1 comments about The Quantum Ten: A Story of Passion, Tragedy, Ambition, and Science.

1. This interesting book provides a special view of quantum theory.
   It provides an insight into the origins of the theory based on the personal
   lives of its creators.
   
   The book treats scientific activity as any other cultural activity
   making clear that even the most "objective" of our mathematical theories
   (like the theories of mathematical physics) ought to be seen as cultural
   products within the social and political frame of their conception and
   (perhaps more importantly) within the professional and financial strains
   and aspirations of their creators. This is indeed the case from the beginning
   of abstract mathematical thought in ancient Greece to this day.
   
   There is no deep discussion of the mathematics/concepts of the theory and
   an expert in the theory would certainly not become any wiser as to its
   meaning. However, the greatest service provided by the text is a better
   understanding of the shaky foundations of the theory that was conceived
   as an effective model of reality as allowed by the mathematical capabilities
   of that time and not at all as a "fundamental" theory as understood today.
   The theory emerged as a recipe for understanding experiments with no
   intrinsic limits on its applicability or relevance to other situations.
   
   Young people interested in a realistic view of how real science is done
   rather than idealized, fairy-tale treatments would find this text interesting.
   Interesting but not captivating so four stars.

5 comments about Prodigal Genius: The Life of Nikola Tesla.

1. Here is a story of a man born in the glorious womb of science, a man who so completely understood the laws of nature and the scientific method that he commanded total dominion over the physical universe.

   Once you read this book you will find it difficult to name an aspect of modern life that hasn't been affected by the hand of Nikola Tesla.

   Some of Tesla's ideas were so far ahead of his time that to the people of his day, they were considered impossible; his vision of the world of the future was mocked and laughed at even by other scientists. Over time scepticism about the possibilities of science and technology has waned. Unfortunately for us the world was not yet ready for Tesla, this man out of time, and he died with his greatest achievments alive only in his mind.




2. This book tells the fascinating story of an amazing Serbian boy, Nikola Tesla, who was born in 1856, in the area we now call Bosnia. The author explains how Tesla's accomplishments brought forth our modern electrical power era and provide the foundation for the industrial system on which the entire world is built.
   
   Tesla's mother could repeat, without error or omission, thousands of verses of the national poetry of her country. Tesla shared her retentive memory. He had another ability that he only revealed to his mother. If Tesla thought of an object, it would appear before him exhibiting the appearance of solidity and massiveness. He used this ability to visualize the solution to creating the first alternating current generator.
   
   The first time Tesla's ability to visualize helped him in his quest to develop an alternating current generator, occurred when he suggested to a college professor that alternating current would solve some of the problems with a piece of electrical equipment that could be used either to generate electricity or if supplied energy could operate as a motor. As his professor demonstrated the machine, the solution to the problem came to Tesla in such a vivid, illuminating flash of understanding that he knew his visualization contained the correct and practical answer. He saw both the equipment operating without the problems and doing so efficiently, however, he could not see the essential details of how this could be accomplished.
   
   In Feb of 1882, Tesla took a walk in the city of Budapest with a former classmate. While a glorious sunset overspread the sky, Tesla engaged in one of his favorite hobbies-reciting poetry. The setting sun reminded Tesla of some of Goethe's beautiful lines:
   
   The glow retreats, done is the day of toil;
   It yonder hastes, new fields of life exploring;
   Ah, that no wing can lift me from the soil,
   Upon its track to follow, follow soaring...
   
   Suddenly, Tesla snapped into a rigid pose as if he had fallen into a trance. "Watch me!" he said, "Watch me reverse it!"
   
   Tesla's friend said, "I see nothing, are you ill?"
   
   "You do not understand," said Tesla, "It is my alternating-current motor I am talking about. Can't you see it right here in front of me, running almost silently? It is the rotating magnetic field that does it. See how the magnetic field rotates and drags the armature around with it? Isn't it beautiful? I have solved the problem."
   
   Tesla now had an electrical system utilizing alternating current, which was much more flexible and vastly more efficient than the direct-current system then being used. But now Tesla had another problem, convincing the rest of the world that his alternating-current power system was simpler, flexible and freed electricity to be sent long distances. The direct-current systems being used at that time were not able to send electricity long distances without major problems. The fact that our power system today uses alternating-current shows that Tesla was finally successful. The book, Prodigal Genius, provides all the fascinating details of this story



3. Once I got by the romantic flair of the first pages, I really enjoyed O'Neill's biography of Tesla. The subject of Tesla's life is certainly fascinating. He was a true visionary and a man well before his time.
   
