Download or read book Haphazard Reality written by H. B. G. Casimir and published by Amsterdam University Press. This book was released on 2010 with total page 375 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Summary: Prof. dr. H.B.G. Casimir, fysicus van internationale faam, studeerde en werkte met drie grote figuren van de twintigste-eeuwse natuurkunde: Niels Bohr, Wolfgang Pauli en Paul Ehrenfest. Casimir, zelf een briljant theoreticus, laat in zijn autobiografie de lezer getuige zijn van de revolutionaire ontwikkelingen die leidden tot de kwantumfysica. De invloed en effecten daarvan op onze moderne samenleving zijn vele malen groter dan de eerste atoomfysici konden vermoeden.

Download or read book Haphazard Reality Half a Century of Science written by Hendrik B.G. Casimir and published by Plunkett Lake Press. This book was released on 2020-09-23 with total page 275 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: “An outstanding scientific autobiography... I remain impressed by its thoughtfulness and charm.” — Steve K. Lamoreaux, American Journal of Physics “[A] rich autobiography and history-of-atomic-physics... One is impressed by Casimir’s memory for detail and zeal to find corroboration for the stories he tells. And they are splendid tales: Gamow’s playful pranks in Copenhagen: conversations with Lev Landau, ardent revolutionary but no Marxist; the tragedy of Ehrenfest, who killed himself after shooting his hopelessly retarded son... A charming, idiosyncratic, and meaningful account of events and personalities that changed physics.” — Kirkus “I myself read [this book] with fascination, meeting old friends such as Gamow, Landau, Kramers, and learning much more about them... Also in the book are character sketches of those who made physics in the Netherlands such as Lorentz, Kamerlingh Onnes and Ehrenfest, the latter remembered with the greatest affection by the author.” — Sir Nevill Mott, Contemporary Physics “The book... contains a valuable, entertaining and insightful collection of vignettes of many of the physicists Casimir has associated with[,]... Lorentz, Ehrenfest, Bohr, Pauli, with whom he studied; Goudsmit, Uhlenbeck, Landau, Gamov, members of his own generation; Kramers, Gorter, de Haas, colleagues in Dutch academic circles; Holst and Loupart, colleagues at the Philips Laboratories. Haphazard Reality also offers valuable insights into Dutch middle class culture and a rewarding overview of Dutch educational and scientific establishments... Casimir is a master at deftly and sensitively conveying the psychological ambiance of his surroundings. His description of the brilliant young theoretical physicists around Bohr in the early thirties conveys not only the style of doing physics but also delineates the issues addressed by outlining the content of their researches.” — S. S. Schweber, 4S Review “Engaging reminiscences by an important Dutch physicist of conversations with the major contributors to 20th-century physics. An overly modest, but otherwise balanced account of his own experiences and contributions from his early years at Leiden to his directorship of the Philips Laboratory.” — The Antioch Review “Haphazard Reality paints a vivid and insightful picture of the development of modern physics.” — Steve K. Lamoreaux, Proceedings of the American Philosophical Society

Download or read book Haphazard Reality written by Hendrik Brugt Gerhard Casimir and published by HarperCollins. This book was released on 1984 with total page 356 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Casimir, himself a famous physician, studied and worked with three great physicists of the twentieth century: Niels Bohr, Wolfgang Pauli and Paul Ehrenfest. In his autobiography, the brilliant theoretician lets the reader witness the revolution that led to quantum physics, whose influence on modern society turned out to be many times larger than the first atomic physicists could have imagined. Through his involvement in the technical-scientific and the business aspects of physics, through management positions at Philips Research Laboratory and as a member of the Board of Directors of Philips, Professor Casimir is the ideal person to place half a century of developments in physics within the context of important events in the world.

