Product Description
This is a welcome reissue with a new Preface of John Rigden's stellar biography of I.I. Rabi, one of the most influential physicists of the 20th century. Rabi's discovery of the magnetic resonance method won him the Nobel Prize in 1944 and stimulated research leading to, among other things, refinements in quantum electrodynamics, refined molecular beam methods, radio astronomy with the hydrogen 21-cm line, atomic clocks and solid state lasers. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

A good ,well reseached biography
My Life and Times as a Physicist is an autobiographical link. I would rate this higher as the research is very good and well footnoted, but I feel the work Dr. Rabi did is not well represented using words alone as so much of it involves quantum mechanical equations and field equations. He can say it was difficult to believe the magnetic moment of the proton in words all he likes, but that until we associated the proton with the Gell-Mann quark group SU(3) or Cartan A_2 in the 60's, we just had no real idea of why?! Dr. Rabi wasn't named among the Los Alamos scientists, but was there as Oppenheimer's true friend.
In point of fact Mathematical Physics loses a lot when the mathematics is left out. ... Read more

Product Description
An essential volume in the NASA History Series by Robert C. Seamans, Jr., the Associate Administrator of NASA during the Apollo program.A stirring insider’s account of NASA and the manned space program at the highest levels.Relationships with the Department of Defense, the Apollo 204 fire, the assassination of President Kennedy, and more.

Aiming at Targets is a series of fascinating topical vignettes covering the author’s professional life.Taken together, like broad brushstrokes in an impressionist painting, they give a better picture of Bob Seamans and his work than a detailed recitation of facts and dates could hope to do.This is a cheerful account of an interesting and successful career.The book is full of good stories, with many memorable characters.Like the proverbial sundial, it counts the sunny hours.It is a good read.

But it has its serious side. Bob’s career wasn’t all fun.The Apollo 204 fire, which killed three astronauts, was a terrible climax to his time at NASA.Those were not happy times, but they should not be allowed to overshadow the fact that in his seven years at NASA, Bob Seamans led the agency to its first successes and laid the groundwork for the greater successes that came later.

Also on the serious side, while Secretary of the Air Force, Bob had to face policy differences on the Vietnam War, both on the job and within his family. ... Read more

Product Description

"Over increasingly large areas of the United States, spring now comes unheralded by the return of the birds, and the early mornings are strangely silent where once they were filled with the beauty of bird song. This sudden silencing of the song of birds, this obliteration of the color and beauty and interest they lend to our world have come about swiftly, insidiously, and unnoticed by those whose communities are as yet unaffected." --from Silent Spring

Few people have had as great an impact on the modern environmental movement as has the great writer and scientist Rachel Carson. This readable and up-to-date biography traces the famous environmentalist's development as a writer from earliest childhood through the publication of her best-known work, Silent Spring (1962).

In this absorbing account of her life, Carson emerges as a talented scientist and exceptional writer who shared her sense of wonder about nature with both scientists and the general public. Author Arlene Quaratiello brings to life the "small, solemn-looking woman" whom the New York Times described as having "the steady forthright gaze of a type that is sometimes common to thoughtful children who prefer to listen rather than to talk." Quaratiello recounts Carson's lifelong love of both nature and writing, her years of working in relative obscurity for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and then her late breakthrough as a writer of books about the sea that brought her critical acclaim. The culmination of her life was, of course, the publication of Silent Spring, which not only brought her lasting fame but also harsh criticism from spokespersons for industry and government.

In the wake of the one hundredth anniversary of Carson's birth in 2007, this fascinating story concludes with an assessment of Rachel Carson's legacy as a writer and a champion of the environmental movement. The author also addresses the lingering controversies regarding the use of pesticides as well as continuing criticisms of Carson's ideas.
This balanced portrait of a pioneering environmentalist will be of great interest to anyone with an interest in ecology or nature writing. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Amazing introduction to an amazing life and personality
Most readers will know of "Silent Spring", however, this biography from the Greenwood series, is an apt and well formulated summary of the epitomy of the cirumstances that created Rachel Carson's legacy.
It is a quick read that provides cursory insight. My only criticism is that the intensity that is the persona of Rachel Carson comes off somewhat languid and apolitical, although this is understandable in the intent of composing a brief biography.Highly recommended to accompany any high school student's project on the history of environmentalism, or on the naturalist movement. ... Read more

Product Description

What is Pasteurization? How has Pasteur’s work helped treat many diseases? The 'Leveled Biographies' series offers leveled, high-interest nonfiction in a range of text genres. Each title tells the story of one memorable life, using pictures, maps, sidebars

