Showing titles in History

In Search of a Theory of Everything takes listeners on an adventurous journey through space and time on a quest for a unified "theory of everything" by means of a rare and agile interplay between the natural philosophies of influential ancient Greek thinkers and the laws of modern physics.

John Tresch offers a bold new biography of a writer whose short, tortured life continues to fascinate. Shining a spotlight on an era when the lines separating entertainment, speculation, and scientific inquiry were blurred, Tresch reveals Poe's obsession with science and lifelong ambition to advance and question human knowledge. He remained an avid and often combative commentator on new discoveries, publishing and hustling in literary scenes that also hosted the era's most prominent scientists, semi-scientists, and pseudo-intellectual rogues.

Listen in to this best of collection from Seeker as they take you through the expansive history of science firsts. From the beginning of time when human first harnessed fire, to the surprising history behind cheese, these are fascinating stories you’ll want to share at parties!

In The Invisible Siege, Werb unpacks the dynamic history and microscopic complexity of an organism that has wreaked cycles of havoc upon the world for millennia. Elegantly tracing decades of scientific investigation, Werb’s book reveals how Baric’s team of scientists hatched an audacious plan not merely to battle COVID-19 but to end pandemics forever.

Luis Íñigo nos ofrece una versión total de la alquimia, desde sus antecedentes en las doctrinas filosóficas del hermetismo, del gnosticismo, del pitagorismo y de la Escuela de Jonia hasta la actualidad en la que, si bien no se practica, sí que se han aprovechado sus hallazgos en medicina o en química. Nos muestra en el inicio del audiolibro las teorías de la alquimia, el trabajo de laboratorio de los alquimistas y los avances a los que llegaron con principios que aún pertenecen a la ciencia como el de causa y efecto.

La tarea de resumir más de tres milenios de investigaciones sobre el cielo parece imposible, más difícil aún parece presentarla de modo que pueda ser conocido por cualquier tipo de oyente, y de modo que se disfrute con el descubrimiento de los cuerpos que pueblan el espacio y con la historia de los grandes hombres que hicieron avanzar la astronomía hasta sacar al hombre y a la Tierra, del centro del universo y colocarlo en un lugar periférico en la orilla del cosmos. Breve historia de la astronomía emprende esta tarea y consigue desplegar ante nosotros el universo.

The Tragedy of American Science explores how the US economy’s addiction to military spending distorts and deforms science by making it overwhelmingly subservient to military interests. The primary motive driving American science and technology has become the search for new and more efficient ways to kill people. This transforms science from the classic ideal of a creative force for the advancement of humankind into its destructive and antihuman opposite.

The Scientific Revolution was a chain of events that unfolded during the 16th and 17th centuries, which brought about drastic changes in scientific thought. Modern science emerged as advances in astronomy, biology, chemistry, mathematics, and physics transformed society’s perceptions of nature.

Tant de découvertes ces dernières années ont achevé de nous perdre dans le labyrinthe des premiers hommes et la diversité de nos ancêtres. Pour suivre cette longue évolution, d'abord simienne et partagée, puis tout à fait humaine et unique, Pascal Picq raconte dans un récit complètement inédit nos origines communes avec les singes. Cela se passe au cœur de l'ère tertiaire, durant le long Miocène (de -23 à -5,5 millions d'années), l'âge d'or des hominoïdes. Et cela, plusieurs millions d'années avant l'émergence de notre lignée africaine !

Even the greatest minds in medicine have been terribly, terribly wrong. Boneheads and Brainiacs profiles the winners of the Nobel Prize in Medicine from 1901 to 1950 - a surprisingly diverse group of racists, cranks, and opportunists, as well as heroes, geniuses, and selfless benefactors of humanity. Forget all the ivory tower stereotypes of white-coated doctors finding miracle cures. Boneheads and Brainiacs reveals the messy human reality behind medical progress, in a highly entertaining audiobook for the ordinary listener.

