A Physics Today Best Book of the Year The first biography of a pioneering scientist who made significant contributions to our understanding of dark matter and championed the advancement of women in science. One of the great lingering mysteries of the universe is dark matter. Scientists are not sure what it is, but most believe it’s out there, and in abundance. The astronomer who finally convinced many of them was Vera Rubin. When Rubin died in 2016, she was regarded as one of the most influential astronomers of her era. Her research on the rotation of spiral galaxies was groundbreaking, and her observations contributed significantly to the confirmation of dark matter, a most notable achievement. In Vera Rubin: A Life, prolific science writers Jacqueline Mitton and Simon Mitton provide a detailed, accessible overview of Rubin’s work, showing how she leveraged immense curiosity, profound intelligence, and novel technologies to help transform our understanding of the cosmos. But Rubin’s impact was not limited to her contributions to scientific knowledge. She also helped to transform scientific practice by promoting the careers of women researchers. Not content to be an inspiration, Rubin was a mentor and a champion. She advocated for hiring women faculty, inviting women speakers to major conferences, and honoring women with awards that were historically the exclusive province of men. Rubin’s papers and correspondence yield vivid insights into her life and work, as she faced down gender discrimination and met the demands of family and research throughout a long and influential career. Deftly written, with both scientific experts and general readers in mind, Vera Rubin is a portrait of a woman with insatiable curiosity about the universe who never stopped asking questions and encouraging other women to do the same.

As in Volumes 35 and 36, the chapters in this new volume complement, with personal recollections, the History of Biochemistry that was covered in the Comprehensive Biochemistry Series, Volumes 30-33 by M. Florkin and Volume 34A by P. Laszlo. The biographical and autobiographical chapters will convey to the reader a lively, albeit at times subjective, view of the scientific and social environment in which the authors have worked, resulting in new concepts and theories on the biological sciences.

Based on more than one hundred first-person interviews, this thoughtful portrait of the Byrds creative genius Gene Clark reveals how he pioneered new sounds within rock music while serving as one of the main musical visionaries in the seminal 1960s group. Original.

From Gregor Mendel's experiments on garden peas to the mammoth Human Genome Project of today—how did we get where we are in the science of genetics? In this intriguing book, Bruce Wallace examines the concept of the gene and recounts the history of genetic research, providing a concise transition from genetics to modern molecular biology.

Relive one of the most magical times in history, a time that saw profound cultural and spiritual change throughout the world, but nowhere more than in the San Francisco Bay of the mid to late 1960's. Author and photographer Gene Anthony was there, capturing every moment, every poem, every song, and every embrace on film. This photographic tour gets you up close and personal with musicians like Jim Morrison, Jerry Garcia, Jimi Hendrix, and Janis Joplin. It takes you inside the volatile demonstrations at the heart of the anti-war movement, the women's rights movement, the struggle for civil rights. From the Fillmore, to the Human Be-in, to the Trips Festival, Anthony has created a collection of work that captures the feeling of these once in a lifetime events. With over 300 personal and passionate photographs, this book is a visual tour through the freedom, hopes, and beliefs that defined an era and changed the world.

Describes the intellectual journey of eccentric American genius George Price, who tried to answer the evolutionary riddle of why people are nice, and eventually gave away all his belongings and took his own life in a squatter's flat.