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Circles
From the bestselling author of The Knowledge Web come fifty mesmerizing journeys into the history of technology, each following a chain of consequential events that ends precisely where it began. Whether exploring electromagnetic fields, the origin of hot chocolate, or DNA fingerprinting, these essays all illustrate the surprisingly circular nature of change.
In "Room with (Half) a View," for instance, Burke muses about the partly obscured railway bridge outside his home on the Thames, a musing which sets off a chain of thought that leads from the bridge's engineer to Samuel Morse, to firearms inventor Sam Colt, and finally to a trombonist named Gustav Holst, who once lived in the very house that blocks Burke's view.
So it goes with Burke's entertaining and informative essays as each one highlights the interconnectedness of seemingly unrelated events and innovations. Romantic poetry leads to brandy distillation; tonic water connects through Leibniz to the first explorers to reach the North Pole. This unique collection is sure to stimulate and delight history buffs, technophiles, and anyone else with a healthy intellectual curiosity.
In "Room with (Half) a View," for instance, Burke muses about the partly obscured railway bridge outside his home on the Thames, a musing which sets off a chain of thought that leads from the bridge's engineer to Samuel Morse, to firearms inventor Sam Colt, and finally to a trombonist named Gustav Holst, who once lived in the very house that blocks Burke's view.
So it goes with Burke's entertaining and informative essays as each one highlights the interconnectedness of seemingly unrelated events and innovations. Romantic poetry leads to brandy distillation; tonic water connects through Leibniz to the first explorers to reach the North Pole. This unique collection is sure to stimulate and delight history buffs, technophiles, and anyone else with a healthy intellectual curiosity.
288 pages, Paperback
First published December 5, 2000
30 people are currently reading
349 people want to read
About the author
James Burke
22 books271 followersLibrarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name.
James Burke is a Northern Irish science historian, author and television producer best known for his documentary television series called Connections, focusing on the history of science and technology leavened with a sense of humour.
James Burke is a Northern Irish science historian, author and television producer best known for his documentary television series called Connections, focusing on the history of science and technology leavened with a sense of humour.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 30 reviews
January 27, 2021
This is a book to read when your brain is tired. Just finished Principia Mathematica, the Critique of Pure Reason, or some other demanding tome, but don’t want to let your mind turn to mush with some trivial, babbling fiction book? James Burke’s Circles is just the thing. It is a fun read, full of interesting facts he tosses off one after another, giving each a paragraph or two before quickly linking it to something else. I filled up two pages in my notebook with things I wanted to go back to later and find more information about. For instance, during the V-1 flying bomb assault on Southeastern England from June to October 1944, the M9 combat director was introduced, a primitive analog computer which tracked the path of the missile and predicted its future position, allowing anti-aircraft guns to correctly position themselves. With it the number of shells needed to knock one down went from 2500 to less than 100, and in the last full week of the V-1 assault only four of 104 of the bombs made it to London. To me that is a fascinating little fact. It also spurred me to look for a book specifically about the Blitz, and I found one: David Johnson’s 1982 work V-1 V-2: Hitler’s Vengeance on London.
There is no plot to James Burke’s Circles. It is fifty short chapters, each only a few pages long, which start with an observation and then connects it to others using people, places, discoveries, and inventions. Some of the connections are pretty tenuous, but if it’s formal logic you are looking for, that Critique of Pure Reason is there just waiting to be read again. This book is designed to make you say, “Hmm, that’s interesting….”
The same characters and inventions show up multiple times in the book, but these are not really repetitions. Some of them repeat because the same person or idea is linked to other people and ideas, but for the most part each repetition evokes a different aspect of someone or something that was mentioned previously. For instance, my comment about the success against the V-1 bombs is a composite of two different mentions of the M9 in the book, each in a different context.
