Home Longitude The True Story of the Lone Genius Who Solved the Greatest Scientific Problem of His Time by Sobel, Dava, And Jacops, Jane (Read By) (ISBN: 9781559273978)

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Longitude The True Story of the Lone Genius Who Solved the Greatest Scientific Problem of His Time 1996

Name: Longitude: The True Story of the Lone Genius Who Solved the Greatest Scientific Problem of His Time
Price: 33.61 USD
Availability: InStock
Author: Sobel, Dava
ISBN: 9781559273978

by Sobel, Dava, And Jacops, Jane (Read By)

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This seller has earned a 4.06 of 5 Stars rating from internet customers.

4.06 / 5 (116 total reviews)

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Summary

The True Story of a Lone Genius Who Solved the Greatest Scientific Problem of His Time.“No novelist could improve on the elements of Dava Sobel’s Longitude. . . a book as intricate and elegant as one of [Harrison’s] own magnificent timepieces” – Newsweek“[Ms Sobel] has a remarkable ability to tell a story with clarity and perfect pacing. . . This is a gem of a book.” – Christopher Lehmantn-Haupt, The New York Times“She offers us nothing, in short, but measured, nearly perfect story, and extraordinary book” – Washington Post Book World“Anyone with an interest in history or inthings maritime should consider Longitude. This fascinating volume. . . brings alive the 18th century.” – USA Today

Reader reviews for Longitude The True Story of the Lone Genius Who Solved the Greatest Scientific Problem of His Time

Review summary

This seller has earned a 4.06 of 5 Stars rating from internet customers.

4.06 / 5 (116 total reviews)

Readers describe this as an engaging, accessible primer on the longitude problem and John Harrison’s chronometers. Sobel’s clear explanations and brisk pacing make complex science easy to follow, and many found the story inherently compelling. Critiques center on the book’s brevity and narrow focus on Harrison and the prize at the expense of broader context and impact; some also noted a meandering structure, occasional florid phrasing, and a frustrating lack of images or diagrams. Overall, it’s valued as a quick, informative introduction rather than a definitive history.

Readers say this book is:

engagingaccessiblequick readinformativeclear explanationsfascinatingnarrow scopemeanderinglacks illustrationsnot riveting

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From the publisher

An exciting scientific adventure from the days of wooden ships and iron men, Longitude is full of heroism and chicanery, brilliance and the absurd. It is also a captivating brief history of astronomy, navigation and clockmaking.
For centuries, the determination of longitude was thought to be an impossibility. Lacking the ability to measure their longitude, sailors throughout the great ages of exploration had been literally lost at sea as soon as they lost sight of land.
The quest for a solution had occupied scientists for the better part of two centuries when, in 1714, England's Parliament upped the ante by offering a king's ransom -- 20,000, or about $12,000,000 in today's currency -- to anyone whose method or device proved successful. Countless quacks weighed in with preposterous suggestions.
Then one man -- an unschooled woodworker named John Harrison -- dared to imagine a mechanical solution, a clock that would keep precise time at sea, something no clock had ever been able to do on land. Longitude is the dramatic human story of an epic scientific quest, and of Harrison's forty-year obsession with building his perfect timekeeper, known today as the chronometer.

Details

Title Longitude The True Story of the Lone Genius Who Solved the Greatest Scientific Problem of His Time
Author Sobel, Dava, And Jacops, Jane (Read By)
Binding unknown
Edition Audio
Language ENG
Publisher Audio Renaissance, Los Angeles, California, U.S.A.
Publication date March 15, 1996
ISBN 9781559273978

About the author

Dava Sobel is an award-winning former science reporter for the "New York Times" and writes frequently about science for several magazines, including "Audubon, Discover, Life, "and "Omni." She lives in East Hampton, New York.
Jane Jacobs has appeared on screen in the film "Capitivity "and in the television shows "Everybody Hates Chris," "The Gilmore Girls," "The New Dragnet," and "The Munsters Today." Her theater credits include roles in "Macbeth," "Enter Singing," "Kennedy's Children," and "Once Upon a Mattress." She has also lent her voice to the video games "Indiana Jones and the Fate of Atlantis" and "Day of the Tentacle."
Jane narrated the "AudioFile" Earphones Award-winning audiobook "Longitude," written by Dave Sobel and published by Macmillan Audio, as well as Olen Steinhauer's "Liberation Movements" and two novels by Eleanor Estes: "The Curious Adventures of Jimmy McGee" and "The Witch Family." Of "Longitude," "AudioFile" magazine said, ..".Sobel's wit, coupled with Jane Jacobs's lovely, liquid tones and dramatic abilities, takes this fascinating topic and makes it an entertaining and erudite production. Even occasionally erratic levels of audio cannot diminish the joy of such fine listening."

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