The Story of Science: Newton at the Center [Hardcover]

Joy Hakim (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 25, 2005

In volume two, students will watch as Copernicus's systematic observations place the sun at the center of our universe—to the dismay of establishment thinkers. After students follow the achievements and frustrations of Galileo, Kepler, and Descartes, they will appreciate the amazing Isaac Newton, whose discoveries about gravity, motion, colors, calculus, and Earth's place in the universe set the stage for modern physics, astronomy, mathematics, and chemistry.

In the three-book The Story of Science series, master storyteller Joy Hakim narrates the evolution of scientific thought from ancient times to the present. With lively, character-driven narrative, Hakim spotlights the achievements of some of the world's greatest scientists and encourages a similiar spirit of inquiry in readers. The books include hundreds of color photographs, charts, maps, and diagrams; informative sidebars; suggestions for further reading; and excerpts from the writings of great scientists.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Starred Review. Grade 7 Up–In this second book in the series, Hakim introduces students to the great scientific minds of Copernicus, Galileo, Kepler, Newton, and others. Teachers will find anecdotal information to enliven their lessons; browsers will be fascinated by the sidebars and captioned illustrations that enhance the text or show related information. The detailed index makes finding specific individuals, theories, or inventions easy. In an easy, conversational style, the author speaks directly to readers, opening with, Read this book and you'll know more science than Isaac Newton did. Full-color illustrations, reproductions, or other graphics appear on almost every page. A tremendous amount of research went into this volume and reading it will greatly increase students' understanding of the history and discovery of scientific theory and invention. Because of its size and weight, this title will need to be booktalked. Put it into the hands of science students who are eager to read beyond the brief snippets found in less comprehensive books.–Kathy Lehman, Thomas Dale High School Library, Chester, VA
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Booklist

Gr. 7-10. In the second volume of a planned six-book series, Hakim surveys the interlocked histories of early modern astronomy, physics, mathematics, and chemistry--from the invention of printing to the discovery of radioactivity at the end of the nineteenth century. This is a lot of territory to cover, and particularly with respect to the explosion of research in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, Hakim introduces so many major figures, in such rapid succession, that they aren't always easy to keep straight--despite a number of piquant biographical tidbits. Furthermore, her main narrative is surrounded by such an array of marginal glosses, explanations, examples, and experiments, in various typefaces, that it sometimes seems to intrude on rather than unite the material. Still, her animated discourse lends immediacy to every breakthrough, and this outing, though overstuffed, should be considered essential reading for its elucidation of difficult concepts, unfailingly relevant diagrams and illustrations, and engaging portraits of individuals caught up in a whirl of world-altering insights into what makes the universe tick. An annotated resource list is appended. John Peters
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

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Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 12 and up
  
• Hardcover: 480 pages
• Publisher: Smithsonian Books (October 25, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1588341615
• ISBN-13: 978-1588341617
• Product Dimensions: 7.7 x 1.2 x 9.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.9 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #38,537 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #2 in Books > Professional & Technical > Professional Science > Physics > Gravity
  • #8 in Books > Professional & Technical > Professional Science > Physics > Optics
  • #27 in Books > Teens > Education & Reference > Science & Technology

More About the Author

I started my career as an author with a ten-volume U.S. history: A History of US, published by Oxford University Press in 1993, and now in a third updated printing. I had no idea the history would end up in ten books, or that it would be so much fun to write.
A History of US has been awarded a bunch of prizes. David McCullough commented, ". . .the idea that history might ever be thought of as a chore has clearly never crossed her mind." In testimony before the Senate Education Committee he called the series "superb." People Magazine described me as "the J.K. Rowling of the history world." (Umm, that would be nice. But the books have sold 5 million copies.)
Mine are narrative history books that attempt to set literary standards. I mean for them to be exciting to read. They're meant for young readers, and their teachers and parents, or for anyone without a deep background in U.S. history. These are books that can be found in bookstores, on Amazon, and in schools. Oxford and Hopkins have done teaching materials for those who want to use the books in academic study.
That series was followed by: Freedom: A History of US (published in 2003), the companion to a 16-part PBS series of the same name that was narrated by Katie Couric, with voices by a host of Hollywood figures, from Tom Hanks to Robin Williams. The videos are available to schools from PBS. And the book spawned a terrific website: (www.pbs.org/wnet/historyofus).