... Read more

Product Description
Thomas Edison: Life of an Electrifying Man is a biography of one of the most important and prolific inventors in history. Edison's major inventions include the light bulb and the phonograph (better known today as the record player). Nicknamed 'The Wizard of Menlo Park' by a newspaper reporter, Edison was one of the first businessmen to use mass production to his inventions and was credited with creating the original industrial research lab. Thomas Edison: Life of an Electrifying Man is highly recommended for those who are interested in learning about the life and inventions of inventor and businessman Thomas Edison. ... Read more

Product Description
While most laymen could recognize Florence Nightingale as the founder of modern nursing, it's doubtful they could likewise identify Louise Pearce as one of the primary researchers in the cure for African Sleeping Sickness or Anna W. Williams as the discoverer of the diphtheria antitoxin. This book profiles 25 women who have made significant contributions to medical research, including Lady Mary Wortley Montagu, Lydia Folger Fowler, Virginia Apgar, and Rosalind Franklin, among others. Each profile includes a general introduction and covers the woman's childhood or family background, her formal education, her most valuable contributions to the field, and the important events or persons which influenced her life and career. ... Read more

Product Description
Sally was the first American woman in space. She learned how to work and eat while floating in the space shuttle. Read all about it. ... Read more

Product Description

"There is very little reference material on black scientists in the US and even less that includes black women scientists. This book fills a void... " -- Choice

"... a valuable new survey of a social group almost universally neglected by chroniclers of American culture... [an] admirable book... " -- San Francisco Examiner

"... an illuminating collection of more than 100 profiles... " -- Publishers Weekly

This pathbreaking book goes beyond the lip-service traditionally paid to Black women scientists and illuminates their scientific contributions, struggles, strategies, and triumphs. Drawn heavily from primary sources, Warren's original reference guide includes biographies of more than 100 Black women scientists in fields from anatomy and mathematics to psychology and zoology.

Product Description
GET THE REAL STORY ON THE WOMAN AMERICA LOVES TO HATEQuick with comebacks, slinging zingers and dispensing advice, Dr. Laura is today's hottest radio personality.Sixty-thousand people call her syndicated talk show every day hoping to get on the air to be abused and berated. Twenty-million people tune in to hear what Dr. Laura might say next.And 2.5 million people have bought her bestselling advice books.But few of those listeners and readers know the truth about the woman behind the mike-and a life filled with contradictions, cover-ups, and shocking secrets.Now this unauthorized and unexpurgated biography dares to tell about the marriage she destroyed, the friends she betrayed, the family she abandoned, and the lies she tells...Read, in stunning detail, about: * The childhood that haunts her with a legacy of unhappiness * Her first marriage and quick divorce, a break-up she hides while she chastises callers for leaving relationships * Her current husband, the once-happily married professor she chased-and caught * Her private practice, and the former patients who say their therapist is the one who needs help * The puzzling estrangement from the mother and sister she shuns off the air, while preaching family values during her show * The bizarre behavior that has provoked rumors about the fragile woman behind the hard-talking public persona * And much, much more! AUTHORBIO: VICKIE L. BANE is a special correspondent for People magazine and the co-author of The Lives of Danielle Steel.She lives with her husband and two sons in Colorado. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (36)

Surprisingly Well-Researched Expose That Quotes Those Close to Dr. Laura
This isn't another tabloid-style book trashing the subject.It's an amazingly well-researched story of what Dr. Laura is really like.

At first it's hard to believe that this will be any good because the author admits that when she was given the assignment she had never heard of Dr. Laura!But that turns out to be an advantage because the author can give an objective view of the subject from those who were close to her.

The author was able to meet with Dr. Laura's mother, college roommate, the man she lived with and others who knew her well.The stories are shocking--and the worst aren't just from the distant past. The radio host likes to claim she used to do bad things, but this book shows that she has continued to act negatively.Dr. Laura is painted as a self-absorbed jerk to pretty much everyone she encounters, a person with no finesse or empathy. When you listen to her radio show you pick up on some of these things, but the mean and vindictive attitude was there long before she went on the radio.

Most disappointing about the subject is her continued lying, even in the present.She claims to use the 10 Commandments as her guide, yet the book's author does a great job pointing out where Dr. Laura has repeatedly lied about things in the past.She especially covers up for her sexual promiscuity and gives incorrect dates from her past to cover up the fact that she stole her husband from his first wife.This now makes sense--because on her show she has said that it can be okay to lie in certain circumstances.So her "morality" is based on her allowing herself to get away with her own sins.