Download or read book written by Samia Mehrez and published by American Univ in Cairo Press. This book was released on 2010-01-01 with total page 354 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A look at some of the raging debates in the arts in Egypt

Download or read book The Pope of Physics written by Gino Segrè and published by Macmillan + ORM. This book was released on 2016-10-18 with total page 387 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Enrico Fermi is unquestionably among the greats of the world's physicists, the most famous Italian scientist since Galileo. Called the Pope by his peers, he was regarded as infallible in his instincts and research. His discoveries changed our world; they led to weapons of mass destruction and conversely to life-saving medical interventions. This unassuming man struggled with issues relevant today, such as the threat of nuclear annihilation and the relationship of science to politics. Fleeing Fascism and anti-Semitism, Fermi became a leading figure in America's most secret project: building the atomic bomb. The last physicist who mastered all branches of the discipline, Fermi was a rare mixture of theorist and experimentalist. His rich legacy encompasses key advances in fields as diverse as comic rays, nuclear technology, and early computers. In their revealing book, The Pope of Physics, Gino Segré and Bettina Hoerlin bring this scientific visionary to life. An examination of the human dramas that touched Fermi’s life as well as a thrilling history of scientific innovation in the twentieth century, this is the comprehensive biography that Fermi deserves.

Download or read book Lise Meitner written by Ruth Lewin Sime and published by Univ of California Press. This book was released on 1996-03-10 with total page 564 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Lise Meitner (1878-1968) was a pioneer of nuclear physics and co-discoverer, with Otto Hahn and Fritz Strassmann, of nuclear fission. Braving the sexism of the scientific world, she joined the prestigious Kaiser Wilhelm Institute for Chemistry and became a prominent member of the international physics community. Of Jewish origin, Meitner fled Nazi Germany for Stockholm in 1938 and later moved to Cambridge, England. Her career was shattered when she fled Germany, and her scientific reputation was damaged when Hahn took full credit—and the 1944 Nobel Prize—for the work they had done together on nuclear fission. Ruth Sime's absorbing book is the definitive biography of Lise Meitner, the story of a brilliant woman whose extraordinary life illustrates not only the dramatic scientific progress but also the injustice and destruction that have marked the twentieth century.

Download or read book James Clerk Maxwell written by Raymond Flood and published by Oxford University Press, USA. This book was released on 2014 with total page 375 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: James Clerk Maxwell (1831 -1879) was one of the most important mathematical physicists of all time. In scientific terms his immortality is enshrined in electromagnetism and Maxwell's equations, but as this book shows, there was much more to Maxwell than electromagnetism, both in terms of his science and his wider life.

Download or read book Answers for the Honest Skeptic written by Ted Even and published by Christian Faith Publishing, Inc.. This book was released on 2020-11-25 with total page 319 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: It is true that mankind himself has probably always been characterized with the main desire to determine just what "spiritual truth" really is. For centuries and centuries, highly educated philosophers and religious men alike have always stood toe-to-toe disagreeing on "spiritual truth." Since they cannot all be right, this would strongly indicate that education, religious persuasion, or even intelligence has little to do with our discovery of the "real spiritual truth." For if these things were truly critical, then obviously, the "spiritual/intellectual giants" of history would have agreed on spiritual truth long ago.In this work, author Ted Even endeavors to show that the disagreeing intellectuals/skeptics of the past only serve to reinforce Christ's radical statement about our need to just "become like little children" in order to discover the spiritual truth and that literally everyone has the same opportunity to enter the kingdom of heaven on that basis. However, while super-intelligence or big degrees may not be necessary, the discovery of spiritual truth does require just one very reasonable quality of heart, which little children have always possessed. Find out just what this basic quality of heart is as you continue your search for spiritual truth within this simple to understand work which only leaves the real spiritual truth left standing.

Download or read book Genius written by James Gleick and published by Vintage. This book was released on 1993-11-02 with total page 562 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: To his colleagues, Richard Feynman was not so much a genius as he was a full-blown magician: someone who “does things that nobody else could do and that seem completely unexpected.” The path he cleared for twentieth-century physics led from the making of the atomic bomb to a Nobel Prize-winning theory of quantam electrodynamics to his devastating exposé of the Challenger space shuttle disaster. At the same time, the ebullient Feynman established a reputation as an eccentric showman, a master safe cracker and bongo player, and a wizard of seduction. Now James Gleick, author of the bestselling Chaos, unravels teh dense skein of Feynman‘s thought as well as the paradoxes of his character in a biography—which was nominated for a National Book Award—of outstanding lucidity and compassion.

Download or read book Explorer of the Universe A Biography of George Ellery Hale written by Helen Wright and published by Plunkett Lake Press. This book was released on 2021-03-18 with total page 427 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: “George Ellery Hale [1868-1938] is the subject of this impressive biography... Wright charts Hale’s steady progress towards leadership in the nascent field of astrophysics from his childhood experiments at home in Chicago, through student days at MIT, to his first observatory at Kenwood, all of which demonstrate his passion for unravelling the secrets of nature through the then new medium of spectroscopy. This enthusiasm led him into contact with most of his peers both in America and beyond (Lockyer, Huggins, Pickering, Rowland, and many more), many of whom remained close associates and correspondents for years after. Probably this sense of community made Hale so active in the organization of science, including the formation of the AAS [American Astronomical Society], the IAU [International Astronomical Union], and ICSU [International Council of Scientific Unions]. It also gave him the contacts to give the Astrophysical Journal such a good start in 1895. Perhaps the greatest debt we owe Hale is for his relentless drive towards the creation of ever bigger and better facilities, starting with the still unsurpassed Yerkes refractor, continuing with the solar telescopes on Mt. Wilson and then the 60- and 100-inch telescopes on the same peak, and concluding with the 200-inch [at Mt. Palomar]... Scientifically, Hale’s lifelong affair with the Sun brought him success in the detection of magnetic fields and early studies of surface activity by means of the spectroheliograph he developed, and for which he was duly fêted, and the frustrations of trying to record the corona. But these were early successes and as astropolitics and finance took an ever increasing share of his time, he was able to contribute less than he would have liked. Part of the problem was the illness, with both physical and mental symptoms, which progressively plagued the life of this hyperactive polymath; it is sad to note his decline which prevented him playing a fuller part in the creation of what was to become his memorial... this [biography] is something of a classic on one of astronomy’s giants.” — David Strickland, The Observatory “This important biography is well written and is highly recommended.” — A. E. Covington, Journal of the Royal Astronomical Society of Canada “[An] outstanding biography of this most remarkable man... Helen Wright has done a superb job of tracing Hale’s development not only of new and powerful instruments and of his important discoveries of sunspot magnetic fields and the law of reversing polarities, but also of the embryonic state of American science in the early days of this century... an authoritative biography of one of the most influential men of science this country has produced. The hook will bring to contemporary scientists and historians the story of this unique astronomer whose life is of such special interest to the Caltech community.” — Allan Sandage, Caltech Magazine (formerly Engineering and Science) “Helen Wright gives a detailed account of the life and almost frantic activities of this remarkable scientific leader... In summarizing astrophysical events of the years 1880 to 1950... Wright has provided a useful and fascinating account of scientific development that led to the preeminence of the United States.” — Thornton Page, Science “In writing the story of Hale’s origins, career and bequest to posterity Helen Wright has richly served her fellow astronomers. No one else could have done so well. Her account preserves an admirable balance in presenting Hale not only as a doer but also as a dreamer... Miss Wright’s excellent biography covers the highlights of his career... Miss Wright’s book is highly authentic.” — Harlow Shapley, Scientific American Published under license from Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature

Download or read book The Wind and Beyond Theodore von K rm n Pioneer in Aviation and Pathfinder in Space written by Theodore von Kármán and published by Plunkett Lake Press. This book was released on 2022-05-22 with total page 345 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: “[A]n autobiography that, happily, is an engrossing, full-bodied reflection of the man, a neatly balanced combination of technical insights and always pertinent, often irreverent anecdotes... an upbeat tale of a man who had a great love of life and a well-merited sense of achievement, told with genuine gusto and fascinating detail.” — Richard Witkin, The New York Times “It is the triumph of this book that it manages to combine a chatty, anecdotal, and highly readable tale of a distinguished scientist’s everyday life with a substantial number of penetrating insights into the creative process.” — I. B. Holley, Jr., Science “The present biography is eminently readable, sometimes puckish, and von Karman himself is rather inspiring in his faith in science.” — Kirkus “Every paragraph grips the reader’s attention... a book almost impossible to put down until it is read.” — Aerospace Historian “This account of von Kármán’s life and his contributions to the science of aerodynamics is most fascinating reading.” — The Science Teacher “Every page of this superb classic is infused with von Karman’s humanity. As his narrative makes clear, he was not simply a clever technician but a man of character whose vision advanced the aerospace sciences and fostered international cooperation.” — Aviation History

Download or read book Stalin and the Scientists written by Simon Ings and published by Open Road + Grove/Atlantic. This book was released on 2017-02-21 with total page 491 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: “One of the finest, most gripping surveys of the history of Russian science in the twentieth century.” —Douglas Smith, author of Former People: The Final Days of the Russian Aristocracy Stalin and the Scientists tells the story of the many gifted scientists who worked in Russia from the years leading up to the revolution through the death of the “Great Scientist” himself, Joseph Stalin. It weaves together the stories of scientists, politicians, and ideologues into an intimate and sometimes horrifying portrait of a state determined to remake the world. They often wreaked great harm. Stalin was himself an amateur botanist, and by falling under the sway of dangerous charlatans like Trofim Lysenko (who denied the existence of genes), and by relying on antiquated ideas of biology, he not only destroyed the lives of hundreds of brilliant scientists, he caused the death of millions through famine. But from atomic physics to management theory, and from radiation biology to neuroscience and psychology, these Soviet experts also made breakthroughs that forever changed agriculture, education, and medicine. A masterful book that deepens our understanding of Russian history, Stalin and the Scientists is a great achievement of research and storytelling, and a gripping look at what happens when science falls prey to politics. Longlisted for the Baillie Gifford Prize for Non-Fiction in 2016 A New York Times Book Review “Paperback Row” selection “Ings’s research is impressive and his exposition of the science is lucid . . . Filled with priceless nuggets and a cast of frauds, crackpots and tyrants, this is a lively and interesting book, and utterly relevant today.” —The New York Times Book Review “A must read for understanding how the ideas of scientific knowledge and technology were distorted and subverted for decades across the Soviet Union.” —The Washington Post

Download or read book E written by Donald Goldsmith and published by Sterling Publishing Company, Inc.. This book was released on 2006 with total page 364 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In the history of physics, there has been no greater visionary than Albert Einstein. Through his revolutionary Theory of Relativity, he fundamentally changed the way we look at the universe. But there is more to Einstein than just E=mc2--and this anthology of 30 fascinating essays, presented by three renowned scientist/editors, captures his various facets. Complete with more than 125 color illustrations and explanatory sidebars that make the information accessible to the layperson, these revelatory articles explore his life, theories, and legacy. They range from the scientific ("The Cosmos According to Eintein,” "Time Travel in Einstein’s Universe”) to the political ("Einstein as Jew and Zionist,” "Einstein and Nazi Science”) to discussions of his role as an icon ("What’s with the Hair?”).

