Heavenly Intrigue: Johannes Kepler, Tycho Brahe, and the Murder Behind One of History's Greatest Scientific Discoveries


Joshua Gilder - 2004
    That collaboration would mark the dawn of modern science . . . and end in murder.Johannes Kepler changed forever our understanding of the universe with his three laws of planetary motion. He demolished the ancient model of planets moving in circular orbits and laid the foundation for the universal law of gravitation, setting physics on the course of revelation it follows to this day. Kepler was one of the greatest astronomers of all time. Yet if it hadn't been for the now lesser-known Tycho Brahe, the man for whom Kepler apprenticed, Kepler would be a mere footnote in today's science books. Brahe was the Imperial Mathematician at the court of the Holy Roman Emperor in Prague and the most famous astronomer of his era. He was one of the first great systematic empirical scientists and one of the earliest founders of the modern scientific method. His forty years of planetary observations—an unparalleled treasure of empirical data—contained the key to Kepler's historic breakthrough. But those observations would become available to Kepler only after Brahe's death. This groundbreaking history portrays the turbulent collaboration between these two astronomers at the turn of the seventeenth century and their shattering discoveries that would mark the transition from medieval to modern science. But that is only half the story. Based on recent forensic evidence (analyzed here for the first time) and original research into medieval and Renaissance alchemy—all buttressed by in-depth interviews with leading historians, scientists, and medical specialists—the authors have put together shocking and compelling evidence that Tycho Brahe did not die of natural causes, as has been believed for four hundred years. He was systematically poisoned—most likely by his assistant, Johannes Kepler. An epic tale of murder and scientific discovery, Heavenly Intrigue reveals the dark side of one of history’s most brilliant minds and tells the story of court politics, personal intrigue, and superstition that surrounded the protean invention of two great astronomers and their quest to find truth and beauty in the heavens above.

Young Einstein: And the story of E=mc² (Kindle Single)


Robyn Arianrhod - 2014
    But what sort of person was the young Albert Einstein, before he became universally acclaimed as the archetypal genius? And how did his genius unfold? In this brilliant new Kindle Single, scientist Robyn Arianrhod blends biography with popular science to tell the story of how young Albert developed a theory that – unknown to him at first – contained the seeds of his extraordinary equation E = mc2. Arianrhod, who wrote her PhD on Einstein’s general theory of relativity, makes the ideas behind the equation accessible to the lay reader, and sets young Einstein’s exploration of these ideas against the backdrop of his first loves, his family and marriage, and, above all, his childlike wonder at the nature of the universe. She introduces his heroes and scientific inspirations, and the friends who believed in him when no one else did. In personalising Einstein, she brings to life both the man and his science, in a short, easy-to-read narrative. In showing how he discovered his famous equation, and what it means, she draws a compelling portrait of this prodigious intellect whose unfathomable grasp of the building blocks of physics would change our world forever. About the Author: Dr Robyn Arianrhod is the author of two critically acclaimed works of popular science and scientific history: Einstein’s Heroes: Imagining the World Through the Language of Mathematics, and Seduced by Logic: Émilie du Châtelet, Mary Somerville and the Newtonian Revolution. Both were shortlisted for major book awards and are published in the USA. Einstein’s Heroes was translated into several languages. Robyn was awarded her PhD for research on Einstein’s general theory of relativity and has lectured in applied mathematics (including special relativity) for many years. She is currently an Adjunct Research Fellow in the School of Mathematical Sciences at Monash University in Melbourne, where she is undertaking research on the structure of relativistic space-times. She is also a technical reviewer for the American Mathematical Society. Praise for Robyn Arianrhod's books: Einstein’s Heroes ‘Arianrhod’s achievement is to so masterfully combine history, biography, and mathematics as to absorb and enlighten even the mathematically maladroit’ – Booklist ‘An intriguing blend of science, history, and biography . . . Arianrhod’s well-written, fascinating discussion of intertwined topics is highly recommended’ – Library Journal (starred review) ‘A thrilling story . . . Arianrhod brings out the human side of the scientists’ – Bloombergnews ‘Offers readers an engaging intellectual exercise combining physics, language, mathematics, and biography’ – Science News Seduced by Logic ‘Seduced by Logic offers the lay reader an easy and agreeable introduction to the evolution of some crucial scientific debates . . . One cannot help be captivated by her intellectual honesty and enthusiasm’ – Times Higher Education ‘An elegant and inspiring history of how scientific revolutions make their way’ – Edward Dolnick, The Clockwork Universe ‘Here is a skillfully written tapestry of the science, history and portrayal of two of the most charismatic women of mathematical science. Robyn Arianrhod has produced a captivating masterpiece’ – Joseph Mazur, author of Euclid in the Rainforest and What’s Luck Got to Do with It?

Tweeting the Universe: Very Short Courses on Very Big Ideas


Marcus Chown - 2011
    Marcus Chown and Govert Schilling set themselves the challenge to describe the biggest theories in science - each in just 140 characters.

The Extravagant Universe: Exploding Stars, Dark Energy, and the Accelerating Cosmos


Robert P. Kirshner - 2002
    One of the world's leading astronomers, Robert Kirshner, takes readers inside a lively research team on the quest that led them to an extraordinary cosmological discovery: the expansion of the universe is accelerating under the influence of a dark energy that makes space itself expand. In addition to sharing the story of this exciting discovery, Kirshner also brings the science up-to-date in a new epilogue. He explains how the idea of an accelerating universe--once a daring interpretation of sketchy data--is now the standard assumption in cosmology today.This measurement of dark energy--a quality of space itself that causes cosmic acceleration--points to a gaping hole in our understanding of fundamental physics. In 1917, Einstein proposed the cosmological constant to explain a static universe. When observations proved that the universe was expanding, he cast this early form of dark energy aside. But recent observations described first-hand in this book show that the cosmological constant--or something just like it--dominates the universe's mass and energy budget and determines its fate and shape.Warned by Einstein's blunder, and contradicted by the initial results of a competing research team, Kirshner and his colleagues were reluctant to accept their own result. But, convinced by evidence built on their hard-earned understanding of exploding stars, they announced their conclusion that the universe is accelerating in February 1998. Other lines of inquiry and parallel supernova research now support a new synthesis of a cosmos dominated by dark energy but also containing several forms of dark matter. We live in an extravagant universe with a surprising number of essential ingredients: the real universe we measure is not the simplest one we could imagine.

Astronomy


Andrew Fraknoi - 2012
    The book begins with relevant scientific fundamentals and progresses through an exploration of the solar system, stars, galaxies, and cosmology. The Astronomy textbook builds student understanding through the use of relevant analogies, clear and non-technical explanations, and rich illustrations. Mathematics is included in a flexible manner to meet the needs of individual instructors.

Quantum Field Theory: A Modern Introduction International Student Edition


Michio Kaku - 1993
    It includes discussions of topics that have become vital to a modern treatment of GFT, such as critical phenomena, lattice gauge theory, supersymmetry, quantum gravity, supergravity, and superstrings.

Universe on A T-Shirt: The Quest for the Theory of Everything


Dan Falk - 2002
    - This is the best kind of popular science: informed, impassioned, and highly accessible.- Compare it to Stephen Hawking's The Universe in a Nutshell, but broader in scope and much more readable.- A crossover for the Young Adult market, now in the perfect format.

Modern abc of physics class 11


ABc of physics
    Pattern. To Provide clarity of the subject, the whole text is studded with The Jargon, Key point, Watch out and Self-test Question Window to Formula forms a new feature of the present revised edition. It contains a direct and simple formula based Numerical Problem, which will tell the students as to how the formula derived in an article is to be used to solve the problem. The article work in each chapter of unit is coupled with well graded and carefully selected Solved Numerical Problems. These Solved Numerical Problems have been categorized into two Parts. I from Board Examinations and II from Competitive Engineering Examinations, such as I.I.T., Roorkee and I.S.M., Dhanbad. Many such problems have been provided with solutions by adopting a novel technique in the form of Thought Process.

Universe


Roger A. Freedman - 1998
    It places the basics of astronomy and the process of science within the grasp of introductory students. Package Universe, Eighth Edition with FREE Starry Night CD!use Package ISBN 0-7167-9564-7 SPLIT VOLUMESIn addition to the complete 28-chapter version of Universe, two shorter versions are also available:Universe: The Solar System, Third Edition(Chapters 1-16 and 28)0-7167-9563-9; w/FREE Starry Night CD, 0-7167-9562-0Universe: Stars and Galaxies, Third Edition(Chapters 1-8 which includes a two-chapter overview of the solar system) and Chapters 16-28)0-7167-9561-2; w/FREE Starry Night CD, 0-7167-9565-5

Introduction to Special Relativity


Robert Resnick - 1968
    Professor Resnick presents a fundamental and unified development of the subject with unusually clear discussions of the aspects that usually trouble beginners. He includes, for example, a section on the common sense of relativity. His presentation is lively and interspersed with historical, philosophical and special topics (such as the twin paradox) that will arouse and hold the reader's interest. You'll find many unique features that help you grasp the material, such as worked-out examples, summary tables, thought questions and a wealth of excellent problems. The emphasis throughout the book is physical. The experimental background, experimental confirmation of predictions, and the physical interpretation of principles are stressed. The book treats relativistic kinematics, relativistic dynamics, and relativity and electromagnetism and contains special appendices on the geometric representation of space-time and on general relativity. Its organization permits an instructor to vary the length and depth of his treatment and to use the book either with or following classical physics. These features make it an ideal companion for introductory course

Einstein's Telescope: The Hunt for Dark Matter and Dark Energy in the Universe


Evalyn Gates - 2009
    Dark matter. These strange and invisible substances don't just sound mysterious: their unexpected appearance in the cosmic census is upending long-held notions about the nature of the Universe. Astronomers have long known that the Universe is expanding, but everything they could see indicated that gravity should be slowing this spread. Instead, it appears that the Universe is accelerating its expansion and that something stronger than gravity--dark energy--is at work. In Einstein's Telescope Evalyn Gates, a University of Chicago astrophysicist, transports us to the edge of contemporary science to explore the revolutionary tool that unlocks the secrets of these little-understood cosmic constituents. Based on Einstein's theory of general relativity, gravitational lensing, or "Einstein's Telescope," is enabling new discoveries that are taking us toward the next revolution in scientific thinking--one that may change forever our notions of where the Universe came from and where it is going.

Astronomy: A Beginner's Guide to the Universe


Eric Chaisson - 1995
    Astronomy: A Beginner's Guide to the Universe.

How The Universe Will End


Brian Cox - 2012
    

A Question of Time: The Ultimate Paradox


Scientific American - 2012
    

Introducing Relativity: A Graphic Guide


Bruce Bassett - 2002
    Beginning near the speed of light and proceeding to explorations of space-time and curved spaces, "Introducing Relativity" plots a visually accessible course through the thought experiments that have given shape to contemporary physics. Scientists from Newton to Hawking add their unique contributions to this story, as we encounter Einstein's astounding vision of gravity as the curvature of space-time and arrive at the breathtakingly beautiful field equations. Einstein's legacy is reviewed in the most advanced frontiers of physics today - black holes, gravitational waves, the accelerating universe and string theory. This is a superlative, fascinating graphic account of Einstein's strange world and how his legacy has been built upon since.