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Stephen Hawking: A Life Well Lived
By Kitty Ferguson. 2016
In 1963 Stephen Hawking was given two years to live. Defying all the odds, he died in March 2018 at…
age seventy-six as the most celebrated scientist in the world. This carefully researched and updated biography and tribute gives a rich picture of Hawking's remarkable life - his childhood, the heart-rending beginning of his struggle with motor neurone disease, his ever-increasing international fame, and his long personal battle for survival in pursuit of a scientific understanding of the universe. From more recent years, Kitty Ferguson describes his inspiring leadership at the London Paralympic Games, the release of the film The Theory of Everything, his continuing work on black holes and the origin of the universe, the discovery of 'supertranslations', and the astounding 'Starshot' program. Here also are his intense concern for the future of the Earth and his use of his celebrity to fight for environmental and humanitarian causes, and, finally, a ground-breaking paper he was working on at the time of his death, in which he took issue with some of his own earlier theories. Throughout, Ferguson summarizes and explains the cutting-edge science in which Hawking was engaged and offers vivid first-hand descriptions of his funeral in Cambridge and the interment of his ashes in Westminster Abbey. This is an amazing and revealing tribute, assessing Hawking's legacy in and out of science.Six Facets Of Light
By Ann Wroe. 2015
'She's a genius, I believe, because she lights up every subject she touches.' Hilary Mantel A Spectator Book of the…
YearGoethe claimed to know what light was. Galileo and Einstein both confessed they didn't. On the essential nature of light, and how it operates, the scientific jury is still out. There is still time, therefore, to listen to painters and poets on the subject. They, after all, spend their lives pursuing light and trying to tie it down.Six Facets of Light is a series of meditations on this most elusive and alluring feature of human life. Set mostly on the Downs and coastline of East Sussex, the most luminous part of England, it interweaves a walker's experiences of light in Nature with the observations, jottings and thoughts of a dozen writers and painters - and some scientists - who have wrestled to define and understand light. From Hopkins to Turner, Coleridge to Whitman, Fra Angelico to Newton, Ravilious to Dante, the mystery of light is teased out and pondered on. Some of the results are surprising.By using mostly notebooks and sketchbooks, this book becomes a portrait of the transitoriness, randomness, swiftness, frustrations and quicksilver beauty that are the essence of light. It is a work to be enjoyed, pondered over, engaged with, provoked by; to be packed in the rucksack of every walker heading for the sea or the hills, or to be opened to bring that outside radiance within four dark town walls.Lifescapes by Ann Wroe is coming in August 2023.StarWords: The Celestial Roots of Modern Language (Springer Praxis Books)
By Daniel Kunth, Elena Terlevich. 2024
Unbeknownst to many, our modern language contains countless words that were inspired by human observations of the cosmos. We now…
use words like “zenith”, “Monday”, “disaster”, “dog days”, “starfish”, “lunatic”, flu, and so many others, without a second thought for their celestial roots. Famous French astrophysicist Daniel Kunth invites you on a linguistic and scientific journey through space and time to explore these forgotten origins. You will be astonished to rediscover cosmic language hidden in plain sight through this wonderful collection of historical and cultural stories, famous idioms and delightful puns, along with the real science behind each one. Elena Terlevich is a well known professional astronomer working at INAOE in Mexico, an honorary Professor at La Plata University in Argentina and a regular visitor at the Institute of Astronomy in Cambridge (UK). Requiring no prior knowledge in astronomy or linguistics, this book’s universal contentsinvite the reader to ponder how our observations of the night sky have shaped our modern tongue and customs.Paleo-Geodynamics Peculiarities of the Arctic Ocean Eurasian Floor (Earth and Environmental Sciences Library)
By Anatoly Schreider, Mikhail Klyuev, Alexandra Sazhneva, Andrey Brekhovskikh. 2024
The book deals with some issues of paleo-geodynamics of the Eurasian floor of the Arctic Ocean.A comprehensive geological and geophysical…
