Timothy Ferris

Although this would seem on the surface to be a book targeted at someone exactly like me, I came away rather disappointed with it. I think, however, that my beef will be one of the things others will see as a strength: Ferris focuses on "backyard stargazers" who have truly substantial resources at their fingertips ... these are not humble stories of people "like you and me," but for the most part very impressive descriptions of "amateur" astronomy at the highest level, fueled by large amounts of money. Thus, it didn't really hit me -- I'm not poor but I'm nowhere near this level -- as I hoped it might.

Your mileage will probably vary. Ferris is a good writer.… (plus d'informations)

If knowledge is divine, than science is religion. This is the premise behind Ferris' "Science of Liberty," an epic journey beyond how science informs liberalism as a political ideology.

Wildly entertaining, profound and poignant at times, "The Science of Liberty" charts the roots of science to the humanism of Western Enlightenment. It details how rationalists refuted the conventional discourses of Fideism, challenged contemporary interpretations of God or altogether discarded them in their pursuit of comprehending nature.

While entertaining, it is lucid and informative. Indeed, if rationalism is your Creed than "The Science of Liberty" should be your scripture.… (plus d'informations)

This ambitious work chronicles the history of how humans have come to understand the size, age, and origin of the universe. Given that this book was originally published in 1988, I'm sure that some of the data in the later chapters has since been disproven by more recent research; however, since it is primarily a history, it is not nearly as dated as most 1980's books on astrophysics probably are, and I wouldn't hesitate to recommend it to modern readers with an interest in the history of astronomy and physics.

Coming of Age in the Milky Way is in many ways a formative book for me. I first read it as a teen, and it helped to encourage my love for astronomy and physics (and later, to major in physics at university). The first two sections, which are a history of pre-20th century physics, are the most interesting to me personally. Ferris does an excellent job both of capturing the personalities involved (especially of figures like Galileo, Kepler, and Newton) and of describing the science in a succinct and understandable way. He covers a lot of ground, touching on geology and evolution as well as astronomy. The final section is less interesting to me, as quantum mechanics and the various theories associated with the Big Bang tend to make my head spin, and I kept wondering which 1980's theories are no longer valid today. Still, Coming of Age in the Milky Way is a well-written book that will likely always have a place on my bookshelf.… (plus d'informations)