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  1. The Species Seekers by Richard Conniff

    Tales relate the adventures of early naturalists who risked life and limb in the quest to discover new species. THE SPECIES SEEKERS BY RICHARD CONNIFF W.W. Norton, 2010, 464 p., $26.95.

  2. Leonardo da Vinci’s Giant Crossbow by Matthew Landrus

    A da Vinci expert takes a technical look at the design and engineering underlying one of the artist’s most popular but least understood drawings. LEONARDO DA VINCI’S GIANT CROSSBOW BY MATTHEW LANDRUS Springer, 2010, 180 p., $59.95.

  3. The Best American Science Writing 2010 by Jerome Groopman, ed.

    Highlights some of the most intriguing science articles of 2009, including a tale of sexual evolution by Science News’ Susan Milius. THE BEST AMERICAN SCIENCE WRITING 2010 BY JEROME GROOPMAN, ED. Ecco, 2010, 346 p., $14.99.

  4. Letters

    Superfluid’s roots I’m confused. A little. I thought that a Bose-Einstein condensate occurred only in a gas and that the first time it was achieved was in 1995 using rubidium atoms. “A matter of solidity” (SN: 9/11/10, p. 22) states, “Superfluidity arises when the atoms in superfluid helium join up in a quantum state called […]

  5. Sources of Einstein’s comments

    Leopold Infeld, Albert Einstein: His work and its influence on our world. Charles Scribner’s Sons,1950, p. 110 Max Born, The Born-Einstein Letters. Macmillan, 1971, pp. 168-69, 192. Albert Einstein, “Physics and Reality,” in Ideas and Opinions, Dell Publishing, 1973, pp. 307-308, 310-311. Albert Einstein, “The Fundaments of Theoretical Physics,” in Ideas and Opinions, Dell Publishing, […]

  6. Past SN Quantum coverage

    Science News has been covering quantum entanglement since the 1920s. Read past stories.

  7. Book Review: The Many Worlds of Hugh Everett III: Multiple Universes, Mutual Assured Destruction, and the Meltdown of a Nuclear Family by Peter Byrne

    Review by Tom Siegfried.

  8. Science Future for November 20, 2010

    November 20 New York’s American Museum of Natural History opens its interactive brain exhibit. Go to www.amnh.org/exhibitions/brain December 2 San Francisco’s Exploratorium considers sugar, from its bodily functions to art. With cocktails. See www.exploratorium.edu December 2–3 Howard Hughes Medical Institute airs live classroom webcasts on infectious diseases. See www.holidaylectures.org

  9. Science Past from the issue of November 19, 1960

    MERCURY CAPSULE FAILS — Failure of the test shot of the Mercury space capsule and its pilot escape system will not “necessarily” delay putting a man in space, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration reported. NASA has scheduled a manned rocket launch for 1961. The Mercury spacecraft, designed to take an astronaut safely into outer […]

  10. Physics of the Human Body by Richard P. McCall

    Looking at the body as a physics laboratory lends a fresh perspective, from how the properties of light affect eyesight to the fluid dynamics of the circulatory system. A good resource for doctors or the general reader. PHYSICS OF THE HUMAN BODY BY RICHARD P. MCCALL Johns Hopkins Univ., 2010, 301 p., $45.

  11. The Shape of Inner Space: String Theory and the Geometry of the Universe’s Hidden Dimensions by Shing-Tung Yau and Steve Nadis

    Taking another angle on the string theory genre, a Harvard mathematician and a science writer join up to explore the geometry of curled-up universes too small to see. THE SHAPE OF INNER SPACE: STRING THEORY AND THE GEOMETRY OF THE UNIVERSE’S HIDDEN DIMENSIONS BY SHING-TUNG YAU AND STEVE NADIS Basic Books, 2010, 377 p., $30.

  12. The Instant Physicist: An Illustrated Guide by Richard A. Muller

    In this collection of physics-related curiosities, every page flip reveals a basic principle of physics and a humorous cartoon by Joey Manfre. Examples include why wine is radioactive and how much plutonium it takes to build a bomb (enough to fill a coffee mug). THE INSTANT PHYSICIST: AN ILLUSTRATED GUIDE BY RICHARD A. MULLER W.W. […]