A research field described by the man who invented it
922701
Vapnik and collaborators have developed the field of statistical learning theory underlying recent advances in machine learning and artificial intelligence (e.g. support vector machines). This book almost accomplishes  the formidable task of comprehensibly describing the essential ideas of  learning theory to non-statisticians. It contains ample theorems but almost  no proofs.
1019766
The is an excellent scientific biography, that is one that focuses on the story of the physics that Feynman developed, as opposed to the story of his personal life.  If you want a biography of his personal life, I highly recommend Gleick's "Genius", it is 80% about the man and 20% about his physics, whereas this book is 90% about Feynmam's physics.  His personal life is discussed, but it is ancillary to the physics in the book.  I think that Professor Krauss was largely successful in addressing the questions of:
 What were Feynman's scientific contributions?
 What influenced his scientific ideas?
 What influence did he have on physics?
 What drove him; in essence what made Feynman one of the seminal physicists of the 20th century?

Addressing these questions required quite a bit of physics, but physics that is presented without a single mathematical equation.  This was not an easy task, and in some areas Professor Krauss was more successful than in others.  I found Feynman's discussion of QED (in his book of the same name) to be superior to that presented here, but I nonetheless did learn some new ideas from this book concerning this subject.  Most importantly, I learned that the idea of renormalization was not Feynman's and that it was not just a piece of slight of hand that had to be introduced to overcome the infinities inherent in the theory.  I also got a better appreciation of why it may actually be an indispensable reflection of nature, rather than a mathematical shortcut.  I particularly enjoyed the discussion of Feynman's approach to quantum mechanics, his work on superfluidity and nuclear physics, and I found the discussion of quantum computers to be extremely illuminating.

Rather than just building on the work of others, Feynman taught himself why things behaved as they did, thus satisfying his need to understand things in his own unique manner. This led him to develop unique solutions to problems, and while this sometimes led him to lose out in the race for the laurels given to the first to explain phenomena, it often had unexpected payoffs, sometimes decades later.

While there are no equations in the book, it contains a lot of physics and readers with no background in this subject will likely be frustrated and disappointed.  Thus, I rate this book at five stars only for those with a decent background in physics.  This book is probably not a good choice for those who think, based on the books of Feynman anecdotes, that Feynman is a cool guy and want another book about his life that illustrates this.  He was indeed a "cool guy", and I think even more so in the way that he tackled physics problems than in his personal life, and this book does an excellent job of describing this.  The book shows that Feynman was a unique physicist, one driven to understand nature, rather than the riches that such an understanding might bring.
1816417
I consider Guillen's selection of his five main equations in physical sciences to be ingenious.  His book should be an inspiration to us all, including the young generation which will discover in the amazing story of  Faraday that an "uneducated" inventive genius was able to change  the world of physics and electricity forever and immeasurably.  The story  of the Bernoulli family is insightful for all scientists, including  philosophers of science, and illustrates exceptionally well the importance  of tolerance and not letting success go to one's head and spoil one's open  mindedness.  The numerous applications of the Bernoullis to different  fields are inspiring.  The chapter on entropy is fascinating and should be  read by everyone, although Guillen might have remarked that entropy is far  from settled - especially since there are many different kinds of entropy  and different theories of entropy and their deeper analysis and comparison  is still far from complete.  Newton and Einstein are indispensable for all  physical scientists, and probably for all scientists for that matter.  There are still many interesting questions about both Newton and Einstein  that should provide much material for study by historians, psychologists,  philosophers of science, and even social scientists.  For example, why did  Newton really wait so long to publish?  Why did Leibniz' publications impel  him to publish his own work?  Why was Einstein so opposed to quantum  theory, and why did quantum theorists fail to establish a peaceful dialogue  with Einstein?  The questions go on and on.  I might remark here that  Clarke et. al in their recent volume on nonsmooth analysis have shown that  equations become inequalities and subset relationships in the disconnected  and discontinuous/sharply bending curve worlds, which makes understanding  of equations even more important than ever, including their roles and  origins and where they are and are not applicable.
2738069
Nanotechnology is everyone's "in" topic, the word whispered to the graduate at the pool party.  Steve Edwards is eminently qualified to take us on a delightful tour that links past, present and future in this fascinating yet poorly understood world.  His career, from his graduate work in biochemistry at one of the world's leading research institutions through periods of research, teaching and consulting, has placed him in unique perspective to be our guide and to help us enjoy the journey.