I'm now writing The Story of Science. The first three books are jointly published by Smithsonian Books and the NSTA (National Science Teachers Association). They focus on the quest to understand the universe--from ancient Greece to today's expanding universe. The first volume is Aristotle Leads the Way; the second, Newton at the Center; the third book, Einstein Adds A New Dimension, attempts to explain quantum theory and relativity with black holes and space travel too. Writing in the New York Times, Natalie Angier called the books, "richly informative." Alan Alda raved. These books have won prizes too. Science writer Timothy Ferris said he wished he had them when he was a boy. Educators at Johns Hopkins and NSTA have developing coordinated teaching materials for classroom use (available from NSTA or Amazon).

I'm currently working on two books that put biology into a narrative framework.

Before I began writing books, I was an associate editor, editorial writer, and business writer for The Virginian-Pilot (Norfolk's morning paper) and a general reporter and photographer on the staff of The Ledger-Star (Norfolk's afternoon paper. I did a whole lot of freelance writing while raising three kids. And I was an assistant editor of World News, a foreign news service at McGraw-Hill.

Writing and teaching seem to be two faces of the same need to explain things. Which may explain why I've had dual careers--as writer and teacher.

I've taught elementary school (Omaha, NE), high school English (Virginia Beach, VA), special education in a middle school (Syracuse, NY), and English composition and American literature at a community college (Virginia Beach). I initiated and taught a writing course for high school teachers of English through the University of Virginia.

I do a lot of speaking, especially to education groups. For three years I worked with a group of history teachers in Los Angeles under a TAH (Teaching American History) grant. I've spent some of my time in an inner-city school where most of the students speak Spanish at home and reading English doesn't come easily. I'll be speaking at Teachers College, Columbia in the fall of 2009 where reading guru, Lucy Calkins, has called my books the "gold standard" in the field.

As to my schooling: I earned a B.A. from Smith College after high school in Rutland, Vermont. Then I received a M.Ed. and an honorary doctorate from Goucher College. Smith gave me the Smith Medal (2000); the Matrix Foundation, the Edith Workman Award (2003); I've taken graduate courses in journalism and in geography at New York University, child psychology at Johns Hopkins, and courses in American history and science at Brown, Harvard, Cornell, and Cambridge University. My website is: joyhakim.com.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

23 of 26 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars great resource, March 19, 2006

By 

homeschool mom (Atlanta) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Story of Science: Newton at the Center (Hardcover)

Although I agree that the sidebars are distracting, the book is a delight--and not at all condescending or arrogant. My homeschool daughter and I tried skipping the sidebars and returning to them after we had finished the text proper. It didn't work because the sidebars give anecdotal information that works best when read with the text proper. I'm guessing Ms. Hakim went through the same thought process before deciding on the layout. I do question that the text is meant for middle school. Although Ms. Hakim does write "to" that age level, the subject matter may be more appropriate for high school and thus benefit from a less familiar (although still conversational) style. I hope that Ms. Hakim will provide workbooks to accompany the books eventually. And, we are all waiting for the world history via Hakim!

17 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars This has been a WONDERFUL resource!, July 22, 2006

By 

D. R. Patrick "Lovestoread" (Raleigh, NC) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Story of Science: Newton at the Center (Hardcover)

My daughter is homeschooled, and after reading the entire History of US Series, I knew this science series would be a must. Honestly, I learned so much about US history than I ever learned in all my years of schooling through Ms. Hakim's books. Same with the "Story of Science" Series. Some may find the sidebars distracting, but we kind of made them into a separate lesson and learned a great deal of little-known facts. And it isn't only history or science - the author weaves a little bit of everything into these books in these sidebars. I really can't recommend her books enough. So far, they have been THE favorite resource in our four years of homeschooling!

25 of 30 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Another Great Book!, September 26, 2006

By 

Kristi G., mom of Sage (Rome, GA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Story of Science: Newton at the Center (Hardcover)

I notice that one negative review has been repeated on multiple Joy Hakim books verbatim.

I LIKE the sidebars and pictures. There is a ton of ART history and beautiful graphic design work in the books. Perhaps it is because my husband, son and I are all artists, but we particularly enjoyed the layout of the books. I felt a fusion of science with art in the presentation.

The history is sound, well presented, and detailed enough in scope to touch on mathmatical concepts supporting the science.

I'd reccomend this book for lovers of science history and for older homeschoolers. It is a bit too serious for younger homeschoolers. To me, this is more a book for a older preteen or teen audience.