dating. W.Libby has initially discovered a brilliant method of INDEPENDENT dating. Too bad, c14 method has become a joke after a forced marrige with dendrochronology with consensual chronological scale inbuilt. Radiocarbon method can't stand blind tests, but is so very productive as a rubberstamp.

Accepted History & Chronology Must Be Changed. .......2007-04-09

There is no doubt that history as most know it is a sham, & institution's version of History both University & Church is fradulent & inaccurate. Everything was established with an agenda, The real "Dark Ages" are now when we have access to incredible amounts of information past authorities & more important 'common folk' didn't have but our institutions & educators are slow to evolve because of what has ignorantly & arrogantly been taught for too long. This is on many subjects not just Chronology.

For anyone to question "Why would a Mathematician have anything credible to say of History?" The answer is from Dr. Fomenko's preface in the book: "It would be worthwhile to remind the reader that in the XVI-XVII century Chronology was considered to be a subdivision of Mathematics." These volumes could possibly be some of the most important works to date & should be read by everyone with an interest in History, especially professors & educators who have a duty to the public. I have read both books & must say that 'Chronology 1' has some very eye opening & revolutionary information. Even if these volumes are part true the implications are profound & opens the doors to further investigations & questions which must be done. I speak several different lanquages & must say the logic Dr. Fomenko uses with "inflection" of words & words being read from left to right in one region & right to left in another then written backwards, the removal of vowels & get down to basics of words, or different cities & locations having the same name etc. is correct. Vowel usage has always been optional & varied, actually complicating linquistics & study. The first thing one has to understand is that words never had a fixed spelling in history like we do now, the spelling of words was mutable & regional, as well as names & titles of people were vast, varied & changed, NOTHING WAS FIXED or understood linear. Matters of Life & Death as well as financial profiteering yesterday & today were & are made with ignorant, illogical & conspiratorial views of history & reality, it's time people get closer to the Truth & society collectively grow up.

Very Interesting.......2007-03-07

It is a good proposal and I believe it will mature into something even better in the future. I think it deserves to be read.

History as Science Fiction.......2007-01-10

Anatoly Fomenko has written a very intriguing book, full of pictures, charts, and computer 'proof' of his thesis: backwards of AD900 we don't really know what happened or when. Between AD900 and AD1600 there is more certainty, but there is still a lot of fuzzy ground, and things don't get reliable until we get past the 1600's where the printing press made it very difficult for the perpetrators of this timeline manipulation to change anything that had been committed to print. The Dark Ages did not happen. Books were burned for a reason. One organization has doubled the actual length of its existence by expanding the real chronology. Read why.

I had always wondered why Christ died about AD33 and yet men waited until the 11th century to form the Knights Templar, the Cathars, etc and go after the Holy Land by force. Why the 1000 year gap? Turns out there wasn't more than a 10-12 year gap and he proves it using astronomy. This also implies that the planet is not as old as we have been told, and current Christian and other creationist scientists are already championing that idea without being aware of Fomenko's book. The two groups, creationist scientists and the Russian mathematical analysts corroborate each other. Fascinating.

Of course, all this flies in the face of what we have been told traditionally is the 'proper' chronology of western civilization, and most readers will experience 'cognitive dissonance' in reading this book. It means that our history going backwards from AD1600 becomes progressively more incorrect and unreliable until it cannot be trusted at all... in the space of 700-800 years.

Naturally, the curious, open-minded reader will want to know WHO did this, WHY, and did any of the events we think of as really ancient ever happen?
Dr. Fomenko is a respected scientist/mathematician at Moscow State University who has already answered these questions to the satisfaction of his initially skeptical colleagues. Most of them are now believers, a few still refuse to believe (the usual diehards), and of course the western press has ignored Fomenko's work -- for obvious reasons when you read the book. The ones who perpetrated this chronology ruse have a lot to answer for. They are still with us. That's why this book is a well-kept secret.

I gave the book a 4-star rating because I was unable to check out some of his claims; those I checked were as he said. But if even 1/3 of his claims are true, this punches a big hole in what we think is our history, the meaning of western civilization, our educational process (for repeating the ruse as gospel), and the trustworthiness of the organization that perpetrated this ruse, well-intentioned or not.

This book relates to current research into a Young Earth paradigm, to John Keel's discoveries about our planet, and Fr Malachi Martin's insights (in his now out-of-print books). We are indeed sheep who are manipulated and kept ignorant -- for a reason. While knowing what these men have to say may be the "booby prize" (as in: 'what can you do with this knowledge?'), it will provide interesting reading. Didn't someone say: "...and the Truth will set you free."?? For you to judge if this book contains the truth.

Lost Moon: The Perilous Voyage of Apollo 13

Average customer rating:

Remarkable narrative account
Amazing!
Good General and Technical Detail About a Near-Disaster in Space
Add in my five stars please
An outstanding account, with one qualification

Lost Moon: The Perilous Voyage of Apollo 13
Jeffrey Kluger , and James Lovell
Manufacturer: Houghton Mifflin
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

Screenplays | Movies | Entertainment | Subjects | Books

Aeronautics & Astronautics | Astronomy | Science | Subjects | Books

History of Science | History & Philosophy | Science | Subjects | Books

General | Engineering | Professional & Technical | Subjects | Books

Look Inside Entertainment Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books

Look Inside History Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books

Look Inside Science Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books
Similar Items:

Failure is not an Option: Mission Control from Mercury to Apollo 13 and Beyond
The Last Man on the Moon: Astronaut Eugene Cernan and America's Race in Space
Apollo 13
Deke!: An Autobiography
A Man on the Moon