The skeleton of Dr. Edwards's book is a collection of historical and biographical sketches of leaders in the conceptual and developmental world of nanotechnology.  In these interesting vignettes, many of them derived from personal experience and exposure, we also gain insight into much of the development of nanoscience and nanotechnology itself.  Discussions of nanoinstrumentation, nanoparticle configurations, nanoscience in nature, and applications to electronics, medicine, energy, and the emerging world of commercialization of nanoscience, each worthy of increased contemplation and study, unfold in well-placed historical and scientific contexts.

The discussions culminate in a superb presentation of ethical issues related to nanotechnology, where common concerns are laid out, where in the words of the hymn "our fears, our hopes, our aims are one, our comforts and our cares," and end with a call to a cautious but confident walk into the future.

Frequent, clear illustrations and photos add interest and understanding to the book.  However, typographical and grammatical errors are also frequent.  This book deserves a better editorial reading than it received.
2176538
The author made an interesting choice to make the story of his own research the focus of this book. I think it worked really well in this case, given that there's so little known about the actual John Henry. Nelson is very up-front about the fact that much of his results are based on theory or conjecture, but overall the transparency of his research process gives a lot of weight to his conclusions. This is an interesting book both for what it tells us about the research process, but also for what we learn about John Henry's world.
791277
This book will delight all historians of science.  The indefatigable Naomi Oreskes, known for her excellent history of continental drift and plate tectonics, has assembled reminiscences by the surviving founders of plate tectonics theory.  Dr. Oreskes deserves the highest praise for this. Alas, the senior figures such as Arthur Holmes and Harry Hess are no longer with us; the writers of these essays were graduate students in the critical early 1960s.  Now elders themselves, they recall the excitement of coming on the scene just when all was breaking loose. Even the most sober number-crunchers manage to write with infectious enthusiasm.  The theories are explained in a notably accessible fashion, and the varied intellectual currents of the time (and, in some essays, subsequent decades) are brought out. My one complaint--as a reader interested in the history of science--is that the writers don't say much about their personal lives.  One suspects that some of them have no personal lives beyond number-crunching.  Most, however, hint at or partially reveal rich and interesting backgrounds that clearly affected their thoughts. Only Peter Molnar does much more than hint, and, although he claims that one reader called his essay "unexpurgated," even he is rather reticent.  Still, this volume is a gold mine, providing a very different look at one of the most "revolutionary" (in scare quotes) theoretical advances in the history of science. The consensus here seems to be that it was indeed a revolution, at least in the eyes of American graduate students of the 1960s, but not a Kuhnian revolution brought about by highly intellectualized "paradigm shifts" (Kuhn 1962); it was brought about by new field methods that brought floods of new data. These allowed the development of real mathematical models.  One can only stand in awe of the amount of work this entailed. Several authors speak of working day and night, week after week, on data entry and computer jockeying. They managed this without any loss of enthusiasm--quite the reverse, apparently.  Ah, youth.
920572
I'm sure after his works were confiscated upon his death by the US Government, some of his really forward science has found it's way into all manner of military and civilian electronics.  He is an amazing and utterly fascinating person.  See what much of what he did in his life was derailed by powerful men and market forces as well as shaped public opinion.  Had his ideas won out over Edison's, we would see a much better electrical power grid today.
1667427
Recently, books have been appearing in which an applied mathematician will mix stories about his own research with an introduction to some field such as applications of nonlinear dynamics.  This book is a departure from this format.  First, there is an absorbing embedded story of how the author, growing up in the USSR, managed to surmount the obstacles placed before Jewish mathematicians in attaining a top position in the system.  When he relocated to the USA, his life changed and his mathematical creativity was recognized in a new field of pure mathematics, which takes me to the second element of the book: an introduction to the excitement of doing pure mathematics.  I'm trained in mathematics, although not with a Ph.d., and I immersed myself in his presentation of his field, finding it very interesting indeed -- although it can be tough reading even with some advanced math background.  I enjoyed this book very much and, by the way, I agree with the author's critical review of a book by Max Tegmark that concludes that the universe is made of purely mathematical objects.  This absurd idea shows that it's possible to have mastered theoretical physics and cosmology and still not grasp elementary metaphysics.  Frenkel avoids that trap because he seems to have a good understanding of the philosophical interpretation of natural science as well as a powerful command of the difficult terrain of the frontiers of pure mathematical research today.  I very much recommend this book for those who love mathematics as such even if its motivation in internal to math and not (initially) linked to a scientific problem.
2312252
When I started reading this book, I have seen something similar to the history of one of the greatest mathematicians, Euler.
Euler and Maxwell were probably similar in several ways, they were true genius but still kept in contact with normal people and enjoyed life. Their fame is not proportional to their contributions, Maxwell and Euler are in the same category as men like Einstein, Newton, Da Vinci.

