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Finding the Speed of Light: The 1676 Discovery that Dazzled the World
More than two centuries before Einstein, using a crude telescope and a mechanical timepiece, Dutch astronomer Ole Romer measured the speed of light with astounding accuracy. How was he able to do this when most scientists didn’t even believe that light traveled? Like many paradigm-shattering discoveries, Romer’s was accidental. Night after night he was timing the disappearance and reappearance of Jupiter’s moon Io behind the huge, distant planet. Eventually he realized that the discrepancies in his measurements could have only one explanation: Light had a speed, and it took longer to reach Earth when Earth was farther from Jupiter. All he needed then to calculate light’s speed was some fancy geometry.
32 pages, Hardcover
Published March 12, 2019
1 person is currently reading
33 people want to read
About the author
Mark Weston
85 books4 followers MARK WESTON
Mark Weston’s new book, Prophets and Princes – Saudi Arabia from Muhammad to the Present, was published by John Wiley & Sons in the fall of 2008. Britain’s New Statesman magazine called it “always intelligent,” and Saudi Aramco World magazine said Weston “writes sensitively about the post-9/11 era.”
While researching his book, Weston was a Visiting Scholar at the King Faisal Center for Research and Islamic Studies in Riyadh. Weston’s interest in the Muslim world began when he lived in Lahore while writing his first book, The Land and People of Pakistan (HarperCollins 1992.)
The Los Angeles Times called Weston’s second work, Giants of Japan: The Lives of Japan’s Greatest Men and Women (Kodansha 1999) “a superb new book.” Foreign Affairs called it “vivid, an excellent introduction to Japanese history.” Walter Mondale wrote the foreword, and the book went into paperback in 2002 and again in 2008.
Weston grew up in Armonk, NY and graduated from Brown University with a B.A. in history. He spent a year at the London School of Economics, then earned a law degree from the University of Texas. He has been a lawyer for ABC Television and a journalist for ABC News, and has written articles for The New York Times, The Washington Post and the Los Angeles Times. His one-character play, “Meet George Orwell,” has been performed Off-Broadway and at the Kennedy and Johnson presidential libraries.
In 1991 Weston won enough money on TV's Jeopardy! to start a company that makes geographical jigsaw puzzles for children. He sold his firm to a larger puzzle company three years later, then lived with a Japanese family in Tokyo to research his second book. He has also written a children’s book, Honda: The Boy Who Dreamed of Cars, that Lee & Low Books published in 2008. Early in 2013 he will release a TV news game, Scoop!, as an app for the iPhone, the iPad and Android.
Weston gives lively talks on the Middle East, Japan and the U.S. presidential election system. Venues have included the White House Fellows, the Middle East Institute, the Toyota Motor Corporation, and Columbia and Rice Universities.
P.O. Box 892,
Armonk, NY 10504
Mark Weston’s new book, Prophets and Princes – Saudi Arabia from Muhammad to the Present, was published by John Wiley & Sons in the fall of 2008. Britain’s New Statesman magazine called it “always intelligent,” and Saudi Aramco World magazine said Weston “writes sensitively about the post-9/11 era.”
While researching his book, Weston was a Visiting Scholar at the King Faisal Center for Research and Islamic Studies in Riyadh. Weston’s interest in the Muslim world began when he lived in Lahore while writing his first book, The Land and People of Pakistan (HarperCollins 1992.)
The Los Angeles Times called Weston’s second work, Giants of Japan: The Lives of Japan’s Greatest Men and Women (Kodansha 1999) “a superb new book.” Foreign Affairs called it “vivid, an excellent introduction to Japanese history.” Walter Mondale wrote the foreword, and the book went into paperback in 2002 and again in 2008.
Weston grew up in Armonk, NY and graduated from Brown University with a B.A. in history. He spent a year at the London School of Economics, then earned a law degree from the University of Texas. He has been a lawyer for ABC Television and a journalist for ABC News, and has written articles for The New York Times, The Washington Post and the Los Angeles Times. His one-character play, “Meet George Orwell,” has been performed Off-Broadway and at the Kennedy and Johnson presidential libraries.
