Robert Harlow is one of Canadas best kept literary secrets. A noted craftsman, he is also one its finest story-tellers. Born in northern British Columbia, he was a military pilot for a number of years, later a student at the Iowa Writers Workshop, then a producer and director for a decade-and-a-half at the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation before joining the faculty of The University of British Columbia. He now lives and writes on one of the Gulf Islands off Canadas southwest coast.
The story of two brilliant nineteenth-century scientists who discovered the electromagnetic field, laying the groundwork for the amazing technological and theoretical breakthroughs of the twentieth century Two of the boldest and most creative scientists of all time were Michael Faraday (1791-1867) and James Clerk Maxwell (1831-1879). This is the story of how these two men - separated in age by forty years - discovered the existence of the electromagnetic field and devised a radically new theory which overturned the strictly mechanical view of the world that had prevailed since Newton's time. The authors, veteran science writers with special expertise in physics and engineering, have created a lively narrative that interweaves rich biographical detail from each man's life with clear explanations of their scientific accomplishments. Faraday was an autodidact, who overcame class prejudice and a lack of mathematical training to become renowned for his acute powers of experimental observation, technological skills, and prodigious scientific imagination. James Clerk Maxwell was highly regarded as one of the most brilliant mathematical physicists of the age. He made an enormous number of advances in his own right. But when he translated Faraday's ideas into mathematical language, thus creating field theory, this unified framework of electricity, magnetism and light became the basis for much of later, 20th-century physics. Faraday's and Maxwell's collaborative efforts gave rise to many of the technological innovations we take for granted today - from electric power generation to television, and much more. Told with panache, warmth, and clarity, this captivating story of their greatest work - in which each played an equal part - and their inspiring lives will bring new appreciation to these giants of science.
From the multi-award-winning and bestselling author of The Night Watch and Fingersmith comes an astonishing novel about love, loss, and the sometimes unbearable weight of the past. In a dusty post-war summer in rural Warwickshire, a doctor is called to see a patient at lonely Hundreds Hall. Home to the Ayres family for over two centuries, the once grand house is now in decline, its masonry crumbling, its garden choked with weeds. All around, the world is changing, and the family is struggling to adjust to a society with new values and rules. Roddie Ayres, who returned from World War II physically and emotionally wounded, is desperate to keep the house and what remains of the estate together for the sake of his mother and his sister, Caroline. Mrs. Ayres is doing her best to hold on to the gracious habits of a gentler era and Caroline seems cheerfully prepared to continue doing the work a team of servants once handled, even if it means having little chance for a life of her own beyond Hundreds. But as Dr. Faraday becomes increasingly entwined in the Ayreses’ lives, signs of a more disturbing nature start to emerge, both within the family and in Hundreds Hall itself. And Faraday begins to wonder if they are all threatened by something more sinister than a dying way of life, something that could subsume them completely. Both a nuanced evocation of 1940s England and the most chill-inducing novel of psychological suspense in years, The Little Stranger confirms Sarah Waters as one of the finest and most exciting novelists writing today.
Self-taught chemist and scientist Michael Faraday was one of the most prolific and prescient researchers to emerge from England in the nineteenth century. In this captivating collection of talks and lectures, Faraday sets forth some of his most influential theories, findings, and conjectures.
Two neuroscientists – Graham (45); an overweight insomniac with hemorrhoids, and Isaac (27); a naïve and neurotic romanticizer of LOVE – are about to embark on groundbreaking research into near death experiences and maybe even proof of God; if, of course, their personal lives don’t explode by then. All Graham really wants is to be some kind of hero to his children whereas Isaac is young and naïve, and hopelessly drunk on the idea of true love. The story follows the two scientists as their trial falls apart along with their personal lives. For Isaac, a string of strange and often hilarious sexual encounters will lead him towards the love of his life while Graham, on a quest to find courage, will find the only thing that ever really mattered – his family. Faraday’s Cage explores the idiosyncrasies of marriage, casual sex, political correctness, consciousness, identity, and what it means to be happy being average.