ASIN: 0395670292

Book Description

In April 1970, during the glory days of the Apollo space program, NASA sent Navy Captain Jim Lovell and two other astronauts on America's fifth mission to the moon. Only fifty-five hours into the flight of Apollo 13, disaster struck: a mysterious explosion rocked the ship, and soon its oxygen and power began draining away. Commander Lovell and his crew watched in alarm as the cockpit grew darker, the air grew thinner, and the instruments winked out one by one. The full story of the moon shot that almost ended in catastrophe has never been told, but now Lovell and coauthor Jeffrey Kluger bring it to vivd life. What begins as a smooth flight is transformed into a hair-raising voyage from the moment Lovell calls out, "Houston, we've got a problem." Minutes after the explosion, the astronauts are forced to abandon the main ship for the lunar module, a tiny craft designed to keep two men alive for just two days. But there are three men aboard, and they are four days from home. As the hours tick away, the narrative shifts from the crippled spacecraft to Mission Control, from engineers searching desperately for solutions to Lovell's wife and children praying for his safe return. The entire nation watches as one crisis after another is met and overcome. By the time the ship splashes down in the Pacific, we understand why the heroic effort to rescue Lovell and his crew is considered by many to be NASA's finest hour. This riveting book puts the reader right in the spacecraft during one of the worst disasters in the history of space exploration. Written with all the color and drama of the best fiction, Lost Moon is the true story of a thrilling adventure and an astonishing triumph over nearly impossible odds. It was a major Oscar(R)-nominated motion picture directed by Ron Howard and starred Tom Hanks and Kevin Bacon.

Customer Reviews:

Remarkable narrative account.......2007-01-21

This book was the basis for the movie Apollo 13. America had become complacent about our space shots by this time, which is something I still do not understand. But that may be because I worked so long at the Kennedy Space Center and always knew and still understand how dangerous each and every launch is. Apollo 13 was to have been the fifth mission to the moon. But two days into the trip, on April 13, 1970, the oxygen tank exploded in the command module, placing the three astronauts in grave danger. Lovell describes those terrifying days as astronauts, contractors, and Mission Controlled struggled to bring Apollo 13 safely back to earth. If you want to read what really happened by someone who was there...this is the book for you.

Amazing!.......2006-12-31

This well written book is a great time line of what really happened. I also enjoy the movie and this book fills in the gaps that were not covered in the movie. Also gives detailed accounts of nearly everyone involved in this mission.

Good General and Technical Detail About a Near-Disaster in Space.......2006-11-15

As someone who has been fascinated with space flight since childhood, and who well remembers the real Apollo 13 from his teenage years, I found this book a fascinating reminder of history. However, this book is about much more than the aborted flight of Apollo 13. It includes historical flashbacks that involved astronaut James Lovell. One chapter describes Lovell's teenage years as he launched homemade rockets. Another summarizes the early years of space exploration in the wake of Sputnik 1. Still another describes the selection of Lovell as an astronaut in late 1962. There is also a chapter on the Apollo 1 fire. Some of Lovell's closest friends perished in that needless tragedy. There is a fine description of the historical flight of Apollo 8, that Christmas lunar orbit in 1968. It included a reading from the Book of Genesis.

Now on to Apollo 13. In preparations for potential in-space emergencies, no one had imagined the simultaneous loss of both main oxygen tanks and all three fuel cells. This left the Odyssey itself with only a few hours of remaining oxygen, water, and electricity. Lovell and Kluge note that mission rules forbid a lunar landing if only one fuel cell becomes inoperable, even if nothing else is wrong. But the "Can the moon landing be saved?" quickly gave way to "Can the astronaut's lives be saved?"

The initial belief was that a meteoroid must have hit the ship. This later was discounted when the blown-open side of the service module became visible shortly after being jettisoned prior to re-entry. Clearly, the explosion must have originated from within the service module itself. Later investigation pointed to a confluence of factors, none decisive in and of themselves, that had combined to precipitate the near-tragedy. To begin with, the wrong-power fuses were being used within the oxygen tanks. When overloaded, they simply melted, allowing the overload of electricity to pass through. During assembly, the oxygen tank had been dropped, damaging an exit tube. During launch-pad exercises, the liquid oxygen was drained past the damaged exit tube by applying extra heat and driving the oxygen out another way. The sensor was not designed to warn of overheating above 80 F. Meanwhile, this procedure had unknowingly raised the temperatures to impossible levels, burning the insulation off much of the wire inside the oxygen tank. The first two times the stirring fan was turned on in space, there was no problem. But the third time, a spark must have flown and ignited the damaged insulation in the pure-oxygen environment, causing the explosion. The explosion itself damaged a tube connected to the second oxygen tank, thus draining it.

The book provides good detail about the dangers and challenges associated with the abort procedure itself. The decision was made not to attempt to fire the service module engine in order to reverse the flight direction in a deep-space abort, if only because the damaged service module might be unable to take the strain of the engine's thrust. The first critical burn of the lunar module's descent engine, done some six hours after the explosion and designed to change the hybrid trajectory back into a free-return trajectory, would have caused the Apollo 13 to crash into the far side of the moon if done incorrectly. Without the burn, however, Apollo 13 would be stuck in a 40,000 by 240,000 mile elliptical orbit around Earth. Thoughts were entertained about jettisoning the useless service module and using the lunar module's descent engine to accelerate the ship considerably--returning it from the vicinity of the moon to Earth in only some 36 hours. But this was not done out of fear that exposure of the command module's heat shield to the temperature extremes of space might damage it.

Everything on the ship had to be powered down--a strategy that worked, just barely. The severe cold aboard the ship, a secondary consequence of the powering down of all nonessential equipment, is described. The astronauts had a frosty breath. Some got urinary infections. They had a hard time getting comfortable enough to sleep.

The astronauts were slowly being poisoned by their own carbon dioxide. This was solved by the jury-rigging of the lithium hydroxide "scrubbers" of the command module to get them to fit into the circulation system of the lunar module. Just before re-entry, there were the challenges of successfully reviving the systems aboard the command module, and jettisoning both the service and lunar modules in a completely unconventional manner.

Add in my five stars please.......2005-12-05

If you're into the space program and what happened during this era, then I can't think of one reason why this shouldn't be in your library. It's one of my all-time favorite books.