To give an idea of how the book is structured, I will summarize part of Chapter 48. It starts with the author gazing on Isambard Kingdom Brunel’s London railway bridge, which is partially visible from Burke’s house, although some of the view is blocked by another building. Brunel also built the SS Great Eastern, the largest ship in the world at the time, but which was not a commercial success and was eventually used in 1866 in a failed attempt by Cyrus Field to lay the first transatlantic telegraph cable. Field got his idea from Samuel Morse who in an 1844 demonstration of the telegraph had sent signals across New York harbor using an insulated copper cable. Morse also provided information to his neighbor, Sam Colt, who tried and failed to interest the Navy in a new electrically operated underwater mine. Colt’s fortunes were saved by the Mexican-American war, when his new revolver was widely adopted, and by 1855 he had the largest private armory in the world. His major rival was the Remington Company, which invented a breech-loading rifle which sold more than a million copies in America, Europe, and the Middle East. After the Civil War, when demand for weapons dropped, he turned some of his machinery to the production of typewriters, which had been invented by Christopher Scholes, who had received legal advice in patenting the product from Carlos Glidden. In 1874 Joseph Glidden, a relative of Carlos, invented barbed wire, mass production of which was possible because in 1868 a British engineer named George Bedson had invented a wire-making machine that could produce vast quantities from wrought iron. Bedson also invented a continuous process for dipping wire into molten zinc to galvanize it, protecting it against the weather. The new galvanized wire was used by Ezra Cornell to string telegraph wires across America, making him rich enough to found a university bearing his name.
And on and on and on, through multiple additional connections that eventually end with the composer Gustav Holst, who once lived in the building that was partially blocking Burke’s view of the London railway bridge.
This kind of thing, of constantly looping tangential facts, is not to everyone’s liking, but I had a lot of fun reading it. I also picked up interesting bits of information which may one day make me a master of trivial games, or the boringest person at a cocktail party. Some of them are:
- Charles Lindbergh, the famous aviator, also invented a perfusion pump which made heart surgery possible.
- Joseph Black, a chemistry professor at Glasgow University, was experimenting with ways to make whiskey when he discovered the concept of latent heat. He passed on the idea to Matthew Boulton, who was James Watts’ partner, who used it to develop a condenser for his steam pumps, which vastly improved their efficiency.
- John Harrison invented the chronometer, which made it possible to determine longitude at sea. This could only be done because Benjamin Huntsman had created a new kind of crucible which allowed metals to be melted at the extremely high temperatures necessary to make clocksprings that were not too brittle to use.
- Coal Tar, a smelly by-product of the production of coke and coal gas from coal was disposed of a waste product until it was found to be a precursor of a vast array of chemical substances, such as artificial dyes, phenol, antiseptics, creosote, and pyridine. In 1890 German chemist Felix Hoffman, who was working for Bayer, synthesized salicylic acid from phenol and from there created acetylsalicylic acid. In nature, salicylic acid comes from the meadowsweet plant (in Latin: spirea), so Hoffman named his new substance A (acetyl), SPIR (spirea), and IN (no one knows why). Putting them together gave the substance the name by which it is known today: aspirin.
- In 1885 Pittsburgh resident Edward Acheson heated a mixture of coke and clay in an electric furnace, creating the world’s second-hardest material, carborundum. It is still used today, although now it is bonded to grinding wheels with a material called furfural (Latin for bran), which is created by adding sulphuric acid and water at high pressure to a mixture of plant by-products such as oat husks, bagasse, and rice hulls.
- Also in 1885, Austrian chemist Auer von Welsbach created an alternative to the Edison electric light by infusing a cotton gas mantle with the rare earth element neodymium. It did not beat out Edison’s invention, but is still used today. If you have ever used a Coleman or other camping lantern, von Welsbach’s process is how it produces its light.
- By 1813 gaslight was beginning to change the world, making night shifts, and nightlife in towns possible. A plumber’s candle was invented which became the standard measure for how light could be quantified, which is why gas light is still measured in “candlepower.”
There is no plot to James Burke’s Circles. It is fifty short chapters, each only a few pages long, which start with an observation and then connects it to others using people, places, discoveries, and inventions. Some of the connections are pretty tenuous, but if it’s formal logic you are looking for, that Critique of Pure Reason is there just waiting to be read again. This book is designed to make you say, “Hmm, that’s interesting….”
The same characters and inventions show up multiple times in the book, but these are not really repetitions. Some of them repeat because the same person or idea is linked to other people and ideas, but for the most part each repetition evokes a different aspect of someone or something that was mentioned previously. For instance, my comment about the success against the V-1 bombs is a composite of two different mentions of the M9 in the book, each in a different context.
