Science ebook recommendations

[kennyc]

See what happens when I'm not around....months pass with no good science book recommendations....

This one is wonderful: The Story of Earth: The First 4.5 Billion Years, from Stardust to Living Planet by Robert M. Hazen:

http://www.amazon.com/The-Story-Eart...dp_kinw_strp_1

It appears to be very up to date scientifically (published last year) and written very well. I'd give it 5 of 5 stars!

Hazen is also that author of a few of the "Great Courses" (http://www.thegreatcourses.com/tgc/p...il.aspx?pid=18 ) and numerous other books. I'm looking forward to checking out/reading more of his work.

[alanHd]

Originally Posted by kennyc

See what happens when I'm not around....months pass with no good science book recommendations....

This one is wonderful: The Story of Earth: The First 4.5 Billion Years, from Stardust to Living Planet by Robert M. Hazen:

http://www.amazon.com/The-Story-Eart...dp_kinw_strp_1

It appears to be very up to date scientifically (published last year) and written very well. I'd give it 5 of 5 stars!

Hazen is also that author of a few of the "Great Courses" (http://www.thegreatcourses.com/tgc/p...il.aspx?pid=18 ) and numerous other books. I'm looking forward to checking out/reading more of his work.

I got really excited when i read your recomendation of The Story of Earth but its not available for the Kindle on Amazon UK.

[kennyc]

Originally Posted by alanHd

I got really excited when i read your recomendation of The Story of Earth but its not available for the Kindle on Amazon UK.

Sorry.

Just finished it, it's a wonderful book. I'll be passing it on to my son (I have the hardback version).

[MickeyC]

Looks good! Just added it to my TBR list.

[WT Sharpe]

Just finished Mastermind: How to Think Like Sherlock Holmes by Maria Konnikova. Can't say I learned how to think like the great detective, but this is a nice primer on how to think rationally. Surprisingly, the elephant in the room wasn't dealt with until the final chapter: If Sir Arthur Conan Doyle and his most famous creation were so logical, how is it that Doyle was taken in by the Cottingley Fairies? But the author did a good job of explaining why even someone with a scientific bent can fall prey to fallacious thinking.


Two young cousins were able to convince Holme's creator and others (including photography experts) that the fairies in this and other photos were real.

[kennyc]

Who Owns the Future
(information should NOT be free)



Review here:
http://newbooksinbrief.com/2013/06/0...-jaron-lanier/

Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Who-Owns-Futur.../dp/1451654960

[WT Sharpe]

Looks interesting, Kenny. I just downloaded a sample.

[kennyc]

Originally Posted by WT Sharpe

Looks interesting, Kenny. I just downloaded a sample.

Should fit well right beside this one: http://www.amazon.com/New-Digital-Ag...ywords=schmidt

[WT Sharpe]

Downloaded a sample of that one, also.

[Section8]

Lonely Planets: The Natural Philosophy of Alien Life, by David Grinspoon, is currently discounted at 99 cents:

It's been nearly four decades since Carl Sagan first addressed the general public from a scientist's perspective, confronting the possibility of extraterrestrial life. We've learned a lot in those years, and planetary scientist David Grinspoon is well prepared to explore this field with a new generation of readers. In Lonely Planets, Grinspoon investigates the big questions: How widespread are life and intelligence in the cosmos? Is life on Earth an accident or in some sense the "purpose" of this universe? And how can we, working from the Earth-centric definition of "life," even begin to think about the varieties of life-forms on other planets?

In accessible, lively prose, and using the topic of extraterrestrial life as a mirror with which to view human beliefs, evolution, history, and aspirations, Grinspoon takes readers on a three-part journey.

History is an overview of our expanding awareness of other planets, from the observations of seventeenth-century natural philosophers to modern-day space exploration. It traces the history of our ideas on alien life to the earliest days of astronomy, and shows how these beliefs have changed with humanity's evolving self-image.

Science tells the story of cosmic evolution and the evolution of life on Earth. Here, Grinspoon disputes the recent "Rare Earth hypothesis," which argues that Earth is unique for sprouting advanced life-forms, maintaining instead that life is likely to be well adapted to a wide variety of planets. He questions conventional assumptions of what is required for a planet to come to life, scrutinizing current ideas and evidence for life on Mars, Venus, and the moons of Jupiter, and challenging readers to think about other life-forms that may exist on other worlds.

Belief discusses the limits of our abilities to conceptualize or communicate with intelligent aliens living on planets circling distant stars. Grinspoon speculates on what intelligent life might become, eventually, on Earth and elsewhere, and the implications, both scientific and philosophical, of these far-future evolutionary possibilities.

Written with authority and edge, and rich in personal,often amusing anecdotes, Lonely Planets explores the shifting boundary between planetary science and natural philosophy and reveals how the search for extraterrestrial life unites our spiritual and scientific quests for connection with the cosmos.

Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Lonely-Planets...nets+grinspoon
Barnes & Noble: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/lone...=9780061748615

A few years ago I read his Venus Revealed and it was an excellent book.

[kennyc]

Originally Posted by Section8

Lonely Planets: The Natural Philosophy of Alien Life, by David Grinspoon, is currently discounted at 99 cents:


..

Thank you!

[WT Sharpe]

Originally Posted by Section8

Lonely Planets: The Natural Philosophy of Alien Life, by David Grinspoon, is currently discounted at 99 cents....

Thanks, Section8. I was going to download a sample, but for 99¢ I figured I'd best scarf it up while the scarfing's good! It's now in my ever-growing To-Be-Read folder.

[kennyc]

I checked with my son on this who is in the astro-biology field and at CU where this writer is/was. I guess he's now at the Denver Museum of Natural History for what it's worth. My son has met/knows him I guess.

[WT Sharpe]

Originally Posted by kennyc

I checked with my son on this who is in the astro-biology field and at CU where this writer is/was. I guess he's now at the Denver Museum of Natural History for what it's worth. My son has met/knows him I guess.

I also checked out the author before I bought the book. He was unknown to me also, but seems to have substantial scientific credentials. I was also impressed that the only negative customer review in his 4.5 star rating at Amazon (21 reviews total) came from A Customer who appears disappointed that the author doesn't accept UFO reports as proof of alien visitation.

[Section8]

This appears to be Grinspoon's web site: http://funkyscience.net/
I think I became aware of him from a review of Venus Revealed, probably this one from The Planetary Report: http://www.funkyscience.net/old/reviews5.html