And, of course, if anyone goes public with her sins, she accuses them of the sin of "gossip."

Though she stands for everything that is right, she can talk the talk but obviously doesn't walk the walk.This book is worth reading because of the well-documented footnotes that tell you where the author got the information and who she interviewed.And these aren't anonymous quotes--the names are attached.Many, many people repeat the sad story of the life of this woman who loves to tell others what to do but seems to struggle with her own self-esteem. It's truly a spiritual struggle and though she claims to have found the answers she obviously isn't close to resolving life's basic truths in her own life.

What Is Author Trying to Prove?
I think all the author wanted to do was to try and discredit Dr. Laura in the eyes of the public.I say "He who is without sin cast the first stone". Whatever Dr. Laura has done in her past, is that--and the good that she presently does far outweighs the past.People CAN have remorse too!!Give her a break!I ended up glossing over the last part as I got tired of the author bashing her which was what the whole book was about. Glad I didn't buy it but got from the library.

Nota nice person
As I was reading this book, I kept asking myself "Who is the worse woman: Laura Schlessinger or Martha Stewart?"I still haven't answered that question.

Laura had no close friends, had almost a non-existent relationship with her parents and siblings, and she had her mousey husband constantly stiff people.Although Laura proclaims she didn't work when she was raising her son, she in fact did work at radio stations in his very young years (1-3).


Dr. Laura is a very controlling person, but should be very grateful to people who assisted her in her career but isn't.She did everything she could to sabotage the career of another radio personality (person & station forgotten at the moment) when she was her co-worker.Laura wasn't very professional, as she was too chummy with her patients and used them for her own personal use.

Dr. Laura's female fans will no doubt dismiss the book and her critics and those who are neutral about her will probably enjoy the book.Similar to Martha Stewart in that Martha's fans thought that she got the shaft in her criminal sentence, and those who hated her or were neutral thought that she got off too easy.

Informative and Rather Entertaining Biography of a Sociopath
I enjoyed this book for giving the history of Dr. Laura which she of course never references while telling others that they are wrong for the mistakes they make. Dr. Laura made the same "mistakes" or were they "on-purposes"? Having her tubal ligation reversed in order to become pregnant by a married man was an extremely manipulative act. And it seems that Dr. Laura has remained manipulative, not to mention sadistic, to the present time. What she did to Dr. Barbara DeAngelis (having the nerve to claim that her psychology degree was bogus, when Dr. Laura's OWN degree is in physiology, NOT psychology) is downright bizarre, yet she got away with it. Her audiences must consist only of masochistic idiots who believe that they deserve to be called stupid by a woman who doesn't practice what she preaches. Scary that there are so many morons out there trusting in a woman pretending to be something she's not.

Fair, meticulous--needs an update
I've always been fascinated by people who move to California to "become" what they felt they couldn't back in their home town.Those who set out to reinvent themselves seldom fully succeed--and proof positive of this fact is Dr. Laura Schlessinger.Vickie L. Bane interviewed a great many people and carefully researched other press and anecdotal accounts of Schlessinger's rise to radio stardom.

The picture isn't pretty, and time after time, Dr. Laura's own life completely refutes the ideas that she presses forcefully on her callers to her radio programs, some of whom appear acutely masochistic, if not unrealistic to believe that they can "fix" what ails them in a three-minute phone chat, often laced with sarcasm, hostility or even abuse from Dr. Laura.

Dr. Laura doesn't believe in divorce, pre- or extramarital sex, or writing off one's family members, and yet she has done every one of those things: She became estranged from her father, mother, and younger sister.She dumped the nice Jewish orthodontist she married and never mentions.She engaged in an enthusiastic affair with Los Angeles radio legend Bill Ballance (who speaks very candidly with Bane), who helped her get into radio.Dr. Laura lured her current husband, Lew Bishop, away from his wife and three children, had her tubal ligation reversed in order to conceive out of wedlock.Eventually she and Bishop married and produced a child as goopily extolled (and, to my mind, as exploited) as Kathie Lee Gifford's kids Cody and Cassidy.Child of a Jewish father and Catholic mother, Dr. Laura converted to Orthodox Judaism, a choice that she uses as a bludgeon to people that she perceives as less "committed" to her brand of situational morality.