An outstanding account, with one qualification.......2005-08-07

Jim Lovell's dreams of landing on the moon were literally blown away in April 1970, when an oxygen tank aboard Apollo 13's service module exploded less than a day away from lunar orbit, forcing the crew to limp home under perilous circumstances. More than two decades after surviving that mission, Lovell (with his co-author Jeffrey Kluger) has written an excellent account of that ill-fated moon flight.

LOST MOON is one of the best of the Apollo books I've read, especially one concerning a single mission. This is also one of the best books about the work of mission control, who were the key figures behind the successful return of the crew. It is as complete a description of this mission as we are ever likely to see. The attention to detail is on a very high level, and the amount of transcripted dialogue is plentiful, well presented, and from a myriad of sources. There are a number of slightly testy exchanges between Lovell's crew and mission control, highlighting the tension of the situation in an honest and unapologetic manner. The examination of exactly how the accident happened, as told in the epilogue, is covered exceptionally well.

An aspect of the book that bothered me was the decision to use a third-person narrative throughout (which is defended unconvincingly in the author's notes). I had never before read any autobiographical account in which the central figure is treated in the third person. Basically, I was looking forward to reading Lovell's descriptions of events using his own voice and experience, and that didn't quite happen. To read Lovell -- one of the most engaging personalities of all the early astronauts -- diminished by such an impersonal, veiled perspective was disappointing. It adds nothing to the writing, and ultimately I felt it was a disservice to the book, though a minor one. If the authors had their doubts about mixing third-person and first-person perspectives successfully, they could have taken some cues from Apollo 11 astronaut Michael Collins, who wrote two books in that style and who is regarded as perhaps the best writer among the former astronauts.

Despite its compromises in narrative style, LOST MOON (or APOLLO 13, depending on the format) is an outstanding biographical account of the failed 1970 moon flight. It is potentially a five-star book if the writing had been appropriately personal when it counted the most.

Average customer rating:

The author needs a reality check
I used to run the Carl Sagan Electronic Monument; I took the site down when I read this book...
A book to make the myth into a man
For Sagan-Haters Only
A poor overview of Sagan's life.

Carl Sagan: A Life
Keay Davidson
Manufacturer: Wiley
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books

Scientists | Professionals & Academics | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books

Astronomy | Astronomy | Science | Subjects | Books
Similar Items:

Carl Sagan: A Life in the Cosmos
Conversations with Carl Sagan (Literary Conversations)
Billions & Billions: Thoughts on Life and Death at the Brink of the Millennium
Cosmos: Carl Sagan (7 DVD Set)
Shadows of Forgotten Ancestors

ASIN: 0471395366

Amazon.com

Carl Sagan may have been one of the greatest scientists who ever lived. Then again, he may have been a relentless self-promoter who convinced everyone he was one of the greatest scientists who ever lived. Keay Davidson, science writer for the San Francisco Chronicle, aims to explain this complicated man in his biography. One thing is clear: Sagan was an extremely difficult man to love, a scientist whose passion for astronomy and biology was unparalleled, but who had little ability to express basic emotions to his wives and children. Davidson looks for reasons for this emotional distance in Sagan's childhood, when his relationship with his mother was intense and sometimes difficult. She encouraged her bright young son to be an "intellectual omnivore," to be passionate about knowledge, but she didn't give him the tools to relate to humans as individuals.

As his stellar science career developed, Sagan built a reputation as a leftist who believed that "science could serve liberal ideals," and as an arrogant man with an unshakable confidence in his own brain. Davidson writes that Sagan developed his famous skepticism as an undergraduate. Sagan suffered from a "troubling mix of intense emotion and stark rationalism," writes Davidson. He succeeded (mostly) in balancing passion with reason, a balance that made him a perfect popularizer of science, a trustworthy authority who preached that an open mind was the most valuable scientific tool. Davidson was influenced personally by Sagan's writings, and he sometimes works a little too hard at puncturing the myths surrounding Sagan, but this biography is one that deserves to be read by Sagan's fans and detractors alike. It's a compelling, very real assessment of an all-too-human god of science. --Therese Littleton

Book Description

A penetrating, mesmerizing biography of a scientific icon, now in paperback

"Absolutely fascinating . . . Davidson has done a remarkable job."-Sir Arthur C. Clarke

"Engaging . . . accessible, carefully documented . . . sophisticated."-Dr. David Hollinger for The New York Times Book Review

"Entertaining . . . Davidson treats [the] nuances of Sagan's complex life with understanding and sympathy."-The Christian Science Monitor

"Excellent . . . Davidson acts as a keen critic to Sagan's works and their vast uncertainties."-Scientific American

"A fascinating book about an extraordinary man."-Johnny Carson

"Davidson, an award-winning science writer, has written an absorbing portrait of this Pied Piper of planetary science. Davidson thoroughly explores Sagan's science, wrestles with his politics, and plumbs his personal passions with a telling instinct for the revealing underside of a life lived so publicly."-Los Angeles Times

Carl Sagan was one of the most celebrated scientists of this century-the handsome and alluring visionary who inspired a generation to look to the heavens and beyond. His life was both an intellectual feast and an emotional rollercoaster. Based on interviews with Sagan's family and friends, including his widow, Ann Druyan; his first wife, acclaimed scientist Lynn Margulis; and his three sons, as well as exclusive access to many personal papers, this highly acclaimed life story offers remarkable insight into one of the most influential, provocative, and beloved figures of our time-a complex, contradictory prophet of the Space Age.

Customer Reviews:

The author needs a reality check.......2006-12-25

By his enemies, detractors, and those envious of him, Carl Sagan has been called a "bozo", a "psuedoscientist", an "idiot", a "moron", and many other names that need not be repeated here. Those who like him though do so unabashedly, and in rare instances have had their scientific careers stymied because of their admitted admiration of him. It is fair to say, and an in-depth statistical study may support this, that the scientific community is automatically dismissive of public figures and the general public, and get angry when anyone within their midst attempts to explain things to people in these two classes. It is almost as though the attempt to explain difficult scientific ideas and concepts to the general public constitutes almost a criminal act, to be punished by banishment from professional societies and academia. The reason for this anger is unknown, and does not seem to serve any useful or constructive purpose either within the scientific community or outside of it.