Basil Mahon has done a great job of telling Maxwell life and presenting his contributions to science in a way that a lay person can understand. The great thing is that he presents the methods or models used by Maxwell to reach his conclusions. It makes easier for us to understand the thought process of a genius.

Clearly Basil Mahon admired his subject, and by extension the reader will get involved.
3296779
Nicolelis describes complicated scientific problems in the way understandable to broad audience. His major idea is that information is processed by distributed neural architecture (brain "orchestra"). He developed neural implants that record from different brain regions. Nicolelis and his colleagues conducted experiments in rats and monkeys. They discovered how these animals sense and move, and they created interfaces that convert neural activities into computer codes of sense and movement, which can be then sent to robots and prostheses for the paralyzed. Nicolelis also suggests sending messages from brain to brain. In the last chapter a new treatment for Parkinson's disease is introduced. The book is well illustrated. I wish these were color illustrations. I found especially entertaining the story of Aurora monkey who controlled a robotic gripper by its own thoughts. Another monkey learned to walk on a treadmill and controlled a walking Japanese robot. I wonder if this technology can be implemented to repair the nuclear plant damaged by the earthquake. There are interesting parallels between the brain science and relativity theory. Overall, an excellent book, and thought provoking.
516398
In this book Svante Paabo comes across as a very creative, resourceful, collaborative scientist.  He writes well which makes the book possible to read even though there is much technical information.  I am very grateful to him and his team for the work they have done.
3420533
Roots of Modern Technology is a self-contained introduction to the mathematical and scientific bases upon which modern technologies have been built.  Wendt takes his readers on a climbing expedition through layers of knowledge which cumulatively explain how our modern world works.  The ascent is made easier by Wendt filling the pages with enough fascinating insights and side information that readers are able to catch their breath.  For example, in the early math chapters he explains how there can be different sized sets of infinite numbers (pages 29-31).  In his discussion of physics he mentions how empirical evidence was found to support implications of Einstein's theory of special relativity about time travel (pages 184-186).  In the electrical engineering chapter he makes circuitry intuitively understandable by comparing it to water pumping systems (pages 208-212).  In the final chapter about digitization he cogently describes how computer software is designed with a running example of a program to solve SUDOKU puzzles (pages 421-428).  Examples like these "made" the book for me.  The first two are fascinating to any curious mind.  The latter two make accessible complicated subjects for non-specialists.  Wendt's special gift in this book is his ability to clarify his topics with clear examples.  The conversational tone and frequent descriptions of the actual people who made the breakthroughs described, also help hold the reader's interest.