In 1991 Weston won enough money on TV's Jeopardy! to start a company that makes geographical jigsaw puzzles for children. He sold his firm to a larger puzzle company three years later, then lived with a Japanese family in Tokyo to research his second book. He has also written a children’s book, Honda: The Boy Who Dreamed of Cars, that Lee & Low Books published in 2008. Early in 2013 he will release a TV news game, Scoop!, as an app for the iPhone, the iPad and Android.
Weston gives lively talks on the Middle East, Japan and the U.S. presidential election system. Venues have included the White House Fellows, the Middle East Institute, the Toyota Motor Corporation, and Columbia and Rice Universities.
P.O. Box 892,
Armonk, NY 10504
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Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews
May 8, 2021
Finding the Speed of Light: The 1676 Discovery that Dazzled the World is a children's picture book written by Mark Weston and illustrated by Rebecca Evans. It centers on the observation of a small anomaly in a distant moon’s orbit, which led to a discovery of, literally, astronomical significance.
Ole Christensen Rømer was a Danish astronomer who, in 1676, made the first quantitative measurements of the speed of light. Rømer also invented the modern thermometer showing the temperature between two fixed points, namely the points at which water respectively boils and freezes.
Weston's text is rather simplistic, straightforward, and informational. Weston spins thin historical records into an account of the career of 17th-century Danish astronomer Ole Rømer from schoolboy days through nights spent watching the skies through a self-built telescope at the court of Louis XIV to final years as a renowned scientist. Backmatter includes a timeline. Evans' tucks diagrams and mathematical calculations as well as banter and fanciful details into her lighthearted cartoon illustrations were done rather well.
The premise of the book is rather straightforward. Noticing that Jupiter's moon Io seemed to speed up and slow down on a regular schedule as it passed behind its planet, Rømer not only concluded that light did not propagate instantaneously, but using the relatively crude clocks and other instruments of the time, came up with a wrong but close estimate of its speed.
All in all, Finding the Speed of Light: The 1676 Discovery that Dazzled the World is a significant, unjustly obscure highlight from modern science's early days.
Ole Christensen Rømer was a Danish astronomer who, in 1676, made the first quantitative measurements of the speed of light. Rømer also invented the modern thermometer showing the temperature between two fixed points, namely the points at which water respectively boils and freezes.
Weston's text is rather simplistic, straightforward, and informational. Weston spins thin historical records into an account of the career of 17th-century Danish astronomer Ole Rømer from schoolboy days through nights spent watching the skies through a self-built telescope at the court of Louis XIV to final years as a renowned scientist. Backmatter includes a timeline. Evans' tucks diagrams and mathematical calculations as well as banter and fanciful details into her lighthearted cartoon illustrations were done rather well.
The premise of the book is rather straightforward. Noticing that Jupiter's moon Io seemed to speed up and slow down on a regular schedule as it passed behind its planet, Rømer not only concluded that light did not propagate instantaneously, but using the relatively crude clocks and other instruments of the time, came up with a wrong but close estimate of its speed.
All in all, Finding the Speed of Light: The 1676 Discovery that Dazzled the World is a significant, unjustly obscure highlight from modern science's early days.
September 10, 2020
I wanted to like this book, but although the information it conveys is good, the format really bugged me.
Instead of traditional full-page spreads, the illustrations are split into comic-book-like panels full of dialogue bubbles. Some pages contain a large, serious illustration and a smaller, inset illustration solely for comic relief; other pages are more evenly divided into narrative panels. The text of the book is given in block panels arranged among the main illustrations (and it's typeset in a chunky marker font that looks like the second cousin of Comic Sans). Then there's the peripheral text in the speech bubbles on every. single. page.
