Perfect Symmetry


Book Description

Buckyballs are hollow-sphere molecules of 60 carbon atoms arranged such that they resemble the famous geodesic domes of Buckminster Fuller. Science writer Baggott recounts how the new form of the common element was developed; the applications of its radically different properties, particularly in high-temperature superconductors; and the implications of its discovery for chemistry and the conception of large carbon structures. Most of his account is accessible to readers with little or no scientific background. Annotation copyright by Book News, Inc., Portland, OR




Perfect Symmetry


Book Description

A brilliant, lucid introduction to the interplay between cosmology, particle physics and what we know about when our universe began. Written for a general science audience, Perfect Symmetry is the legacy of the esteemed physicist and author of The Cosmic Code who died tragically in a mountaineering accident in Colorado. Illustrated.




WineSpeak


Book Description

If you read wine reviews, you're already either amused or confused by the soaring language wine writers often use to describe what they're smelling and tasting. But do you always know what they mean? Have you ever sipped a complex white and sensed what's so colorfully described as a peacock's tail? Have you ever savored a full-bodied red only to detect the ripe acrid smell of a horse stall? If not, you're in for a treat, because these terms and thousands more are all here to amuse, dismay, enlighten, inspire, puzzle, and utterly shock you . Welcome to the rich linguistic universe of wine speak: a world where words and wine intersect in an uncontrolled riot of language guaranteed to keep you entertained for hours. The author, a lifelong lover of both wine and words, has compiled and organized this unique thesaurus of 36,975 wine tasting descriptors into 20 special collections extracted from 27 categories so you can locate exactly the right term or phrase to express yourself clearly or to understand others. May your path across the galaxy of wine be paved only with labels from the very best bottles on earth. Or, much more cautiously, with wines that could introduce you to angel pee, citronella, eastern European fruit soup, Godzilla, iodine, ladies' underwear, mustard gas, old running shoes, rawhide, hot tar roads, bubblegum, sweaty saddles, crushed ants, kitchen drains, or even turpentine.




Symmetry


Book Description

International Series in Modern Applied Mathematics and Computer Science, Volume 10: Symmetry: Unifying Human Understanding provides a tremendous scope of "symmetry, covering subjects from fractals through court dances to crystallography and literature. This book discusses the limits of perfection, symmetry as an aesthetic factor, extension of the Neumann-Minnigerode-Curie principle, and symmetry of point imperfections in solids. The symmetry rules for chemical reactions, matching and symmetry of graphs, mosaic patterns of H. J. Woods, and bilateral symmetry in insects are also elaborated. This text likewise covers the crystallographic patterns, Milton's mathematical symbol of theodicy, symmetries of soap films, and gapon formalism. This volume is a good source for researchers and specialists concerned with symmetry.




Haunthenticity


Book Description

An interdisciplinary and existential exploration of live musical reenactment In this persuasive study, Tracy McMullen draws on philosophy, psychology, musicology, performance studies, and popular music studies in order to analyze the rise of obsessively precise live musical reenactments in the United States at the turn of the millennium. She investigates this practice, what she terms, Replay, in popular music, jazz, and performance art arguing that it is a symptom of deep-seated fears of the fleeting nature of identity. Musical Replay claims a type of authenticity that is grounded in the exact material details of the original (instruments, props, costumes, people, etc.), and attempts to make up for the loss of identity: cloning the past and using it as a replacement. The scholarship is wide-ranging and ties theory and evidence from diverse fields and experiences together seamlessly and convincingly. Haunthenticity: Musical Replay and the Fear of the Real ultimately argues for a new way of conceiving subjectivity and identity within critical and cultural studies, moving beyond Western epistemologies.




Unifying the Universe


Book Description

Unifying the Universe: The Physics of Heaven and Earth provides a solid background in basic physics. With a humanistic perspective, it shows how science is significant for more than its technological consequences. The book includes clear and well-planned links to the arts and philosophies of relevant historical periods to bring science and the humanities together.




Introduction to Symmetry Analysis


Book Description




Television News


Book Description

Television News is a comprehensive resource for newswriting, reporting, shooting and editing video, and producing a newscast. This book provides instruction in the basic steps of telling video stories, and is perfectly suited for preparing young professionals for entry-level positions as television or multimedia journalists. Moreover, the text goes to the heart of storytelling with guidance appropriate for advancement in an industry that is challenged more than ever to retain the public trust. The reporting and video storytelling skills found in this book can also be applied in non-traditional video communication jobs in both businesses and nonprofits. Conversational and easy to understand, this book grounds readers in the ethical and legal consideration necessary to do the job right. New to the fourth edition is coverage of social media, shooting and broadcasting with cell phones, and a discussion of “fake news.” This book can be used in standalone introductory broadcast courses or across multiple, specialized modules. It features a website with ancillary material that helps students learn to write, shoot, and edit video with practical activities.




Mathematical Evolutions


Book Description




Wordplay


Book Description

Take a second look at the cover of this book—this time, turn it upside down. The title, Wordplay, is an ambigram, which means you will be able to read it both right side up and upside down. You may be familiar with the John Langdon’s ambigrams from Dan Brown’s bestseller Angels & Demons (see pages 186 and 188 of Wordplay), but if this is your first experience with the art of the ambigram, prepare to be dazzled! This lovely updated edition of the classic collection of ambigrams features a section of full-color ambigrams and dozens of stunning, mind-bending examples of this cryptic art form. Each strikingly beautiful and arresting illustration is accompanied by a short essay—sometimes serious, sometimes witty—to delight your brain as much as your eyes. Taken together, the art and the essays show how the very shape of letters can change our idea of words and their meanings. As Dan Brown says in the Foreword of this revised edition, John Langdon brilliantly rearranges the familiar, casting it in a new light. Both playful and profound, Wordplay will challenge you to take a second look at your world.