Harmonies of the World (On the Shoulders of Giants, Book 5) [Paperback]

Johannes Kepler (Author), Stephen Hawking (Editor)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 4, 2005

Book Five of Johannes Kepler's great masterpiece on planetary motion is presented with an introduction by the ultimate authority on this topic, noted physicist and bestselling author Stephen Hawking. Modifying Copernicus's sun-centered model of the universe, Kepler's 1619 work went on to establish laws of planetary motion, forming the basis for Newton's discoveries some 60 years later. As part of our On the Shoulders of Giants series, this translation of the original edition of Kepler's monumental essay includes an insightful biography and a highly accessible summary putting into context the significance of Harmony of the World.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Stephen Hawking’s ability to make science understandable and compelling to a lay audience was established with the publication of his first book, A Brief History of Time, which has sold nearly 10 million copies in 40 languages. Hawking has authored or participated in the creation of numerous other popular science books, including On the Shoulders of Giants and The Illustrated On the Shoulders of Giants.

Product Details

• Paperback: 92 pages
• Publisher: Running Press (January 4, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0762420189
• ISBN-13: 978-0762420186
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 5.8 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 2.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,016,896 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

21 of 24 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars historically important, June 4, 2005

By 

W Boudville (Terra, Sol 3) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Harmonies of the World (On the Shoulders of Giants, Book 5) (Paperback)

For students of history, here is a reprint of one of Kepler's works. Centuries old. But noteworthy because before Newton came on the scene, Kepler's work was one of the high water marks of astronomy. Plus, the material in the book was useful to Newton, when he would apply his equations to explaining various of Kepler's observations.

Plus, another attraction of this book is the introduction by Hawking. So there are two great names on the same cover. For the layman in physics, here is a noted viewpoint of Kepler's accomplishments.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars terribly ugly, June 6, 2011

By 

Simon Mitternacht (Lund, Sweden) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Harmonies of the World (Forgotten Books) (Paperback)

I'm sure this will be an interesting read, but the packaging is really terrible. It has been OCR'd from an older edition and typeset in some inappropriate sans serif font, with tables and figures in low-resolution scanned versions. I might just throw this one away and get a prettier version because this is just too annoying.

2.0 out of 5 stars Needs some set up work done, August 5, 2011

By 

German Fafian Parente - See all my reviews

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This review is from: Harmonies of the World (Kindle Edition)

The book in itself is agreat historical reference but the kindle version has 2 major drawbacks.
1-. All graphics are of a really low quality and some are even ineligible as the "tint" is much lighter than the one used for the font.
2-. all text in italics are not properly formatted. The words are all jointed together and without spacing making them all hard to read.

I can not recommend this book until these issues are solved.