The Story of Science in America
Encyclopedia
The Story of Science in America is a 1967 science book
by L. Sprague de Camp
and Catherine Crook de Camp
, illustrated by Leonard Everett Fisher
, published by Charles Scribner's Sons
. It has been translated into Spanish
, Portuguese
, Burmese
and French
.
The book traces the work of inventors and naturalist
s in the United States
from the Colonial era through the mid-nineteenth century, and relates scientific developments in the century following.
, writing for The New York Times
, called it "a fast-moving, informative and thoroughly enjoyable chronicle, with amusing anecdotes, legends and interesting sidelights that reflect the personalities, lives and times of the men who shaped our nation scientifically." She noted that "the authors have kept their writing free of chauvinism," and that "[m]ost of the scientific concepts are well enough explained so that even the newcomer to science should be able to grasp at least the essence of them." In the same issue the book was included among seventy-five recommended titles selected by the Children's Editor of the newspaper's Book Review, described as an "[i]nformative, thoroughly enjoyable chronicle of the development of science in our country."
Publishers' Weekly
stated that "[t]o read the index ... is to read the names of the men and of their discoveries in science in America, from the earliest days ... to the space age. To read the book is to become familiar with the men and their contributions to science."
George Basalia, writing for Library Journal
, called the book "a first-rate history of American science and technology for high-school students ... cover[ing] major American technical discoveries as well as our contributions to the purely theoretical aspects of science." He found "much to be praised ... the book is intelligently conceived, carefully organized, clearly written, and handsomely designed. Unfortunately, the illustrations do not do justice to [the] excellent text."
H. D. Allen in the Montreal Gazette
wrote that the book's story "makes fascinating reading," and that "[w]hile the treatment of any one discipline may at first seem superficial and chatty, the total impact is most impressive, for the reader is left with an acquaintance with the leading figures of the age of science and some appreciation of how the contribution of each influenced a way of life." He concluded "The breadth of scientific knowledge which this book represents is remarkable, as is the skill with which it has been set down and the effortlessness with which it reads."
The Booklist
called it "[a] wide-ranging survey [that] reflects the authors' humanistic interests as well as their familiarity with several branches of science and their extensive background reading."
Harry C. Stubbs
in The Horn Book Magazine included it among "half a dozen books dealing ... with the history of science [that] I can recommend [both] to nonscientists as guides toward the Light [and] to scientists and science teachers as reminders that what we know was long, slow, and hard in coming." He noted that it "give[s] us a series of fascinating biographical and anecdotal items strung loosely on the thread of developing scientific knowledge."
Philip
and Phylis Morrison in Scientific American
felt it "manages to convey a sense of coherence, even though it deals at staccato length with so many men, trends and ideas ... The reason is partly in the expert writing--smooth, unusually candid, cheerful and sometimes a bit condescending (as in the two or three pages about Veblen)." They add that "[n]ot all the dicta of the authors seem reasonable, but to find any personal judgment at work is so rare in this kind of pedagogy that one is pleased by the De Camps even when one disagrees with them."
Science book
A science book is a work of nonfiction, usually written by a scientist, researcher, or professor like Stephen Hawking , or sometimes by a non-scientist such as Bill Bryson...
by L. Sprague de Camp
L. Sprague de Camp
Lyon Sprague de Camp was an American author of science fiction and fantasy books, non-fiction and biography. In a writing career spanning 60 years, he wrote over 100 books, including novels and notable works of non-fiction, including biographies of other important fantasy authors...
and Catherine Crook de Camp
Catherine Crook de Camp
Catherine Crook de Camp, was an American science fiction and fantasy author and editor. Most of whose work was done in collaboration with her husband L. Sprague de Camp, to whom she was married for sixty years. Her solo work was largely non-fiction.-Life:Catherine Crook was born Catherine Adelaide...
, illustrated by Leonard Everett Fisher
Leonard Everett Fisher
Leonard Everett Fisher is an American artist who has illustrated about 260 books for young readers since 1955, authoring 90 of these....
, published by Charles Scribner's Sons
Charles Scribner's Sons
Charles Scribner's Sons, or simply Scribner, is an American publisher based in New York City, known for publishing a number of American authors including Ernest Hemingway, F. Scott Fitzgerald, Kurt Vonnegut, Stephen King, Robert A. Heinlein, Thomas Wolfe, George Santayana, John Clellon...
. It has been translated into Spanish
Spanish language
Spanish , also known as Castilian , is a Romance language in the Ibero-Romance group that evolved from several languages and dialects in central-northern Iberia around the 9th century and gradually spread with the expansion of the Kingdom of Castile into central and southern Iberia during the...
, Portuguese
Portuguese language
Portuguese is a Romance language that arose in the medieval Kingdom of Galicia, nowadays Galicia and Northern Portugal. The southern part of the Kingdom of Galicia became independent as the County of Portugal in 1095...
, Burmese
Burmese language
The Burmese language is the official language of Burma. Although the constitution officially recognizes it as the Myanmar language, most English speakers continue to refer to the language as Burmese. Burmese is the native language of the Bamar and related sub-ethnic groups of the Bamar, as well as...
and French
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
.