This is a book that requires and merits serious attention.  It is an excellent introduction to the interconnections between math, logic, science, and technology.  The reader of this book gains a most complete understanding of these interconnections because of the depth of detail Wendt provides in each chapter.  The book would be an ideal graduation gift for anyone about to begin a technical education in engineering or science at a university.  It will be of keen interest to any technically-oriented person curious about the many modern technologies shaping our daily lives.
2009945
Dr. Slack has written what I believe is the first book-length biography of G. Evelyn Hutchinson, a visionary scientist and polymath who played a central role in the development of modern ecology.  This is a fabulous book that describes Hutchinson's myriad accomplishments in the context of his early life in England and then his long and productive career at Yale. This book is a must-read for college students currently working in any aspect of ecology, the life sciences, natural resource management, or anyone interested in the history of science.
3003253
George Bernard Shaw's oft-quoted lament, "In the arts of life man invents nothing; but in the arts of death he outdoes Nature herself, and produces by chemistry and machinery all the slaughter of plague, pestilence, and famine," is brought to life in Guy Hasegawa's Villainous Compounds.  This book has all the qualities that mark his scholarship: an interesting subject, engaging writing, and - especially - impeccable research.  Indeed, the Bibliography alone is worth the price of this book; readers will be impressed with the breadth of the author's reliance on primary and period sources. The war unleashed some unconventional - even "mad" - genius among inventors, North and South, and Hasegawa describes it from "arsenic" to zinc."

(I'm honored that I had the privilege and pleasure of reading the book in manuscript form before publication and that my "blurb" above appears on the back cover).

Examples of ideas for chemical weapons during the Civil War - many described for the first time in the historical literature - are the subject of this excellent book. He describes weapons based on plant-based irritants, chloroform, chlorine, hydrogen cyanide, arsenicals, sulfur, acids, and other compositions. He also describes the medical implications - effects and treatment - if such weapons had been employed as well as the era's conventional wisdom on the ethics of using chemical weapons.

In addition to the Official Records, period newspapers, and classic works such as Robert Bruce's "Lincoln and the Tools of War," the author made extensive use of primary records, especially those of the Office of the Chief of Ordnance, kept at the National Archives in Washington, DC. He found letters from aspiring inventors proposing the use of everything from scalding water as a means of defense, cayenne pepper fired from artillery shells to irritate and blind the enemy, chloroform to "produce insensibility," chlorine gas as a deadly poison, to mortar shells and "stink-balls" containing "odiferous matter." In short, this is not just a survey into secondary resources - it is a deep dive into the National Archives, period newspapers, and other manuscript collections.

As interesting as the ideas are the people who proposed them, some of whom must have been clinically maniacal; one claimed "As a Field General or Officer you Will not find my Superior in the World."

The author gives excellent attention to historical context of chemical weapons from ancient times to the present day, the importance of delivery systems as opposed to the chemicals themselves, arguments over the ethics of using such weapons, and much more.  The illustrations are well chosen and the production quality is very good.