The speech bubbles rarely have anything to do with the narrative, instead jaunting off into puerile attempts at humor in excruciatingly modern dialogue. I presume they were intended to keep kids interested in the story and perhaps give context by showing glimpses of Ole Romer's life — but they fail in the former respect by distracting from the narrative rather than supporting it with interesting tidbits, and they fail in the latter respect because they show irrelevant material that is primarily fantasized. Sure, maybe Ole Romer liked ice cream, but having people commenting on ice cream every few panels is unrealistic and annoying, and for our only glimpse of his engineering work for the fountains of the King of France's garden to be a panel of Ole stating that one of the pipes in his design is for an ice cream fountain is downright insulting. Kids aren't idiots, and a picture book biography should be a biography. The cheap jokes aren't funny, and they drag down the story by constantly jolting away from the narrative. On the rare occasion when the comic panels weren't distracting, they just reiterated the text and still didn't add anything useful to the book.
This book gets three stars anyway because it does tell the story of Ole Romer's discovery of the speed of light, and that is a fascinating subject. I would love if this story had gotten the serious treatment and respectful delivery given to Nothing Stopped Sophie: The Story of Unshakable Mathematician Sophie Germain, or Counting on Katherine: How Katherine Johnson Saved Apollo 13, or The Crayon Man: the True Story of the Invention of Crayola Crayons, or Hedy Lamarr's Double Life: Hollywood Legend and Brilliant Inventor — or any of the hundred of picture-book biographies I've read in the past few years. The narrative text itself was engaging and took itself seriously, after all, and that makes me so wistful for what this could have been. With the text set in a dignified serif font beside life-like oil paintings* in full-page spreads depicting period details and the wonders of the heavens, this book could have been luminous. As it is, it's a second-rate delivery of a wonderful story that deserves to be more widely known.
*
Instead of traditional full-page spreads, the illustrations are split into comic-book-like panels full of dialogue bubbles. Some pages contain a large, serious illustration and a smaller, inset illustration solely for comic relief; other pages are more evenly divided into narrative panels. The text of the book is given in block panels arranged among the main illustrations (and it's typeset in a chunky marker font that looks like the second cousin of Comic Sans). Then there's the peripheral text in the speech bubbles on every. single. page.
The speech bubbles rarely have anything to do with the narrative, instead jaunting off into puerile attempts at humor in excruciatingly modern dialogue. I presume they were intended to keep kids interested in the story and perhaps give context by showing glimpses of Ole Romer's life — but they fail in the former respect by distracting from the narrative rather than supporting it with interesting tidbits, and they fail in the latter respect because they show irrelevant material that is primarily fantasized. Sure, maybe Ole Romer liked ice cream, but having people commenting on ice cream every few panels is unrealistic and annoying, and for our only glimpse of his engineering work for the fountains of the King of France's garden to be a panel of Ole stating that one of the pipes in his design is for an ice cream fountain is downright insulting. Kids aren't idiots, and a picture book biography should be a biography. The cheap jokes aren't funny, and they drag down the story by constantly jolting away from the narrative. On the rare occasion when the comic panels weren't distracting, they just reiterated the text and still didn't add anything useful to the book.
This book gets three stars anyway because it does tell the story of Ole Romer's discovery of the speed of light, and that is a fascinating subject. I would love if this story had gotten the serious treatment and respectful delivery given to Nothing Stopped Sophie: The Story of Unshakable Mathematician Sophie Germain, or Counting on Katherine: How Katherine Johnson Saved Apollo 13, or The Crayon Man: the True Story of the Invention of Crayola Crayons, or Hedy Lamarr's Double Life: Hollywood Legend and Brilliant Inventor — or any of the hundred of picture-book biographies I've read in the past few years. The narrative text itself was engaging and took itself seriously, after all, and that makes me so wistful for what this could have been. With the text set in a dignified serif font beside life-like oil paintings* in full-page spreads depicting period details and the wonders of the heavens, this book could have been luminous. As it is, it's a second-rate delivery of a wonderful story that deserves to be more widely known.
*
April 15, 2019
The story of how Dutch astronomer Ole Romer measured the speed of light with remarkable accuracy in the 17th century.