   Minus one star for the romance (Is this typical of biographies of the era? I don't know.), for some circular logic (punishing Marconi for not seeing the potential of wireless transmission but lauding Tesla generating the first X-rays even though he did not grasp their potential).
   
   Over all, an informative and enjoyable read.
   
   P.S. I recommend Googling up Tesla's patents while progressing through the book.



4. Tesla was not prodigal by any definition of the term. He was a genius-fool with severe neurological problems. Omitting the real Tesla makes any biography of less worth than it could be.



5. Prodigal Genius: The Life of Nikola Tesla is the amazing true-life biography of inventor extraordinaire Nikola Tesla (1856-1943), a friend of Mark Twain and George Westinghouse, and a rival of Thomas Edison. Tesla invented the AC electrical current; his talent for inventions and scientific advancement was enhanced by his ability to visualize three-dimensional images of his inventions, saving money and effort on prototype constructions. Though his prodigal talents brought him great wealth and recognition - he made his first million before he turned forty - he refused to accept the Nobel Prize, chose to give away his royalties as a token of friendship, and died nearly penniless. His dream was to provide the world with sources of energy and wonders of technology that were free to enrich the lives of all, rather than fuel the profit margin of corporate sponsors. Yet for his selfless ideals, he received derision and disdain. Written by John J. O'Neill, a personal friend of Tesla's, and originally published in 1944, Prodigal Genius remains the seminal biography of a staunchly ethical man of science, who deserves far more honor than history has given him.

3 comments about Benjamin Franklin's Autobiography (Norton Critical Editions).

1. How many books have you read that you remember thirty-six years later? Ben Franklin's insights into principles of self-improvement, and his love for the adventure of life were not only inspiring to me when I discovered his autobiography in the Holmesburg Library in Philadelphia at age 14, but they still remain motivational for me at age 50! Ben Franklin was the Dale Carnegie of his age. He realized that by following basic core value principles, and by constant practice in the adventure of life, he could not only creatively change himself, but he could positively impact those around him as well. Ben Franklin led a purposeful, creative life. I am thankful that he had the foresight to pass his exhuberance along to us in this his autobiography. It was fun to read. I think I'll read it again. Thanks, Ben.



2. Anyone who has ever taken a literature class in college knows the Norton Critical Editions: an absolutely first-rate version of the text, a healthy supply of contemporary responses and letters, and the best essays yet written about the text. This edition of Benjamin Franklin's "Autobiography" is no exception. The quintessential American Enlightenment figure, Franklin is far more complex than most people think, and far funnier. When it came time to write the Declaration of Independence, the Congress wouldn't give it to Franklin alone, in large part because they were afraid he'd hide a joke in it. One of his most infamous pieces of writing was under the guise of a prostitute being brought before the court for having yet another illegitimate child -- and then attacking the court for making it necessary for her to pursue her profession! And the letter Franklin wrote his own illegitimate son about how to keep a mistress is a classic in and of itself. The only great flaw in the autobiography is that it stops before Franklin ever reaches the Revolutionary War, and thus we don't have the inside story of that perilous time. But anybody wanting to understand Franklin's life, the means to wealth, or the evolution of a brilliant mind will love this text. It's mandatory reading for every American, in my mind.



3. If you are looking for "the autobiography of Benjamin Franklin," this is the volume to get. It is a Norton Critical Edition, perhaps the gold standard of anthologies, and it is edited by Lemay and Zall.
   
   I believe Lemay and Zall are the "experts" in the autobiographical writings of Benjamin Franklin.
   
   Critical essays include essays written contemporaneously with this autobiography (including David Hume and John Adams); in the 19th century (including Edgar Allen Poe, Herman Melville, Mark Twain); in the 20th century (including D.H. Lawrence, W. Somerset Maugham). The critical essay by D. H. Lawrence is a classic, but it is clear that Lawrence "misread" Benjamin Franklin, and having read it, I have lost some admiration for Lawrence.
   