HIGHLY RECOMMENDED

[Disclaimer: as noted above I did read the manuscript in advance of publication.  I also received a complimentary book from the publisher for providing a pre-publication "blurb" based on my honest review. I have no other financial interest in the book.]
3500667
I thoroughly enjoyed this book.  It has an interesting format for a biography as it starts with descriptions of several statistical problems worked by Mosteller and others, and the autobiographical material is given less importance and is sandwich in between descriptions of his major works.  There is much a scientist can learn from this book about the road well-taken.  However, the book does not stand alone... familiarity with Mosteller's contributions (as can be found in A statistical model:  Frederick Mosteller's contributions to Statistics. I became familiar with Mosteller through reading is technical papers and various textbooks.  It is nice to be able to read about the man behind the papers.
701773
This fascinating story, very well and clearly told, covers the "gold rush" days of the early discovery and development of antibiotics.  Albert Schatz, then a young doctoral candidate under Rutgers University professor, Selman Waksman, literally risked his life testing cultures of barnyard soils against plates full of tuberculosis bacteria to find an anti-biotic that would kill tuberculosis.  When Schatz found what would become streptomycin, one of medicine's great discoveries, the more senior Dr. Waksman immediately took credit for it, as tradition dictated he was entitled, as senior professor, and licensed it to companies that were the precursors to today's pharmaceutical industries.  To Dr. Waksman went the glory, the credit, the royalties, the Nobel award.  Experiment Eleven is not only the story of the intertwined lives of these two men who introduced the most potent of medicines and ended the terror of tuberculosis, but also how today's pharmaceutical industry was created, how credit and patents are assigned for discoveries.  Even-handedly written with very fair characterizations of the individuals involved, an engaging view of history through the lives of those who made it.
4443898
This is an excellent biography of a complex man who was both deeply religious and in many ways the father of experimental science. Galileo and Bacon are often given credit for that honor but Robert Boyle was the first to lay out precisely what goes into a good experiment - pure samples, unadulterated equipment, the value of failed experiments, careful documentation, etc. His output of scientific writings is enormous. He combined the mechanical worldview increasingly prevalent in the late 1600's with what he called the "corpuscularian" view of matter - the idea that all matter is composed of tiny particles arranged and rearranged in different ways. Boyle is most famous for experiments with his air pump (built by Robert Hooke) and for discovering what we now call Boyle's Law, the relationship between the pressure of a gas and its volume. But Boyle experimented with everything from medicine to mineralogy. He insisted on extreme care in detailing all the empirical elements of an experiment and set the tone for much of experimental science that was to follow. Michael Hunter gives numerous examples. The book does not get into details of the experiments but is as thorough as possible in explaining what it is Boyle worked on and his many publications.

Hunter does a fine job of showing the other facets of Boyle's life. He got much of his funding from his father's original lands in Ireland and what he gained there after the Restoration.  If I have any criticism of the book, it is that Hunter does not get into the overall situation in Ireland which was in many ways horrible. Boyle had a strong conscience and was aware of the suffering. He gave large sums of money to relieve the suffering of those affected by the warfare and exploitation there but, like so many others, never seriously questioned the status quo. His great generosity was almost always linked to religion. For a couple decades he headed the New England Company which was designed to bring Christianity to Native Americans. He consistently criticized the East India Company for focusing on money and not the salvation of those they dealt with in the Far East. He sponsored the translation of the Bible into languages where missionaries worked. Many if not most of his writings are religious in one way or another. He viewed the precise details of his experimental work as verifying the Design Argument for God. There was no conflict between religion and science for Boyle. For him the more we learned of the precise design of nature, the more it glorified God. He is somewhat like Kepler in that way - what drove both men to new frontiers in science was the deeply rooted conviction that God's design can be understood by us and, like Kepler, Boyle was determined that he was going to find that design in nature.

At the same time that Boyle was pushing forward experimental science and writing tracts supporting traditional religious and ethical views, he was deeply into alchemy. He and Newton had some interesting correspondence about certain chemicals and Boyle claimed that he had actually seen gold made in an alchemical experiment. Later admirers destroyed many of his papers because they reflected badly on Boyle in this regard or because they thought the papers were irrelevant to expressing the greatness of the man. This is a significant loss to the history of science. Hunter's biography is only the fifth in the over three centuries since Boyle died and the first in forty years, and he has the advantage of having available more of the original sources than earlier writers. This is a well-rounded biography of one of the founders of chemistry and experimentation. It is easy to follow and clearly written. Hunter does a great job of systematizing for the general reader the mass of Boyle's work now available and gives us an excellent picture of this multi-sided experimental genius.