Books by Mary Gribbin
The Science of Philip Pullman's His Dark Materials
Philip Pullman’s His Dark Materials trilogy is renowned for its mystery and magic. What’s the truth behind it all? Is the golden compass actually based in science? How does the subtle knife cut through anything? Could there be a bomb like the one made with Lyra’s hair? How do the Gallivespians’ lodestone resonators really work? And, of course, what are the Dark Materials? Drawing on string theory and spacetime, quantum physics and chaos theory, award-winning science writers Mary and John Gribbin reveal the real science behind Philip Pullman’s bestselling fantasy trilogy in entertaining and crystal-clear prose.
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The Science of Philip Pullman's His Dark Materials
Philip Pullman’s His Dark Materials trilogy is renowned for its mystery and magic. What’s the truth behind it all?
Is the golden compass actually based in science? How does the subtle knife cut through anything? Could there be a bomb like the one made with Lyra’s hair? How do the Gallivespians’ lodestone resonators really work? And, of course, what are the Dark Materials? Drawing on string theory and spacetime, quantum physics and chaos theory, award-winning science writers Mary and John Gribbin reveal the real science behind Philip Pullman’s bestselling fantasy trilogy in entertaining and crystal-clear prose.
Don't miss Philip Pullman's epic new trilogy set in the world of His Dark Materials!
** THE BOOK OF DUST **
La Belle Sauvage
The Secret Commonwealth
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Annus Mirabilis: 1905, Albert Einstein, and the Theory of Relativity
Describes Einstein's scientific achievements and personal life during the year 1905 when he discovered the Theory of Relativity.
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FitzRoy: The Remarkable Story of Darwins Captain and the Invention of the Weather Forecast
The name of Robert FitzRoy, captain of the Beagle, is forever linked with that of his most famous passenger, Charles Darwin. This exceptionally interesting biography brings FitzRoy out of Darwin’s shadow for the first time, revealing a man who experienced high adventure, suffered tragic disappointments, andas the inventor of weather forecastingsaved the lives of countless fellow mariners.
John Gribbin and Mary Gribbin draw a detailed portrait of FitzRoy, recounting the wide range of his accomplishments and exploring the motivations that drove him. As a very young and successful commander in the British navy, FitzRoy’s life was in the mold of a Patrick O’Brian novel. Later disappointments, including an unpopular tenure as governor of New Zealand and a sense of dismay over his own contributions to Darwin’s ideas of evolution, troubled FitzRoy. Even his groundbreaking accomplishments in meteorological science failed to satisfy his high personal expectations, and in 1865 FitzRoy committed suicide at the age of sixty. This biography focuses well-deserved attention on FitzRoy’s status as a scientist and seaman, affirming that his was a life which, despite its sorrowful end, encompassed many more successes than failures.
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Flower Hunters
The flower hunters were intrepid explorers - remarkable, eccentric men and women who scoured the world in search of extraordinary plants from the middle of the seventeenth to the end of the nineteenth century, and helped establish the new science of botany. For these adventurers, the search for new, undiscovered plant specimens was something worth risking - and losing - their lives for.
From the Douglas-fir and the monkey puzzle tree, to exotic orchids and azaleas, many of the plants that are now so familiar to us were found in distant regions of the globe, often in wild and unexplored country, in impenetrable jungle, and in the face of hunger, disease, and hostile locals. It was specimens like these, smuggled home by the flower hunters, that helped build the great botanical collections, and lay the foundations for the revolution in our understanding of the natural world that was to follow. Here, the adventures of eleven such explorers are brought to life, describing not only their extraordinary daring and dedication, but alos the lasting impact of their discoveries both on science, and on the landscapes and gardens that we see today.
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Out of the Shadow of a Giant: Hooke, Halley, and the Birth of Science
What if Newton had never lived? A compelling dual biography argues that Robert Hooke and Edmond Halley easily could have filled the giant’s shoes—and deserve credit for the birth of modern science.
Robert Hooke and Edmond Halley, whose place in history has been overshadowed by the giant figure of Newton, were pioneering scientists within their own right, and instrumental in establishing the Royal Society.
Although Newton is widely regarded as one of the greatest scientists of all time and the father of the English scientific revolution, John and Mary Gribbin uncover the fascinating story of Robert Hooke and Edmond Halley, whose scientific achievements neatly embrace the hundred years or so during which science as we know it became established. They argue persuasively that, even without Newton, science would have made a great leap forward in the second half of the seventeenth century, headed by two extraordinary figures, Hooke and Halley.
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Science Year by Year The Ultimate Visual Guide to the Discoveries That Changed the World
by Mary Gribbin, Giles Sparrow, Jack Challoner, John Farndon, Philip Parker, Derek Harvey, Marcus Weeks
This epic journey of scientific discovery starts in ancient times and travels through centuries of invention before fast forwarding into the future.
From simple machines to modern-day marvels, you'll follow incredible illustrated timelines that plot the entire history of science and highlight the most momentous discoveries. A jaw-dropping collection of more than 1,500 photographs, illustrations, maps, and graphics charts the evolution of science year by year, century by century.??
You'll meet influential inventors and famous faces from the past, including Aristotle, Leonardo da Vinci, Isaac Newton, Charles Darwin, Marie Curie, and Stephen Hawking. You'll visit places of scientific importance, such as prehistoric cave art, Stonehenge, Hiroshima and the first atomic bomb, the Moon landings, and the Higgs boson particle. These huge events are made simple thanks to eye-catching images, helpful timelines, and accessible, informative text.??
Landmark people and periods are combined in this one stunning volume for children, showcasing the ideas, experiments, and technologies that have shaped our daily lives and transformed the world today.??
Aspiring scientists, get ready for a time traveling trip like no other.
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