Galileo's Commandment: An Anthology of Great Science Writing

(Paperback)

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Marie Curie reminisces about her and her husband's efforts to isolate the element radium. Herodotus observes the Nile Valley and concludes that it was once under water. Carl Sagan argues against assertions that aliens regularly visit Earth. These are among the literary gems Edmund Blair Bolles includes in GALILEO'S COMMANDMENT. Bolles has scoured the literature of science to build a treasury that is accessible and riveting, appealing to readers unfamiliar with science yet erudite enough for the scientifically initiated reader to enjoy.

The authors include scientists well-known for their writing - including Stephen Jay Gould, Richard Feynman and Charles Darwin - and scientists such as Kepler, James Clerk Maxwell, Alfred Wallace, and of course Galileo himself. The writings here span time and the scientific disciplines (the earliest pieces dates to c.444 BC) and the result is a fascinating collection , ideal for browsing or for reading cover to cover.

Reviews

'This book demonstrates that Bolles has a genius for explanation' - SPECTATOR 'The real stuff is in individual pieces - argumentative, thoughtful and, almost always, enlightening...riveting' - SCOTAND ON SUNDAY 'This anthology is an intoxicating wellspring of ideas . . . A gem' - IRISH TIMES

Author Bio

Edmund Blair Bolles is a New York writer whose special interest is science, and he is the author of a number of books on children's language, the nature of memory and perception (see below).