From the Bookshelf of Science and Inquiry…

The Philosophical Breakfast Club: Four Remarkable Friends Who Transformed Science and Changed the...

Laura J. Snyder

Start date: March 1, 2015

Finish date: March 31, 2015

Discussion: Book Club 2015

Find A Copy At

Libraries

Group Discussions About This Book

Showing 2 of 25 topics — 669 comments total

Book Club 2015

* December 2015 - Violinist's Thumb
By Betsy , co-mod · 32 posts · 87 views

last updated Jan 11, 2016 06:55AM

* November 2015 - Being Mortal
By Betsy , co-mod · 55 posts · 111 views

last updated Jun 25, 2016 03:15PM

showing 5 of 5 topics view all »

What Members Thought

Mar 20, 2011 David Rubenstein rated it it was amazing

Shelves: philosophy, history, biography, science

If you enjoyed Holmes' book The Age of Wonder: How the Romantic Generation Discovered the Beauty and Terror of Science, then you will thorougly appreciate this book, as well. In The Age of Wonder, one of the main characters is William Herschel, the discoverer of the planet Uranus. In this book, one of the four main characters is his son, John Herschel. It turns out that John Herschel also became an astronomer, just as famous and as influential a scientist in his time, as his father. Another of t If you enjoyed Holmes' book The Age of Wonder: How the Romantic Generation Discovered the Beauty and Terror of Science, then you will thorougly appreciate this book, as well. In The Age of Wonder, one of the main characters is William Herschel, the discoverer of the planet Uranus. In this book, one of the four main characters is his son, John Herschel. It turns out that John Herschel also became an astronomer, just as famous and as influential a scientist in his time, as his father. Another of the characters in the book, William Whewell, coined the term "scientist" extemporaneously during a lecture before the British Association of Science. He organized the first true international observing program; people from around the world simultaneously measured the tides at 15-minute intervals during a several-week period. Whewell used the vast data set to develop a large-scale cotidal chart of the Atlantic Ocean. Both Herschel and Whewell developed the philosophy of science and the scientific method; discoveries were transformed from a "Eureka" moment of serendipity into unifying theories that brought together explanations of a wide variety of phenomena. This concept, known as consilience, played a strong role in Charles Darwin's development of his theory of evolution through natural selection.

The third main character in the book was Babbage, a brilliant mathematician who developed mechanical computers. The book describes how, after the death of his wife, he became cantankerous, self-serving and egotistical. Perhaps Babbage did not quite understand the full implications of his computer designs--at least he seemed incapable of explaining them to outsiders. It was a friend named Ada Lovelace helped to advertise the potential of his inventions, and who showed how they were not merely number-crunching machines, but truly general-purpose symbolic computers. (The Defense Department's computer language "Ada" is named after her.) The fourth main character in the book, Richard Jones, is less well-known today. He developed theories of political economics that were to become very influential.

The book does a fine job of pulling together the interactions between these four scientists and the rest of the scientific community. The author, Laura Snyder, shows how politics, economics and society helped shape the lives and investigations of scientists in the first half of the 19th century. ...more

20 likes · Like · see review

Jun 05, 2011 Patricrk patrick rated it liked it

Shelves: science

I thought the author stretched the facts to say these four changed the world. They made important contributions to science and science education but I don't get the change the world part. I enjoyed the book and it gives a different viewpoint on the Royal Society than what I'd gotten from some other books about science in that time frame. I liked the historical perspective. But, I'd sure rather live in time than in theirs. ...more

2 likes · Like · see review

Feb 12, 2012 Katy rated it it was amazing

Shelves: history, math-science

Science, philosophy, literature, politics, and religion all play a part in the history of the development of the science professional. A nice view of the culture and world during this time period.

2 likes · Like · see review

Feb 02, 2015 Steve Van Slyke rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: history, science

An enjoyable read about the men who were at center stage when natural philosophy became science and the age of specialization began. Generalists became a dying breed and the future belonged to botanists, physicists, computer scientists, geologists, etc. Mores the pity?

I particularly enjoyed the knowledge that Charles Darwin was a young man during these men's ascendance and that he undoubtedly followed them and their works very closely. It is likely that they made it easier for him to finally pr ...more

1 like · Like · see review

Jan 30, 2011 Grace rated it really liked it

Shelves: first-reads, history

Summary
The Philosophical Breakfast Club is a very good history of science book. It is a story about 4 men, William Whewell, John Hershel, Richard Jones, and Charles Babbage, who strived to take science from a field that was merely poked about in to a real professional endeavour. This book outlines their efforts and the culture of the world they lived in, as well as the the scientific accomplishments of the day.

Critical Assessment
While this is a history book, and it's topic is science, it is not ...more

Like · see review

Oct 05, 2014 Hood Thabit rated it it was amazing

A comprehensive overview of the lives and contributions of modern sciences' godfathers. Would recommend to anyone interested in the history of natural philosophy. ...more

Like · see review