Although the author is not a practicing scientist, from the words in this book it is apparent that he identifies with the general scientific community in their attitude about the popularization of science. The author comes across as being deeply cynical, and this is readily apparent throughout the book. It seems he has a score to settle with Sagan and he endeavors throughout the book to take Sagan down a notch and expose his faults and inadequacies. The book for this reason is difficult to read, for it confuses objectivity with blatant negativism. What is needed in the case of Carl Sagan is a biographer who will not engage in uncritical adulation and yet at the same time not become indulged in muckracking.

Indeed, the author makes it a point to bring out Sagan's alleged use of marijuana, his reluctance to assist his wives in housework, and his shortcomings as a father to his children. He discusses the zeal with which several scientists denied Sagan admission to the National Academy of Sciences, and Sagan's supposed inability to discuss scientific topics in depth. The author therefore patronizes the reader, with the implicit assumption that the reader has been unduly influenced by Sagan and needs assistance and release from this influence. The emotional responses that many have obtained by viewing Cosmos or reading some of Sagan's works is dismissed as being a result of Sagan's skilled oratory. It seems to never occur to the author that such responses are a natural consequence to being exposed to ideas that are accurate and true.

It is a little over ten years since Sagan has passed on, but his legacy is alive and well, and even though he has made many contributions to both science and its popularization, his most profound contribution, and one that outweighs the rest by many orders of magnitude, is his implicit demonstration that the history of the human species has been one of brilliant developments rather than war and strife. For a human being to purposely take the life of another is actually extremely rare, but it is frequently taught, both in educational institutions and outside of them, that the human species is a destructive and dangerous one. Nothing could be further from the truth, and the writings of Sagan illustrate this time and again. It would be incorrect therefore, and statistically invalid, to say that his view of history is romanticized and idealistic. It is the most realistic of any that currently exist, and deserves to be propagated at a large scale. There has yet to arise an effective surrogate to Carl Sagan, at least from the standpoint of someone who delivers the message in books, movies, and television as effectively as he did. But there are millions, or shall we say, billions and billions, of individuals that make up the collective genius of the human species, and it is these individuals, some known and some unknown, that are so eloquently described and championed by Sagan throughout his writings and personal life.

I used to run the Carl Sagan Electronic Monument; I took the site down when I read this book..........2006-07-22

I grew up with Carl Sagan. An avid watcher of his COSMOS program when it aired in 1980, I like to credit Carl with turning me on to the wonders of science and, especially, the wonders of space exploration. Prior to seeing COSMOS I thought outer space was just a playground for X-Wing fighters, Colonial warriors, and the Starship Enterprise. Carl made space into a very real place, more fascinating than my young mind had ever thought possible, and COSMOS similarly impressed upon me the value of science as, to borrow the sub-title from one of Carl's best-known volumes, a candle in the darkness.

Many years later, shortly after I got married, my wife found the entire COSMOS series on VHS tape at a local library. I eagerly re-screened the entire series with adult eyes, and was reminded again of how fantastic the series was, what a great science promoter Carl could be, and I suppose the old child-like hero worship resurfaced with new energy. Carl then died tragically not longer after I re-screened COSMOS, and in a moment of telegraphed fan grief, I set up a web memorial to the man which I called the Carl Sagan Electronic Monument.

On that web site I extolled the virtues of the Great Popularizer. I praised his wisdom, his brilliance, his prowess as both husband and father, and generally set the man up on a pedestal of enormous height. For a few years I communicated with other Sagan fans, and even received one or two touching e-mails from Ann Druyan, thanking me for the CSEM and thanking me for being part of the enormous outpouring of support and love which centered around Carl following his passing.

Knowing my affinity for Sagan, my wife bought me "Demon Haunted World" and an audiobook, read by Sagan, of "Pale Blue Dot". I loved these as I loved COSMOS, and it seemed nothing could stem the hero worship.

Then, my wife bought me "Carl Sagan: A life", and the carefully constructed illusion slowly came apart.

I'd always known that certain people had a gripe against Sagan. I'd always chalked it up to petty jealousy against a truly great man. But as I turned the pages of this book, and the REALITY of Carl Edward Sagan began to hit home, I realized that in my rush to embrace Sagan as an idol, I'd completely fooled myself.

Meticulously researched, this book is an eye-opener for any Sagan fan. I've seen a lot of the one star comments, declaring that this is a book for "Sagan haters", which I think is unfair. If anything, this book exposes Sagan for who he really was, not who we wished him to be. I think all Sagan fans owe it to themselves to read this book, and then decide, as I did, which they loved more: Sagan as a PERSON, or Sagan as a vehicle for opening the wonders of space and science to the average man?

My conclusion, upon finishing this volume, is that I was not a fan of Sagan the man. Sagan seemed a poor husband, at least until the advent of Ann Druyan, and even then it seems clear he was already involved with Druyan prior to the dissolution of his relationship with his second wife. Moreover, Sagan was not a particularly good father to his first children, again only cleaning up his act for the Druyan years.

I have always believed that no amount of professional success can make up for failure in the home. I am glad that Sagan seems to have reformed by the time Druyan came on the scene, and that his youngest children seem to have enjoyed at least a competent dad. But what of the first two marriages, and the children that came of them? What of the abuse that he apparently doled out to his first wife? These things significantly mar the brilliant image of Sagan, and left me feeling as if I'd seriously deluded myself.

Moreover, Sagan the professional was also not without faults. For much of his life Carl seems to have been an enormously vainglorious and pompous fellow, essentially ruining his relationship with COSMOS producer Adrian Malone, so much so that the men were not on speaking terms by the time COSMOS earned its Emmy and Peabody Awards. Carl also developed a reputation as a scientific dilettente, precocious and opinionated and eager to claim mastery over various scientific subjects without actually contributing much bona fide advancement in those same fields. Many scientists came to resent Sagan as being too much of a self-promoter and not enough of a researcher, and as Sagan's public popularity began to soar, so did the grumbling by some in the scientific community who felt that Sagan was getting credit for their effort.