analysis of information on the anomalous magnetic field in the Eurasian Basin was carried out using modeling of the inversion magnetically active layer of the oceanic crust. As a result of this analysis, the identification and spatial position of linear paleo-magnetic anomalies were refined, which made it possible to significantly update the geochronology of the bottom of the Eurasian Basin and identify a number of stages in its evolution.On this basis, the features and stages of the kinematics of the development of the bottom of the Eurasian Basin in the past were revealed.At the first Cretaceous–Paleogene stage, prior to the formation of the A26 paleo-anomaly on the Eurasian margin, extension processes developed significantly and turned into rifting. In the process of rifting, weakened zones and related fractures were formed, along which the Siberian continental margin began to be torn off about 60 Ma ago with the formation of the Lomonosov Ridge.At the second stage of evolution, rifting turned into spreading, and the growth rate of the new oceanic crust in the A26–A24 paleo-anomaly interval (59–53 Ma ago) was more than 2.5 cm/yr. At the same time, the northern flank of the Mid-Arctic Ridge grew more intensively than the southern one.The third stage was characterized by a further progressive slowdown in the process of bottom spreading, the minimum of which, with spreading rates of about 1 cm/year, fell on the formation of paleo-anomalies A13-A6 (30-20 million years ago).The fourth stage of growth of the new oceanic crust began later than the time of the A6 paleo-anomaly and is characterized by some intensification of growth at rates up to 1.2 cm/yr. The average rate of bottom growth over an interval of almost 60 Ma turned out to be close to 1.3 cm/yr, which makes it possible to classify the Mid-Arctic Ridge as a slow-growing one.On this basis, kinematic models of the development of bottom configurations were developed with the determination of the Euler poles, rotation angles, asymmetries, axes of spallation and paleo-bathymetry for the Eurasian Basin, the Polar part of the Lomonosov Ridge, the splitting of the Arlis Spura from the Lomonosov Ridge, the development of the Gakkel Ridge and the development of the Greenland region of the bottom.Coded Optical Imaging
By Jinyang Liang. 2024
This book provides a comprehensive survey of coded optical imaging. Illustrated with 386 figures, it takes readers from the fundamental…
concepts and theories to the latest research and applications in this field. It can be used in graduate-level courses in optics and photonics. It can also benefit scientists and engineers in optical imaging, computer graphics, and other related disciplines. This book starts from a brief history of coded optical imaging and key operations in its data acquisition and image reconstruction. It then presents the latest progress in technological development and applications in the areas of biomedicine, materials science, industrial inspection, optical physics, imaging science, information theory, and more. Chapters describe the most representative techniques, exposing readers to key research themes, including: · Optical signal encoding · Image reconstruction techniques · Compressed sensing · Artificial intelligence · Metasurface · Structured light · Lensless imaging · Holography · Tomography · Light-field imaging · Utrafast imaging · Hyperspectral imaging · Polarization imaging · Super-resolution imagingSecure Edge and Fog Computing Enabled AI for IoT and Smart Cities: Includes selected Papers from International Conference on Advanced Computing & Next-Generation Communication (ICACNGC 2022) (EAI/Springer Innovations in Communication and Computing)
By Ahmed A. Abd El-Latif, Lo’ai Tawalbeh, Yassine Maleh, Brij B. Gupta. 2024
This book gathers recent research in security and privacy to discuss, evaluate, and improve the novel approaches of data protection…
in IoT and edge and fog computing. The primary focus of the book addresses security mechanisms in IoT and edge/ fog computing, advanced secure deployments for large scaled edge/ fog computing, and new efficient data security strategy of IoT and edge/ fog computing. The book lays a foundation of the core concepts and principles of IoT and 5G security, walking the reader through the fundamental ideas. This book is aimed at researchers, graduate students, and engineers in the fields of secure IoT and edge/ fog computing. The book also presents selected papers from International Conference on Advanced Computing & Next-Generation Communication (ICACNGC 2022).The Problem of Coronal Heating: A Rosetta Stone for Electrodynamic Coupling in Cosmic Plasmas (Astrophysics and Space Science Library #470)
By Philip Judge, James A. Ionson. 2024
This book reflects on 8 decades of research on one of the longest-standing unsolved problems in modern astrophysics: why does…
the Sun form a hot corona? The authors give a critical overview of the field and offer suggestions on how to bridge the chasm between what we can measure, and what we can calculate. They go back to basics to explain why the problem is difficult, where we have made progress and where we have not, to help the next generation of scientists devise novel techniques to crack such a long-lasting problem. A way forward is formulated centered around refutation, using Bayesian methods to propose and to try to reject hypotheses and models, and avoiding seduction by ``confirmation bias’’.This book is aimed at physicists, students and researchers interested in understanding, learning from and solving the coronal heating problem, in an era of new dedicated facilities such as the Parker Solar Probe and the Daniel K. Inouye Solar Telescope. Thebook will appeal to those interested in understanding research methods and how they are changing in the modern academic environment, particular in astrophysics and Earth sciences where remote sensing is essential.Mathematics for Natural Scientists II: Advanced Methods (Undergraduate Lecture Notes in Physics)
