Reviews

  1. Why Does E=mc²? (And Why Should We Care?) by Brian Cox and Jeff Forshaw

    By exploring each part of Albert Einstein’s famous equation, two physicists ultimately explain the theory of relativity. Da Capo Press, 2009, 249 p., $24. Why Does E=mc²? (And Why Should We Care?) by Brian Cox and Jeff Forshaw

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  2. Simulation and its Discontents by Sherry Turkle

    Computer simulation has altered standard practices in science and engineering, but its ubiquity has drawbacks. MIT Press, 2009, 217 p., $22. Simulation and its Discontents by Sherry Turkle

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  3. Book Review: How We Live and Why We Die: The Secret Lives of Cells by Lewis Wolpert

    Review by Nathan Seppa.

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  4. Book Review: Connected: The Surprising Power of Social Networks and How They Shape Our Lives by Nicholas A. Christakis and James H. Fowler

    Review by Rachel Zelkowitz.

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  5. Grace Hopper and the Invention of the Information Age by Kurt W. Beyer

    This biography explores the trials and triumphs of one of computer programming’s few female pioneers.MIT Press, 2009, 389 p., $27.95. GRACE HOPPER AND THE INVENTION OF THE INFORMATION AGE

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  6. The 10,000 Year Explosion: How Civilization Accelerated Human Evolution by Gregory Cochran and Henry Harpending

    Genetic changes reveal how culture has shaped recent human evolution, the authors argue. Basic Books, 2009, 288 p., $27. THE 10,000 YEAR EXPLOSION: HOW CIVILIZATION ACCELERATED HUMAN EVOLUTION

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  7. Instant Egghead Guide: The Universe by J.R. Minkel and Scientific American

    Bite-sized knowledge on subatomic particles, supernovas, time dilation and more.St. Martin’s Griffin, 2009, 221 p., $14.99. INSTANT EGGHEAD GUIDE: THE UNIVERSE

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  8. Green Intelligence: Creating Environments that Protect Human Health by John Wargo

    Pollution’s past effects could inform today’s environmental policy. Yale Univ. Press, 2009, 400 p., $32.50. GREEN INTELLIGENCE: CREATING ENVIRONMENTS THAT PROTECT HUMAN HEALTH

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  9. Mathematics in 10 Lessons: The Grand Tour by Jerry P. King

    A few fundamental principles and an aesthetic awareness underlie all math, King shows. Prometheus, 2009, 394 p., $18.95. Instant Egghead Guide: The Universe by J.R. Minkel and Scientific American Mathematics in 10 Lessons: The Grand Tour by Jerry P. King

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  10. Book Review: Stories in Stone: Travels Through Urban Geology by David B. Williams

    Review by Sid Perkins.

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  11. Homage to a Pied Puzzler

    Ed Pegg Jr., Alan H. Schoen and Tom Rodgers, eds.

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  12. Theo Gray’s Mad Science: Experiments You Can Do at Home — But Probably Shouldn’t by Theodore Gray

    Dramatic experiments, captured in color photography with step-by-step instructions, demonstrate scientific principles from the everyday world. Black Dog & Leventhal, 2009, 239 p., $24.95. THEO GRAY’S MAD SCIENCE: EXPERIMENTS YOU CAN DO AT HOME — BUT PROBABLY SHOULDN’T BY THEODORE GRAY

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