The Map That Changed the World: William Smith and the Birth of Modern Geology
by Simon Winchester
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other reviews (showing 1-20 of 470)
bookshelves:
2008,
started-but-abandoned
Read in June, 2008
I picked up this book hoping for another The Professor and the Madman: a quick read of intriguing characters with a driving narrative. Instead, I dropped it partway through because of its relentless (and redundant) contrast between rational scientific thought (lightness) and backwards faith-based irrationality (darkness). Some examples:
"The inevitable collision between the new rationally based world of science ...more
"The inevitable collision between the new rationally based world of science ...more
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bookshelves:
2007,
natural-history
While I liked The Map that Changed the World well enough, it was a slow read (about 25 pages a night). I preferred Winchester's OED-related books, perhaps because I'm actually interested in the picky details of dictionary development, and because with a focus on words his Byzantine sentences don't seem out of line. Winchester is somewhat repetitive, which helped to relate events to each other but also diminished any dramatic tension to be found in the story.
I didn't mind the intrusion of the...more
I didn't mind the intrusion of the...more
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Read in April, 2008
Excellent as Winchester always is. A bit more challenging reading for me than Professor and the Madman or the Meaning of Everything because it's more "sciencey." Very interesting and I'm learning a ton -- but I have to keep referring to a map of England and looking up geology terms. That said, it's good, entertaining reading.
Update 2/13:
A bit tough going because I know so little about geology. A bit dry in places, too -- though I hate to admit it because I like Winchester...more
Update 2/13:
A bit tough going because I know so little about geology. A bit dry in places, too -- though I hate to admit it because I like Winchester...more
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*long, silent scream* I’m sorry, but WHY WHY WHY WHY is this book an “international best seller?” Is this like the Stephan Hawkins book where everyone buys it and no one reads it or just pretends to? This book was 299 pages long (I kept flipping to back and checking it the whole time I was reading it), and it was FANTASTICALLY boring. Unless you really really REALLY like geology, run far far away from this book.
Though it claims to be a biography about the unfortunate founder of Geolog...more
Though it claims to be a biography about the unfortunate founder of Geolog...more
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bookshelves:
non-fiction
Read in January, 2008
This is a very interesting story poorly told. The preface and the first chapter (both) tell the whole story in a nutshell, and the rest of the book goes on to fill out the details in an awkward, often overblown manner. The story is however quite compelling, about the dramatic life of William Smith, the first person to understand, survey and then map the stratification of rocks in England, thereby establishing modern geology.
His is a cautionary tale for would be entrepreneurs that are not fr...more
His is a cautionary tale for would be entrepreneurs that are not fr...more
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Read in February, 2007
recommends it for:
Anyone interested in Geology.
It's interesting to learn about the discovery of scientific laws/principles. Many of the Geologic principles seem intuitive and logical to us now but when Geology was emerging as a true science the Church dominated and most people still considered the world 3-4 thousand years old.
It would be helpful to know a little bit about geologic principles and maps to fully appreciate this book. There are sections that go into strike/dip and other structural terms.
The author does a good job of go...more
It would be helpful to know a little bit about geologic principles and maps to fully appreciate this book. There are sections that go into strike/dip and other structural terms.
The author does a good job of go...more
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recommends it for:
rock lovers!
Do you like maps? Geology? Then this book is for you. So the story goes, this British dude, like hiked all around England and started looking at rocks. He noticed that some rocks had different fossils in them. Then he deduced that fossils could be used to date the ages that the rocks were formed (this was before radioactive dating). After amassing an extensive collection of rocks and fossils he went for the gusto and made the VERY FIRST GEOLOGIC MAP! This was like almost 200 years ago, ta...more
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currently-reading
I have been reading this book for over a year. The story is fascinating. Winchester has the most irritating writing style I have ever encountered. It is hard to force myself to pick up the book. Sad, because William Smith and his geologic map of England mark an important milestone in the history of science. They are also important to understanding the development of the concept of deep time. Creationists are often stymied when they learn that Smith was able to use fossil species to place the roc...more
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Although I love Simon Winchester, whom I've seen speak during the Chicago Humanities Festival and whose books about the dictionary I loved, this book is so boring it made me want to cry. Thankfully, that's explained in a footnote that Winchester was a geology major, so you tell why he's got such detailed descriptions with all things rock. I find the outline of the story, the fact that William Smith pretty much set the world on edge with the fact that the world was created by forces other than G-...more
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Read in May, 2006
The fact that I made it all the way through this book, which focuses on a boring-to-me subject, geology, is a testament to the storytelling powers of Simon Winchester, who manages to use his passion to make it seem like something you might want to hear about and to make you sympathize with the conspiracy of circumstances against the protagonist, William Smith, who created the titular map, the first geographical survey of England. So, you'll like it if you like this sort of thing, and if you don'...more
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recommends it for:
Nerds
The story of William Smith, the English geologist who first realized that contiguous bands of strata could be identified across the whole of England, with disparate outcrops identified uniquely by their fossil content. Now known as the father of modern geology, his fossil collections, organized chronological according to strata, played an influential role in supporting the theory of evolution. The human story of his rise to fortune as a consultant to canal builders and land owners looking for ...more
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Read in February, 2002
There is practically a sub-genre of history books that focus on one singular object as the source of some enormous social/political/cultural transformation. Some of these books are convincingly written and well-researched, others are cheap gimmicks. This book clearly falls into the former category - incredibly ambitious in outlining the massive effect of topographical mapping without losing credibility by painting with too broad a brush. Somewhere between "Devil in the White City" and ...more
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I adore Simon, and enjoy his books, but he's so much more engaging live than he is on paper. This book reminded me of several people's characterization of male British dating habits; they tend to hang around quite a bit without making a move before even attempting to mention that they'd be happy to see you to dinner.