When I came back to my Sagan memorial web site, after reading this book, I realized I couldn't keep the web site up in good faith anymore. I slowly pruned the site down until it was just a placeholder, and then I shut it down altogether not longer after that.

Having said all this, I must emphasize that "Carl Sagan: A Life" is not a one-sided bash-session. There is much good said about Sagan, especially in regard to his role as popularizer, and in regard to his struggle with health problems, including a throat condition I had not previously known about, and his long decay due to myelodysplasia. His work in debunking UFOlogy and stressing skepticism (alongside other skeptics like James Randi) is to his credit, as are his forays into environmentalism and combating the threat of nuclear holocaust. The Planetary Society continues as one of the most energetic public bodies lobbying for continued space exploration, and there is no doubt that Sagan's legacy as a spark which has fired the efforts and imaginations of millions around the world, is secure.

I still own a DVD set of COSMOS and enjoy watching the series from time to time. As a character on the screen, Sagan is engaging, witty, brilliant, and engrossing, and COSMOS still stands, in my mind, as one of the greatest television science series of all time. I still keep the copy of "Demon Haunted World" and have the "Pale Blue Dot" tapes, because there is great thought and wisdom in these volumes, and they are to Sagan's eternal credit.

But Sagan the person has been permanently removed from his pedestal. In hindsight, I should have never placed him up there to begin with.

In COSMOS, Sagan lauds German astronomer Johannes Kepler for having the courage to face the reality of celestial planetary motion, rather than cling to his beloved illusion of the nested geometric solids. In the same spirit I would encourage all Sagan fans to cast aside any illusions they may have regarding Carl Sagan the man, and read this book, and know the faults and flaws and shortcomings of the man we all learned to admire and idolize as children.

You will be surprised. You will be dissapointed. But you will know the truth.

Five stars for this book. Absolutely. Thanks to Keay Davidson for having the literary courage to delve into Sagan's life, and not just offer up a superficial pean.

A book to make the myth into a man.......2006-06-12

This biography differs from many of the other sycophantic works about celebrity lives in that it treats its subject as its subject treated the world: objectively. Those who have ears to hear, they will hear and agree.

Sagan was larger than life. A brilliant man with a passion for his subject he was none-the-less subject to human feelings and human failings. This book portrays the human side of Carl Sagan from his sudden, relationship damaging mood swings, to his desire to achieve the greatest good. It takes the myth of Carl Sagan and exposes the very real man underneath it all.

Sagan the scientist allowed his passions to distort his views at times but what great scientist hasn't had moments of irrational behavior? Sagan the humanitarian often demanded that things be done to relieve human suffering and end nuclear proliferation. He could be stubborn to the point of being annoying when it came to exposing frauds in science and the inhuman monsters (Edward Teller) whom he resented.

The book portrays a very human Sagan. A product of his era, he smoked pot, desired peace, devoted himself to his scientific calling, and became a legend. If you can stand to have the curtain drawn and the wizard exposed, this is the book for you. If you like fantasy over reality, move on.

For Sagan-Haters Only.......2006-02-11

This "biography" is one, long malicious attack upon Carl Sagan.

Keay Davidson obviously detests Sagan - so much so that I don't know why he would wrire a book about someone he hates so much.

Only someone who hates Sagan could enjoy this book - but anyone who hates Sagan wouldn't be buying/reading a biography about him anyway.

This book has no real audience. I would rate it ZERO stars if I were able.

If you like anything Carl did, please look elsewhere for a biography and do not waste a penny or a second on this unfathomably putrid piece of attack-journalism.

A poor overview of Sagan's life........2005-04-07

The book starts out reasonably well enough, with Davidson drawing you into the overview of the life of Carl Sagan's parents. But as the book progresses, you begin to see another side to the story of Sagan's life that you weren't expecting. Davidson doesn't hesitate to make broad generalizations and interpretations of his interviews with people in Sagan's life, even making borderline psychoanalytical conclusions to explain his behavior when Davidson is clearly not qualified in this area.

There were several points where I read a line and found myself just staring at the book with a gaping jaw and a sense of incredulility, wondering how he could make such a strange conclusion. For example, when he discussed Sagan's novel Contact, it quickly became apparant that Davidson hadn't even read the book or he wouldn't be making such strange interpretations of the book's plot.

Additionally, Davidson's writing is incredibly simplistic; although it may appear vivid and engaging on the surface, it is full of groan-inducing cliches and overdramatized descriptions of events. This, in combination with his purely speculative conclusions on Sagan's personality, made me want to vomit.

Overall, although I was able to glimpse a small part of what made Carl Sagan so special and see a somewhat decent overview of the events in his life, I feel I was getting a blurry and distorted picture of who the man really was.

Average customer rating:

A Book Every System Engineer Should Read
probably the best book of all about the Apollo program
Comprehensive!
Absolutely Wonderful
A must read

Apollo
Charles Murray
Manufacturer: South Mountain Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Astrophysics & Space Science | Astronomy | Science | Subjects | Books

General | Science | Subjects | Books

History of Science | History & Philosophy | Science | Subjects | Books

Look Inside History Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books

Look Inside Science Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books
Similar Items:

Stages to Saturn: A Technological History of the Apollo/Saturn Launch Vehicles
Building Moonships: The Grumman Lunar Module (Images of America: New York)
Saturn (Apogee Books Space Series)
Apollo: The Definitive Sourcebook (Springer Praxis Books / Space Exploration)
Virtual LM: A Pictorial Essay of the Engineering and Construction of the Apollo Lunar Module: Apogee Books Space Series 47 (Apogee Books Space Series)

ASIN: 0976000806

Book Description

Out of print for fifteen years, this is the classic account of how the United States got to the moon. It is a book for those who were part of Apollo and want to recapture the experience and for those of a new generation who want to know how it was done. It is an opinon shared by many Apollo veterans. Republished in 2004 with a new Foreword by the authors.