December 28, 2019
Finding the Speed of Light: The 1676 Discovery that Dazzled the World by Mark Weston, illustrated by Rebecca Evans, unpaged. PICTURE BOOK NON-FICTION. Tilbury House, 2019. $18. 9780884485452
BUYING ADVISORY: EL, MS – ADVISABLE
AUDIENCE APPEAL: HIGH
Ole Romer, born in 1644, was the son of a sea captain and trained from his youth to read the stars. Raised in Denmark, he attended university in Copenhagen and studied astronomy. He proved himself quite capable and was invited to teach the king’s sons in Paris and be an astronomer at the France’s Royal Academy of Science. Shortly thereafter, he and his fellow scientists were able to determine the distance between the sun, earth, and the other planets throughout the year. At this time, everyone believed that light was instantaneous, including Romer. But when he discovered that Jupiter’s moon, Io, seemed to slow down and then speed up in its orbit around Jupiter, and then discovered that the change in the speed happened in a predictable pattern every six months, he eventually had an eureka moment. He realized that Jupiter was farther away from Earth every six months, and that it must be the light that took longer to travel to him rather than anything happening in the moon’s orbit. He realized that light had a speed and he could figure out what it is. Back matter includes additional information connecting this discovery to our modern understanding of the subject, highlights from Romer’s later life, and a timeline.
Romer’s discovery of the speed of light is told in white blocks of text, surrounded by cartoon panels mostly recreating the scenes being described in the text, often with humorous twists, but not essential for following the narrative. (Example, “Can anyone other than Ole answer this question?”) For such a complicated matter of math and astronomy, this book tells the tale succinctly and clearly, as well as blending facts, history, and humor in a manner appealing to middle-grade readers.
P.K.Foster, MLS, school librarian
https://kissthebook.blogspot.com/2019...
BUYING ADVISORY: EL, MS – ADVISABLE
AUDIENCE APPEAL: HIGH
Ole Romer, born in 1644, was the son of a sea captain and trained from his youth to read the stars. Raised in Denmark, he attended university in Copenhagen and studied astronomy. He proved himself quite capable and was invited to teach the king’s sons in Paris and be an astronomer at the France’s Royal Academy of Science. Shortly thereafter, he and his fellow scientists were able to determine the distance between the sun, earth, and the other planets throughout the year. At this time, everyone believed that light was instantaneous, including Romer. But when he discovered that Jupiter’s moon, Io, seemed to slow down and then speed up in its orbit around Jupiter, and then discovered that the change in the speed happened in a predictable pattern every six months, he eventually had an eureka moment. He realized that Jupiter was farther away from Earth every six months, and that it must be the light that took longer to travel to him rather than anything happening in the moon’s orbit. He realized that light had a speed and he could figure out what it is. Back matter includes additional information connecting this discovery to our modern understanding of the subject, highlights from Romer’s later life, and a timeline.
Romer’s discovery of the speed of light is told in white blocks of text, surrounded by cartoon panels mostly recreating the scenes being described in the text, often with humorous twists, but not essential for following the narrative. (Example, “Can anyone other than Ole answer this question?”) For such a complicated matter of math and astronomy, this book tells the tale succinctly and clearly, as well as blending facts, history, and humor in a manner appealing to middle-grade readers.
P.K.Foster, MLS, school librarian
https://kissthebook.blogspot.com/2019...
April 6, 2019
This fascinating story of how a Dutch astronomer discovered that light has speed is certainly worth reading, particularly if you are someone who is intrigued by experiments or realizations based on primitive equipment or moments that were huge developments in science. In this case, Ole Romer's theories went against what was believed in those days about light. Using a clock and a primitive telescope, Romer made his discovering in 1676, if you can believe that. The images are created in a cartoon-like, graphic novel approach, and the story follows Ole during his formative and academic years. Humor is added to the story of how he fell in love with ice cream once he moved to France where he tutored the king's sons and spent hours observing Jupiter and its moons. By recording this observations of Io, one of the planet's moons, he detected a pattern that seemed to indicate that seemed to indicate that Io was speeding up and slowing down at various points. His observations led to his realization that light not only moves but its speed can be measured. Although there is quite a lot of text here, the images help keep readers engaged. All I could do after I finished the book was wonder at how so many ideas that we take for granted now were once challenged by experts in the past and considered absurd. It is interesting to wonder what scientific tenets we hold to be true today may end up being found not to be true in the future.