Bane neatly debunks Dr. Laura's "I'm My Kid's [Full-Time] Mom" shtick by documenting how and when Laura returned to work after her son's birth.As a child, Deryk ran wild in the hallways of KFI.For quite awhile, Dr. Laura used her visibility as a radio shrink as bait for prospective patients, one of whom details a disturbing breach of professional ethics, that of respecting strict boundaries of behavior between therapist and client.This former client was also a "friend" to Dr. Laura, and went shopping and lunching with her, as well as babysitting for Deryk.

This book, though complete as is, would benefit from an update with events that also reflect upon Dr. Laura's post-publication life--such as the failure of Dr. Laura's television show, her defection from Orthodox Judaism, and the fact that her mother, to whom Laura had not spoken for years, died alone in her apartment in Beverly Hills and wasn't found for days.

Isn't it funny-peculiar how right-leaning cheerleaders for their own definition of morality extend the statute of limitations on their own personal "youthful indiscretions" well into their forties?Schlessinger is no exception(...) ... Read more

Product Description
This study recounts the largely unknown story of a major figure in French engineering and engineering education through the Revolutionary, Napoleonic and Bourbon periods to the years following the revolution of 1830. It describes the life and work of Gaspard de Prony and presents selections (in French) of the many manusciprts he left behind. ... Read more

Product Description
This work is a biographical sketch of the lives of two celebrated Indian scientists, J.C. Bose, the plant physiologist, and Srinivasa Ramanujan, one of the greatest untrained mathematical geniuses the world has ever known. Nandy discusses the extent to which the colonial context within which these two men worked impinged on the calibre and nature of their research. ... Read more

Product Description
This volume is an invaluable one-stop reference book for anyone wanting a brief and accurate account of the life and work of those who created science from its beginnings to the present day. The alphabetically organized, illustrated biographical dictionary has been thoroughly revised and updated, covering over 1,500 key scientists (157 more than in the previous edition) from 40 countries. Physics, chemistry, biology, geology, astronomy, mathematics, medicine, meteorology and technology are all represented and special attention is paid to pioneer women whose achievements and example opened the way to scientific careers for others. This new edition includes recent Nobel laureates, as well as winners of the Fields Medal, the mathematician's equivalent of the Nobel Prize. Illustrated with around 150 portraits, diagrams, maps and tables, and with special panel features, this book is an accessible guide to the world's prominent scientific personalities. David Millar has carried out research into the flow of polar ice sheets at the Scott Polar Research Institute, Cambridge, and in Antarctica.He has also written on a range of science and technology topics, and edited a study of the politics of the Antarctic.His professional career has been spent in the oil industry, principally in the marketing of geoscience software.He lives in France.John Millar graduated from Trinity College, Cambridge, and has a doctorate from Imperial College, London.He worked for BP developing new geophysical methods for use in oil exploration and production.In 1994 he co-founded GroundFlow Ltd., which has developed electrokinetic surveying and logging as a new technique for imaging and mapping fluids in subsurface porous rocks. ... Read more

Product Description
Discusses the lives and contributions of ten influential scholars from the early years of scientific research, including Pythagoras, Archimedes, and Pliny. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Not enough info for young adults
This collection of biographies of ten early scientists(580 b.c.-850 a.d.) is probably only useful for elementary researchers or very low-level middle school students. The information is not in-depth,although it is presentedin very readable and entertaining chapters. Granted that little informationmay be available on these scholars, the chapters barely mention thecontributions each made outside of science (like Aristotle). Each scientistdoes have a physical depiction included and some other black and whitepictures are scattered throughout the text. The index is very small, butprobably useful enough for the amount of information presented. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Diverse selection of top scientists
Well, the twentieth century is finally over! So I guess the second edition of this series does indeed span the entire century. But having said this, there is little difference between this edition and the first. If your library already has the first, consider sticking with it.

The editors have made a commendable effort to span all the sciences and to recognise contributions across many countries. This is not just a collection of American and European biographies. As such, it is very suitable in a high school or university context, where possibly students might want to be encouraged by role models from different regional or ethnic backgrounds.

Not surprisingly, the most famous scientists are here. Albert Einstein. Steven Hawking. James Watson. Francis Crick... And frankly, if it is information on these persons, you don't really need this book. You can easily find more comprehensive biographies elsewhere. Rather, it is the scientists who are indeed famous in their fields, but not well known outside those, for which the book really shines. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Big help!
This book is a great book for anyone doing a research paper on a scientist or the work of a scientist.It's not full of graphic details, but it has enough to be helpful to a student in middle school or even high school, or anyone who is interested in science. ... Read more