Bøger i Springer Biographies serien

This book describes the life, times and science of the Soviet physicist Lev Vasilevich Shubnikov (1901-1937).

This book is the translated and commented autobiography of Wilhelm Ostwald (1853-1932), who won the Nobel Prize for Chemistry in 1909.

This book presents the entire body of thought of Norbert Wiener (1894¿1964), knowledge of which is essential if one wishes to understand and correctly interpret the age in which we live. The focus is in particular on the philosophical and sociological aspects of Wiener¿s thought, but these aspects are carefully framed within the context of his scientific journey. Important biographical events, including some that were previously unknown, are also highlighted, but while the book has a biographical structure, it is not only a biography. The book is divided into four chronological sections, the first two of which explore Wiener¿s development as a philosopher and logician and his brilliant interwar career as a mathematician, supported by his philosophical background. The third section considers his research during World War II, which drew upon his previous scientific work and reflections and led to the birth of cybernetics. Finally, the radical post-war shift in Wiener¿s intellectual path is considered, examining how he came to abandon computer science projects and commenced ceaseless public reflections on the new sciences and technologies of information, their social effects, and the need for responsibility in science.

In this book, the author describes in simple, non-technical terms the adventures he has experienced during his work as an earth scientist in some of the remote parts of the arid and semi-arid world.