by Leslie Alan Horvitz (Author)
"Eureka" ist eine Sammlung der bemerkenswertesten und unterhaltsamsten Geschichten über die gro en wissenschaftlichen Entdeckungen, die die Welt verändert haben. Das Buch setzt die Tradition von 'Hellman's Great Feuds in Science' fort und erzählt ein Dutzend Wissenschaftsgeschichten, die sich allesamt auf die besondere Dramatik des unmittelbaren "Heureka Moments" gründen, der vielen wissenschaftlichen Entdeckungen gemeinsam ist. Angefangen beim Amateurwissenschaftler Joseph Priestly, der im 18. Jahrhundert auf die Existenz des Sauerstoffs gesto en ist, jedoch ohne eine wirkliche Ahnung davon zu haben, was er eigentlich gefunden hatte, bis hin zu dem 14-jährigen Fernseh-Pionier Philo Farnsworth, dem die Idee für einen Fernsehbildschirm beim Pflügen der elterlichen Felder in Idaho kam. Unter den hier vorgestellten Wissenschaftlern befinden sich Berühmtheiten wie Darwin, Einstein und Watson Crick, aber auch etwas obskure Persönlichkeiten, wie z.B. der Chemiker Kekulé und der Mathematiker Benoit Mandelbrot. Bei allen Entdeckungen spielten Glück, gutes Timing und ein wacher Geist eine wesentliche Rolle. "Eureka" - eine ebenso spannende wie unterhaltsame Lektüre.
Front Jacket
Since the day Archimedes leapt from his bathtub and ran naked through the streets of ancient Syracuse shouting "Eureka!" the history of science has been punctuated by moments of true insight and discovery. Eureka!: Scientific Breakthroughs that Changed the World explores the events and thought processes that led twelve great minds to their "eureka moments." It also explains the profound impact of these discoveries on the way we live, think, and view the world around us.
Most of the "instant" discoveries presented here were, in fact, the combined product of determined effort and exceptional feats of vision. You'll learn how, after years of highly focused study, Dmitri Mendeleyev had a vision of the structure of the periodic table form in his mind while playing a card game of his own devising. Alfred Wegener, on the other hand, amassed data from the varied fields of meteorology, seismology, paleontology, zoology, and geology to confirm his intuitive belief in his theory of continental drift-a theory that provoked a storm of outrage from geologists and was not proven until thirty years after his death.
You'll also meet "lucky" scientists such as Joseph Priestley, who admitted that he did not know what he was doing when he stumbled upon the existence of oxygen, but realized immediately that he had made a stunningly important discovery. Likewise, Alexander Fleming, who discovered penicillin by recognizing the importance of a "failed" experiment and rescuing it from the trash bin in his lab.
This fascinating and engaging collection of great moments in science is filled with clear explanations, vivid descriptions, and plenty of surprises. It is must reading for anyone interested in science, science history, and the implacable human urge to explore and understand the unknown.
Back Jacket
A fascinating tour of great moments in science
From Newton's apple to Fleming's mold, from the structure of carbon molecules to the structure of DNA, Eureka! tells the true stories behind some of the most memorable and revolutionary discoveries in the history of science, and the dedicated, often unconventional scientists who made them.
You'll meet Philo Farnsworth, who, as a 14-year-old boy, got the idea for the TV screen while plowing the fields of his family's Idaho farm; Benoit Mandelbrot, who discovered a hidden order of nature in the "trash cans of science," and Charles Townes, who invented an amazing device that no one needed-at the time. Eureka! brings you these and other amazing stories, including:
* Joseph Priestley and the discovery of oxygen
* Albert Einstein and the theory of gravity
* Charles Darwin and the theory of evolution
* Dmitri Mendeleyev and the periodic table
* Alfred Wegener and the theory of continental drift
Author Biography
LESLIE ALAN HORVITZ is the author, coauthor, or editor of numerous books on science and the history of science, including Level 4: Virus Hunters of the CDC, with Dr. Joseph McCormick and Susan Fisher-Hoch; The Quotable Scientist; and Understanding Depression, with Dr. J. Raymond DePaulo, also from Wiley.