Pendulum : Léon Foucault and the triumph of science / Amir D. Aczel.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Aczel, Amir D.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Foucault, Léon, 1819-1868.

Foucault, Léon.

Physicists--France--Biography.

Physicists.

Religion and science.

History.

France.

Scientists--France--Biography.

Scientists.

Religion and science--France--History.

Religion and science--France--History--19th century.

Genre:

Biographies.

Physical Description:

x, 275 pages : illustrations, map ; 23 cm

Edition:

First Atria Books hardcover edition.

Other Title:

Léon Foucault and the triumph of science

Place of Publication:

New York : Atria Books, 2003.

Summary:

In 1851, struggling, self-taught physicist Lǒn Foucault performed a dramatic demonstration inside the Panthǒn in Paris. By tracking a pendulum's path as it swung repeatedly across the interior of the large ceremonial hall, Foucault offered the first definitive proof -- before an audience that comprised the cream of Parisian society, including the future emperor, Napoleon III -- that the earth revolves on its axis. In this book, Amir Aczel has revealed the life of a gifted physicist who had almost no formal education in science, and yet managed to succeed despite the adversity he suffered at the hands of his peers. Foucault gave us the modern electric compass, devised an electric microscope, invented photographic technology, and made remarkable deductions about color theory, heat waves, and the speed of light. Yet until now so little has been known about his life. Pendulum tells of the illustrious period in France during the Second Empire; of Foucault's relationship with Napoleon III, a colorful character in his own right; and -- most notably -- of the crucial triumph of science over religion.

Contents:

A stunning discovery in the cellar

Ancient logic: Bible and inquisition

Failed experiments with falling bodies

A science "irregular" in the age of the engineer

The meridian of Paris

"Come see the earth turn"

Mathematical Bedlam

A new Bonaparte

The force of Coriolis

The Panthéon

The Gyroscope

The Coup d'État and the second empire

An unemployed genius

The observatory physicist

Final glory

A premature end

The defeat at Sedan

Aftermath.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references (pages 251-264) and index.

Local Notes:

Athenaeum copy: Scott fund bookplate.

ISBN:

0743464788

OCLC:

52836411