To give an idea of how the book is structured, I will summarize part of Chapter 48. It starts with the author gazing on Isambard Kingdom Brunel’s London railway bridge, which is partially visible from Burke’s house, although some of the view is blocked by another building. Brunel also built the SS Great Eastern, the largest ship in the world at the time, but which was not a commercial success and was eventually used in 1866 in a failed attempt by Cyrus Field to lay the first transatlantic telegraph cable. Field got his idea from Samuel Morse who in an 1844 demonstration of the telegraph had sent signals across New York harbor using an insulated copper cable. Morse also provided information to his neighbor, Sam Colt, who tried and failed to interest the Navy in a new electrically operated underwater mine. Colt’s fortunes were saved by the Mexican-American war, when his new revolver was widely adopted, and by 1855 he had the largest private armory in the world. His major rival was the Remington Company, which invented a breech-loading rifle which sold more than a million copies in America, Europe, and the Middle East. After the Civil War, when demand for weapons dropped, he turned some of his machinery to the production of typewriters, which had been invented by Christopher Scholes, who had received legal advice in patenting the product from Carlos Glidden. In 1874 Joseph Glidden, a relative of Carlos, invented barbed wire, mass production of which was possible because in 1868 a British engineer named George Bedson had invented a wire-making machine that could produce vast quantities from wrought iron. Bedson also invented a continuous process for dipping wire into molten zinc to galvanize it, protecting it against the weather. The new galvanized wire was used by Ezra Cornell to string telegraph wires across America, making him rich enough to found a university bearing his name.
And on and on and on, through multiple additional connections that eventually end with the composer Gustav Holst, who once lived in the building that was partially blocking Burke’s view of the London railway bridge.
This kind of thing, of constantly looping tangential facts, is not to everyone’s liking, but I had a lot of fun reading it. I also picked up interesting bits of information which may one day make me a master of trivial games, or the boringest person at a cocktail party. Some of them are:
- Charles Lindbergh, the famous aviator, also invented a perfusion pump which made heart surgery possible.
- Joseph Black, a chemistry professor at Glasgow University, was experimenting with ways to make whiskey when he discovered the concept of latent heat. He passed on the idea to Matthew Boulton, who was James Watts’ partner, who used it to develop a condenser for his steam pumps, which vastly improved their efficiency.
- John Harrison invented the chronometer, which made it possible to determine longitude at sea. This could only be done because Benjamin Huntsman had created a new kind of crucible which allowed metals to be melted at the extremely high temperatures necessary to make clocksprings that were not too brittle to use.
- Coal Tar, a smelly by-product of the production of coke and coal gas from coal was disposed of a waste product until it was found to be a precursor of a vast array of chemical substances, such as artificial dyes, phenol, antiseptics, creosote, and pyridine. In 1890 German chemist Felix Hoffman, who was working for Bayer, synthesized salicylic acid from phenol and from there created acetylsalicylic acid. In nature, salicylic acid comes from the meadowsweet plant (in Latin: spirea), so Hoffman named his new substance A (acetyl), SPIR (spirea), and IN (no one knows why). Putting them together gave the substance the name by which it is known today: aspirin.
- In 1885 Pittsburgh resident Edward Acheson heated a mixture of coke and clay in an electric furnace, creating the world’s second-hardest material, carborundum. It is still used today, although now it is bonded to grinding wheels with a material called furfural (Latin for bran), which is created by adding sulphuric acid and water at high pressure to a mixture of plant by-products such as oat husks, bagasse, and rice hulls.
- Also in 1885, Austrian chemist Auer von Welsbach created an alternative to the Edison electric light by infusing a cotton gas mantle with the rare earth element neodymium. It did not beat out Edison’s invention, but is still used today. If you have ever used a Coleman or other camping lantern, von Welsbach’s process is how it produces its light.
- By 1813 gaslight was beginning to change the world, making night shifts, and nightlife in towns possible. A plumber’s candle was invented which became the standard measure for how light could be quantified, which is why gas light is still measured in “candlepower.”
May 5, 2015
This book had an interesting premise but reading it turned out to be a waste of my time. There is nothing clever or insightful about it. It is like six degrees of separation only more like twelve, and you can use friends of friends, or people who work in the same field, or who lived in the same place only at different times, or whatever you like. It is truly worthless. Aside from that, it is fairly well written.
I only made it 50% of the way through and for the last 40% I kept asking myself why I was reading it.
I only made it 50% of the way through and for the last 40% I kept asking myself why I was reading it.
February 8, 2020
Today’s book review is for one of the many books written by James Burke, who’s claim to fame is his ability to popularize science / technology with history and biography to “create” linkages which make the world (and history) appear to be interconnected. I believe his most well known work is the book and the BBC series “Connections“. At least this is how I first came to know Burke (and enjoy his work).