By Lev Kantorovich. 2024
This textbook, the second in a series (the first covered fundamentals and basics), seeks to make its material accessible to…
physics students. Physics/engineering can be greatly enhanced by knowledge of advanced mathematical techniques, but the math-specific jargon and laborious proofs can be off-putting to students not well versed in abstract math. This book uses examples and proofs designed to be clear and convincing from the context of physics, as well as providing a large number of both solved and unsolved problems in each chapter. This is the second edition, and it has been significantly revised and enlarged, with Chapters 1 (on linear algebra) and 2 (on the calculus of complex numbers and functions) having been particularly expanded. The enhanced topics throughout the book include: vector spaces, general (non-Hermitian, including normal and defective) matrices and their right/left eigenvectors/values, Jordan form, pseudoinverse, linearsystems of differential equations, Gaussian elimination, fundamental theorem of algebra, convergence of a Fourie series and Gibbs-Wilbraham phenomenon, careful derivation of the Fourier integral and of the inverse Laplace transform. New material has been added on many physics topics meant to illustrate the maths, such as 3D rotation, properties of the free electron gas, van Hove singularities, and methods for both solving PDEs with a Fourier transform and calculating the width of a domain wall in a ferromagnet, to mention just a few. This textbook should prove invaluable to all of those with an interest in physics/engineering who have previously experienced difficulty processing the math involved.“A famous account of abduction and escape from hostile Indians in the old West.In July, 1864 hostile Oglala Sioux Indians…
attacked the wagon train of the pioneering Kelly and Larimer families approximately 80 miles west of Fort Laramie, Wyoming. Several people were killed or wounded but Sarah Larimer and Fanny Kelly, together with some of their children, were taken into captivity by the Indians. On the second night of their captivity Sarah Larimer and her son managed to escape from the Indian camp and after many difficulties and privations they reached the Deer Creek telegraph station and safety. This book is Sarah Larimer’s story of her ordeal. Fanny Kelly’s captivity with the Sioux lasted longer and on her release she also wrote a book about her experiences. She also sued Sarah Larimer over her memoir and several trials took place over ten years before the matter was settled. [This Book] provides fascinating insights into the westward passage of pioneer families in North America, and those interested in the Indian tribes of the Great Plains during their struggle to maintain their traditional way of life will also find much to interest them in the pages of these books.”-Print ed.“With Crook in pursuit of Geronimo and his band.The author of this book was a U.S. soldier in addition to…
being a well known and highly regarded author on the Apache Wars of the later nineteenth century-in which he was an active participant. He maintained an interest, respect for and in some measure an affection for the Apaches and he also made a serious study of and wrote notable works on their customs and culture. He is perhaps best known for his classic account of the Apache Wars, 'On the Border with Crook.' This small account was written prior to his larger and more expansive work. It originally appeared as a series of articles in the Boston published 'Outing Magazine.' Bourke decided to bring his earlier writings back into print in book form, at a time when the Apaches had once again taken the war trail, to provide the American public with context to then current events. This fascinating account, which centres on the events of the Spring of 1883, concerns Crook's pursuit of the Chiricahua Apaches who broke out of San Carlos reservation to raid through Arizona and Mexico before vanishing into the fastness of the Sierra Madre. Those with any interest or knowledge in this subject will find themselves familiarly introduced to the corps of Apache Scouts, Al Sieber (Zieber), the scout and interpreter, Crook, Gatewood, Chato and of course the renowned Geronimo, as well as other names long associated with this remarkable time in the history of the Apaches and Arizona.”-Print ed.“A great river and those who sailed it.This well known and highly regarded classic of the opening up of the…
American West concentrates on the great rivers of North America and the Missouri in particular. Focus is, of course, placed to the iconic paddle-steamers, their captains and crews, that plied its waters and that have become emblematic of river navigation in 19th century America. The scope of the narrative is significant. Events are described from the mid-1850s and through the American Civil War. However, the book principally deals with the post Civil war period of westward expansion and the role of the vessels and the river itself in the wars against the plains Indians. The transportation of troops and materials played a significant part in these campaigns and this is, of course, is recounted here in some detail. Readers will learn about the exploits of boats including the 'Far West, ' 'Key West, ' Rosebud, ' 'Luella' and 'North Alabama' in this fascinating account of the American frontier afloat.”-Print ed.Following the Drum: A U. S. Infantry Officer's Wife on the Texas Frontier in the Early 1850's
