Kitty Ferguson is een onafhankelijke geleerde en docent, wiens levenslange fascinatie voor wetenschap, gevormd door een eerdere carrière als professioneel muzikant, haar literaire werk bepaalt. Haar werk duikt in complexe wetenschappelijke concepten en onderzoekt de diepgaande verbanden met de menselijke ervaring met een scherpe en toegankelijke stijl. Ferguson beoogt de wonderen van wetenschappelijke ontdekkingen aan een breed publiek te verlichten en de inherente schoonheid en ontzag in de zoektocht naar kennis te onthullen.
Describes the scientific partnership between sixteenth-century astronomer Tycho Brahe and his colleague and student, mathematician Johannes Kepler, and the influence of Tycho's naked-eye observations of planetary movements on Kepler's Three Laws of Planetary Motion, the cornerstone of cosmology.
Since the publication of Darwin's Origin of Species' in 1859, many have found science and belief in God irreconcible. Now, in the late 20th century, advances in physics, biology and the fields of chaos and complexity have brought the conflict to a crucial stage. Science attempts to discover the fundamental laws which underlie the beginning of the universe and its continuing evolution.
In 1963 Stephen Hawking was given two years to live. Defying all the odds, he died in March 2018 at age seventy-six as the most celebrated scientist in the world. This carefully researched, and now newly updated, up-to-the-minute biography and tribute gives a rich picture of Hawking's remarkable life – his childhood, the heart-rending beginning of his struggle with motor neurone disease, his ever-increasing international fame, and his long personal battle for survival in pursuit of a scientific understanding of the universe. From more recent years, Kitty Ferguson describes his inspiring leadership at the London Paralympic Games, the release of the film The Theory of Everything, his continuing work on black holes and the origin of the universe, the discovery of ‘supertranslations’, and the astounding ‘Starshot’ program. Here also are his intense concern for the future of the Earth and his use of his celebrity to fight for environmental and humanitarian causes, and, finally, a ground-breaking paper he was working on at the time of his death, in which he took issue with some of his own earlier theories.
Johannes Kepler was an obsessive, devout teacher of astronomy, and Tycho Brahe was a cruel, extravagant aristocrat who believed the sun orbited the Earth. Kepler's analytical abilities were said to be second to none, while Brahe was one of the best observational astronomers of all time. Their meeting in Prague in 1600 led to an extraordinary, if uneasy, alliance which eventually resulted in a huge leap forward in the understanding of astronomy. Together they produced the first three laws of planetary motion. This book tells the story of a major watershed in the history of human thought.
Exploring the captivating topic of black holes, this book offers an accessible review of their discovery and significance in understanding the universe's mysteries. Kitty Ferguson employs clear language and relatable analogies, making complex concepts comprehensible for both scientists and non-scientists. Enhanced by 39 line diagrams and 25 photos, the work stands out for its engaging approach to a subject often deemed challenging.
This Is The Story Of One Of The Most Remarkable Figures Of Our Time - Professor Stephen Hawking, The Cambridge Genius Who Has Earned An International Reputation As The Most Brilliant Theoretical Physicist Since Einstein. When Kitty Ferguson Approached Stephen Hawking With The Idea Of Writing A Book About Him And Asked Him To Help Her Make Certain She Understood His Theories, He Agreed To Do So And Also Supplied Her With Material About His Childhood And Life. This Book Is The Splendid Result. It Is Not A Biography Per Se. It Is Rather The Story Of One Man'S Quest To Find The 'Theory Of Everything'. In These Pages You Will Encounter A Multitude Of Amazing Paradoxes: Beginnings May Be Endings& Two Great Scientific Theories Taken Together Seem To Give Us Nonsense& Empty Space Isn'T Empty& Black Holes Aren'T Black& Cruel Circumstances Can Lead To Happiness, Although Fame And Success May Not& And A Man Whose Appearance Inspires Shock And Pity Takes Us Laughing To Where The Boundaries Of Space And Time Ought To Be - But Are Not.
Einstein said that the most incredible thing about our universe was that it was comprehensible at all. This title explains, Pythagoras had much the same idea - but 2,500 years earlier. It tells the story of Pythagoras and the Pythagoreans, whose insights transformed the ancient world.
This informative text tells the story of how man has attempted to measure distance in space, ranging from early experiments in working out the circumference of the earth, through estimates of distance to the nearest stars, to developments in theories as to what is beyond the observable universe.
In 1963 Stephen Hawking was given a couple of years to live. In January 2017 he celebrates his seventy-fifth birthday. This biography of the brilliant theoretical physicist and inspirational international celebrity, written with the help of Hawking himself and his close associates, now includes- A His leadership at the London Paralympic Games A The release of the film about his life The Theory of Everything A His BBC Reith Lectures in 2016 A His continuing work on black holes, gravitational waves, the new discovery of osupertranslationso A The launch of the astounding oStarshoto programme A The first presentation of the Stephen Hawking Medal for Science Communication at Starmus III in June 2016. Written with the clarity and simplicity for which all Kitty Ferguson's books have been praised, it is a captivating account of an extraordinary life and mind.
Acclaimed popular-science writer Kitty Ferguson investigates little-explored by-roads in the history of science, from Johannes Kepler's nearly disastrous venture into the realm of science fiction to a mid-20th-century experiment involving cats and rocket fuel.