The book traces the work of inventors and naturalist
Natural history
Natural history is the scientific research of plants or animals, leaning more towards observational rather than experimental methods of study, and encompasses more research published in magazines than in academic journals. Grouped among the natural sciences, natural history is the systematic study...
s in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
from the Colonial era through the mid-nineteenth century, and relates scientific developments in the century following.
Contents
- Part One - Science Comes to America
- I - Science in the Colonies
- II - Benjamin Franklin's Century
- III - American Explorers and Expeditions
- IV - The World of Nature
- V - Early Inventors and Inventions
- VI - The Great Industrial Revolution
- Part Two - The Physical Sciences
- VII - The Exact Sciences
- VIII - The Sky Above
- IX - The Earth and its Waters
- X - The Revolution in Physics
- Part Three - The Biological Sciences
- XI - The Sciences of Life
- XII - The Most Marvelous Machine
- XIII - The Sciences of Man
- Part Four - The Applied Sciences
- XIV - The Electrical Revolution
- XV - The Internal-Combustion Revolution
- XVI - The Dangerous Depths of Space
- XVII - Scientists of Today and Tomorrow
- Notes
- Selected Bibliography
- Index
Reception
Critical response to the book was positive. Jane E. BrodyJane Brody
Jane Ellen Brody is an American author on science and nutrition topics, who has written a number of books and reported extensively for The New York Times as its "Personal Health" columnist, which appears weekly in the paper's Science Times section, which has been syndicated nationwide...
, writing for The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
, called it "a fast-moving, informative and thoroughly enjoyable chronicle, with amusing anecdotes, legends and interesting sidelights that reflect the personalities, lives and times of the men who shaped our nation scientifically." She noted that "the authors have kept their writing free of chauvinism," and that "[m]ost of the scientific concepts are well enough explained so that even the newcomer to science should be able to grasp at least the essence of them." In the same issue the book was included among seventy-five recommended titles selected by the Children's Editor of the newspaper's Book Review, described as an "[i]nformative, thoroughly enjoyable chronicle of the development of science in our country."
Publishers' Weekly
Publishers Weekly
Publishers Weekly, aka PW, is an American weekly trade news magazine targeted at publishers, librarians, booksellers and literary agents...
stated that "[t]o read the index ... is to read the names of the men and of their discoveries in science in America, from the earliest days ... to the space age. To read the book is to become familiar with the men and their contributions to science."
George Basalia, writing for Library Journal
Library Journal
Library Journal is a trade publication for librarians. It was founded in 1876 by Melvil Dewey . It reports news about the library world, emphasizing public libraries, and offers feature articles about aspects of professional practice...
, called the book "a first-rate history of American science and technology for high-school students ... cover[ing] major American technical discoveries as well as our contributions to the purely theoretical aspects of science." He found "much to be praised ... the book is intelligently conceived, carefully organized, clearly written, and handsomely designed. Unfortunately, the illustrations do not do justice to [the] excellent text."
H. D. Allen in the Montreal Gazette
The Gazette (Montreal)
The Gazette, often called the Montreal Gazette to avoid ambiguity, is the only English-language daily newspaper published in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, with three other daily English newspapers all having shut down at different times during the second half of the 20th century.-History:In 1778,...
wrote that the book's story "makes fascinating reading," and that "[w]hile the treatment of any one discipline may at first seem superficial and chatty, the total impact is most impressive, for the reader is left with an acquaintance with the leading figures of the age of science and some appreciation of how the contribution of each influenced a way of life." He concluded "The breadth of scientific knowledge which this book represents is remarkable, as is the skill with which it has been set down and the effortlessness with which it reads."
The Booklist
Booklist
Booklist is a publication of the American Library Association that provides critical reviews of books and audiovisual materials for all ages. It is geared toward libraries and booksellers and is available in print or online...
called it "[a] wide-ranging survey [that] reflects the authors' humanistic interests as well as their familiarity with several branches of science and their extensive background reading."
Harry C. Stubbs
Hal Clement
Harry Clement Stubbs better known by the pen name Hal Clement, was an American science fiction writer and a leader of the hard science fiction subgenre.-Biography:...
in The Horn Book Magazine included it among "half a dozen books dealing ... with the history of science [that] I can recommend [both] to nonscientists as guides toward the Light [and] to scientists and science teachers as reminders that what we know was long, slow, and hard in coming." He noted that it "give[s] us a series of fascinating biographical and anecdotal items strung loosely on the thread of developing scientific knowledge."
Philip
Philip Morrison
Philip Morrison, was Institute Professor Emeritus and Professor of Physics Emeritus at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology .-Early life and education:...
and Phylis Morrison in Scientific American
Scientific American
Scientific American is a popular science magazine. It is notable for its long history of presenting science monthly to an educated but not necessarily scientific public, through its careful attention to the clarity of its text as well as the quality of its specially commissioned color graphics...
felt it "manages to convey a sense of coherence, even though it deals at staccato length with so many men, trends and ideas ... The reason is partly in the expert writing--smooth, unusually candid, cheerful and sometimes a bit condescending (as in the two or three pages about Veblen)." They add that "[n]ot all the dicta of the authors seem reasonable, but to find any personal judgment at work is so rare in this kind of pedagogy that one is pleased by the De Camps even when one disagrees with them."