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The Story of Science: Einstein Adds a New Dimension

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Length:: 5:29 Mins

Hi, this is Joanne, a bioengineering instructor at the University of Illinois. I read science books and review them. See more at my youtube site [...]

If my brain is tired from reading all those high level science journals, I take a break and read about science in a fun, lighthearted but still informative way with Joy Hakim's The Story of Science Series. Great for educators and homeschoolers, too! Covers the basics of physical sciences thoroughly but at a middle to high school level.

Joy Hakim's book on modern physics is the most exciting science book I have read in my 45-plus years as a scientist. The book truly is, as she puts it, "written for young thinkers of all ages." She doesn't call it a "textbook," but the book not only is that, it is also the way all science textbooks should be written. To her, physics is not just a body of observations and theories; it is the process of discovery.

Although Einstein's thinking is the underlying centerpiece of the book, Hakim deftly traverses, without mathematics, the whole history of physics from electromagnetism, atomic structure and chemical bonding to special and general relativity, quantum mechanics, black holes, quarks, supernovae, dark matter, dark energy, and more. This is a story-book journey of discovery that is described in terms of the people involved. Physics is brought to life in a most engaging way. On every page it seems, physics, the mother of all science, is embellished with side-bar stories about key discoveries, how they were made and the lives of the people who made them. Numerous color photographs adorn the pages throughout.

The two great and exciting present-day frontiers of scientific research are physics and neuroscience. Joy's book almost makes me wish, after a lifetime of being a neuroscientist, that I had started off in physics. Science is great fun, and this book proves it.

Bill Klemm, author of "Thank You Brain for All You Remember. What You Forgot Was My Fault" and "`Dillos. Roadkill on Extinction Highway?" (both available on Amazon.com)

This book is informative and interesting, not dry and/or stuffy like most science books. This is the 2nd or 3rd in the "Story of Science" series that I have purchased and I would highly recommend them to anyone. Joy Hakim not only writes about science, but she writes about how the world was when these scientists were making their discoveries and the struggles they had while doing so. Another great feature is that any word the reader might not know and understand is explained in the margins.

This book got me into science.

This book begins with a brief history of Einstein and his childhood, but is so much more than that. You will walk through decades of science all the way into modern physics. This book is so powerful because the reader will experience the significance of these events.

This book is worth reading because it will open your eyes to the worth of scientific research and questioning. You will appreciate the universe so much more and will find answers to questions you've always had.

This book is written on a level so that even middle school students can enjoy but, still sustains enjoyability for all ages. This book influenced me a lot. It was the first non-fiction science book I read, and lead me to reading many others. I highly recommend it. Joy Hakim teaches new concepts very simply.

My only comment is that the sidebars get kind of annoying. It is hard to stop reading in the middle of the page to read a side bar.

This book is both a pleasure to hold and to read. It includes many vivid illustrations printed on glossy paper. It does follow the tendency of most modern informational works to be designed with sidebars and insets on each page. Many scholars complain that this kind of formatting is a reflection of our increasing inability to concentrate, and that when overdone in school textbooks, it tends to train us in distraction even further. However Hakim keeps the boxed asides within manageable limits. She and the publishers of this book don't fragment the pages beyond reason. The result is a nice balance between entertainment and education.

The sidebars often include pictures that add a historical perspective to the scientific explanations. For example, there are photographs of some of the places where Einstein spent his youth, and there's one particularly telling photograph of a German street scene during WWII.

However a book like this ultimately has to have, not only eye appeal, but worthwhile content. Hakim delivers on this score. Her explanations are for the most part lucid and interesting. She makes clarifications I hadn't read elsewhere. For example, she distinguishes between X-rays (which are waves) and beta rays (which are particles). And she finally helped me understand the difference between vacuum tubes and solid state transistors - I think.

Furthermore, she passed a litmus test I apply to all books that touch on the topic of how the structure of DNA was unraveled. Hakim gives due credit to Rosalind Franklin and her work with X-ray crystallography in providing a key clue to the nature of the double helix. Most authors credit only Watson and Crick. But when they do that, I know they haven't thoroughly researched their topic. However Hakim's familiarity with Rosalind Franklin's contributions gave me confidence that Hakim had done her homework and that this book would generally provide deeper insights than most books dealing with physics and quantum physics.

The only trouble with Hakim's writing style is that she usually employs the present tense. "Einstein says... Niels Bohr proceeds to..." I would trip over this usage each time, because I know these men are dead and their achievements are in the past. I suppose Hakim wanted to underscore the ongoing relevance of these scientists' discoveries. But the usage only led to frequent confusion about what time frame we were dealing with in each chapter. Well, I suppose such confusion could actually be deemed appropriate in a book trying to demonstrate how time measurements are all relative. But seriously, that choice did create a series of small speed bumps in the path of understanding.

Also, Hakim was a little eccentric in the words she chose to define in sidebars. Sometimes you'll find a rather commonly understood term singled out for definition in a sidebar, while a rather arcane technical term right beside it goes without any explanation. The book could have used a dedicated glossary at the back, and also an expansive index.

But these are minor criticisms of a book that overall would be an addition to any library, ready for use as reference or simple enjoyment by readers of all ages.

I bought this series for my son (12 yr. old) and I to read together. It's wonderful. We read a chapter everyday and it has been very enjoyable. I think it is written in a way that kids can understand and yet adults don't get bored. We usually read the chapter straight through and then go back and pick-up all the side notes after. We are currently on the second book of the three.

If you are hesitant to buy this series because it is written for juvenile audiences, don't hold back any longer. This is extremely well-written, as are the other two earler science books by Joy Hakim. Get all three. You will not be disappointed.

This book handles the weird concepts of relativity and quantum physics better than any other source - and I own a dozen books on those subjects.

Each beautiful book follows a logical order, and basic concepts are explained before more complex concepts are introduced. All theories and discoveries are placed in historical context.

I like the side bars and illustrations and do not find them distracting. How can anyone read hundreds of pages of nothing but text and not lose their mind? Especially if the subject is science!

Unless you are a scientist, this material will not be too basic for you. If you ever watched "Are You Smarter than a 5th Grader?", you know there is plenty of stuff you forgot or never learned, and this is the place to learn it.

All science teachers should read this book to familiarize themselves with the historical background for their curriculum. It is filled with stories of early scientists who made discoveries before modern tecnologies were available, so younger students can use "imagination only" to spark their curiosity.

Book was great. Probably an improvement over the previious two, which I did not think was possible. My daughters love the book and thereby started to love Science even more.

Another well written and produced volume in this series however, the series of books should be called the Story of Physics not the Story of Science. It covers very well, and in an engaging manner, the history and development of physics and the characters that populate that history. However, there is a big failing in the series so far. There is no attention given to biology. I'm left wondering if biology and a discussion of evolution is just too hot a topic for an American writer and audience. Having said that the series is good to have on hand for the kids to dip into so that they can learn a bit more about the subjects and scientists they are learning about in their Science classes. Not bad for the parents to pick up a few interesting facts either.