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How Did We Find Out #30
How Did We Find Out About the Speed of Light?
Traces the scientific study of the speed of light, from Galileo's experiments in the seventeenth century to more recent discoveries involving the law of relativity.
- GenresScienceNonfiction
60 pages, Hardcover
First published June 1, 1986
About the author
Isaac Asimov
4,431 books28.8k followersWorks of prolific Russian-American writer Isaac Asimov include popular explanations of scientific principles,
The Foundation Trilogy
(1951-1953), and other volumes of fiction.
Isaac Asimov, a professor of biochemistry, wrote as a highly successful author, best known for his books.
Asimov, professor, generally considered of all time, edited more than five hundred books and ninety thousand letters and postcards. He published in nine of the ten major categories of the Dewey decimal classification but lacked only an entry in the category of philosophy (100).
People widely considered Asimov, a master of the genre alongside Robert Anson Heinlein and Arthur Charles Clarke as the "big three" during his lifetime. He later tied Galactic Empire and the Robot into the same universe as his most famous series to create a unified "future history" for his stories much like those that Heinlein pioneered and Cordwainer Smith and Poul Anderson previously produced. He penned "Nightfall," voted in 1964 as the best short story of all time; many persons still honor this title. He also produced well mysteries, fantasy, and a great quantity of nonfiction. Asimov used Paul French, the pen name, for the Lucky Starr, series of juvenile novels.
Most books of Asimov in a historical way go as far back to a time with possible question or concept at its simplest stage. He often provides and mentions well nationalities, birth, and death dates for persons and etymologies and pronunciation guides for technical terms. Guide to Science, the tripartite set Understanding Physics, and Chronology of Science and Discovery exemplify these books.
Asimov, a long-time member, reluctantly served as vice president of Mensa international and described some members of that organization as "brain-proud and aggressive about their IQs." He took more pleasure as president of the humanist association. The asteroid 5020 Asimov, the magazine Asimov's Science Fiction, an elementary school in Brooklyn in New York, and two different awards honor his name.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Isaac_As...
Isaac Asimov, a professor of biochemistry, wrote as a highly successful author, best known for his books.
Asimov, professor, generally considered of all time, edited more than five hundred books and ninety thousand letters and postcards. He published in nine of the ten major categories of the Dewey decimal classification but lacked only an entry in the category of philosophy (100).
People widely considered Asimov, a master of the genre alongside Robert Anson Heinlein and Arthur Charles Clarke as the "big three" during his lifetime. He later tied Galactic Empire and the Robot into the same universe as his most famous series to create a unified "future history" for his stories much like those that Heinlein pioneered and Cordwainer Smith and Poul Anderson previously produced. He penned "Nightfall," voted in 1964 as the best short story of all time; many persons still honor this title. He also produced well mysteries, fantasy, and a great quantity of nonfiction. Asimov used Paul French, the pen name, for the Lucky Starr, series of juvenile novels.
Most books of Asimov in a historical way go as far back to a time with possible question or concept at its simplest stage. He often provides and mentions well nationalities, birth, and death dates for persons and etymologies and pronunciation guides for technical terms. Guide to Science, the tripartite set Understanding Physics, and Chronology of Science and Discovery exemplify these books.
Asimov, a long-time member, reluctantly served as vice president of Mensa international and described some members of that organization as "brain-proud and aggressive about their IQs." He took more pleasure as president of the humanist association. The asteroid 5020 Asimov, the magazine Asimov's Science Fiction, an elementary school in Brooklyn in New York, and two different awards honor his name.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Isaac_As...
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
September 20, 2026
About 1980, I saw bumper stickers and T-shirts saying:
186,000 mps: It's not just a good idea, it's the law
Since I've been reading a lot of science fiction recently (and have been on and off most of my life), I keep reading about the speed of light, faster than light drives, and things like that. So, I thought a kid's book explaining how we discovered what the speed of light is might be in order.
This was only the third book in the How Did We Find Out About series that I read, but this was the hardest of the trio for me to follow. My attention kept wandering. No matter how good a chef you are, you can only work with the ingredients you're given, and even Asimov had a hard time trying to make the discovery of the speed of light (and its implications) relatively interesting. (Pun intended.)
This book ended on a bittersweet note, as Asimov describes the speed of light as a "prison" to keep space travel limited to the solar system. It was jarring to read something like that from the usually optimistic Asimov.
Illustrator David Wool didn't do such a great job this time around. Most of the black and white illustrations were of diagrams, charts, or reproducing the night sky. The best illustrations were his ink wash reproduction of a photo of Albert Einstein, and one of a little boy looking at an aquarium with goldfish.
186,000 mps: It's not just a good idea, it's the law
Since I've been reading a lot of science fiction recently (and have been on and off most of my life), I keep reading about the speed of light, faster than light drives, and things like that. So, I thought a kid's book explaining how we discovered what the speed of light is might be in order.
This was only the third book in the How Did We Find Out About series that I read, but this was the hardest of the trio for me to follow. My attention kept wandering. No matter how good a chef you are, you can only work with the ingredients you're given, and even Asimov had a hard time trying to make the discovery of the speed of light (and its implications) relatively interesting. (Pun intended.)
This book ended on a bittersweet note, as Asimov describes the speed of light as a "prison" to keep space travel limited to the solar system. It was jarring to read something like that from the usually optimistic Asimov.
Illustrator David Wool didn't do such a great job this time around. Most of the black and white illustrations were of diagrams, charts, or reproducing the night sky. The best illustrations were his ink wash reproduction of a photo of Albert Einstein, and one of a little boy looking at an aquarium with goldfish.
January 1, 2025
I’ve never been comfortable with Physics. The class was a complete disaster for me in college. But I understood this book just fine! I love how Asimov explained things, using everyday experiences like rain to make concepts clear! I also got a chuckle over how Asimov ended this book on a distinctly chagrined note! That was the sci-fi writer griping over Einstein’s discovery that definitely limited how far one can travel in the universe! Recommended!
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews