Sobel continues her streak of luminous science writing with this fascinating, witty, and most elegant history of the women who worked in critical positions at the harvard observatory. She has an extraordinary gift of making difficult ideas clear. Numerous attentive readers took the trouble to write to me to point out typos or other errors in the text, which the publisher then corrected in subsequent editions. Find all the books, read about the author, and more. The concluding chapter of longitude is a very touching account of her personal visit to zero longitude in greenwich where this writer also straddled that magic line embedded in the pavement. It established the board of longitude and offered a prize of 20,000 pounds to anyone who could find a simple and practical method for the precise determination of a ships longitude. Such facts might merely seem the stuff of trivia games, but dava sobel s longitude is an intriguing biography. The true story of a lone genius who solved the greatest scientific problem of his time is a historical biography by dava sobel.
Editor november 24, 2011 in books, dava sobel, english, scientific history leave a comment updated. Dava sobels longitude tells the story of how 18thcentury scientist and. Dava sobel is a former science writer for the new york times, as well as contributor to audubon, discover, life, and omni magazines. Nov 17, 2011 dava sobel has written a gem of a book. When longitude first appeared in 1995, sobel s lucid, insightful little book had a single imperfection. A fascinating problem it was ptolemy in geographia, written in the 2nd. The true story of a lone genius who solved the greatest scientific problem of his time by dava sobel, neil frw armstrong. The true story of a lone genius who solved the greatest scientific problem of his time. The publication of longitude in 1995 and its unexpected success transformed me into a fulltime author of books. This summary of longitude includes a complete plot. The publication of longitude taught me that a book can actually improve by virtue of being read. Nov 11, 2005 dava sobel has written a gem of a bookone of the best reads for the nonscientific writing to come along for many a moon.
Dava sobel has written a gem of a bookone of the best reads for the nonscientific writing to come along for many a moon. Dava sobels longitude achieved bestselling status on the new york times nonfiction list in both hardcover and paperback. This lush, colorfully illustrated edition adds lots of pictures to the story, giving readers a more satisfying sense of the times, the players, and the puzzle. In fifteen chapters and about 180 pages, this slim books first edition not only tells a story of a lone genius. The true story of a lone genius who solved the greatest scientific problem of his time the genius in question was john harrison, who spent decades trying to convince the british admiralty of the accuracy of his. She graduated from the bronx high school of science and binghamton university. Through dava sobel s consummate skill, longitude will open a new window on our world for all who pdf read it. Former new york times reporter sobel coauthor, arthritis. I finished reading this book while trying to watch star trek the original series at the same time. Dava sobel dava sobel longitude harpercollins publishers longitude book pdf longitude book summary longitude e book longitude e book download longitude epub longitude pdf longitude pdf download longitude read longitude short summary longitude subject longitude summary. Dava sobel born june 15, 1947 is an american writer of popular expositions of scientific topics. Andrewes, the man who first invited her to write about the longitude symposium he was hosting in 1994 and thereby inspired what proved to be a surprisingly popular book.
That it has done so speaks well for the reading public in this country. Longitude is an enjoyable, easytoread and understand overview of the events surrounding the longitude problem, including the various solutions proposed, the political and scientific rivalry involved in the quest for the prize. The true story of a lone genius john harrison invented a mechanical method to measure longitude, in 1714 the english parliament offered a big reward because the sailors got lost easily during their explorations. Rarely have i enjoyed a book as much as dava sobels longitude. The true story of a lone genius who solved the greatest scientific problem of his time by dava sobel, neil frw armstrong due to covid19, orders may be delayed. Dava sobels longitude tells the story of how 18thcentury scientist and clockmaker william harrison solved one of the most perplexing problems of historydetermining eastwest location at sea. The true story of a lone genius who solved the greatest scientific problem of his time, dava sobel writes that the trick for. It consists of dava sobels original text, this time swaddled in 178 illustrations intended to supplement sobels prose with. Even before the publication of longitude twentyfive years ago, i learned about a group of women who worked at the harvard college observatory in the nineteenth century, analyzing images of the stars to fantastic effect these ladies of pickerings harem aroused my curiosity, but i put them off while pursuing galileos daughter, exploring the planets, and turning copernicuss idea. Longitude from dava sobel is a fascinating account of how a virtually unknown watchmaker named john harrison conquered one of the oldest and thorniest problems surrounding the ocean voyages the problem of accurately measuring longitude, which stumped even the best of scientific minds for centuries. The subtitle here tells the reader exactly what the book is about. How the ladies of the harvard observatory took the measure of the stars.
In 1714, the english parliament passed the longitude act. Dava sobel, a former new york times science reporter, is the author of longitude walker 1995 and 2005, penguin 1996, galileos daughter walker 1999 and 2011, penguin 2000, the planets viking 2005, penguin 2006, a more perfect heaven walker bloomsbury 2011 and 2012, and the sun stood still bloomsbury, 2016 and the glass universe viking, 2016. The true story of a lone genius who solved the greatest scientific problem of his time is a bestselling book by dava sobel about john harrison. First published in 1995 and nominated for the 1997 royal society science book prize, the book tells the story of one scientists lifelong journey to. In 1714, englands parliament offered a reward to anyone whose method or device for measuring longitude proved successful. Dava sobel s longitude tells the story of how 18thcentury scientist and clockmaker william harrison solved one of the most perplexing problems of historydetermining eastwest location at sea. Daily mail rarely have i enjoyed a book as much as dava sobels longitude. Financial times an extraordinary tale of political intrigue and academic backbiting, of intellectual brilliance, and mechanical genius, of heroic endeavours and downright dishonestya superb achievement. The book was made into a television series entitled longitude. It was the greatest scientific problem of the time. Dava sobel has 26 books on goodreads with 231056 ratings. Daily mail rarely have i enjoyed a book as much as dava sobel s longitude.
I would write a chapter and then i would write an article for a magazine just to have. Enjoy a great reading experience when you buy the kindle edition of this book. Unlike parallels of latitude, which are fixed by nature, longitude is. Her books include longitude, about english clockmaker john harrison, and galileos daughter, about galileos daughter maria celeste, and the glass universe. Dava sobel is an awardwinning former science reporter for the new york times and writes frequently about science for several magazines, including audubon, discover, life. Through dava sobels consummate skill, longitude will open a new window on our world for all who read it. This lush, colorfully illustrated edition adds lots of pictures to the story, giving readers a more satisfying sense of the times, the players, and. True story of a lone genius who solved the greatest scientific problem of his time by dava sobel. An exlibrary book and may have standard library stamps andor stickers. The true story of a lone genius who solved the greatest scientific problem of his time, dava sobel writes that the trick for remembering the difference is that the latitude lines, the parallels, really do stay parallel to each other as they girdle the globe in a series of concentric circles that. How the mystery was crackd a diverse band gathers at harvard to honor john harrison, the eighteenthcentury inventor who singlehandedly revolutionized the science of timekeeping. Quizlet is a lightning fast way to learn vocabulary. Following the success of her bestselling book longitude, dava sobel, a former new york times science reporter, has turned her attention to.
Lincoln a presidential candidate writes a moving and revealing letter to a disappointed harvard applicant. Readers with only the most cursory of interest in the night sky will find themselves beguiled by sobels prose and invigorated by this longoverlooked. Dava sobel is the bestselling author of longitude, galileos daughter, and the. An analysis of dava sobels writing style in the book. Use features like bookmarks, note taking and highlighting while reading longitude. Seems like she repeats the shovell story nearly every chapter, along with the. The true story of a lone genius who solved the greatest scientific problem of his time kindle edition by sobel, dava. With her bestsellers longitude and galileos daughter, dava sobel introduced readers to her rare gift for weaving complex scientific concepts into a compelling. The true story of a lone genius who solved the greatest scientific problem of his time by dava sobel at indigo.
November 28, 2011 most of us were born and grew up in the era when electronic items are of daytoday use, especially today when digital space is a huge presence in our professional as well as. The science writer says that while researching her new book, the glass universe, she read fiction. As with any issue and event in history, there are several sides to a story, and part of the charm of this book lies in the chapterbychapter method sobel uses to balance these opposing views towards mechanical solutions for finding longitude out at sea the more favored method was the lunar. Financial times a true life thriller, jampacked with political intrigue, international warfare, personal feuds and financial skullduggery. Dava sobel is a writer of popular expositions of scientific topics. The true story of a lone genius who solved the greatest scientific problem of his time, dava sobel writes that the trick for remembering the difference is that the latitude lines, the parallels, really do stay parallel to each other as they girdle the globe in. Longitude by dava sobel and a great selection of related books. The greek astronomers could measure latitude as early as the third century b. Such facts might merely seem the stuff of trivia games, but dava sobels longitude is an intriguing biography. In the early days of sail, mariners had no accurate means of determining their position at sea. Longitude does not seem to be a topic that would set the readers interest and imagination racing, but dava sobel manages to make what is a seemingly boring topic into a tale that is gripping, exciting and educational.
The true story of a lone genius who solved the greatest scientific problem of his time chapter 4. For example, the typesetter had inexplicably swapped. Through lucid prose and a compelling narrative, sobel explains the longitude. Its like writing one college term paper after another. Download it once and read it on your kindle device, pc, phones or tablets. Because sequels and adaptations infest publishing as they do moviemaking, please note that the illustrated longitude is neither.
Sep 02, 2005 the planets by dava sobel 270pp, fourth estate. Dava sobel has written a beautiful book about a subject that in a lesser authors hands could have been exceedingly boring. First published in 1995 and nominated for the 1997 royal society science book prize, the book tells the story of one scientists lifelong journey to build the perfect chronometer. Oct 19, 1995 in longitude, dava sobel chronicles the worlds quest to tame time. Following the success of her bestselling book longitude, dava sobel, a former new york times science reporter, has. Indeed, the entire age of exploration was carried out without anyones ever knowing. The true story of a lone genius who solved the greatest scientific problem of his time is a bestselling book by dava sobel about john harrison, an 18thcentury clockmaker who created the first clock chronometer sufficiently accurate to be used to determine longitude at seaan important development in navigation. The true story of a lone genius who solved the greatest scientific problem of his time chapter 1.
Couldnt get too far that way though, so i now all thats stopping me from watching star trek is writing this blog post and the fact that its past 2 am. The true story of a lone genius who solved the gre. The need for a clock which would accurately keep time while on a sea voyage in order to help mariners determine their longitude and thus accurately determine where they would land doesnt seem like it would be that exciting. Free shipping and pickup in store on eligible orders. Part biography, part history, part scientific exploration, longitude relates the quest for an accurate way to determine longitude. The true story of a lone genius who solved the greatest scientific problem of his time paperback october 30, 2007. I greatly enjoy the more indepth research required for booklength projects. Her books include longitude, about english clockmaker john harrison, and galileos daughter, about galileo s daughter maria celeste, and the glass universe. Longitude by dava sobel and a great selection of related books, art and collectibles available now at. Sobel reveals in her opening chapter that the problem of longitude was. Buy a cheap copy of the planets book by dava sobel. Dava sobel s longitude achieved bestselling status on the new york times nonfiction list in both hardcover and paperback.
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