Science ebook recommendations - Page 10

WT Sharpe · 10-23-2010, 09:08 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by nieperdragon

Scanned this whole thread. Maybe I missed it but just in case.....

Bad Science by Ben Goldacre.

Everyone has to read this. It will put you in exactly the right frame of mind to read any of the other "popular science" titles. This book will open your eyes big time. I have paper copy of this and I tout it around everyone. If we all took the contents of this on board it might not change the world but it would put a lot of lying charlatan's back in the gutter they came from.......
I live in hope:-)

That sounds like a good book, and it appears to have received good reviews from websites like Nature and New Scientist. That having been said....

Is there a magic pill you can take to keep from constantly repeating yourself?

nieperdragon · 10-23-2010, 10:36 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by WT Sharpe

That sounds like a good book, and it appears to have received good reviews from websites like Nature and New Scientist. That having been said....

Is there a magic pill you can take to keep from constantly repeating yourself?

Yeah he does go on a bit:-) He should stick to writing (like most people on you tube).

If you really need video about this kind of thing, try this:-)

brecklundin · 10-24-2010, 11:09 AM

Two excellent reads not specifically scientific but rather biographical accounts of two of the greats minds of all time:

American Prometheus: The Triumph and Tragedy of J. Robert Oppenheimer by Kai Bird and Martin J. Sherwin

Einstein: His Life and Universe by Walter Isaacson

Both really offer insight into true genius and show them warts and all...I was somewhat familar with Einstein's life and times but really did not know much about Oppie, now I do!!

If you enjoy pure science and the humanity that often gets taken for granted when looking at the minds behind the science.

kennyc · 10-24-2010, 11:16 AM

Oppenheimer was a quite interesting character and was totally abused in his later years at the hands of the government.

brecklundin · 10-24-2010, 11:35 AM

yeah, Kenny...the book really gets into that part of things. The nice part was all of the ground work leading up to his vilification is covered to help the reader understand the context and exactly what was done to him. And it was all done pretty much with the same excuses used to justify things today.

Sadly I think if Einstein was not so old at the time, likely once done with him the government would have gone after him as well.

kennyc · 10-24-2010, 01:25 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by brecklundin

yeah, Kenny...the book really gets into that part of things. The nice part was all of the ground work leading up to his vilification is covered to help the reader understand the context and exactly what was done to him. And it was all done pretty much with the same excuses used to justify things today.

Sadly I think if Einstein was not so old at the time, likely once done with him the government would have gone after him as well.

Except that the potential Jewish backlash might have stopped it in it's tracks.

HarryT · 10-24-2010, 01:28 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BenG

Edit: I thought this was available for the Kindle but I was looking at the wrong website and it's only available as an ebook from Amazon.uk.

Surely in that case, then, it is available for the Kindle?

BenG · 10-24-2010, 08:21 PM

Yes, but not for those of us from the U.S.

ardeegee · 03-02-2011, 08:13 AM

Bump.

Anything new and interesting?

kennyc · 03-02-2011, 09:04 AM

Cassidy mentioned the Brian Green book in the What we're reading thread. Don't know more that that.

I'm currently reading "Stiff" by Mary Roach and loving it....well except for the smell.

FlorenceArt · 03-02-2011, 09:22 AM

I am reading Objectivity by Lorraine Daston and Peter Galison. The social aspects of science is a subject I find fascinating. We tend to think of science as something pure and eternal, when in fact it is a social construction as much as anything else human. Which doesn't mean that the findings of science are all relative and impermanent, but that what we find and how we get to it depends in large parts of how we see the world and what we think science should or shouldn't be.

This is the second book by Lorraine Daston I read (the first was Wonders and the Order of Nature), and I like her outlook and the way she writes, and the subjects she chooses. This is a somewhat arduous but very rewarding read.

kennyc · 03-02-2011, 09:26 AM

Thanks for that Florence! I'll check it out!

FlorenceArt · 03-02-2011, 09:50 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by kennyc

Thanks for that Florence! I'll check it out!

I have a couple of other recommendations on that subject, if you're interested

kennyc · 03-02-2011, 11:23 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by FlorenceArt

I have a couple of other recommendations on that subject, if you're interested

Always interested in recommendations. May not get to them right away, but always interested.

