Description |
viii, 184 pages ; 20 cm |
Contents |
Imaginary lines -- Sea before time -- Adrift in a clockwork universe -- Time in a bottle -- Powder of sympathy -- Prize -- Cogmaker's journal -- Grasshopper goes to sea -- Hands on Heaven's clock -- Diamond timekeeper -- Trial by fire and water -- Tale of two portraits -- Second voyage of Captain James Cook -- Mass production of genius -- In the Meridian Courtyard |
Summary |
Longitude is the dramatic human story of an epic scientific quest, and of John Harrison's forty-year obsession with building his perfect timekeeper, known today as the chronometer. Full of heroism and chicanery, brilliance and the absurd, it is also a fascinating brief history of astronomy, navigation, and clockmaking. Through Dava Sobel's consummate skill, Longitude will open a new window on our world for all who read it |
Analysis |
Chronometers History |
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Clock and watch makers Biography Great Britain |
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Harrison, John |
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Longitude Measurement History |
Notes |
Also published: London : Fourth Estate, 1996 |
Bibliography |
Includes bibliographical references (pages 177-180) and index |
Notes |
Originally published: New York : Walker, 1995 |
Subject |
Harrison, John, 1693-1776.
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Clock and watch makers -- Great Britain -- Biography.
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Chronometers -- History.
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Longitude -- Measurement -- History.
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Genre/Form |
Biographies.
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LC no. |
95017402 |
ISBN |
0802713122 (hc) |
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