A passion for discovery / Peter Freund.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Freund, Peter G. O. (Peter George Oliver), 1936-2018.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Mathematicians--Anecdotes.

Mathematicians.

Physicists--Anecdotes.

Physicists.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (238 p.)

Edition:

1st ed.

Place of Publication:

Hackensack, NJ : World Scientific, c2007.

Language Note:

English

Summary:

This fascinating book assembles human stories about physicists and mathematicians. Remarkably, these stories cluster around some general themes having to do with the interaction between scientists, and with the impact of historic events - such as the advent of fascism and communism in the twentieth century - on scientists' behavior. Briefly, but lucidly, some of the beautiful science that brought these scientists together in the first place is explained.Author's webpage: http://freund9.googlepages.com/peterfreundwritings.

Contents:

Acknowledgments; Preface; Contents; 1. Einstein Once Removed; 2. Heisenberg's Turn; 3. A True Aristocrat; 4. The Conscience of Physics; 5. The Wizard of Pasadena; 6. Back to Maupertuis; 7. The Language of God; 8. Emmy Noether and the Urge for the Abstract; 9. Oswald Teichmüller and Nazi Science; 10. Spontaneous Breakdown of Human Decency; 11. Scientists in Politics; 12. Jews in Science. The Backlash; 13. Stalin and the Quantum; 14. Mister Sakharov Goes to Kiev; 15. Mr. Yang also Goes to Kiev; 16. The Stone Age and the Fermi Era; 17. The Serene Sensei; 18. Oppenheimer, Hero or Antihero?

19. Viennese Physics, Then and Now20. The Importance of a Sense of Humor; 21. The Russian Style; 22. Chandra, Passionate Cambridge Gentleman; 23. On and Off the Map: Romanian Mathematics; 24. Du côté de chez Telegdi, the Experimental Side; 25. Leader of the Pack; 26. New Dimensions; 27. A Brief History of Space; 28. The Coming Age; Epilogue: The Goal and the Means; Sources, Comments and Some More Stories Masquerading as Comments; Index

Notes:

Description based upon print version of record.

Includes bibliographical references (p. 192-210) and index.

ISBN:

9786611911942

9781281911940

1281911941

9789812772152

9812772154

OCLC:

851970722