Cosmic Imagery: Key Images in the History of Science - Couverture rigide

Barrow, John D.

Couverture rigide

ISBN 10 : 0224075233 ISBN 13 : 9780224075237

Editeur : The Bodley Head Ltd, 2008

Synopsis

* Certain key images embody our understanding of life and the universe we inhabit. Some, like Robert Hooke's first microscopic views of the natural world, or the stunning images taken by the Hubble Space Telescope, were made possible by our new technical capabilities.
* Others, like the first graph, were breathtakingly simple but perennially useful. Vesalius's haunting pictures of the human anatomy were nothing less than works of art, while the simple diagram now known as Pythagoras' Theorem - proved by the ancient Babylonians, Chinese, Indians and Egyptians long before the Greeks themselves - lay the foundations for modern mathematics.
* Many of these images have shattered our preconceptions about the limits and nature of existence: the first breathtaking pictures of the Earth from space stimulated an environmental consciousness that has grown ever since; the mushroom cloud from atomic and nuclear explosions became the ultimate symbol of death and destruction; the flying saucer came to represent the possibility of extraterrestrial life; while Mercator's flat map of the Earth coordinated an entire world-view.
* Cosmic Imagery takes us on a tour through the most influential images in science. Each holds an important place in the growth of human understanding and carries with it a story that illuminates its origin and meaning. Together they reveal something of the beauty and truth of the universe, and why, so often, a picture is better than a thousand words.

A propos du livre

À propos de l?auteur

John D. Barrow is Professor of Mathematical Sciences and Director of the Millennium Mathematics Project at Cambridge University, Fellow of Clare Hall, Cambridge, a Fellow of the Royal Society, and formerly Professor of both Geometry and Astronomy at Gresham College, London. His previous books include The Book of Nothing, The Constants of Nature, The Infinite Book, Cosmic Imagery, the bestselling 100 Essential Things You Didn't Know You Didn't Know, The Book of Universes, and, most recently, 100 Essential Things You Didn't Know You Didn't Know About Sport.

Détails de l'édition

• Éditeur: The Bodley Head Ltd
• Date d'édition: 2008
• Langue: anglais
• ISBN 10: 0224075233
• ISBN 13: 9780224075237
• Reliure: Relié
• Nombre de pages: 608
• Coordonnées du fabricant: non disponible
• Personne responsable: non disponible