“Circles” is sub-titled “50 Round Trips through History, Technology, Science, Culture“. The book is a collection of essays which have been gathered into this form. Each “essay” / “trip” is about four pages and they are each fairly self-contained, so there is no inherent requirement to read them in order – or all of them for that matter. Each starts with some action in his life: a trip to the library, beach, coffee shop, etc; winds through the “circle” of people / history / discovery he is hi-lighting and then gets wrapped up with another reference to the initial action / place.
The stories are mildly interesting. The links are tenuous. The author occasionally breaks the fourth wall. But, most frequently, the author writes in a peculiar conversational form which struck me as not using full sentences or proper sentence structure. I found it hard to discern if this was more conversational, breaking of the fourth wall or simply lazy writing. In the end, I just found it frustrating to try to figure out the subject of a sentence by having to re-read sentences (or paragraphs).
Final recommendation: poor to moderate recommendation. I admit to being pretty disappointed. I was a big fan of his “Connections” series and watched it on my local Public Broadcasting Station (PBS) many years ago. I think I also read the book (way back when), but I can’t swear to it. I was, therefore, looking forward to more of the same. This book mostly was “just” the same, but (surprisingly) much less interesting or amusing. Now I think I have to go back and find the original book (“Connections“) to see if the author has changed or if it’s the reader (me) who has changed.
“Circles” is sub-titled “50 Round Trips through History, Technology, Science, Culture“. The book is a collection of essays which have been gathered into this form. Each “essay” / “trip” is about four pages and they are each fairly self-contained, so there is no inherent requirement to read them in order – or all of them for that matter. Each starts with some action in his life: a trip to the library, beach, coffee shop, etc; winds through the “circle” of people / history / discovery he is hi-lighting and then gets wrapped up with another reference to the initial action / place.
The stories are mildly interesting. The links are tenuous. The author occasionally breaks the fourth wall. But, most frequently, the author writes in a peculiar conversational form which struck me as not using full sentences or proper sentence structure. I found it hard to discern if this was more conversational, breaking of the fourth wall or simply lazy writing. In the end, I just found it frustrating to try to figure out the subject of a sentence by having to re-read sentences (or paragraphs).
Final recommendation: poor to moderate recommendation. I admit to being pretty disappointed. I was a big fan of his “Connections” series and watched it on my local Public Broadcasting Station (PBS) many years ago. I think I also read the book (way back when), but I can’t swear to it. I was, therefore, looking forward to more of the same. This book mostly was “just” the same, but (surprisingly) much less interesting or amusing. Now I think I have to go back and find the original book (“Connections“) to see if the author has changed or if it’s the reader (me) who has changed.
August 28, 2015
Burke's very good at telling a story, and suffering from a general inability to recall names/dates/places without a narrative to hang them from, I've enjoyed his trips through history in other mediums, especially the excellent "Connections" series. This book follows many of the same trips, trying (sometimes at a stretch) to delve deep into history, and play the six-degrees-of-separation game back to the origin point. Unfortunately, the narrative is lost in the mad hop from point to point.
Part of this is due to the nature of the material: it's reprints of columns from _Scientific American_, so there's a tendency towards economy of words. Each essay feels hasty as a result, and may have been more engaging in their original form. I can't tell you any specifics about any one of the half-hundred brief essays in here, other than to say (like "Connections") that you can bet that coal tar and certain polymaths figure in at just about every turn.
Burke's entertaining, and this hyperlinked approach to history is not unlike wandering through Wikipedia, clicking on link to link to see how far one can go. Unlike the online version, though, there's no time to linger at any one topic, leaving the whole exercise more like a party trick than historical wayfinding.
Part of this is due to the nature of the material: it's reprints of columns from _Scientific American_, so there's a tendency towards economy of words. Each essay feels hasty as a result, and may have been more engaging in their original form. I can't tell you any specifics about any one of the half-hundred brief essays in here, other than to say (like "Connections") that you can bet that coal tar and certain polymaths figure in at just about every turn.
Burke's entertaining, and this hyperlinked approach to history is not unlike wandering through Wikipedia, clicking on link to link to see how far one can go. Unlike the online version, though, there's no time to linger at any one topic, leaving the whole exercise more like a party trick than historical wayfinding.