By Teresa Griffin Viele. 2024
“A view of the early Texan frontier from a female view pointTeresa Viele was a strong minded woman with clear…
cut views. Fate would dictate that her life would not be defined by her experiences as an army wife, but in this book she has left us a significant insight into the activities of the officers, soldiers and families of a United States Infantry regiment on the Texas frontier in the pre-Civil War period. Her account encompasses everything that came under her eye and into her active mind-from travel, landscape, flora, fauna and food. Less domestically, she turned her thoughts and pen to the subject of Mexicans and United States political relations with Mexico, the omnipresent threat of Comanche raiders and the ability and capacity of the army to fulfil its border protection duties. Viele also provides an interesting perspective on Jose Maria Jesus Carbajal and the Merchants War. This is an unusual female viewpoint on life on the early South Western American frontier and is an important chronicle of a woman in Texas during the pioneer period.”-Print ed.Red Eagle and the Wars with the Creek Indians of Alabama 1812-1814
By George Cary Eggleston. 2024
“Red Sticks, White Sticks and the war in AlabamaThe Creek Indian War, also known as the Red Stick War, took…
place between 1813-1814 and has been considered by many historians as part of the War of 1812. The Creek—or Muscogee—Indians of Alabama were effectively waging a civil war among themselves. One militant faction, the so called Red Sticks, proposed an aggressive return to the traditional life of their forebears and an end to treaties with and concessions to pioneer settlers represented by the United States government. The White Sticks, opting for peace, inevitably took the opposing view. Although the conflict began as one between the indigenous Indians, American forces, under the soon to be famous Andrew Jackson among others, were drawn into the conflict because much of the animosity was focussed on pioneer settlements. The conflict started in the usual manner of American Indian Wars—with the murder of settler families. The inevitable revenge and retribution that followed—and an escalation of the kind of merciless savagery the Americans had come to expect—culminated in the massacre of 500 settlers, friendly Indians, mixed blood Creeks and soldiers at Fort Mims in an attack led by the Red Stick war leader, Red Eagle. Other forts were also attacked. Panic spread through the region exacerbated by the inability of the Federal government to provide ready aid since it was engaged against the British and their Indian allies to the east. As a consequence much of the fighting was undertaken by militias from Tennessee, Georgia and Mississippi supported by White Stick allies. National hero, Davy Crockett, also served in this conflict. The war ended in a victory for the Americans and put Andrew Jackson on a path to the presidency and the White House. It was a disaster for the entire Creek Indian tribe—irrespective of their allegiances—who paid for the conflict through the confiscation of vast tracts of their traditional lands.”-Print ed.Thrilling Days in Army Life: Experiences of the Beecher's Island Battle 1868, the Apache Campaign of 1882, and the American Civil War
By George Alexander Forsyth. 2024
“A highly regarded memoir of the Indian and Civil Wars.The author of this book, George A. (Sandy) Forsyth was a…
career soldier who served with distinction in the American Civil War and subsequently upon the western frontier against the Plains Indian tribes as they fought a losing battle to stem the inexorable advance of 'Manifest Destiny'—essentially 'the survival of the fittest'—'the law' as Forsyth writes, 'that has obtained since the dawn of creation.' Forsyth's career was varied and full of incident, though in his biography he has elected to concentrate on just four outstanding episodes in which he took part. The first, and certainly the one for which has remained famous to this day concerns the Battle of Beecher's Island. In 1868 in command of just 50 'scouts' Forsyth pursued a thousand Indian warriors of the Northern Cheyenne and other tribes under the war chief, Roman Nose, and found himself besieged on a small island in a creek of the Republican River. This incredible story of endurance has become one of the iconic episodes of the Plains Indian Wars. Here Forsyth tells his experiences in his own words before recounting a lesser known incident from his time on the Mexican border in conflict with and pursuit of Chiricahua Apaches. The final two accounts concern Forsyth's experiences as an aide to Sheridan during the Civil War, first during the Shenandoah campaign and finally at Lee's surrender at Appomattox Court House after the last shots of the war were fired. Forsyth intends to grip his reader from first page to last by the exclusion of the routine of drudgery of military life and by focusing on its moments of high action. He succeeds and has created a highly entertaining account of military adventure of the United States Army of the nineteenth century which will satisfy every reader.”-Print ed.Quantum Mechanics (The Ladybird Expert Series #2)
