Showing results for "One for the Books" in Astronomy & Space Science

This story chronicles the crimes of Antoine-Francois Desrues (also called "Derues") from his childhood to his execution. Desrues constructed the veneer of a virtuous reputation that hid his ever-increasing deviancy from society. Eventually, his lust for fame and fortune (especially the latter) crumbled his virtuous veneer, revealing the startling extent of his crimes, and condemning him to justice by the executioner's hand. - Summary by jvanstan

Robert W. Chambers (1865-1933) studied art in Paris in the late 80's and early 90's, where his work was displayed at the Salon. However, shortly after returning to America, he decided to spend his time in writing. He became popular as the writer of a number of romantic novels, but is now best known as the author of "The King In Yellow". This is a collection of the first half of this work of short stories which have an eerie, other-worldly feel to it; but the stories in the second half are essentially love stories, strongly coloured by the author's life as an artist in France. Only the first ...

Breckinridge Elkins is the roughest, toughest, fastest-shootin', hardest-fightin' feller in the Bear Creek settlement, and probably in the entire Humbolt Mountains. As he travels further from home, he single-handedly takes on outlaws, settles (and starts) feuds and tries his hand at romancing the girls. He also discovers a lot of strange customs among other folks, such as building houses out of boards and wearing clothes that ain't buckskins. Set in Nevada during the late 1800's, this collection of stories is a great rollicking romp through the American frontier as seen through the eyes of one...

This is an early account of the life of George Castriot, Dominus Albaniae; An Albanian princeling and Ottoman military commander who rebelled and lead a decades long David-and-Goliath struggle against his former masters. He is a central figure of the Albanian identity and his coat of arms is today the flag of Albania. Historia de vita et gestis Scanderbegi Epirotarvm principis was published, in Latin, in 1504 by Marin Barleti who was a Catholic priest. In 1576, Jacques de Lavardin translated it into French and expanded on it under the title; Histoire de Georges Castriot, surnommé Scanderbeg, ...

The Natural History of Pliny the Elder is one of the largest single works to have survived from the Roman Empire. The full work consists of 37 books, covering more than 20.000 topics ranging from astronomy and mathematics to botany and precious stones. The book became a model for later encyclopaedias and gives a fascinating overview of the state of scientific knowledge almost 2000 years ago. This version of the Natural History (or, the "Pliny") has been adapted for a younger audience. This first volume contains Book I (Dedication) and Book II (An Account of the World and the Elements) out of a...

BLAST, edited by Wyndham Lewis and subtitled 'Review of the Great British Vortex', was the magazine of the short-lived Vorticist movement in British art. Influenced by Cubism and Futurism, and Imagism in literature, the Vorticists embraced all things modern and veered towards abstraction. The first issue of BLAST was published, with its distinctive puce cover and bold typography, on 20 June 1914, but within weeks war had broken out in Europe. The Vorticists held an exhibition at the Doré Gallery in London in 1915 and a second issue of BLAST was published, but the movement did not survive the ...

In The Outline of Science, Thomson gives us a window into scientific thinking as it stood in 1922 on the big, the little, and the biological. With straightforward language intended for a general audience, this book covers astronomy from the Solar System to the Milky Way, the submicroscopic makeup of matter from protons and electrons, and the evolution of simple living beings into the varied fauna of the world today. Thomson cites many examples that would have been familiar to his readers of the day and notes where scientific understanding leaves off and conjecture begins. He clearly shows how ...

Abner Doubleday was a busy man. He rose to be a major general during the American Civil War, started the first cable car company in San Francisco, and is credited (though perhaps erroneously) with inventing the game of baseball. In 1861, he had the distinction as a captain to be second-in-command of Ft. Moultrie, one of the harbor defenses of Charleston, SC.. When that state seceded from the Union, Doubleday and the garrison of artillerists manning the fort were cut off from supplies and reinforcements. Through a tumultuous period, during which the command transferred to Ft. Sumter and soon ...