Les pirates des Caraïbes avaient imaginé le Draque, l'ancêtre du Mojito, dès le 16e siècle. Et les marins anglais, aidés des Amérindiens, avaient inventé le Punch avant que la Marine anglaise songe elle-même au Gin Fizz et au Gin Tonic pour guérir ses troupes. Aux États-Unis, les bars clandestins, les speakeasies, qui ont proliféré à l'époque de la prohibition ont mis à la mode certaines mixtures, souvent pour camoufler le goût douteux de l'alcool frelaté qu'on y servait.

De toute éternité, les communications à distance, les télécommunications, se sont avérées essentielles pour les humains. Selon les époques, elles ont fait appel à l'imagination ou à l'ingénierie, et toujours de manière industrieuse. Ainsi, les trompettes, les tambours, la fumée ou le langage sifflé transmettaient des messages aux populations locales bien avant l'avènement du télégraphe optique, du télex ou de la téléphonie.

Les grands drames vécus lors d'une guerre relèguent habituellement les événements moins tragiques, au second rang. Bien que ces derniers passent inaperçus durant les combats, ils ne méritent pas moins d'être connus du public à cause du sentiment de bienveillance, de compassion, d'amour et d'innombrables preuves d'humanité dont ils ont fait preuve. Ce livre audio ne s'attarde donc pas sur les protagonistes des grandes batailles.

The acrid stench of asphalt and sulfur singes the hairs of people’s nostrils, and when the blustering winds subside, the potent miasma lingers in the air. To the untrained eye, the La Brea Tar Pits seem to be nothing more than simply pools of thick, viscous black sludge...The pit’s contents have spelled the doom for a countless number of creatures both large and small, from legions of insects to mighty mastodons, mammoths, and snarling saber-toothed cats from the Pleistocene Era. La Brea Tar Pits are considered by many scientists to be among the greatest finds in modern history.

What are cryptozoological animals? They are very rare animals which might even be imaginary or fantastical. In this audiobook, we examine a group of these top cryptids which may or may not be real. The history and observations of these animals comprise each chapter and an evaluation of the evidence for their existence is provided at the end of each chapter. Are all of these sightings fantasy, or do these animals really exist? And how can they hide from most of us who have actively looked for them in the past?

When Lightning Tickled History is a popular, narrative nonfiction, history audiobook designed as a supplemental history book for college students as well as a general interest audiobook. It is a light, breezy, historically-accurate collection of vignettes of incidents when lightning played in part in the drama of human affairs. It includes sections on lightning’s impact on the origin of life, Roman history, both Babylonian Captivities, Martin Luther, Benjamin Franklin, Bible, Charles Darwin, Hindenburg, Nicholas Tesla, and the role of lightning in the modern age.

This work covers Darwin's part in the second survey expedition of the ship HMS Beagle. It is both a travel memoir and a scientific field journal of anthropological, biological, and geological interest. Darwin conveys his fascination with the natural world in an engaging writing style.

Every generation has looked up from the Earth and wondered at the beauty of the moon. 50 years ago, a few Americans became the first to do the reverse - with the whole world watching through their eyes. In this short but wide-ranging book, Oliver Morton explores the history and future of humankind's relationship with the moon. A counterpoint in the sky, it has shaped our understanding of the Earth from Galileo to Apollo. Its gentle light has spoken of love and loneliness; its battered surface of death and the cosmic.

Escape from Earth is the untold story of the engineers, dreamers and rebels who started the American space programme. In particular, it is the story of Frank Malina, founder of what became Nasa's Jet Propulsion Laboratory and the scientist who cracked the, as he called it, problem of escape from the Earth by rocket. It's a wild ride.

Auf ausgedehnten Reisen erkundete Alexander von Humboldt nicht nur die Natur. Ebenso gehörte der rege Kontakt mit internationalen Geistesgrößen zum Wirken des universal Interessierten, der von Zeitgenossen ein "neuer Aristoteles" genannt wurde. Andreas Daums kompakte Einführung in Leben und Werk Alexander von Humboldts bietet einen Überblick über die vielfältigen Netzwerke des Forschers, dessen Jahrhundertleben so zum Spiegel mehrerer Epochen und ihrer dramatischen Umwälzungen.