Discovering [Hardcover]

Robert Scott Root-Bernstein (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0735100071 | ISBN-13: 978-0735100077 | Publication Date: October 1997 | Edition: 1

"Discovering" is an experimental work. It attempts not merely to look at what scientists do but to get inside their minds to find out how, to see science as the imaginative endeavour of the people who do it. Using a fictional format, the author unveils the discovery process in action through the discussions of six characters who attend a colloquium to debate the multifaceted issues that lie at the core of scientific creativity.

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Editorial Reviews

Review

Root-Bernstein has written an absorbing, stimulating, sometimes infuriating book, full of entertaining ideas, and everyone interested in science and its ways will benefit from reading it. (Walter Gratzer Nature )

Root-Bernstein marshals good arguments...The odds are astronomical against one book's sundering the entire bureaucratic structure of science. But Root-Bernstein has lifted his hammer high to try for a good slam. (Marcia Bartusiak New York Times Book Review )

[Root-Bernstein] has written extensively on the subject of creativity, and here he draws together his extensive thinking on the subject. The result is an intriguing and extraordinarily important book...It is a work of great insight and sweep, and it should be the manifesto of great changes in education and science. (Lee Dembart Los Angeles Times )

This highly original and imaginative book, in which the author masterfully marshals a dazzling array of evidence on behalf of his arguments, is by no means easy reading or suitable for browsing. However, anyone who is interested in discovering the roots of scientific creativity and in learning how this important but poorly understood phenomenon can be encouraged and fostered and who is willing to invest the time and effort to follow Root-Bernstein's exposition, will find this book most rewarding and thought-provoking. (George B. Kauffman Journal of Chemical Education ) --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 501 pages
• Publisher: Replica Books; 1 edition (October 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0735100071
• ISBN-13: 978-0735100077
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 6.2 x 1.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,920,260 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

12 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars How science is really done, July 25, 2000

By 

A.H.J. Oomes - See all my reviews

This review is from: Discovering (Hardcover)

This is the best book that I have read on how discoveries are really made. Reading the book is an adventure in itself and it touches on every aspect of the scientific process: theoretic, experimental, aesthetic, sociological, political, geographic, &c.

Very inspiring and highly recommended to potential mavericks.

11 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars One of the best books on science I have read., July 17, 1999

By 

[e-mail] (Los Angeles, California) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Discovering (Paperback)

Discovering is a book about how discoveries are made in science. It is one of the most liberating books any scientist in any field can read. It is also highly creative in its format where the story of Discovering unfolds through the work of six characters -- not all of them scientists.

A really good read for all, and a must read for anyone serious about studying science or making discoveries. This includes social scientists as well as physical scientists.