Electric Universe: How Electricity Switched on the Modern World - Softcover

Bodanis, David

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0349117667 ISBN 13: 9780349117669

Publisher: Abacus, 2006

Synopsis

For centuries, electricity was viewed as little more than a curious property of certain substances that sparked when rubbed. Then, in the 1790s, Alessandro Volta began the scientific investigation that ignited an explosion of knowledge and invention, transforming our world. The force that once seemed inconsequential was revealed to be responsible for everything from the structure of the atom to the functioning of our brains.
A superb storyteller, Bodanis weaves tales of romance, divine inspiration, and fraud through lucid accounts of scientific breakthrough. The great discoverers come to life in all their brilliance and idiosyncrasy, including the visionary Michael Faraday, who struggled against the prejudices of the British class system, and Alexander Graham Bell, driven to invent by his love for a young deaf student. From the cold waters of the Atlantic, to the streets of Hamburg during a World War II firestorm and the interior of the human body, Electric Universe is a mesmerizing journey of discovery by a master science writer.

About this title

Review:

Hugely impressive. No one makes complex science more fascinating and accessible - and indeed more pleasurable - than David Bodanis (Bill Bryson)

A technological odyssey complete with heroes and villains, triumph and tragedy - a true scientific adventure (Simon Singh, author of BIG BANG and FERMAT'S LAST THEOREM)

Bodanis unpeels these layers of the electrical onion expertly; his writing is vigorous and sometimes ecstatic . . . ELECTRIC UNIVERSE is a high-voltage performance (DAILY MAIL)

A compelling, fast-paced read (OBSERVER)

From the Publisher:

WINNER OF THE AVENTIS PRIZE FOR SCIENCE BOOKS 2006

About this edition

• Publisher: Abacus
• Publication date: 2006
• ISBN 10: 0349117667
• ISBN 13: 9780349117669
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 320