He kept telling us that he was about to tell us about something, then he'd talk around it before finally telling us something. It was aggravating.
But he is a good writer, and i...more
He kept telling us that he was about to tell us about something, then he'd talk around it before finally telling us something. It was aggravating.
But he is a good writer, and i...more
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Read in April, 2007
recommends it for:
history buffs
Simon Winchester is a fabulous writer. I've read reviews where people said they were bored but I don't see how.
Winchester does a wonderful job of bringing history to life, bringing historic figures to life, and in this book, explaining scientific concepts in a way that is easy to understand.
He also writes about we might not normally think about because they are so ingrained in us, we forget that once upon a time, they were revolutionary and new ideas.
His book on the Oxford Dic...more
Winchester does a wonderful job of bringing history to life, bringing historic figures to life, and in this book, explaining scientific concepts in a way that is easy to understand.
He also writes about we might not normally think about because they are so ingrained in us, we forget that once upon a time, they were revolutionary and new ideas.
His book on the Oxford Dic...more
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Read in January, 2007
This is a fascinating book, about an interesting time in western history. William Smith is an interesting character, and his rags-riches-rags-riches story is fascinating on its own.
But seeing how people began to sort out the vastness of geological time, how they confronted the geological evidence that contradicted the model handed down by clergy and academics, and how the understanding of the earth led to better understanding of people and their place on earth, makes this a great, relativel...more
But seeing how people began to sort out the vastness of geological time, how they confronted the geological evidence that contradicted the model handed down by clergy and academics, and how the understanding of the earth led to better understanding of people and their place on earth, makes this a great, relativel...more
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Read in June, 2008
I thought the subject matter of this book was interesting (the first geographical map of an entire country, created by one man), but I really didn't care for the author's circular style. He told the same anectdote more than once in the book, while only alluding to other events that seemed important. Also, I got really tired of the phrase, "As we shall later see . . ." I couldn't see a reason for not telling the story in a linear fashion.
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Read in September, 2006
recommends it for:
Anyone
First, I had no idea that Geology was such an underdeveloped science that one man could discover so much on his own just through the powers of his own observation. I was fascinated by this book and it reminded me that in college our Geology Professor was so inspiring that he made the class taken only to fulfill science requirements made me seriously consider changing majors. This book was of that quality. I really enjoyed it.
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Read in January, 2005
Great book about the mining/canal engineer who first realized that the repeating rock layer patterns he saw while digging in various parts of England meant that there were underlying rock strata under the whole of the country and beyond. From this comes the thought that maybe the ground under our feet has been built up slowly over a VERY long time, which plants doubts about the Biblical account of creation.
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Read in January, 2002
Unfortunately, this book didn't live up to the Professor and the Madman. Winchester is a geologist, and perhaps has a difficult time thoroughly empathizing with readers who find geology to be rather dry. Moreover, the book simply diverges from the main story line too much. Nevertheless, the book is informative, although the title might be a bit overstated.
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bookshelves:
history,
warning--science-inside
Read in January, 2006
I didn’t enjoy this book as much as some of Winchester’s other books. Not because he didn’t tell a good story, it’s because I wasn’t really interested in the subject.
I picked it up because I am a map guy. I have them hanging on the walls of my study. But the topic of this Geological map of England just didn’t light my fire.
I picked it up because I am a map guy. I have them hanging on the walls of my study. But the topic of this Geological map of England just didn’t light my fire.
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