FlorenceArt · 03-02-2011, 11:28 AM

Will post tonight when I get home.

Similar Threads
Thread	Thread Starter	Forum	Replies	Last Post
Hard Science Fiction Recommendations	tmclough	Reading Recommendations	240	01-04-2025 02:55 PM
Dell Streak - eBook reader recommendations please	Prodromoi	Android Devices	4	06-22-2010 08:54 PM
Any science (non-fiction) recommendations?	djgreedo	Reading Recommendations	18	05-10-2009 04:42 PM
ebook reader / netbook tablet recommendations wanted	maynard	Which one should I buy?	7	04-12-2009 08:48 AM

10-24-2010, 11:09 AM	#138
brecklundin Banned Posts: 1,906 Karma: 15348 Join Date: Jun 2007 Device: mine	Two excellent reads not specifically scientific but rather biographical accounts of two of the greats minds of all time: American Prometheus: The Triumph and Tragedy of J. Robert Oppenheimer by Kai Bird and Martin J. Sherwin Einstein: His Life and Universe by Walter Isaacson Both really offer insight into true genius and show them warts and all...I was somewhat familar with Einstein's life and times but really did not know much about Oppie, now I do!! If you enjoy pure science and the humanity that often gets taken for granted when looking at the minds behind the science.

10-24-2010, 11:16 AM	#139
kennyc The Dank Side of the Moon Posts: 35,930 Karma: 119747553 Join Date: Sep 2009 Location: Denver, CO Device: Kindle2 & PW, Onyx Boox Go6	Oppenheimer was a quite interesting character and was totally abused in his later years at the hands of the government.

10-24-2010, 11:35 AM	#140
brecklundin Banned Posts: 1,906 Karma: 15348 Join Date: Jun 2007 Device: mine	yeah, Kenny...the book really gets into that part of things. The nice part was all of the ground work leading up to his vilification is covered to help the reader understand the context and exactly what was done to him. And it was all done pretty much with the same excuses used to justify things today. Sadly I think if Einstein was not so old at the time, likely once done with him the government would have gone after him as well.

10-24-2010, 08:21 PM	#143
BenG Home Guard Posts: 4,730 Karma: 86721650 Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: Alpha Ralpha Boulevard Device: Kindle Oasis 3G, iPhone 6	Yes, but not for those of us from the U.S.

03-02-2011, 08:13 AM	#144
ardeegee Maratus speciosus butt Posts: 3,292 Karma: 1162698 Join Date: Sep 2009 Device: PRS-350	Bump. Anything new and interesting?

03-02-2011, 09:04 AM	#145
kennyc The Dank Side of the Moon Posts: 35,930 Karma: 119747553 Join Date: Sep 2009 Location: Denver, CO Device: Kindle2 & PW, Onyx Boox Go6	Cassidy mentioned the Brian Green book in the What we're reading thread. Don't know more that that. I'm currently reading "Stiff" by Mary Roach and loving it....well except for the smell.

03-02-2011, 09:22 AM	#146
FlorenceArt High Priestess Posts: 5,761 Karma: 5042529 Join Date: Jul 2008 Location: Montreuil sous bois, France Device: iPad Pro 9.7, iPhone 6 Plus	I am reading Objectivity by Lorraine Daston and Peter Galison. The social aspects of science is a subject I find fascinating. We tend to think of science as something pure and eternal, when in fact it is a social construction as much as anything else human. Which doesn't mean that the findings of science are all relative and impermanent, but that what we find and how we get to it depends in large parts of how we see the world and what we think science should or shouldn't be. This is the second book by Lorraine Daston I read (the first was Wonders and the Order of Nature), and I like her outlook and the way she writes, and the subjects she chooses. This is a somewhat arduous but very rewarding read.

03-02-2011, 09:26 AM	#147
kennyc The Dank Side of the Moon Posts: 35,930 Karma: 119747553 Join Date: Sep 2009 Location: Denver, CO Device: Kindle2 & PW, Onyx Boox Go6	Thanks for that Florence! I'll check it out!

03-02-2011, 11:28 AM	#150
FlorenceArt High Priestess Posts: 5,761 Karma: 5042529 Join Date: Jul 2008 Location: Montreuil sous bois, France Device: iPad Pro 9.7, iPhone 6 Plus	Will post tonight when I get home.