Longitude

Dava Sobel erzählt die Geschichte der berühmtesten Frau der Wissenschaft - und die der Frauen, die in ihrem Labor ausgebildet wurden. Nach dem Tod ihres Mannes übernahm Marie Curie seine Professur an der Sorbonne, zog zwei Töchter groß, brachte im Ersten Weltkrieg ein Röntgengerät an die Front und inspirierte Generationen von Frauen, Wissenschaft als Lebensweg zu wählen.Frauen in der WissenschaftSobel nähert sich der zweifachen Nobelpreisträgerin aus einem neuen Blickwinkel. Sie erzählt von den Frauen, die ihr Vermächtnis fortführten. Das außerordentliche Porträt einer der bedeutendsten Persönlichkeiten der Moderne.'Die Entdeckerin des Radiums kämpfte gegen Sexismus, ermutigte andere Wissenschaftlerinnen und wäre wegen einer Affäre beinahe um ihren zweiten Nobelpreis gebracht worden.' The Sunday TimesEin inspirierendes Role ModelDava Sobel verbindet die Geschichte Marie Curies mit der Geschichte der Frauen, die ihr Vermächtnis fortführten - von der Norwegerin Ellen Gleditsch bis zu Curies Tochter Irène, die ebenfalls den Nobelpreis für Chemie erhielt. Die Wissenschaftlerinnen kamen aus aller Welt. Viele wurden später in ihrer Heimat einflussreiche Pionierinnen in ihren Forschungsgebieten. Lange blieben sie miteinander in Freundschaft verbunden und gründeten eine Gesellschaft zur Förderung von Frauen in der Forschung.'Die Entdeckerin des Radiums kämpfte gegen Sexismus, ermutigte andere Wissenschaftlerinnen und wäre wegen einer Affäre beinahe um die Entgegennahme ihres zweiten Nobelpreises gebracht worden.' The Sunday Times'Ein neuer Blickwinkel auf Curies Geschichte, meisterhaft erzählt.' Financial Times'Eine klare, brillant geschriebene Biografie, die ein wissenschaftliches Vorbild feiert.' Kirkus Reviews

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 ScientistAnyone 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 (£20,000) 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.

Dava Sobel, acclaimed and bestselling author of Longitude,chronicles the life and work of the most famous woman in the history of science- and the untold story of the young women who trained in her laboratory.'A fresh and feminist study of the pioneering Nobel laureate reveals her impact on the women she mentored and set on the path to prominence' Observer'It is a novel lens through which to view Curie's story, and Sobel paints her tale with characteristic deftness and eloquence' Financial TimesFor decades Marie Curie was the only woman in the room at international scientific gatherings, and despite constant illness she travelled far and wide to share the secrets of radioactivity, a term she coined. She is still the only person to win a Nobel Prize in two scientific fields.Her ingenuity extended far beyond the laboratory walls; grieving the death of her husband, Pierre, she took his place as professor of physics at the Sorbonne, devotedly raised two daughters, drove a van she outfitted with X-ray equipment to the front lines of World War I, befriended Albert Einstein and inspired generations of young women to pursue science as a way of life.Approaching Marie Curie from a unique angle, Sobel navigates her remarkable discoveries and fame alongside the women who became her legacy - from Norway's Ellen Gleditsch and France's Marguerite Perry, who discovered the element francium, to her own daughter, Irene, a Nobel Prize winner in her own right. The Elements of Marie Curiedeftly illuminates the trailblazing life and enduring influence of one of the most consequential figures of our time.'A lucid, literate biography, celebrating a scientific exemplar who, for all her fame, deserves to be better known'Kirkus'As expected from a Pulitzer Prize finalist, Sobel writes beautifully and with clarity about the science that Curie specialised in, making clear the achievements that her lab brought about' Daily Mail'This is an essential read, capturing both [Curie's] genius and her legacy' New Scientist'Sobel's book is a luminous and illuminating contribution to the cause' Literary Review

Der internationale Bestseller von Dava Sobel - ausgezeichnet als bestes WissenschaftsbuchJohn Harrison, ein schottischer Uhrmacher, setzt sich Anfang des 18. Jahrhunderts ein ehrgeiziges und unmöglich erscheinendes Ziel: eine Methode zu ersinnen, die es Seeleuten erlaubt, den genauen Längengrad ihrer Position auf See zu bestimmen. Über vierzig Jahre arbeitet Harrison wie besessen an der Herstellung eines perfekten Chronometers. Schließlich erlebt er - trotz Missgunst und zahlreicher Anfeindungen - einen beispiellosen Triumph.'Eine fabelhafte Reise durch Raum und Zeit.' Die ZeitDava Sobel erzählt in 'Längengrad' die packende Geschichte eines Genies, dessen Erfindung die Navigation und damit die Welt veränderte.'Brilliant und meisterhaft' Die Welt

From #1 New York Times bestselling author Dava Sobel, the "inspiring" (People), little-known true story of women's landmark contributions to astronomy<BR><BR>A New York Times Book Review Notable Book<BR><BR>Named one of the best books of the year by NPR, The Economist, Smithsonian, Nature, and NPR's Science Friday<BR><BR>Nominated for the PEN/E.O. Wilson Literary Science Writing Award<BR><BR>"A joy to read.” —The Wall Street Journal<BR><BR> In the mid-nineteenth century, the Harvard College Observatory began employing women as calculators, or “human computers,” to interpret the observations their male counterparts made via telescope each night. At the outset this group included the wives, sisters, and daughters of the resident astronomers, but soon the female corps included graduates of the new women's colleges—Vassar, Wellesley, and Smith. As photography transformed the practice of astronomy, the ladies turned from computation to studying the stars captured nightly on glass photographic plates. <BR><BR>The “glass universe” of half a million plates that Harvard amassed over the ensuing decades—through the generous support of Mrs. Anna Palmer Draper, the widow of a pioneer in stellar photography—enabled the women to make extraordinary discoveries that attracted worldwide acclaim. They helped discern what stars were made of, divided the stars into meaningful categories for further research, and found a way to measure distances across space by starlight. Their ranks included Williamina Fleming, a Scottish woman originally hired as a maid who went on to identify ten novae and more than three hundred variable stars; Annie Jump Cannon, who designed a stellar classification system that was adopted by astronomers the world over and is still in use; and Dr. Cecilia Helena Payne, who in 1956 became the first ever woman professor of astronomy at Harvard—and Harvard’s first female department chair. <BR><BR>Elegantly written and enriched by excerpts from letters, diaries, and memoirs, The Glass Universe is the hidden history of the women whose contributions to the burgeoning field of astronomy forever changed our understanding of the stars and our place in the universe.