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Donna Marie
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Has anyone ever used The Story of Science by Joy Hakim?? What did you think about it? Do you know of any of the pitfalls that I might have to handle if I use this?
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Donna Marie from NJ
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MacBeth
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Just bought it...review to come soon!
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TracyQ
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Oh, can't WAIT for the review!
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Tracy Q.
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Donna Marie
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TracyQ wrote:
| Oh, can't WAIT for the review! |
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lol...me either! ;)
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Donna Marie from NJ
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Finding Elegant Simplicity
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Kathryn UK
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Oh, good! I've been wondering about it for a while, but I can't get it from the library here and I'm reluctant to buy it without a recommendation. Looking forward to seeing what you think MacBeth.
I've decided I'm going to make science reading (for myself) a priority for 2006. I just started The Fly in the Cathedral by Brian Cathcart, which tells the story of how a group of scientists at Cambridge University first split the atom. Very interesting and well written. After that I'm going to move on to George Gamow's Mr.Tompkins books as I have a couple I picked up somewhere. Didn't realise until now that Gamow himself was one of the original atom-splitting pioneers. And then I have a history of science by John Gribbing waiting to be read. I'm looking forward to this!
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Mary G
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Kathryn -- these sound like perfect "living books" for 16yos' Physics course -- thanks!
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MaryG
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Kathryn UK
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Mary, another book that would work well for a physics course is one I read a while ago and enjoyed - E=mc2: a Biography of the World's Most Famous Equation by David Bodanis. It is partly a history of the discovery of the equation and its implications, and partly an analysis of the different parts of the equation (e, =, m, c, 2) and how they all come together.
The New World of Mister Tompkins is a version of Gamow's book updated by Russell Stannard which might be worth looking for. Also, simple for a 16yo, but still worth reading, are Stannard's Uncle Albert books (The Time and Space of Uncle Albert, Uncle Albert and the Quantum Quest, and Black Holes and Uncle Albert).
I'm sure you have already looked at MacBeth's High School Physics suggestions. 
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Mary G
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Y'all are going to get me into TROUBLE!
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MacBeth
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Here's the review:
Review
The Story of Science: Aristotle Leads the Way by Joy Hakim (2004, Smithsonian Books)
I have two big problems with this book, and I’ll state them up front. If these are problems for you, don’t bother to get the book. You’ll find these issues popping up constantly. The first is the use of the phrases “Before the Common Era” or “B.C.E.” and “Common Era” or “C.E.” instead of B.C. and A.D. This is a secular book, and these terms are secular terms, though despite the lack of Christian thought behind the terms, the dates—clearly Christian dates—remain the same. I went through the book with a black marker and changed all the dates to B.C. and A.D.
The second issue is actually rather ironic. Throughout the part of the book that examines the Christian era, the author insists that there is a struggle between The Church and science. There is even an entire page dedicated to the struggle, equating the Church to the parent of rebellious children, the scientists. Yet, throughout the latter chapters of the book (the first in a series, this book emphasizes pre-Renaissance science, and only goes up through the Voyage of Magellan), Hakim lists and discusses science as preserved and advanced by the Church. It seems clear that, instead of looking at what she has written, she opts to misstate the facts in a politically correct gripe against the Church that is factually misleading. She bases some of her bias on excerpts from St. Augustine, who “was no scientist,” while ignoring the reality of Christian attitudes towards science, though she does cite many accomplished Christian scientists in the text. And she should know better than to generalize about the view of the Church on matters scientific, given the research she must have done to write the book, and given the content therein.
If you can get past that ...the book is quite a good resource, though it cannot be used alone. Hakim uses a format and style similar to her History of US series, with short chapters, quotes from great scientists and writers (including Catholics!) lavish illustrations, and informative side-bars. She traces the history of science from Mesopotamian society through mid-1500 A. D., in her easy-going style that really brings characters to life. Compared with most science texts, Hakim’s approach is refreshing. Science from a historical point of view humanizes science; few text books can hold one's interest so well. This is a living book.
Here’s an example of her style:
It sounded as if he were bragging, although everyone knew that Archimedes wasn’t a braggart. But he did tell King Hiero II, “Give me somewhere to stand and I will move the earth.”
Now, that would be quite a feat! The Greek god Atlas was supposed to be holding the heavens on his shoulders—but hardly anyone took that tale seriously. They did pay attention to Archimedes, who had discovered so many mathematical theorems, written so many scientific books and papers, and invented so many things that hardly anyone could keep up with his accomplishments (page 146).
I want to read more, to find out more about Archimedes...did he move the earth? How? And what were his other inventions? Hakim goes on to explain, through clear text and illustrations, the inventions, and the impact of those inventions, of Archimedes, and of so many more scientists.
But, unfortunately, she brushes off the influence of the Church, especially as founder of the European university system, as having nearly no scientific impact on either preserving or propagating knowledge. The universities, she claims, taught nothing but error (she describes a few) in the view of science and natural history. She gives the architecture of gothic cathedrals, and the science required to build them, a mere sentence, and skips on to remind us that most people were peasants, and “Europe is still a place of walled towns and walled thinking.” Yet she then reminds us that Christians who traveled to Spain (as conquerors!) brought back ideas from the Arabs. So, this is an example of walled thinking within walled cities? You can’t have it both ways. To her credit, Hakim does mention that “some” scholars (none mentioned by name) dispute the darkness of the dark ages. But rather than give the reader a hint, she suggests that the reader do his own research. I agree—don’t take Hakim's word as fact.
In a way, I like the book without most of Hakim’s actual text in the chapters that take place after the birth of Christ. The photos of great art (much of it Christian, either in subject matter, or by preservation), the diagrams explaining simple tools, and the original quotes and sidebars alone make the book worth gleaning. But the errors in history, the use of secondary, and often tertiary, sources (Garry Wills on St. Augustine??), and the blatant ignoring of facts, render the book unusable as a stand-alone text. Moreover, the reader might want to keep this book as an example of politically correct science, and use the timeline (with the corrections mentioned in the first paragraph) to keep track of other reading. For the adult teaching the history of science, Thomas E. Woods’ How the Catholic Church Built Western Civilization is an excellent resource (beyond science, though science is a big part of the whole story). For younger students, individual books on short topics, such as those published by Bethlehem Books as well as many from secular publishers, will cover the same material without the cumbersome chore of correcting the correctness.
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Mary G
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MacBeth -- excellent review! THANKS so much 
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Thank you MacBeth. I don't think I'll be investing the large amount it would cost me to buy the series  . Have you come across Inventing the Future by John and Mary Gribbin? It is on a much smaller scale than Hakim's book(s), so obviously has less detail, but it is very readable. It is also secular, but without the deliberate anti-ecclesiastical bias. There are a few parts I would quibble with, but it actually manages to be quite fair in its treatment of Galileo (not perfect, but pretty good). As an interesting introduction to the history of science for 10 to 13 year olds (or thereabouts), I like it. I'd love to hear your opinion.
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Thanks so much for the wonderful review, MacBeth. I think you just saved me a bunch of money. We use A History of the US, but only as a secondary resource. I wouldn't want to pay for something that isn't worthwhile if we can't use more of it.
Kathryn, thanks so much for the glance at the book you mentioned. It looks pretty good!
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MacBeth
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I'm glad the review is helpful!
A friend suggested that I did not give Hakim a fair shake on pre-Christian science covered in the book, and maybe that's true. She did a great job in her overview of not only western science, but also eastern and American science, as much as we know. We know much more about Western science, of course, because the writings were preserved by diligent monks... .
Kathryn, I'll look up the book you mention. So many books, so little time!!
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Kathryn UK
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MacBeth wrote:
| Kathryn, I'll look up the book you mention. So many books, so little time!! |
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It's a very quick and easy read.
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Topic: The Story of Science?