January 31, 2012
I am a James Burke fan. I love how he looks at things and appreciate the research and dedication it takes to put out the work he has become famous for. I gave Connections a five and this a three. This isn't bad but its not as good. Consider it a collection of 50 short stories like Connections but squeezed way down (some repeated!?).
I read the first one and it was good, then the second, third etc. and it got... monotonous. Too many facts condensed into too few words and the more you read the harder it seemed to be to follow - for me anyway. Maybe I got burned out or just tired of it - hard to say. If you want to put something on your shelf to pull out once in a while for a quick blast of Burke - it's perfect. Sit down and read this from cover to cover? I'd be surprised how much you really retained at the end. Could one list out all fifty stories at the end - doubtful. So how much of the VERY detailed facts do you retain when done? Few I think.
I like to read Burke to learn, but this format makes that hard.
I read the first one and it was good, then the second, third etc. and it got... monotonous. Too many facts condensed into too few words and the more you read the harder it seemed to be to follow - for me anyway. Maybe I got burned out or just tired of it - hard to say. If you want to put something on your shelf to pull out once in a while for a quick blast of Burke - it's perfect. Sit down and read this from cover to cover? I'd be surprised how much you really retained at the end. Could one list out all fifty stories at the end - doubtful. So how much of the VERY detailed facts do you retain when done? Few I think.
I like to read Burke to learn, but this format makes that hard.
August 7, 2017
I remember being mesmerized when I read Connections and The Day the Universe Changed many years ago. I found this book at a library sale and thought it would be more amazing stories of the history of technology.
I was disappointed.
Yes, the book is in a broad sense the same as Burke's previous works, but I feel he got lazy by the time he was writing this book. Many of his connections start with a particular personal circumstance of his (visiting a restaurant, looking out his window, etc.) which is kind of cheating. Also, a noticeably high number of characters make their way through several stories, which got me to wondering if I was imagining things or if he was really repeating himself.
I also found a serious error in a chemical formula: NO2 vs. N2O. You might think I'm being nitpicky, but he was making a point about laughing gas (N2O) and repeatedly wrote N2O (a poisonous gas which is not laughter-inducing at all).
Definitely not up to the level I was anticipating given that I loved his earlier books.
I was disappointed.
Yes, the book is in a broad sense the same as Burke's previous works, but I feel he got lazy by the time he was writing this book. Many of his connections start with a particular personal circumstance of his (visiting a restaurant, looking out his window, etc.) which is kind of cheating. Also, a noticeably high number of characters make their way through several stories, which got me to wondering if I was imagining things or if he was really repeating himself.
I also found a serious error in a chemical formula: NO2 vs. N2O. You might think I'm being nitpicky, but he was making a point about laughing gas (N2O) and repeatedly wrote N2O (a poisonous gas which is not laughter-inducing at all).
Definitely not up to the level I was anticipating given that I loved his earlier books.
January 28, 2017
Circles is a sort of "six degrees of seperation" in which Burke begins with an idea or person (history, technology, science, culture, the like) and through connections with other ideas or people, circles back around to the beginning point.
This is a witty, interesting, and informative book that reads like having a conversation with the author. Most lead me to want to research further on my own. Some of the links are more tenuous than others, but that doesn't lessen the entertainment value of the essay.
The important thing to remember about Circles is that it is not intended to be read straight through. One or two essays at time, at most, should be read, digested, enjoyed before proceeding to another. Trying to read multiple chapters at a time will result in an overdose of Burke's humor, and an inability to remember any of the details.
I highly recommend Burke in general, and Circles in particular for the lay-historian.
(And yes, I have, and have had since the early 1990's, a painful schoolgirl-crush on Burke.)
This is a witty, interesting, and informative book that reads like having a conversation with the author. Most lead me to want to research further on my own. Some of the links are more tenuous than others, but that doesn't lessen the entertainment value of the essay.
The important thing to remember about Circles is that it is not intended to be read straight through. One or two essays at time, at most, should be read, digested, enjoyed before proceeding to another. Trying to read multiple chapters at a time will result in an overdose of Burke's humor, and an inability to remember any of the details.
I highly recommend Burke in general, and Circles in particular for the lay-historian.
(And yes, I have, and have had since the early 1990's, a painful schoolgirl-crush on Burke.)
