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What I Require From Life
Writings on science and life from J.B.S. Haldane
Edited by Krishna Dronamraju
272 pages
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1 b/w frontispiece
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216x138mm
978-0-19-923770-8
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Hardback
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22 January 2009
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- J. B. S. Haldane (1892-64) was an eminent scientist and polymath, who made vital contributions to sciences ranging from physiology to biochemistry, and was a central figure in the development of modern evolutionary biology and genetics.
- Brings together for the first time Haldane's popular essays from the 1940s with writings from his Indian period.
- The essays here cover scientific topics as varied as astronomy, bird migration, and relativity, as well as shedding light on Haldane's views on social and political issues from Marxism and Soviet science, to non-violence and Hinduism.
- With a Preface by the late Sir Arthur C. Clarke, who writes: "J B S Haldane was perhaps the most brilliant science populariser of his generation... Haldane's scores of essays may still be read with great profit."
J. B. S. Haldane (1892-64) was one of the scientific giants of the 20th century. A polymath who made important contributions to sciences ranging from physiology to genetics and biochemistry, he was also a highly skilled writer and an extraordinary character - brilliant, witty, idealistic, funny, and pugnacious.
What I Require From Life is a compilation of his popular scientific essays written from the 1940s to last years of his life, that reflect not only his masterful ability to communicate scientific understanding, but also his deep commitment to socialism. The essays included here fall into two groups; those written by Haldane during the 1940s when he embraced Marxism, and those written during his last years in India (1957-64),
and they range from An Autobiography in Brief (written three years before his death), to his Marxist view of evolution The Chicken or the Egg? , to his poignant poem Cancer is a Funny Thing.
Edited with an introduction by Haldane's last graduate pupil, Professor Krishna Dronamraju, this collection of thought-provoking and beautifully-written science writing also comes with a Preface written by the late Sir Arthur C. Clarke, who provides a personal perspective on Haldane's unique place in 20th century science.Readership: Readers of popular science interested in reading the work of one of the 'classic' science popularisers. Also the many admirers of J.B.S. Haldane, as well as historians and
sociologists of science.
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Edited by Krishna Dronamraju, President, Foundation for Genetic Research, Houston, USA
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"A wonderful collection, giving infectious ideas of the energies and mental joys of a remarkable man." - Druin Burch, New Scientist "Haldane's sweep is breathtaking and his clarity...is reminiscent of Orwell." - Druin Burch, New Scientist
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Foreword by Sir Arthur C. Clarke
Preface by James F. Crow
Introduction by Krishna R. Dronamraju
An Autobiography in Brief
Essays from the Marxist period (1937-50)
How to write a popular scientific article
Why I am a Materialist
Adventures of words
What I require from life
What scientists in Russia are doing
How we can date the past
Averages
Quantity and quality
Biology and town-planning
Inventions that made men free
Astronomy
The Milky way
Is there life on the planets?
Common sense about the planets
Weather
Frost
Is man a machine?
Breathing
Why are you left-handed?
Domestic animals
Overcrowding at the Zoo
Life slows down for winter
Bird migration
Why the robin sings
How bees communicate
The mysterious eels
Movies for toads
The chicken or the egg?
The mathematics of evolution
Back to the water
The common cold
Medical measurements
The differential calculus
What is the fourth dimension
Relativity
Matter and energy
How we measured the atom
Essays from the Indian period (1957-64)
Some statistical adventures
Some reflections on non-violence
Science and floods
Colliery explosion
Deep mines
The sound of one hand
Hitting the moon
The dog in the Sputnik
What I want to know about Gagarin
Some autumn stars
The Pleiades and Orion
Some neighbouring stars
The seven rishis
Jyestha
Simplifying astronomy
New light on memory
Relations between biology and other sciences
Darwin in Indian perspective
Keeping cool
Drug-resistant bacteria
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The specification in this catalogue, including without limitation price, format, extent, number of illustrations, and month of publication, was as accurate as possible at the time the catalogue was compiled. Occasionally, due to the nature of some contractual restrictions, we are unable to ship a specific product to a particular territory. Jacket images are provisional and liable to change before publication.
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