Status
Call number
Collection
Publication
Description
"Secrets of Infinity" examines infinity as it has been studied since antiquity, beginning with the classical figures from Greece and Rome. In an entertaining and practical way, readers will discover that infinity is not limited to the mathematical concept as represented by the symbol nor its metaphysical concept as the indefinable concept of eternity, but in fact, it resides in a variety of disciplines, a multitude of contexts and has a far-reaching influence on human existence. "Secrets of Infinity" organises the 150 articles into six subject areas: * Science: e.g., Henrietta Lacks -- Her death in 1951 from uterine cancer at the age 31 did not end her existence. Her doctor took a tissue sample from the tumor and developed the first continuous culture of human cells and thus the first immortal cell line in history, known as HeLa. * Mathematics: e.g., Googol -- Edward Kasner (1878-1955) devised the googol to show how huge infinity is through a number so large that it is unimaginable but still not even close to infinity. * Technology: e.g., TA-65 -- Recently, researchers at Sierra Sciences discovered the TA-65, which could be the chromosomal catalyst to stopping, slowing or even reversing the aging process, bringing us closer to the myth of eternal youth. * Art: e.g., The Endless Stairs of the Vatican -- Little did the Vatican Museums know in 1932, when the stairs were built, that this formation could represent life itself, with the discovery of the DNA double helix chain in 1953. * Philosophy: e.g., RenĂ© Descartes, the Infinite and God -- According to Descartes, the idea of infinity has been imposed by a nature that is higher than human, and can only come from this nature being infinite, so he interprets that the existence of infinity confirms the existence of God. * Symbology: e.g., The Labyrinth -- A labyrinth is a route made up of streets and crossroads with an ingenious and complex structure whose design variations are endless, especially in the case of the rhizome labyrinth, which has infinite ramifications. AUTHOR: Antonio Lamua has a background in science and is a regular contributor to international magazines. He is also the author of "The Secrets of Science". ILLUSTRATIONS: Full colour illustrations throughout… (more)
User reviews
I had it situated as a kind of bedside-browse book, but lo! I turned to page 22 and, next to a
"The image seen at right allows for the contemplation of the galaxies as they were arranged almost at the inception of the universe. The image is of a scene millions of light years away, a depiction of the origins of creation, representing profound depths of existence never before seen. It belongs to a series of images that provides scientific data on the formation and early history of the universe."
Urrmmm, NO, it's a picture of a nearby spiral galaxy!
That paragraph is not only the sheerest gobbledygook, it is -- in the words of Wolfgang Pauli -- "not even wrong." I have NO IDEA what those words are trying to convey, other than the fact that the author doesn't really know what a galaxy is, nor recognize a fairly familiar astronomical image. It's possible something was lost in translation ... well, if so, EVERYTHING was lost in translation.
So I had to put this book down right then and there. I don't have the time to wade through that kind of thing for the sake of some pretty pictures.