By Jim Al-Khalili. 2017
What is quantum mechanics? Learn from the experts in the ALL-NEW LADYBIRD EXPERT SERIESA clear, simple and entertaining introduction to…
the weird, mind-bending world of the very, very small.Written by physicist and broadcaster Professor Jim Al-Khalili, Quantum Mechanics explores all the key players, breakthroughs, controversies and unanswered questions of the quantum world.You'll discover:- How the sun shines- Why light is both a wave and a particle- The certainty of the Uncertainty Principle- Schrodinger's Cat- Einstein's spooky action- How to build a quantum computer- Why quantum mechanics drives even its experts completely crazy'Jim Al-Khalili has done an admirable job of condensing the ideas of quantum physics from Max Planck to the possibilities of quantum computers into brisk, straightforward English' THE TIMESLearn about other topics in the Ladybird Experts series including The Big Bang, Gravity, Climate Change and Evolution.Written by the leading lights and most outstanding communicators in their fields, the Ladybird Expert books provide clear, accessible and authoritative introductions to subjects drawn from science, history and culture. For an adult readership, the Ladybird Expert series is produced in the same iconic small format pioneered by the original Ladybirds. Each beautifully illustrated book features the first new illustrations produced in the original Ladybird style for nearly forty years.Prisons of Light: Black Holes
By Kitty Ferguson. 1973
What is a black hole? Could we survive a visit to one? Perhaps even venture inside? What would we find?…
Have we yet discovered any real black holes? And what do black holes teach us about what physicist John Archibald Wheeler called “the deep, happy, mysteries of the universe”?These are just a few of the tantalizing questions examined in this jargon-free review of one of the most fascinating topics in modern science. In search of the answers, we trace a star from its birth to its death throes, take a fabulous hypothetical journey to the border of a black hole and beyond, spend time with some of the world’s leading theoretical physicists and observational astronomers scanning the cosmos for evidence of real black holes, and take a whimsical look at some of the wild ideas black holes have inspired.Positively Happy: Cosmic Ways To Change Your Life
By Noel Edmonds. 2011
'Throughout the many ups and downs, the successes and the failures in my life, there has been a consistent and…
all-embracing belief that a positive attitude produces results.'Acknowledged both as one of the most famous faces on British television and an astute businessman, Noel Edmonds knows what it's like to be hugely successful. In this book he talks about the high and low points of his career; how he dealt with major changes in his professional and personal life and how his belief in himself and the cosmos have brought him back to our screens in Deal or No Deal.Drawing on his own experiences he tells you how to:* Make your own luck* Stay focused when things are getting tough* Be positive in a negatively oriented world* Play to your strengths* Step outside your comfort zone...and ultimately develop practical strategies that will enable you to get the most out of your life.Peter 2.0: The Human Cyborg
By Peter Scott-Morgan. 2021
The incredible book behind the primetime Channel 4 documentary, Peter: The Human Cyborg'A remarkable account of what it means to…
be human and what technology can really achieve' Sunday Telegraph'Peter's story is one of the most extraordinary you will ever hear. I urge people to read it' Stephen Fry'A remarkable story . . . you're left desperate to take nothing for granted' Radio Times __________ Peter, a brilliant scientist, is told that he will lose everything he loves. His husband. His family. His friends. His ability to travel the world. All will be gone. But Peter will not give up. He vows that this will not be the end and instead seeks a completely new beginning . . . Peter has Motor Neurone Disease, a condition universally considered by doctors to be terminal. He is told it will destroy his nerve cells and that within about two years, it will take his life too. But, face-to-face with death, he decides there is another way. Using his background in science and technology, he navigates a new path, one that will enable him not just to survive, but to thrive. This is the astonishing true story about Peter Scott-Morgan: the first person to combine his very humanity with artificial intelligence and robotics to become a full Cyborg. His discovery means that his terminal diagnosis is negotiable, something that will rewrite the future.And change the world. By embracing love, life and hope rather than fear, tragedy and despair, he will become Peter 2.0. __________'Compelling . . . Scott-Morgan is a true one-off. It is in the telling of the love story, rather than the technical details of becoming a cyborg, that this book succeeds' The Times 'What's striking is Peter's constant optimism, bravery and his ability to find radical answers to problems that have confounded Britain's brightest minds' Daily Telegraph 'A soaring love story' Financial Times 'Fascinating and extremely moving' SunTextbook of Ion Channels Volume I: Fundamental Mechanisms and Methodologies
