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Longitude

Longitude 1

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

by Dava Sobel
Paperback
Publication Date: 05/09/2005
5/5 Rating 1 Review

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The tenth anniversary edition of the dramatic human story of an epic scientific quest: the search for the solution of how to calculate longitude and the unlikely triumph of an English genius. With a new Foreword by the celebrated astronaut Neil Armstrong.
'Sobel has done the impossible and made horology sexy - no mean feat' New Scientist

Anyone alive in the 18th century would have known that 'the longitude problem' was the thorniest scientific dilemma of the day - and had been for centuries. 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. Thousands of lives, and the increasing fortunes of nations, hung on a resolution.

The quest for a solution had occupied scientists and their patrons for the better part of two centuries when, in 1714, Parliament upped the ante by offering a king's ransom (GBP20,000) to anyone whose method or device proved successful. Countless quacks weighed in with preposterous suggestions. The scientific establishment throughout Europe - from Galileo to Sir Isaac Newton - had mapped the heavens in both hemispheres in its certain pursuit of a celestial answer. In stark contrast, one man, John Harrison, dared to imagine a mechanical solution.

Full of heroism and chicanery, brilliance and the absurd, LONGITUDE is also a fascinating brief history of astronomy, navigation and clockmaking.
ISBN:
9780007214228
9780007214228
Category:
Popular science
Format:
Paperback
Publication Date:
05-09-2005
Language:
English
Publisher:
HarperCollins Publishers
Country of origin:
United Kingdom
Edition:
10th Edition
Pages:
208
Dimensions (mm):
198x129x14mm
Weight:
0.16kg
Dava Sobel

Dava Sobel, a former New York Times science reporter, is the author of ‘Longitude’, a prize-winning international bestseller, and ‘Galileo's Daughter’, which was shortlisted for the Pulitzer Prize.

She has co-authored six books, including ‘Is Anyone Out There?’ with astronomer Frank Drake, and ‘The Illustrated Longitude’ with William J. H. Andrewes.

Dava Sobel has won a number of awards for her outstanding contribution towards public understanding of science. She lives in East Hampton, New York.

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1 Review

Great history lesson.

Contains Spoilers No
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