Download or read book Encyclopedia of Plasma Technology Two Volume Set written by J. Leon Shohet and published by CRC Press. This book was released on 2016-12-12 with total page 3082 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Technical plasmas have a wide range of industrial applications. The Encyclopedia of Plasma Technology covers all aspects of plasma technology from the fundamentals to a range of applications across a large number of industries and disciplines. Topics covered include nanotechnology, solar cell technology, biomedical and clinical applications, electronic materials, sustainability, and clean technologies. The book bridges materials science, industrial chemistry, physics, and engineering, making it a must have for researchers in industry and academia, as well as those working on application-oriented plasma technologies. Also Available Online This Taylor & Francis encyclopedia is also available through online subscription, offering a variety of extra benefits for researchers, students, and librarians, including: Citation tracking and alerts Active reference linking Saved searches and marked lists HTML and PDF format options Contact Taylor and Francis for more information or to inquire about subscription options and print/online combination packages. US: (Tel) 1.888.318.2367; (E-mail) [email protected] International: (Tel) +44 (0) 20 7017 6062; (E-mail) [email protected]

Download or read book Reading Early Modern Women written by Helen Ostovich and published by Psychology Press. This book was released on 2004 with total page 548 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This remarkable anthology assembles for the first time 144 primary texts and documents written by women between 1550 and 1700 and reveals an unprecedented view of the intellectual and literary lives of women in early modern England

Download or read book 20th Century Physics written by Edoardo Amaldi and published by World Scientific. This book was released on 1998 with total page 784 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In this important volume, major events and personalities of 20th century physics are portrayed through recollections and historiographical works of one of the most prominent figures of European science. A former student of Enrico Fermi, and a leading personality of physical research and science policy in postwar Italy, Edoardo Amaldi devoted part of his career to documenting, both as witness and as historian, some significant moments of 20th century science. The focus of the book is on the European scene, ranging from nuclear research in Rome in the 1930s to particle physics at CERN, and includes biographies of physicists such as Ettore Majorana, Bruno Touschek and Fritz Houtermans.Edoardo Amaldi (Carpaneto, 1908 - Roma, 1989) was one of the leading figures in twentieth century Italian science. He was conferred his degree in physics at Rome University in 1929 and played an active role (as a member of the team of young physicists known as ?the boys of via Panisperna?) in the fundamental research on artificial induced radioactivity and the properties of neutrons, which won the group's leader Enrico Fermi the Nobel Prize for physics in 1938. Following Fermi's departure for the United States in 1938 and the disruption of the original group, Amaldi took upon himself the task of reorganising the research in physics in the difficult situation of post-war Italy. His own research went from nuclear physics to cosmic ray physics, elementary particles and, in later years, gravitational waves. Active research was for him always coupled to a direct involvement as a statesman of science and an organiser: he was the leading figure in the establishment of INFN (National Institute for Nuclear Physics) and has played a major role, as spokesman of the Italian scientific community, in the creation of CERN, the large European laboratory for high energy physics. He also actively supported the formation of a similar trans-national joint venture in space science, which gave birth to the European Space Agency. In these and several other scientific organisations, he was often entrusted with directive responsibilities. In his later years, he developed a keen interest in the history of his discipline. This gave rise to a rich production of historiographic material, of which a significant sample is collected in this volume.

Download or read book Quips Quotes And Quanta An Anecdotal History Of Physics 2nd Edition written by Anton Z Capri and published by World Scientific Publishing Company. This book was released on 2011-05-31 with total page 252 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: When a ship's surgeon during a routine episode of bloodletting noticed that the sailors' blood was brighter in the tropics than in the north, he hypothesized that heat was a form of energy.When a young boy tried to visualize what a beam of light would look like by riding alongside it at the same speed, he began thinking along lines that eventually changed our views of space and time.When a student caught hay fever and went to recover on Heligoland, he started a major revolution in physics. These are but just some of the stories covered in this entertaining book that deals with the history of physics from the end of the 19th-century to about 1930.Quips, Quotes and Quanta (2nd Edition) is unique in that it contains anecdotes on physicists creating new ideas. Often the thinking of the creators of what is now called “modern physics” is revealed through quotes. Thematic and biographical in nature, this book also includes many personal incidents.This second edition has been revised to include new material: a prologue, epilogue, glossary and chronology, and photographs as well as additional quotes and anecdotes.