Science: A History

John Gribbin

Aug 2009 · Penguin UK

About this ebook

In this book, John Gribbin tells the story of the people who made science and the turbulent times they lived in. As well as famous figures such as Copernicus, Darwin and Einstein, there are also the obscure, the eccentric, even the mad. This diversecast includes, among others, Andreas Vesalius, landmark 16th-century anatomist and secret grave-robber; the flamboyant Galileo, accused of heresy for his ideas; the obsessive, competitive Newton, who wrote his rivals out of the history books; GregorMendel, the Moravian monk who founded modern genetics; and Louis Agassiz, so determined to prove the existence of ice ages that he marched his colleagues up a mountain to show them the evidence.

Ratings and reviews

An excellent journey from the beginnings of science right up to the 21st century. Gribbin's style includes a lot of commas and brackets giving it a slightly disjointed feel. But it's a compelling tread with sufficient personal background of the characters involved and clear, accessible explanations of the science.

I read this book many many years ago, I came here to purchase the ebook version. Why it's so unfairly underrated? I can only think of one reason. The book rightly count the beginning of science from Copernicus, this obviously make some upset, but facts sometimes are hard to swallow.

About the author

John Gribbin trained as an astrophysicist at Cambridge University and is currently visiting Fellow in astronomy at the University of Sussex. He is one of the finest writers of popular science.