false http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1170446874m/55026.jpg 55026 2 Follow the bouncing ball, James Burke-style: spice trading in the Middle Ages leads to the European tea-drinking craze, which helps instigate the development of the science of natural history, which in turns inspires the creation of the coal miner's safety lamp, which is somehow related to the battle between the Monitor and the Merrimack. From there we go to North Carolina cotton industry, Thomas Edison's very first electric power station, air conditioning, glass manufacturing, and laser beams. The end result? The smart bombs used during the Gulf War. Burke, who wrote <i>Connections</i> (the book and the television show), revels--or better, wallows--in the accidental nature of the march of discovery. Despite a penchant for playing it loose and free with scientific and historical accuracy, Burke has compiled a fascinating look at the great matrix of change and transformation that humans have created for themselves. 53623 1 8 1996 The Pinball Effect: How Renaissance Water Gardens Made Carburetor Possible - and Other Journeys total:98|5:40|4:42|3:13|2:1|1:2| 98 411 164 8 5 0 false false Wed Aug 29 21:03:33 -0700 2007 Wed Aug 29 21:07:55 -0700 2007 more...]]> 4 0 false false Wed Oct 21 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Thu Oct 01 17:00:27 -0700 2009 Wed Oct 21 19:44:34 -0700 2009 more...]]> 5 0 false false Fri Apr 03 10:22:20 -0700 2009 Fri Apr 03 10:23:10 -0700 2009 5 0 false false Fri Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 1999 Mon Apr 14 21:46:50 -0700 2008 Mon Apr 14 21:48:14 -0700 2008 4 0 false false Wed Jul 01 10:32:10 -0700 2009 Fri Jan 30 14:54:22 -0800 2009 Wed Jul 01 10:32:10 -0700 2009 0 0 false false Fri Jan 04 08:55:41 -0800 2008 Fri Jan 04 12:15:15 -0800 2008 4 0 false false Mon Nov 24 19:14:46 -0800 2008 Mon Nov 24 19:14:46 -0800 2008 5 0 false false Sun Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 2006 Mon May 26 10:34:54 -0700 2008 Mon May 26 10:35:45 -0700 2008 3 0 false false Wed Nov 25 20:28:09 -0800 2009 Wed Nov 25 20:28:09 -0800 2009 0 0 false false Tue Nov 24 15:59:57 -0800 2009 Tue Nov 24 15:59:57 -0800 2009 0 0 false false Mon Nov 23 08:02:12 -0800 2009 Mon Nov 23 08:02:12 -0800 2009 0 0 false false Thu Nov 19 16:17:31 -0800 2009 Thu Nov 19 16:17:31 -0800 2009 0 0 false false Thu Nov 19 16:17:30 -0800 2009 Thu Nov 19 16:17:30 -0800 2009 0 0 false false Wed Nov 18 20:14:41 -0800 2009 Wed Nov 18 20:14:41 -0800 2009 0 0 false false Mon Nov 16 22:32:01 -0800 2009 Mon Nov 16 22:32:01 -0800 2009 0 0 false false Sat Nov 14 07:13:13 -0800 2009 Sat Nov 14 07:13:19 -0800 2009 0 0 false false Sun Nov 08 21:04:00 -0800 2009 Sun Nov 08 21:04:03 -0800 2009 5 0 false false Sat Oct 17 14:46:26 -0700 2009 Sat Oct 17 14:46:26 -0700 2009 5 0 false false Sun Sep 27 09:56:11 -0700 2009 Sun Sep 27 09:56:11 -0700 2009 0 0 false false Sat Sep 26 16:16:22 -0700 2009 Sat Sep 26 17:54:27 -0700 2009 http://www.goodreads.com/book_link/follow/8?book_id=55026