Written after he completed the final version of his General Theory of Relativity, Dr. Einstein wrote Relativity as a book that would explain both his special and general theories of relativity to a wide-ranging, non-specialist audience. Quite simply, it was intended to be a popular book.
Indeed, dear reader. Much as we may wish it were not so, long gone are the days of natural history being written in elegant Victorian prose. Delve into any serious journal, examine any research touching upon the subject, and far from contemplating a tangled bank, you’ll instead be puzzling over various numbers, Greek letters, and assorted cryptic squiggles that to the uninitiated may have as well have been copied from the gold embroidery on a wizard’s pointy purple hat. If you’re going to pursue any studies in the field, lest you remain on the most genteel margins, an understanding – at least at a basic level – of statistics is required.
When the advance reading copy of Robyn Arianrhod’s forthcoming “Thomas Harriot; A Life in Science” arrived from Oxford University Press last month, I’ll admit the first thought that entered my mind was “Who?” But after delving into it, I’m increasingly of the opinion that that is really the reason behind why Dr. Arianrhod likely wrote the book in the first place.
While some may let pass the 5th of July with little more than a shrug, those in the scientific “know” mark it with reverence as it was the day in 1687 that saw the publication of one of the most – perhaps even the most – important works on time, force, and motion ever written: Sir Isaac Newton’s “Philosophiae Naturalis Principia Mathematica” (Mathematical Principles of Natural Philosophy).