   Watch for this volume at discount book stores and independent books sellers through Amazon.com.

5 comments about Time, Love, Memory: A Great Biologist and His Quest for the Origins of Behavior.

1. The most beautiful and inspiring nonfiction I've read. I intern in a molecular biology lab, so the science wasn't new to me. The story, however, was breathtaking. I've recommended this to many people--the same goes to you, Amazon reader!



2. This is a very accessible blending of a biography of Seymour Benzer, the most renowned Drosophilist (fruit fly geneticist), with many anecdotes and quotations, and a fascinating history of fruit fly genetics and related molecular biology. However, I was brought up short by one passage in it, on page 244 -
   
   "It is already possible - in fertility clinics it is done every day - to screen the DNA of a set of eight embryos at the eight-cell stage and let the parents pick the one they want to implant in the mother's womb. The more genes there are to screen and the better these gene complexes are understood, the more wealthy parents will select not only the healthiest but also the best and brightest embryo they can, designing the genes of their children....(O)ver the next few centuries whether governments legislate for or against it(,...t)he rich will pick and choose the genes of their children, the poor will not. The gap between rich and poor may widen so far in the third millennium that before the end of it there will not only be two classes of human beings but two species, or a whole Galapagos of different human species. These human species could be prevented from interbreeding by the genetic engineering of chemical incompatibility, so that the egg of one would reject the sperm of the other."
   
   I can't help questioning Weiner's prediction that the wealthy will be able to select genes of their offspring while the poor will not "....over the next few centuries, whether governments legislate for or against it."
   
   Toward the end of Marlon Brando's autobiography, Songs My Mother Taught Me, that wise and wonderful man summed up his life's learning as attaining a visceral understanding of how much mankind is driven by group instincts, and how much every group requires outsiders to feel superior to. In the paragraph in Time, Love, Memory following the one quoted from above, Weiner quotes E.O. Wilson saying, "Soon we must look deep within ourselves and decide what we wish to become....What lifts this question beyond mere futurism is that it reveals so clearly our ignorance of the meaning of human existence in the first place." At least, we know what John Donne's reply to Professor Wilson's musing would be.
   
   Hopefully, there are Drosophilists looking for the genes whose sequences determine the proteins for the animal behaviors Brando referred to as "group instincts," and under what conditions their outsider-requiring aspects may be turned off, in order to ameliorate the dystopia of wealth-created castes to which we already belong as well as to prevent the potential dystopia of wealth-created species to which Weiner alludes. I'd call these our "Group-or-Gandhi" sequences, and as fine as this book is, I would have welcomed something in it about Drosophilists' thoughts about them.



3. Time is for clock. Since everything has a clockwork gene, I suppose that in humans it means the biological clock involving procreation and evolution. This book, written by a prize-winning biologist, is more about birds, flys, fish, plants, but hardly about men and women. Disappointed me -- a psychologist would have covered the behavior process for us, I guess. He relates how humpback whales (not males) sing songs which can radiate thousands of miles under the ocean and they change from season to season like the Top Ten Rock Tracks of Chuck's choices. They constantly change courtship songs but never repeat themselves. The songs are always new and never a 'golden oldie' from a decade or two back in time, as humans like to do. The nostalgia radio stations are the most popular now and have been for a long time.
   
   Einstein asked this question, "How on earth are you ever going to explain in terms of chemistry and physics so important a biological phenomenon as 'first love?' They don't. It does involve body chemistry and is a fleeting illusion as we seldom marry our first loves, or our last.
   
   Proust said that memory is "a rope let down from heaven to draw us up out of the abyss of not-being." Memory involves happenings from our pasts and that of our ancestors. Here, again, the author used examples of frogs eyes and brains. Here I was, ready to learn about that elusive part of our existence, remembering, when all I find is that these are the cornerstones of our experience, time, love and memory. It's sad that as we age, memory is more fleeting than love. How could he forget so fast to find Sweet Surrender and probably didn't look at all, or his memory is worse than the flys and frogs and plants and things.
   
   Jonathan Weiner won the Pulitzer Prize for 'The Beak of the Finch.' He dedicated this book to his brother, Eric. In his teaching fields, he went from biology to writing. Here, they gravitate from history or journalism to writing. First, you must know the fundamentals of writing for the general public and not textbook information for students before any kind of success is possible. It's okay, CS, we all forget sometimes.



