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Tarfumes.com - The Map That Changed the World: William Smith and the Birth of Modern Geology
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List Price: $13.95
Our Price: $11.86
Your Save: $ 2.09 ( 15% )
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Manufacturer: Harper Perennial
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Average Customer Rating:   
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Binding: Paperback
Dewey Decimal Number: 550.92
EAN: 9780060931803
ISBN: 0060931809
Label: Harper Perennial
Manufacturer: Harper Perennial
Number Of Items: 1
Number Of Pages: 352
Publication Date: 2002-08-01
Publisher: Harper Perennial
Release Date: 2002-07-30
Studio: Harper Perennial
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Editorial Reviews:
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In 1793, a canal digger named William Smith made a startling discovery. He found that by tracing the placement of fossils, which he uncovered in his excavations, one could follow layers of rocks as they dipped and rose and fell -- clear across England and, indeed, clear across the world -- making it possible, for the first time ever, to draw a chart of the hidden underside of the earth. Determined to expose what he realized was the landscape's secret fourth dimension, Smith spent twenty-two years piecing together the fragments of this unseen universe to create an epochal and remarkably beautiful hand-painted map. But instead of receiving accolades and honors, he ended up in debtors' prison, the victim of plagiarism, and virtually homeless for ten years more. Finally, in 1831, this quiet genius -- now known as the father of modern geology -- received the Geological Society of London's highest award and King William IV offered him a lifetime pension. The Map That Changed the World is a very human tale of endurance and achievement, of one man's dedication in the face of ruin. With a keen eye and thoughtful detail, Simon Winchester unfolds the poignant sacrifice behind this world-changing discovery.
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Spotlight customer reviews:
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Customer Rating:
Summary: Top of its Genre
Comment: Sometimes sea-changes in thinking come from the most unexpected places. Emerging technologies and an favorable economic conditions facilitated a boom in British inland canal building during the mid-18th century. All that digging revealed previously-unknown, or possibly just unappreciated, fossils. As experience grew, it was observed that the fossils were not just randomly distributed... but what was the pattern? Well, I won't tell the whole story here, but a clever fellow named William Smith applied knowledge of the fossil finds to his knowledge of mapmaking and spearheaded entirely new ways of thinking about each. Canals, fossils, mapmaking, British canal building... this could been dry subject material, but author Simon Winchester delivers an engaging tale without fictionalizing or speculating. This is historical nonfiction dedicated to a very narrow subject(specifically: one man's inventive idea to map the hidden, subterranean world). Within that classification I would say this is the best-written work I have encountered in years. Top recommendation.
Customer Rating:
Summary: Outstanding
Comment: After listening to the audio CD version of this book for the third or fourth time I became hooked on geology and began to wonder why we didn't get a bigger dose of the subject during middle school and high school back in the 1950s and 1960s. It looks like someone dropped the ball. Certainly William Smith and his discoveries belong somewhere -- and probably multiple places -- in the school curriculum. The Map That Changed the World is a great book for anyone who may be curious about what geology can tell us about the world we live in.
Customer Rating:
Summary: Waste of time
Comment: I think Simon must have read the excellent book Longitude by Diva Sobel, and then tried to write one just like it. It is a story of the poor scientist from humble beginnings, who goes against the Scientific establishment of the day and wins.
I was hoping for a book just like Longitude, and the back cover lead me to believe it was, when in fact it really isn't. Also, like other reviewers have mentioned the book is poorly written and the science minimal.
If you want historical science read Longitude instead.
Longitude: The True Story of a Lone Genius Who Solved the Greatest Scientific Problem of His Time
Customer Rating:
Summary: Soso
Comment: I am not an expert on geology and although I had just learned about rocks and minerals in school, this book seemed very edious at tmes. I remember cute little details from the book and the main ideas but when they talked about canals, coal, strata, dips etc, my mind went blank. I really tried to read it and absorb it all but I found it difficult. I still think you should give it a try but I found it very "unstable"
Customer Rating:
Summary: A Life as Geological in Time
Comment: As an ardent student of geology and paleontology for over 50 years, this book was particularly fascinating. It is the story of the birth of a modern scientific standard, the geological map, brought about by the efforts of a man, William Smith. By today's standards, he was an 'amateur', but he literally created the standard through his observation and study and analysis and patience and struggle. The story is told as a walk through time, both geological time and the time of one person's life. In taking us on these journeys, the author is magnificently successful and this is a book worth reading many, many times. Simon Winchester is at his best in this one.
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