Customer Reviews:

A Book Every System Engineer Should Read.......2007-09-08

We used some parts of this book in our Systems Engineering lecture, at Turkish Military Academy Defense Sciences Institute (I was a student at the lecture). Later I purchased the book and read the whole book.

Of course I am not in a position to state the correctness and completeness of the contents. I rely on other people's comments on these criteria. But accepting the contents as correct and complete, the book clearly describes how a huge R&D project can be run (or can not be run), from every point of view. It is the next best thing after participation in a such project.

I believe every engineer and technical administrator has many things to learn from the book.

I highly recommend the book. I do not know whether it is also used as a lecture aid in other academies. If it is not so, another recommendation the the lecturers: The book contains one of the best case studies.

probably the best book of all about the Apollo program .......2007-08-26

full of great stories, names, dates, places, very accurate. another great book is Moon Lander. conspiracy buffs, read this book and all your questions will be answered. ( oh, i forgot, you dont want to really know the facts, sorry ).

Comprehensive!.......2007-06-12

I found this 'history' very comprehensive. Like all others on Apollo certain areas receive deeper treatment than others. I found it heavy going in parts but it is good value for money. A pity it was out of print for so long.

Absolutely Wonderful.......2007-05-27

This is the best book I've read to date on the moon program.

The intent of that statement is not meant to denegrate the other books in my collection (Lost Moon, Failure Is Not An Option, Flight My Life in Mission Control, A Man On The Moon, and Moon Lander) as they were all great books in this reviewer's opinion.

It's just that "Apollo" is a level above those.

A must read.......2007-04-11

For anyone who is intersted in learning about the Apollo moon program, this book, combined with Andrew Chaikin's "A Man on the Moon", should be considered the two essential baseline texts. The two compliment each other perfectly. AMOTM describes things primarily from the astronaut point of view, while this book fills in the perspective of the engineers, administrators, and controllers who made it all happen.

An excellent page-turner. If you're interested in Apollo, this book is not to be missed.

The Cosmic Century: A History of Astrophysics and Cosmology

Average customer rating:

Reaching for the stars

The Cosmic Century: A History of Astrophysics and Cosmology
Malcolm S. Longair
Manufacturer: Cambridge University Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

Astrophysics & Space Science | Astronomy | Science | Subjects | Books

General | Science | Subjects | Books

General | Physics | Science | Subjects | Books

Look Inside Science Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books

All Deals | Blowout Books | Stores | Books

Science | Blowout Books | Stores | Books

All Titles | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books

Professional | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books

Science | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books
Similar Items:

The Cambridge Encyclopedia of Stars
Origins: How the Planets, Stars, Galaxies, and the Universe Began (Astronomers' Universe)
Gravity from the Ground Up: An Introductory Guide to Gravity and General Relativity
The Infinite Cosmos: Questions from the Frontiers of Cosmology
The New Physics for the Twenty-First Century

ASIN: 0521474361

Book Description

The twentieth-century witnessed the development of astrophysics and cosmology from subjects which scarcely existed to two of the most exciting and demanding areas of contemporary scientific inquiry. In this book Malcolm Longair reviews the historical development of the key areas of modern astrophysics, linking the strands together to show how they have led to the extraordinarily rich panorama of modern astrophysics and cosmology. While many of the great discoveries were derived from pioneering observations, the emphasis is upon the development of theoretical concepts and how they came to be accepted. These advances have led astrophysicists and cosmologists to ask some of the deepest questions about the nature of our Universe and have pushed astronomical observations to the very limit. This is a fantastic story, and one which would have defied the imaginations of even the greatest story-tellers.

Customer Reviews:

Reaching for the stars.......2006-08-03

In this attractively produced book, Malcolm Longair, Head of the Cavendish Laboratory, recounts the development and spectacular successes of astrophysics and cosmology. Although the focus throughout is on high theory, the math tends to be confined to 'explanatory supplements' tacked onto the ends of chapters, with the result that general readers familiar with the basic concepts of physics and astronomy will be able to follow the narrative without difficulty. (Others would do well to begin with Bernard Schutz's marvelous book, Gravity from the Ground Up.)

The lesson that seems to emerge from this utterly absorbing story is that, in favorable circumstances, theory and observation, working in partnership, can, as it were, defy Newton's third law and quickly slingshot one another to heights of inquiry--unreachable by unaided fantasy or vacant stargazing--from which can be spied the most bizarre truths ever disclosed. A century ago, no one could have suspected that the universe looks a lot like a bath sponge. Or that the heavenly bodies in their motions are less like a perfectly choreographed procession than like a colossal train wreck. Thanks to astrophysics and cosmology we now know that the universe is immense, immensely profligate and incredibly violent--but mostly just cold and empty. And that's lucky for astronomers, because in a cold and empty universe you can see a long way, and a long way back.

There is much in this book that will delight and amuse. In 1920, Arthur Eddington's Cambridge colleague, Francis Aston, was making precise measurements of atomic masses. Eddington noted that four hydrogen atoms have slightly more mass than one atom of helium and suggested that this mass difference, converted to energy, could easily meet a star's energy needs! In 1967, Hewish and Bell discovered neutron stars by making radio observations at 81.5 MHz, a frequency just a little below that of your local classical music FM station.

This book is highly recommended. Rich in well-organized detail, it contains numerous well-chosen images, graphs and tables, 57 pages of references, a name index, an object index and a useful subject index. It is beautifully printed and there isn't a dull page in it.