4. "Time, Love, Memory" is a fascinating account of a group of scientists who pioneered the study of genes and behavior. It is also an interesting history lesson about the development of molecular biology and the development of science in general.
   
   The atomic theory of inheritance - the idea that inherited characteristics are passed on as factors, as discrete units (now called genes) - began with the work of Gregor Mendel. Unfortunately, Mendel's work was largely ignored at the time of its initial publication. At the turn of the 20th century it was re-discovered and it ushered in a golden era of genetics (the period of classic genetics). This work was largely carried on in the United States by Thomas Hunt Morgan and his amazing group of undergraduate and graduate students (Morgan's raiders). Morgan's group found support for the Mendelian laws of inheritance in the breeding of common fruit flies (Drosophila). With the work of Morgan's group, it was discovered that Mendel's factors were arranged along chromosomes (`like beads on a string') and Morgan's student, Alfred Sturtevant, in one eureka moment, created the first ever genetic map of a chromosome. That is, Sturtevant figured out a way to map the order of genes along a chromosome and to calculate spatial distances between them.
   
   However, it was still not known what genes were at the time (Morgan asked the question, `What are genes?' in his Nobel acceptance speech). While the function of genes as carriers of hereditary units was known, they were still abstract entities. The quantum physicist, Erwin Schrodinger, wrote a book called "What Is Life?" in which he tried to bring atomic physics to bear on the genetics problem. He speculated that the hereditary material might be carried in a crystal lattice structure and that genetic mutations might be quantum jumps. Schrodinger's speculations were beautiful, even if they mostly turned out to be wrong, but the book served as inspiration for a large group of physicists to become interested in biology and these physicists-turned-biologists would have a large role to play in the development of molecular biology.
   
   One of these physicists-turned-biologists was Seymour Benzer. He had completed his doctoral thesis in physics at Purdue and was engaged in research on semi-conductors. With a very promising career in physics awaiting him, Benzer got interested in biology. "Within one day...he became instantly induced, transformed, determined and committed to be a biologist." Max Delbruck (another physicist-turned-biologist) became Benzer's mentor and they worked on bacteriophages (viruses that infect bacteria). Around this time Crick and Watson (also inspired by Schrodinger's "What Is Life?") discovered the molecular structure of DNA. Benzer was aware of their work and he started to think about genes as rungs of nucleotides twisting along the DNA ladder. Benzer came up with a series of elegant, simple experiments to be performed with a mutant phage (rII phage) and with these experiments he became the first person to begin mapping the interior of a gene. These experiments earned him the nickname of the `atom-breaker of biology'. The Greek idea of the atom imagined it as a kind of tiny, indivisible spherical object. Similarly, many biologists thought of genes as being indivisible at the time, as abstract little beads lined up along the chromosome. But Benzer's work showed that the gene is divisible, that its interior can be mapped.
   
   One might think that this alone would be more than enough to secure Benzer's place in the history of science. However, following his phage work, Benzer became increasingly interested in studying the genetic origins of behavior. He decided to use the Drosophila fly as the model organism, an entry point into the investigation of how genes lead to behavior. The atomic theory of behavior aimed to take apart the behavioral instincts and study their internal clockwork. At the time this was fringe science. As Benzer set up his fly room at Caltech, many people were highly skeptical about his intended research project. However, Benzer's ambitious project paid dividends and did so very early on. Benzer and his group of students injected Drosophila flies with mutagens and then screened them for a variety of behavioral mutations. The book focuses on three main discoveries that opened the way into the investigation of the genetic bases of the fundamental elements of the behavioral pyramid (time, love and memory).
   
   Among these mutants there are flies with damaged internal clocks, whose behavioral rhythms become erratic, or slow, or fast. These various behaviors were found to be controlled by a period gene. Certain nucleotide repeats of the period gene exist in most animals, including humans. There are also flies with no luck in love, who exhibit abnormal courtship patterns. This led to the discovery of a gene called fruitless which controls the wiring of neurons in the fly brain that regulate mating behaviors. And finally, there are also flies who exhibit deficits in learning and memory, the so-called dunce mutants. These flies go on making the same mistakes, over and over again, due to a genetic mistake that interferes with one of their chemical signaling cascades.
   