The Discourse on Method is best known as the source of the famous quotation “cogito ergo sum”, “I think, therefore I am.” …. It is a method which gives a solid platform from which all modern natural sciences could evolve. With this work, the idea of skepticism was revived from the ancients such as Sextus Empiricus and modified to account for a truth that Descartes found to be incontrovertible. Descartes started his line of reasoning by doubting everything, so as to assess the world from a fresh perspective, clear of any preconceived notions. (Summary by Wikipedia)

"The Rover: A weekly magazine of tales, poetry and engravings, original and selected" was a magazine started in 1843 by Seba Smith and Lawrence Labree. The editors aimed at a high quality standard in their selection of short stories and poetry. Every half-year, the 26 weekly issues were also published under a bound compilation. This is the 21st issue of the series with yet another interesting collection of short stories, poems and miscellania. - Summary by Sonia

The Penny Magazine of the Society for the Diffusion of Useful Knowledge was published in competition to Chambers's Edinburgh Journal, which started two months earlier. Costing just one penny, it was aimed at the working class and needed broad circulation in order to survive. Initially successful, its content proved to miss the mark and be of more interest to the upper classes and folded after a couple of years. Its format was to offer short essays on a variety of topics the paternalistic publisher deemed important to its readership. (Summary by LynneT)

Capt. Robert F. Scott's bid to be the leader of the first expedition to reach the South Pole is one of the most famous journeys of all time. What started as a scientific expedition turned out to be an unwilling race against a team lead by R. Admunsen to reach the Pole. The Norwegian flag already stood at the end of the trail when Scott's party reached their target. All the five men of the Scott expedition who took part in the last march to the Pole perished on their way back to safety. Robert F. Scott kept a journal throughout the journey, all the way to the tragic end, documenting all aspects...

This is the first volume of Dumas' Marie Antoinette Romances (also called "The Memoirs of a Physician"). This historical fiction chronicles the strange events surrounding the fall of the French monarchy (starting ~1770) and rise of revolutionaries so terrifying that the period is still called "The Reign of Terrors" (1793-1794). In this volume, a renowned magician, Count Alessandro di Cagliostro (Balsamo), employs various occult tactics, like hypnotism and necromancy, to gain state secrets. Balsamo claims to be plotting against the Bourbons, but one must wonder whether this 3000 year old ...

Lord Cochrane was a Napoleonic-era sea captain, whose adventures were the source material for many popular series of naval fiction. He started to write a biography but passed away after completing only two volumes. This work, co-authored by a naval historian and Cocharne's son, completes his "Autobiography of a Seaman". In this volume, Cochrane helps the Chilean navy defeat the Pacific navy of Spain, and then takes command of the navy of Brazil. It ends with him sailing to Greece, to aid them in rebellion against their Ottoman overlords

This is volume 4 chapter 21 of a series of books written by the Baron Macaulay (1800-1859) in the 19th century. It starts with a brief resume of the history of England up until the Stuart kings and then starts to delve into a little more detail. Macaulay is primarily fascinated by ending of any claim to divine right of kings and the growing role of Parliament in the governing of the country. He sees the accession of William and Mary (Dutch, Protestant royalty) to the British throne as a key moment in the history of the British Isles. This is a book delightful for the literary gifts of the ...

Henry David Thoreau (July 12, 1817 – May 6, 1862) was an American naturalist, essayist, poet, and philosopher. A leading transcendentalist,he is best known for his book Walden, a reflection upon simple living in natural surroundings, and his essay "Civil Disobedience" (originally published as "Resistance to Civil Government"), an argument for disobedience to an unjust state. Thoreau was known for being a prolific writer, keeping journals from the age of 20 until shortly before his death.He wrote of his observations in nature, gleaned largely from his daily walks. He also was a man of strong ...

Multi-volume work on science edited by Francis Rolt-Wheeler. The first volume is on Astronomy written by Waldemar Kaempffert. This book briefly discusses the evolution of astronomical beliefs and the development of instruments and progress of methods in the science. It explains, further, the different astronomical laws, theories, phenomena and objects, as well as the history of these discoveries. (summary by Sienna)

The Letters of Euler to a German Princess have acquired over all Europe a celebrity to which the reputation of the Author, the choice and importance of the several subjects, and the clearness of elucidation justly entitle them. They have deservedly been considered as a treasury of science, adapted to the purposes of every common seminary of learning. They may be studied to advantage without much previous elementary knowledge; they convey accurate ideas respecting a variety of objects, highly interesting in themselves, or calculated to excite a laudable curiosity; they inspire a proper taste ...

This is chapter 1 of volume 1 of a series of books written by the Baron Macaulay in the 19th century. It starts with a brief resume of the history of England up until the Stuart kings and then starts to delve into a little more detail. Macaulay is primarily fascinated by ending of any claim to divine right of kings and the growing role of Parliament in the governing of the country. He sees the accession of William and Mary (Dutch, Protestant royalty) to the British throne as a key moment in the history of the British Isles. This is a book delightful for the literary gifts of the author and ...

The world's most basic yet intriguing podcast. Each episode contains no useful information whatsoever, or does it? Join your host Kashish Grover (basic brown Millennial) as he talks about stuff you probably don't want to hear about because he does not give two shits.