March 11, 2019
Weston and Evans take a complex, little known event and make it accessible for young people. Danish scientist Ole Romer was fascinated by the stars and planets he observed through his telescope. When he discovered that Jupiter's moon Io slowed down and took longer to than expected to orbit Jupiter each month for six months and then would appear to speed back up. In puzzling over this discovery, Romer inadvertently discovered that light had a speed and could be measured. Romer then set out to do just that using math. Students will be engrossed in learning how Romer's intense curiosity led to a mind-blowing discovery back in the 1600s that would rock the science world. Evans' illustrations add levity, as well as information and catapult this text from good to excellent. Includes a timeline and a description of Romer's subsequent career as Denmark's chief astronomer and eventually Copenhagen's chief of police, as well.
June 20, 2019
A very unusual treatment of a STEM topic that is sure to catch the interest of young readers.
Ole Romer was the astronomer in 1676 that realized that light travels at a given speed. He based his theory on careful research and observation, proving it with math.
This biography is light and fast. It covers only the years that Romer was developing his theory and publicizing his results. Weston has done a great job of writing at a level that kids understand, including a little levity by adding some puns and tongue-in-cheek comments. His science is sound. Rebecca Evans knocks this one into outer space through the use of word bubbles and frames to move the story ahead. Rich colors and cartoon humor make this remarkable book fun to look at. Much of the story can be deciphered through the illustrations, making this appeal to a younger reader.
Include this in your next unit on the solar system. Recommended for PreS-grade 5.
Ole Romer was the astronomer in 1676 that realized that light travels at a given speed. He based his theory on careful research and observation, proving it with math.
This biography is light and fast. It covers only the years that Romer was developing his theory and publicizing his results. Weston has done a great job of writing at a level that kids understand, including a little levity by adding some puns and tongue-in-cheek comments. His science is sound. Rebecca Evans knocks this one into outer space through the use of word bubbles and frames to move the story ahead. Rich colors and cartoon humor make this remarkable book fun to look at. Much of the story can be deciphered through the illustrations, making this appeal to a younger reader.
Include this in your next unit on the solar system. Recommended for PreS-grade 5.
November 28, 2019
Who says that theoretical astrophysics can't be entertaining or suspenseful?
Well, there are plenty who may not have even considered the question.
In this appealingly illustrated book the individuals, enormous hypotheses, and vast skies that spanned nearly four hundred years between proposal and proof are made kid-friendly. Complex concepts, applied mathematics, and the building momentum of thinking and evidence of the passage time become conceivable for young minds.
This is another of those impressive nonfiction picture books that also spans many ages and purposes, including use with older/advanced science students.
Well, there are plenty who may not have even considered the question.
In this appealingly illustrated book the individuals, enormous hypotheses, and vast skies that spanned nearly four hundred years between proposal and proof are made kid-friendly. Complex concepts, applied mathematics, and the building momentum of thinking and evidence of the passage time become conceivable for young minds.
This is another of those impressive nonfiction picture books that also spans many ages and purposes, including use with older/advanced science students.
October 26, 2019
This is makes you go....hum!!! I understand the speed of light but it was cool about how it was discovered. Things we take for granted as "duh" were mysteries to our ancestors didn't understand!
I enjoyed this one! It was a little confusing when the bold type, and the comic (because I wasn't sure what to read first)
I enjoyed this one! It was a little confusing when the bold type, and the comic (because I wasn't sure what to read first)
April 26, 2019
Good illustrations and good explanation of the concept of the speed of light...although it was very wordy. But then again, explaining the concept of speed of light can't be summarized. My favorite part was the interjection of goofy humor throughout.
July 2, 2019
Interesting
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September 20, 2019Picture W535f 2019
November 30, 2019
Good to know. The change between the comic and the informational sections wasn't my favorite.
January 25, 2020
The design and illustrations are fantastic. It’s very informative and interesting. Great book about science and history for children
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February 1, 2022 I think the cartoons detract from the work rather than adding to it. Then again, I'm not the target audience. :)
June 2, 2022
Complex topic explained in an understandable way.
March 1, 2023
I don’t love the format or the illustrations, but the information is interesting and educational.
Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews