New York: Atria Books, 2003. First Atria Books hardcover edition, third printing. Octavo in white illus DJ, b&w illus and color illus to front DJ, deckle edges, x, 275 pages, b&w illustrations, map; 23 cm. Extremely mild rubbing to spine head and foot, faint soiling to boards and fore-edges, remainder mark to bottom edge, exceedingly gentle wear to corners, bright pages in tight binding, exceedingly gentle rubbing to DJ spine head and foot, light soiling to DJ, extremely mild rubbing to DJ corners, else Fine in Near Fine(+) DJ. Hardcover. ISBN: 0743464788Signed by author. In 1851, struggling, self-taught physicist Lǒn Foucault performed a dramatic demonstration inside the Panthǒn in Paris. By tracking a pendulum's path as it swung repeatedly across the interior of the large ceremonial hall, Foucault offered the first definitive proof -- before an audience that comprised the cream of Parisian society, including the future emperor, Napoleon III -- that the earth revolves on its axis. In this book, Amir Aczel has revealed the life of a gifted physicist who had almost no formal education in science, and yet managed to succeed despite the adversity he suffered at the hands of his peers. Foucault gave us the modern electric compass, devised an electric microscope, invented photographic technology, and made remarkable deductions about color theory, heat waves, and the speed of light. Yet until now so little has been known about his life. Pendulum tells of the illustrious period in France during the Second Empire; of Foucault's relationship with Napoleon III, a colorful character in his own right; and -- most notably -- of the crucial triumph of science over religion. Contents: A stunning discovery in the cellar -- Ancient logic: Bible and inquisition -- Failed experiments with falling bodies-- A science "irregular" in the age of the engineer -- The meridian of Paris -- "Come see the earth turn" -- Mathematical Bedlam -- A new Bonaparte -- The force of Coriolis -- The Panthéon -- The Gyroscope -- The Coup d'État and the second empire -- An unemployed genius -- The observatory physicist -- Final glory -- A premature end -- The defeat at Sedan -- Aftermath. Physicists -- France -- Biography.
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