Average customer rating:

1634: The Cannon Law
Unworthy of a thrilling series
Cannon has damp powder this time
Shows Promise.
Keeping up the good work

1635: Cannon Law (Ring of Fire)
Eric Flint , and Andrew Dennis
Manufacturer: Baen
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

Adventure | Science Fiction | Science Fiction & Fantasy | Subjects | Books

Alternate History | Science Fiction | Science Fiction & Fantasy | Subjects | Books

General | Science Fiction | Science Fiction & Fantasy | Subjects | Books

Space Opera | Science Fiction | Science Fiction & Fantasy | Subjects | Books

Look Inside Science Fiction & Fantasy Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books
Similar Items:

1634: The Baltic War
1634: The Ram Rebellion (Assiti Shards)
Grantville Gazette III
Grantville Gazette II
1824: The Arkansas War

ASIN: 1416509380

Book Description

Rome, 1635, and Grantville's diplomatic team, headed by Sharon Nichols, are making scant headway now it has become politically inexpedient for Pope Urban VIII to talk to them any more. Sharon doesn't mind, she has a wedding to plan. Frank Stone has moved to Rome and is attempting to bring about the revolution one pizza at a time. Cardinal Borja is gathering votes to bring the Church's reformers to a halt in their tracks, on the orders of the King of Spain. Meanwhile, trouble is brewing in the streets, shadowy agitators are stirring up trouble and Spain's armies are massed across the border in the Kingdom of Naples, Cardinal Barberini wants the pamphleteers to stop slandering him and it looks like it's going to be a long, hot summer. Except that Cardinal Borja has more ambitions than his masters in Madrid know about, and has the assistance of Spain's most notorious secret agent to bring about his sinister designs.

Customer Reviews:

1634: The Cannon Law.......2007-09-20

Once you accept the premise in the first volume of this fun series (1632), following the many characters and how they affect history as we know it is fascinating and believeable. No wonder there are three volumes for 1634. How long can the authors keep this up? For a while more, I hope.

Unworthy of a thrilling series.......2007-08-04

If you can avoid this book, do so. It is boring, unreasonable, and doesn't even end well. I like this series in general, but this book stays in Rome the whole time, and swaps all the interesting plot implications for some characterization and mediocre action. Even if you have the rest of this series, this one isn't worth your time--if you can't avoid it, mine's selling cheap in the used book section.

Cannon has damp powder this time.......2007-06-08

This one telegraphs its sluggish route thru various Olde Historical Names one can cheerfully Google, to produce the slowest read in the 1632 Miniverse. I'm a pleased owner/re-reader of all other books & Gazettes, up to this one. Euterpe or the Essen Steel series would make better reads. Here's hoping The First Team does better on The Next Great '32 Novel!!

Shows Promise........2007-05-19

I really enjoyed 1632, I thought 1633 was a bit marginal, and 1634 The Galileo Affair to be honest was garbage. So I promised myself I would get these out of the library instead of buying them until I was satisfied Flint was back on form. He is almost there, and I have great hopes of The Baltic War. The main problem with this book is its wordiness. It consists of little more than people discussing diplomacy until about page 300, although the is the odd brawl. The last hundred or so pages are reasonably exciting, but I almost gave up before then. Luckily the diplomacy is reasonably interesting, and the historical research is okay. Unfortunately you have to get past sentences like, "He had done no more than skirt around the possibilities with the Count- Duke Olivares back in Madrid, discussing in generalities what might be done to bring a clearly difficult papacy to heel and remove a potential problem in the way of the strategy that Madrid was evolving to play Spain back in her rightful place as the chief is power in Christendom." This is probably the worst example, but what on earth were the editors doing. One or two of the characters are also beginning to wear a little thin. But the book still has some of the advantages of the original. The people are ordinary but placed in an extraordinary position, they're not geniuses or billionaires, they're not saving the human race, but trying to make the best of the situation they're in. They make ordinary everyday mistakes facing difficult problems. If the Baltic War has fewer words and more action, I'll be back to buying them.

Keeping up the good work.......2007-05-18

This book is a continuation of the series that started with Ring of Fire and has continued on through several volumes. If you liked Ring of Fire you will love this book. It both continues the tradition and is definitely setting up a major change in the lives of the people from the twentieth century. Along with the companion book 1634: The Baltic War, it is showing a new side of the leader of the Grantville group. Look out afficianados, things are about to get really interesting in seventeenth century Germany.

Average customer rating:

A Favorite Astronomy Textbook
Out of this world

21st Century Astronomy, Second Edition
Jeff Hester , David Burstein , George Blumenthal , Ronald Greeley , Bradford Smith , Howard Voss , and Gary Wegner
Manufacturer: W. W. Norton
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Astronomy | Astronomy | Science | Subjects | Books

General | Science | Subjects | Books

All Titles | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books
Similar Items:

Lecture Tutorials for Introductory Astronomy (2nd Edition) (Addison-Wesley Series in Educational Innovation)
Regional Landscapes of the United States and Canada
The Stars: A New Way to See Them
The Penguin Gandhi Reader
The Essential World History, Volume I

ASIN: 0393924432

Book Description

This extraordinarily readable, cohesive text presents twenty-first century astronomy as a dynamic story of theory building and theory testing, as a fascinating process of observation and discovery. The authors' primary goal is to build students' scientific literacy by emphasizing how science works and why it is relevant, rather than by cataloging a large mass of individual details. With a clear focus on core concepts and carefully crafted pedagogical aids, 21st Century Astronomy chronicles scientists at work on the most important questions about the Universe, highlighting the excitement of making new discoveries and the puzzlement created by new lines of inquiry.

"One of the most exciting things about astronomy is that sometimes you get up in the morning and discover that we know fundamental things about the Universe that we didn't know the day before. The recent release of the results from the Wilkinson Microwave Anisotropy Probe (WMAP) satellite observatory are one of those historical moments."—Jeff Hester

Customer Reviews:

A Favorite Astronomy Textbook.......2004-11-20

This is my third year teaching introductory astronomy. I've used three textbooks. Last year I got a copy of 21st Century Astronomy free--publishers are always trying to get professors to adopt their textbooks. Anyway, I really like this one. I haven't been able to use it in a class yet, but I would like to. I use it already to help me prepare for lectures. It's clear and don't talk down to the reader. Many textbooks get weighted down with frills, but not this one. The graphics are clear but never superfluous. In keeping with its title, it includes may up to date topics.