   Weiner's book is also a cautionary tale - there is all too often a tendency toward simplistic thinking about gene interactions in terms of a simple, linear model. As Weiner points out, "Every gene is a thread that leads into vast skeins of molecular anatomy, and one by one molecular biologists have discovered how easy it is to get lost at the very beginning of the thread." Discovering a gene is only the first step of discovery. Figuring out how it works is a much more complicated endeavor. Genes interact with one another via transcription factors (proteins regulating gene expression) and they also actively interact with the outside world and their operation is best conceived of in terms of massive networks, with each gene as something akin to a cog in a vast clockwork. This leads to complicated loops of gene-gene and gene-environment interactions. Weiner's discussions of these issues are illuminating and by the end of the book the reader should understand why it is simply impossible to speak of `a gene' for such-and-such behavior. Behavior is almost always a complicated manner that is controlled by teams of genes.
   
   Weiner's book is not a science book per se, but a book about science and an avant-garde group of scientists. It is scientific journalism at its best. He interweaves the book with quotes from Benzer, his students and other people in the field. Benzer's story is particularly interesting because he is not well known among the general public, despite his being a trailblazing scientist of the first class. At the time of writing the book Weiner was a Visiting Fellow in the Department of Molecular Biology at Princeton and over a four year span he interviewed about 150 biologists who were, in one way or another, involved in bridging the gap between molecular biology and the study of behavior. This means that he is able to bring a sense of intimacy to the book that makes it very difficult to put down. This is definitely a recommended read.



5. I was given this book, a young Biology student, by my Genetics unit professor in the basic Biology undergrad course. It was an experience to read. I would also recommend Mapping Fate: A Memoir of Family, Risk, and Genetic Research to anyone who loves this book (or doesn't....) I personally enjoyed this book much more than The Beak of the Finch, which I could never finish.

2 comments about Flower Hunters.

1. John Gribbin is best known for his science books, but this is something completely different. Hardly any science but lots of adventures and biography of mostly 19th century explorers who risked life and limb (and sometimes lost one or the other) searching for new kinds of plants to take back to the civilized world. People crazy enough to climb high mountains with no equipment for the sheer fun of it, explorers who ventured into the Amazonian rainforest and suffered disease, poisonous stinging insects and murderous natives to bring back quinine to cure malaria, a European who travelled in China in disguise, fighting off pirates twice, to learn the secrets of tea production, and a middle-aged Victorian British gentlewoman who travelled round the world twice just to paint flowers. The plants they sent back to England alone would have paid off the National Debt, but they mostly made fortunes for other people and were left with nothing for themselves. Minor characters in the story include Captain Bligh, of the Bounty, and Charles Darwin. This is a terrific read, in the same vein as (but better than) the same authors' biography of Robert FitzRoy.
   
   Charlie T.



2. I have been an avid reader of John and Mary Gribbin for a number of years. The Flower Hunters is another fine example of their work. I thoroughly enjoyed this book and would recommend it to all of my friends. Being someone who generally reads hard-core science, I found it an interesting distraction to get away from the technical side of writing.
   I applaud their efforts and hope that they keep up the great work.
   Mr. Bill

5 comments about Tuxedo Park : A Wall Street Tycoon and the Secret Palace of Science That Changed the Course of World War II.

1. Alfred Loomis was a bona fide "Wall Street tycoon" who made his fortune in the 1920s by helping to organize the financing for the electrification of America and had the foresight to sell out before the stock market crash in 1929. Thereafter, he became an amateur scientist who cultivated the best and the brightest in the scientific world and maintained a laboratory complex in an enclave of the wealthy named Tuxedo Park.
   
   As the Second World War approached our shores, this activity became increasingly urgent - no longer the indulgence of a rich and brilliant man's fancy, but a matter of great national importance. The die was cast when Loomis's older cousin and long-time mentor, Henry Stimson, was appointed by President Roosevelt as Secretary of War.
   
   Loomis assumed responsibility for a newly created laboratory at MIT that developed sophisticated new radar systems (building on work that had been done in England) at breakneck speed that played a vital role in winning the war. He also supported the atomic bomb program, in this case acting as a collaborator with and expediter for the people directly responsible.
   
