It Doesn't Take a Rocket Scientist

Great Amateurs of Science

John Malone

232 pages, parution le 14/11/2002

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Résumé

Did you know. . .

. . . that the woman who discovered the largest and most complete T. rex fossil on record was a high-school dropout who became one of the world's greatest fossil hunters? . . . that the great British scientist Michael Faraday was the son of a blacksmith and had very little formal education? . . . that Gregor Mendel had time to study inherited traits in garden peas because he failed the test to qualify as a high school science teacher?

This is just a small sampling of the many surprises you'll find in this enlightening survey of the mavericks, misfits, and unschooled investigators who have been responsible for some of the greatest scientific discoveries in history. It Doesn't Take a Rocket Scientist explains the achievements of each of these accomplished amateurs, describes how they approached their investigations, and discusses the impact of their discoveries. In these amazing and inspiring stories, you'll learn about:

Grote Reber and the birth of radio astronomy
Arthur C. Clarke's vision of communication satellites
Joseph Priestley and the discovery of oxygen
Felix d'Herelle's pinpointing of bacteriophages, killers of bacteria
Thomas Jefferson and the science of archaeology

You'll also discover which fields of science still offer great opportunities for modern amateurs eager to make a name for themselves. After all, it doesn't take a rocket scientist!

Contents

Chapter 1. The Fathers of Genetics (Gregor Johann Mendel)
Chapter 2. Comet Hunter (David H. Levy)
Chapter 3. Cepheid Star Decoder (Henrietta Swan Leavitt)
Chapter 4. Discoverer of Oxygen (Joseph Priestley)
Chapter 5. Electromagnetic Lawgiver (Michael Faraday)
Chapter 6. Father of Radio Astronomy (Grote Reber)
Chapter 7. Communications Satellite Visionary (Arthur C. Clarke)
Chapter 8. First Modern Archaeologist (Thomas Jefferson)
Chapter 9. Dinosaur Hunter (Susan Hendrickson)
Chapter 10. Bacteriophages Discoverer (Felix d'Herelle)

L'auteur - John Malone

JOHN MALONE has written more than forty books, including Unsolved Mysteries of Science (Wiley) and Predicting the Future: From Jules Verne to Bill Gates. He lives in Lancaster, Pennsylvania.

Caractéristiques techniques

	PAPIER
Éditeur(s)	Wiley
Auteur(s)	John Malone
Parution	14/11/2002
Nb. de pages	232
Format	16 x 23,5
Couverture	Broché
Poids	455g
Intérieur	Noir et Blanc
EAN13	9780471414315
ISBN13	978-0-471-41431-5