July 6, 2008
Although I don't typically like short-chapter books like this one, James Burke is a standout from the good ol' days (remember Connections, anyone?) and this book is only a little disappointing. Each chapter takes a person, event, or idea from history, sort of traces connected events (like so-and-so was friends with this person, who invented this gadget, which was widely used by this person, and so on) until he somehow manages to find his way back to his starting point. Some of his connections are sort of iffy but the journey from beginning to end is still pretty interesting, in a curiosity-provoking way.
February 24, 2017
I remembered James Burke from the 1970 BBC series on the historical connections upon which technology evolves. These shorter versions of his round trips through the history of technology are so fast that they may make you dizzy. The facts and names and inventions wiz by in a blur and before you know it you are back where you started—cut short by necessity, as these are a collection of newspaper columns. They are certainly informative and chock full of historical and technical trivia, but I prefer the longer, more developed version of Burke’s historical expeditions.
March 19, 2017
It feels like glancing at fifty tiny rooms through the door with Burke's company as a insider-spy-gossip generator. Burke's threads are sometimes mercurial; hard to follow with ease and confidently, without questioning: wait, what!? Who?!.. And we never take a seat for a second in any room.
August 20, 2012
So far just like the series on television without the cool pics. Mr. Burkes writing is a bit hard to follow, must be the accent.
June 1, 2016
James Burke just seems to be trying too hard to find these circular paths by dredging up bizarre and obscure facts to connect together.
August 14, 2017
A bit repetitive at times, but easy to dive in and out of. History for the short attention span.
September 8, 2017
At times a little contrived but clever and fun. Did I mention this guy likes puns?
March 24, 2019
Not on a par with many of his others. I felt rushed reading each chapter. That's the only way I can explain it right now. I'll spend some more time thinking about it, but that is my first impression.
June 5, 2017
Another example of Burke's excellent work that has given way to the Web instead of his Information Web. His linkage using indices, table of contents, and footnotes to tease out the stories of the people and events that he writes about have ofter been replaced by hyperlinks, without his wit and knowledge. The book is 50 connections of various people, (inventors, scientists, mechanics, stumble bums, and weirdos) who are connected in complex social, scientific and historical events. Some may wind over 100 years, some 3000. Somehow the hyperlinks don't have his wit, knowledge, or connective ability. Well done. Literally.
abandoned
September 12, 2020An interesting concept, but after I would finish each story I found that I couldn't really remember much of anything I read. I decided it wasn't worth my time to finish.
October 5, 2022
Head Spinning accounts on the discoveries made in field of science, technology, psychology and how those discoveries were connected & had an impact on historical events and culture.
June 5, 2023
I loved Connections (the TV series) and read the book later. This one was a gift and was okay, but not in the same league.
May 14, 2015
James Burke is the king of connections; one of his earlier books even carries that title: Connections. This collection of essays is a lighter tome in some ways but similar in others, that is the connections in each essay. As the title suggests, each essay circles from some incident or anecdote through the connectedness of scientific and technological events to an end where you began. Each chapter performs this neat trick and the author's witty style makes for enjoyable reading. This is a great place to learn about technology if you have little background in the topic. For those with some knowledge and interest this may be lightweight fare, but it is good entertainment nonetheless.
March 9, 2013
Burke has made his mark on the field of science history by emphasizing the genuine repercussions of technological development, and in Circles he twists his usual formula right around. Emphasizing mostly the peer-based nature of science, he begins and ends each essay in the same place, pointing out odd coincidences and interesting links between the great minds and their output on the way. Fun, approachable science writing.
January 4, 2009
Interesting book - sort of a "6-degrees of" game. He starts with an idea, then follows a link from it through many different aspects of history and technology and brings it back to the original idea or thought. Sometimes you wish he'd spend more time on a topic, but I guess the book is a good way to get one started on more in-depth research about something.
July 24, 2007
this book makes really fascinating connections between inventions and historical events, and brings everything full circle (hence the title). i highly recommend it
May 5, 2008
I so enjoyed this book! This is exactly the kind of book that answers certain questions you never knew you had.
February 17, 2009
Fun technology tidbits with loads of puns and Britishisms. A little insubstantial or non-rigorous or something. But Isambard Kingdom Brunel! Angelica Kauffmann! Louis Quatorze!
November 10, 2011
Bloody Brilliant!
February 2, 2012
As the title proclaims, Burke writes "circle" stories about science and innovation in our world. As always, this is well researched.
January 5, 2014
I love the way James Burke thinks.
September 18, 2015
It served its purpose as my night time reading material :)
Want to read
January 17, 2009from Maura's list.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 30 reviews