   It would be hard to imagine a more vivid account of the key people in this saga, the challenges they faced (including getting around bureaucratic budget rules and overcoming irrational objections), and their inestimable contribution to our country's victory. They weren't perfect human beings, and their accomplishments would leave the world with many new problems. Still, we can and should be proud and inspired by the things that they accomplished.
   
   Do our leaders today have the same knack for figuring out the things that need to be done and going after them? One wonders, given the long-term gridlock that has developed around many key technical issues such as building new refineries in the United States, developing untapped oil and gas reserves in Alaska and offshore areas, and even getting clearance to deepen the shipping channel in the Delaware River from 40 to 45 feet.
   
   Why are U.S., firms racing to "outsource" their manufacturing operations to China, India, etc.? The answer is not hard to figure out, and the long-term consequences will not be to our liking.



2. Chances are you have never heard of Alfred Loomis before this book but you will not forget him once you have read it. This man is truly one of the most influential people in US history. A modern day renaissance man who made millions in the stock market before 1929 and was a genius scientist who developed modern radar technology. He established a lab at Tuxedo Park where he hosted scientists who would work on a variety of projects. While he was not directly connected to the Manhattan project many of the things worked on at his lab were eventually essential for the project. He worked closely with Vannavear Bush to bring over radar technology that would be invaluable for both sub hunting and eventually air defense in World War 2. This scientist even left his mark in World War 1 helping to develop new ways to fire artillery. If you want an interesting story this is the book for you.



3. Having been a Radarman in the Vietnam War, I found the gensis of radar and the man responsible for it and many other things in life. Albert Loomis was a giant in the first half of the 20th Century and under the radar. He may have been bigger in the first half of the century than Bill Gates was in the second half. But, you won't know why until you read the book and understand the magnitude of his impact on America and the World then and now.



4. Being a very big history buff, I was shocked to find out about the little-known contribution of a single patriotic individual that totally changed the progress of the war. This book is a must read for all! Extremely well written to entice the reader and present the facts; personal as well as historical.



5. This book truly occupied my mind from an era that I lived through. I have recommended this book to a number of friends. Well done and a story that is truly amazing.

No comments about Rebels, Mavericks, and Heretics in Biology.

No comments about The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin.

5 comments about The Wizard of Menlo Park: How Thomas Alva Edison Invented the Modern World.

1. I totally enjoyed this book. The author keeps you turning pages as he provides interesting fact after fact about Thomas Edison and his life as the world's most famous inventor. Inside you will learn what made Edison tick and how he impacted the world around him including his family, employees and close friends. As a phonograph buff I particularly enjoyed reading about Edison's beliefs regarding musicians, music and the promotion and sale of phonographs and cylinders (records). The Wizard of Menlo Park is well researched and well written. The author obviously has experience taking readers on enlightening journeys. This book will find a permanent place on my home bookshelf.



2. We all heard about Edison's story. However, most of them are probably more colorful version from the media. This book provides a more complete view.
   
   Author Randall has done a thorough study from the preserved documents of Edison's lab as well as archived newspapers. The book is full of annotations with references at the end of the book. If there is any bias in this book, most likely it is because our minds have long been receiving Edison's prettier' side rather than all aspects of his life. We should welcome and applaud for any whisle blower and fact digger when media is trying to beautify his lesser admirable side.
   
   Edison is an very good inventor, there is no need to model or sculpture him into a saint or an all time sage. He said it himself (hopefully, not another write up from the media) : "Invention is 1 percent of inspiration and 99 percent of perspiration".
   
   Regardless of Edison's personality (if someone happens dislike it) or his serious misjudgement on business or other subject matters, he is, by all accounts, a very important figure in late 19th and early 20th century. While he is not the first person to invent light bulb, he is however, the person to light up the world.
   
   I believe we all appreciate him one hundred percent. :-)



3. This enjoyable biography focuses on:
   1.) Thomas Edison's various achievements as an inventor.
   2.) How Edison's inventions led to an ostensible raise in the standard of living in the United States and eventually Europe.
   3.) How Edison became and lived as a celebrity because of his achievements.
   
   If you like reading about heroic producers of the industrial revolution, then I highly recommend adding this book to your reading list.
   