By Jie Zheng Matthew C. Trudeau. 2023
The Textbook of Ion Channels is a set of three volumes providing a wide-ranging reference source on ion channels for…
students, instructors and researchers. Ion channels are membrane proteins that control the electrical properties of neurons and cardiac cells; mediate the detection and response to sensory stimuli like light, sound, odor, and taste; and regulate the response to physical stimuli like temperature and pressure. In non-excitable tissues, ion channels are instrumental for the regulation of basic salt balance that is critical for homeostasis. Ion channels are located at the surface membrane of cells, giving them the unique ability to communicate with the environment, as well as the membrane of intracellular organelles, allowing them to regulate internal homeostasis. Ion channels are fundamentally important for human health and diseases, and are important targets for pharmaceuticals in mental illness, heart disease, anesthesia, pain and other clinical applications. The modern methods used in their study are powerful and diverse, ranging from single ion-channel measurement techniques to models of ion channel diseases in animals, and human clinical trials for ion channel drugs.Volume I, Part 1 covers fundamental topics such as the basic principles of ion permeation and selectivity, voltage-dependent, ligand-dependent, and mechano-dependent ion channel activation mechanisms, the mechanisms for ion channel desensitization and inactivation, and basic ion channel pharmacology and inhibition. Volume I, Part 2 offers a practical guide of cardinal methods for researching ion channels, including heterologous expression and voltage-clamp and patch-clamp electrophysiology; isolation of native currents using patch clamping; modeling ion channel gating, structures, and its dynamics; crystallography and cryo-electron microscopy; fluorescence and paramagnetic resonance spectroscopy methods; and genetics approaches in model organisms.All three volumes give the reader an introduction to fundamental concepts needed to understand the mechanism of ion channels; a guide to the technical aspects of ion channel research; a modern guide to the properties of major ion channel families; and includes coverage of key examples of regulatory, physiological and disease roles for ion channels.Boltzmann's Atom: The Great Debate That Launched a Revolution in Physics
By David Lindley. 2001
In 1900 many eminent scientists did not believe atoms existed, yet within just a few years the atomic century launched…
into history with an astonishing string of breakthroughs in physics that began with Albert Einstein and continues to this day. Before this explosive growth into the modern age took place, an all-but-forgotten genius strove for forty years to win acceptance for the atomic theory of matter and an altogether new way of doing physics. Ludwig Boltz-mann battled with philosophers, the scientific establishment, and his own potent demons. His victory led the way to the greatest scientific achievements of the twentieth century.Now acclaimed science writer David Lindley portrays the dramatic story of Boltzmann and his embrace of the atom, while providing a window on the civilized world that gave birth to our scientific era. Boltzmann emerges as an endearingly quixotic character, passionately inspired by Beethoven, who muddled through the practical matters of life in a European gilded age.Boltzmann's story reaches from fin de siècle Vienna, across Germany and Britain, to America. As the Habsburg Empire was crumbling, Germany's intellectual might was growing; Edinburgh in Scotland was one of the most intellectually fertile places on earth; and, in America, brilliant independent minds were beginning to draw on the best ideas of the bureaucratized old world.Boltzmann's nemesis in the field of theoretical physics at home in Austria was Ernst Mach, noted today in the term Mach I, the speed of sound. Mach believed physics should address only that which could be directly observed. How could we know that frisky atoms jiggling about corresponded to heat if we couldn't see them? Why should we bother with theories that only told us what would probably happen, rather than making an absolute prediction? Mach and Boltzmann both believed in the power of science, but their approaches to physics could not have been more opposed. Boltzmann sought to explain the real world, and cast aside any philosophical criteria. Mach, along with many nineteenth-century scientists, wanted to construct an empirical edifice of absolute truths that obeyed strict philosophical rules. Boltzmann did not get on well with authority in any form, and he did his best work at arm's length from it. When at the end of his career he engaged with the philosophical authorities in the Viennese academy, the results were personally disastrous and tragic. Yet Boltzmann's enduring legacy lives on in the new physics and technology of our wired world.Lindley's elegant telling of this tale combines the detailed breadth of the best history, the beauty of theoretical physics, and the psychological insight belonging to the finest of novels.