The How and the Why

by David Allen Park

The description for this book, The How and the Why, will be forthcoming.

Genres: Science, History, Philosophy

530 pages, Paperback

First published August 1, 1988

About the author

David Allen Park (often cited as David Park) was Professor of Physics Emeritus at Williams College, Williamstown, Massachusetts.

He graduated from Harvard in 1941, and earned his Ph.D. from University of Michigan. He also was associated with the Harvard Radio Laboratory and the Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton before returning to Williams as an assistant professor in 1952.

Reviews

[Liam · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Since the time of Ptolemy there had been astronomers but little making of astronomy. Mostly there had been arguments over undecidable points that had already been decided a thousand times, and readjustments of numbers to bring the tables up to date. For the professionals of his time, Copernicus was just another such astronomer, and the value of his work was judged by the accuracy and convenience of the tables his method produced." (147-8)

"The Principia is a gallery of ingenious mathematical proofs; weak spots are rare. Newton states a proposition, draws an appropriate diagram, perhaps fudges something, and announced the result. His dynamical theory contains truth but not a method." (248)

"It has taken about fifteen billion years for us to arrive at the point where we can talk about the universe. Therefore it is just as well that there was a little extravagance at the creation." (382)

[Mr. Garcia · Rating 5 out of 5]

I found this book in a used bookstore in Berkeley when I was in high school, and read it before starting college. Reading this book got me excited about my Physics classes and contributed in part to my decision to earn a degree in Physics. The writing is very engaging and the explanations are very clear. I know not everyone wants to learn and understand about Physics, but for those who do you couldn't do much better than this book. This book is very well researched and filled with great quotes from scientists and philosophers about the value of scientific knowledge.

[Seth · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have come to believe that physicists are our once and future philosophers. Park's The How and the Why is one my primary pieces of evidence to support this theory.

[Shannon · Rating 3 out of 5]

Comprehensive and interesting. Whenever people tell me they're just "not science people," I suggest The Sleepwalkers and this book to them.