   Even the anecdotes about Thomas Edison's (initial) failures are fun to read. For example, I particularly liked the story of how J.P. Morgan volunteered to have his study be one of the first rooms to be wired with electricity. Eager to bask in his latest highly anticipated investment, Morgan turned on the incandescent light next to his desk to do a little evening reading. Unfortunately for him, as he began to read, his study caught fire, eventually leading to his house suffering substantial damage.
   
   Did J.P. Morgan divest himself of Thomas Edison? Absolutely not! He merely invited Thomas Edison over to witness the charred remains of his study and firmly inquired if he could install the wiring correctly the second time. Such was the earned reputation of Thomas Edison. J.P. Morgan knew he was investing in something big. Also, this story also revealed a great deal about his character. Instead of dwelling on his serious mistake, Thomas Edison focused on how he could rectify the situation and improve his invention. But I digress.
   
   A great read!



4. I did not realize how little I knew about Thomas Alva Edison - until reading this book. This is a good biography of Edison, but deals more about his rise to fame and how that whole process happened. The author weaved in and out of a good biography with some editorial tangents, but overall this is a good book.
   
   Coming out of reading this book I really appreciate Edison, and realize that he should have stuck to inventing and left the leadership and management of his companies to people who were good and leadership and management. Classic micromanager who was not good at leading and managing. But, one heck of an inventor.
   
   JVD



5. This book provides an amazing look at the Wizard of Menlo park. My favorite portions of the book did not revolve around his inventions, his genius, his marketing of himself, the way he breached the barrier to become one of the first 'superstars' of the media. My favorite things were the little unknown ideas which have taken on life in my time. As I am reading the book I am thinking, hey, Edison invented the idea of Netflix, Sesame Street, and more. But the basic premise behind these ideas didn't come to fruition in his lifetime. That's the beauty of his genius. He saw a future that no one else did -- despite his stubbornness and frequent bad business decisions.

5 comments about The Fantastic Inventions of Nikola Tesla (The Lost Science Series).

1. i was given this book read it and was sad telling my best friend who understands my fascenation with tesla how bad this book is do not buy this book. if you have access to a collection of patents by tesla so much the better.



2. Please do not waste your time with this book.
   
   Yes, it does have many of the "Fantastic Inventions" of Nikola Tesla in it, but there are only pictures of the patent drawings with no explanations offered.
   
   Some facts are present. Some outright fables are present also.
   
   In summary, Mr. Childress cobbled together this book and seeks only to divest you of your money. You won't learn anything of substance.
   
   Instead, purchase and treasure, "Wizard: The Life and Times of Nikola Tesla" by Marc Seifer. See my review for this book.



3. This book by Nikola Tesla is a good recount of all of his inventions and an overview of them, however the detail is somewhat lacking. It has almost all of his inventions and ideas in it, but there is very little explanation and detail describing them. This can be good when trying to get a good overview of what Tesla accomplished, however if you are trying to get detailed and informative information about these I recommend going and getting a better source after this book because it is nothing more than a good introduction to the nature of his inventions and patents. If you have any background in the field of electricity than these sketches and brief overviews will be no problem to you and you will understand them, but if you have no background than understanding the nature of these will be quite difficult. Nonetheless, this book was still really fun to read and study, the relaxed nature of it allows it to be a fun book to read and learn from without reminding you that it is still a book. Overall, I would say this is a good book to have, especially for the price, the overview it provides is incomparable and it serves as a great introduction to Tesla's life.



4. The author gives a decent overview of some of the most interesting inventions made by Tesla. Sadly, it only shows patent diagrams, and no other pictures of Tesla's inventions.
   
   Chapter 9 seems pretty fanciful. In it he references about three other books for his evidence, but the books he cites are not scholarly sounding. I've come across them before in book stores and quickly skimmed them, which is why I have that impression.



5. This book is meant for the reader who himself possess some knowledge on electrical theory, mechanical ability and the desire to further his knowledge about Nikola Tesla's inventions. Even tough the book addresses some events about the scientist life the narrative is very concise with a quick overview on these occurrences which have been covered extensibly and in detail in other books about Nikola Tesla. I recommend this book to those readers interested in the classical turn of century approach to electrical devices and their applications. Diagrams, plans and the accompanying legends and information abound for those with this interest in mind.