The other texts I have used are Kaufman, Seeds, and Bennet et al. (which I liked a lot too--it's a little bulky though.)

Out of this world.......2003-08-06

Wonderful explanations. This is the astronomy book I never had as a kid! I'm a biologist and always thought I had the good fortune of working in the most interesting field. It sounds trite, but this book has opened my eyes to a universe out there. Now I even sort of understand black holes and the implications of relativity.

The Open Space of Democracy (New Patriotism)

Average customer rating:

The Open Space of Democracy
DEEPLY ENGAGING
A Masterpiece

The Open Space of Democracy (New Patriotism)
Terry Tempest Williams
Manufacturer: The Orion Society
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Democracy | Government | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books

General | Philosophy | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books

General | Politics | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books

Look Inside Nonfiction Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books

All 4-for-3 Deals | 4-for-3 Books Store | Stores | Books
Similar Items:

Red: Passion and Patience in the Desert
An Unspoken Hunger: Stories from the Field
Refuge: An Unnatural History of Family and Place
Leap
Pieces of White Shell

ASIN: 0913098639

Book Description

Terry Tempest Williams presents a sharp-edged perspective on the ethics and politics of place, spiritual democracy, and the responsibilities of citizen engagement. By turns elegiac, inspiring, and passionate, The Open Space of Democracy offers a fresh perspective on the critical questions of our time.

Customer Reviews:

The Open Space of Democracy.......2006-02-20

Terry Tempest Williams is amazingly articulate. This book while a short, easy read can be read over and over again as her messages can be applied to our everyday life. I bought five copies as this book makes a wonderful gift!

DEEPLY ENGAGING.......2004-09-27

After interviewing Terry on radio, I am convinced that this gentle soul's strong undercurrent provides us with a rich new model of citizen involvement in this, our participatory government. Too many of us dismiss a deeper involvement in democracy with crusty cynicism - we feel ground down by the backhanded tactics used by government officials to strip us of our civil liberties and rape the earth's environment.

What Terry Tempest Williams proposes not only facilitates transformation within our democratic system, but by the simple act of learning to listen with open minds and hearts, we may receive one another's views on a very human scale. If we endeavor to connect in this manner, not only will we have a more functional democracy, we will become better human beings.

Bela Johnson, Medical Intuitive
http://www.belajohnson.com

Host, Alternative Currents
http://www.weru.org

A Masterpiece.......2004-09-18

I have not read a book in the last ten years that I would give this description to, but The Open Space of Democracy will or at least should go down as an American masterpiece, and a seminal contribution to environmental and political writing. I pre-ordered my copy direct from the publisher and so received and read, or rather devoured, it right after it was published. The triptych of essays in this volume are woven together and inseparable from each other in the way that Aldo Leopold's "Land Ethic" is inseparable from the rest of A Sand County Almanac.

This book maps a future for America and Americans that is luminous, hopeful, fierce, and prophetic all in one. Anyone who truly cares about our democracy and about the health of the natural world NEEDS to read this, be inspired by it, and take action in honor of it.

Average customer rating:

Fleshing out characters.
Does Not Add Much to the Franchise
Excellent Read
It's not up to snuff.
More from the Ring of Fire

Grantville Gazette II
Eric Flint
Manufacturer: Baen
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

Anthologies | Science Fiction | Science Fiction & Fantasy | Subjects | Books

General | Science Fiction | Science Fiction & Fantasy | Subjects | Books
Similar Items:

1634: The Ram Rebellion (Assiti Shards)
1635: Cannon Law (Ring of Fire)
Grantville Gazette III
1634: The Baltic War
The Grantville Gazette

ASIN: B000MKYKAY

Customer Reviews:

Fleshing out characters........2007-09-02

I enjoyed this book, the way it added depth to the characters in the tale of Ring of Fire. There are people whose character means they can be called upon at any time to help build depth to a story.

Does Not Add Much to the Franchise.......2007-08-15

This collection of stories from the RING OF FIRE franchise does not add too much value to the franchise. It is a collection of shorts plus a couple of "fact" articles set in the 163n framework. They hold together just fine as far as fitting into the framework but they are not all that entertaining in their own rights. That is a problem.

Often enough, the stories read well, they just don't come to any sort of a satisfying conclusion. One is left with the feeling, "so what?" This is true for the little known authors as well as for Eric Flint, the originator. They are not awful, they just are not all that good.

Even so, the series interests me enough that I will continue to buy and read it. I just hope for something better next time.

Excellent Read.......2007-05-11

For those of you that have read any amount of the 1632 series, this book is a must have. The perspectives from Non-Canon characters, introduces one once again a new world that runs parallel, but not neccessarily equal with the main story-lines.

It's not up to snuff........2007-04-02

When you write an anthology you can get really variable work. When you have amateur writers, even with a good editor, the variableness is especially noticable. As such, most of the stories in this collection were bland and uninteresting. Even Flint's failed to grab the reader, and for all the ballyhoo of a Flint story in the collection, it reads like he quickly whipped out 6 pages so as to increase sales.

The only moderately interesting story was a novella on the development of a medical school and cultural differences between Germany and Grantville. But the author doesn't take any real risks in the storyline- it had potential for real ingenuity but the safe route is taken instead. And the story revolves around a protagonist getting an ulcer because of stress. Have the authors never read that we no longer think that ulcers come from stress?? We know they come from a bacterial infection now- and this was well known even before Grantville transported to the past. This could have been an opportunity at least for the Germans to teach the Grantvillians a thing or two. But nothing is mentioned, and the story really falls apart after relying on severely outdated science.

More from the Ring of Fire.......2007-01-10

The collections of short pieces by both experienced and unknown writers that Jim Baen and Eric Flint have associated with the "Ring of Fire" series is one of the cleverest moves by a publisher in a long time. They let us see in more detail events and actions that might not have been foregrounded in the main book, but whose expansion or portrayal enhances the overall universe of the book.

This second collection is as strong if not stronger than the first, and well worth adding to your collection.

Books:

Books Index

Books Home

Recommended Books