100 Most Important Science Books

Aw, why go out and buy the book ('Worlds in Collision)'?...

Good point. Which books would you include on the list?

Yeah I noticed that too. Like to see Newton, Heisenberg, Einstein and the lads do it with Roman numerals! Come to think of it could you even write Avogadro's number in Roman?

Rick Wagler

Before you buy.

'> '> How revealing.... '> '> The list only contains _European_ authors. Where would modern science be '> without the contribution of Arab civilization? '>

'A very good point - would you like to suggest a few?

Two names which occur right off the bat are Al Quarizmi and Al Jabbar (from which come our words algorithm and algebra). I've got the full titles at home, but someone will probably post them before I get to it.

''> ''> The list only contains _European_ authors. Where would modern science be ''> without the contribution of Arab civilization?

''A very good point - would you like to suggest a few?

'Two names which occur right off the bat are Al Quarizmi and Al Jabbar '(from which come our words algorithm and algebra). I've got the 'full titles at home, but someone will probably post them before I 'get to it.

Noone did, but just as well, Al Quarizmi wrote Kitab al Jabbr wa Muqabala considerably prior to this millennium, although it wasn't introduced to christian europe until translations in Spain (Al Andalus) well after 1000. Perhaps a good candidate written in this millennium though, would be Al-Biruni's summary of the islamic innovation of trigonometry. (I can't find the title). One might also consider Ibn al-Haitham's 'Book of Optics', or Ommar al-Khayyam's exposition of algebra.

One can't write powers or denary fractions in Roman or Greek (both require the zero, which is independently Persian and Mayan in origin, however only one useage survives), however one can deal with rational numbers that do not contain or imply zero in either. I must question 'Pete's' earlier ascription of trigonometry as being 'Islamic,' as Pythagoras had at least some development of it, his originals being Dynastic Egyptian surveyors. I do /not/ question that the most-valuable developments of algebra, logarithms, and trigonometry befor the calculus are Arabic, however they do have nothing to do with anybody's religion.

On mathematics, I find it most remarkable that nobody mentions Boole's treatise on binary logic, or Wiener's 1933 /Cybernetics/.

Korzybski contains a fundamental error of observation that renders most of his conclusions unproveable (by him), and Hayakawa ultimately uses him only to invent Political Correctness, so that general semantics, however good some of the principles and premises, will achieve form only in the next millennium (if then). One wonders if such significant errors should be included in such a list (they weren't, of course), in that they are very-usual starting points for other findings. But we'd probably have to quadruple the list...

Jung (listed) doesn't belong on it; all he 'did' was to try to hand cybernetics back to the mystics, as Michelson tried it with physics.

/Any/ edition of the Weast is significant. But let the last one of the millenium represent it

on Mon, 15 Nov 1999 06:33:32 -0800, Dennis Hammes

' I must question 'Pete's' earlier ascription of trigonometry as being ''Islamic,' as Pythagoras had at least some development of it, his 'originals being Dynastic Egyptian surveyors. I do /not/ question that 'the most-valuable developments of algebra, logarithms, and trigonometry 'befor the calculus are Arabic, however they do have nothing to do with 'anybody's religion.

I was using 'Islamic' as a geographical term. And 'arabic' would not have been appropriate, as Biruni was persian, and persians hate being confused with arabs (just ask one). As to the greek origins of trig, that is a sort of matter of definitions. The geometry has of course a long history, but it was the moslem writers who first compiled the trig function tables, and rendered the formulae into a simple set of recipes which could be turned loose for architects to use, something which could not have been done with such facility without the indian numerals. The gothic cathedrals of europe are a direct result of this knowledge penetrating europe as a result of the crusades.

The gothic cathedrals of europe are a direct result of this knowledge penetrating europe as a result of the crusades.

Pete

Really? I thought that they had as more to do with a centuries long warming period in the Northern hemisphere that, among other things, allowed Greenland to be temporarily colonized. The warmer weather provided a major boost to agriculture production in Europe that allowed the societal shifting of labor and material resources to massive, long-term projects such as the construction of Gothic cathedrals. It should be noted that the return of normal weather patterns coincided with the end of the Gothic era.

Kind of puts paid to the doom and gloom arguments of those that say that alleged global warming means TEOTWAWKI.

The acquisition of knowledge of and by itself can be meaningless. After all, just because America possesses the knowledge and ability to put a man on the moon does not mean that it will ever have the necessary wherewithal to unilaterally do so again.

on Mon, 15 Nov 1999 17:47:51 -0500,

[I had said]

'The gothic cathedrals of europe are a direct result of this knowledge 'penetrating europe as a result of the crusades.

'Really? I thought that they had as more to do with a centuries long warming 'period in the Northern hemisphere that, among other things, allowed 'Greenland to be temporarily colonized. The warmer weather provided a major 'boost to agriculture production in Europe that allowed the societal shifting 'of labor and material resources to massive, long-term projects such as the 'construction of Gothic cathedrals. It should be noted that the return of 'normal weather patterns coincided with the end of the Gothic era.

Absolutely. But without the math informing the masons, the public works would have taken a different form. I didn't mean that trig was the only reason for cathedrals. Obviously a congenial social framework was also required.

Absolutely. But without the math informing the masons, the public works would have taken a different form. I didn't mean that trig was the only reason for cathedrals. Obviously a congenial social framework was also required.

Pete

My interest in the Gothic period has more to do with climatic changes, which is why I brought the topic up. That warm period and the colder period that preceded it (and coincided with the Dark Ages) are only now beginning to be integrated into mainstream, popular (as opposed to academic) understanding of history.

Having lived eight years in a country (Malaysia) where Islam is the dominant societal presence and six years where it is a major societal presence (Kenya, Philippines, & China), l very much appreciate the contributions that its scholars have made to the world.

I would have liked to have seen Wallace on the list, to give him credit with Darwin for discovering the principle of Natural Selection.

I would also have liked to have seen J. Willard Gibbs, for his contributions to Thermodynamics.