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Short Stories from Modern Science
Edited by Ra Page
Categories: 19th Century, 20th Century, African, American, Anthologies, British, German, Italian, Jewish, Russian, Women
Imprint: Comma Press
Publisher: Comma Press
Available as:
Imprint: Comma Press
Publisher: Comma Press
Available as:
- Description
- Editor
- Awards
- Reviews
Radio 4's Pick of the Week
Book of the Week in The Independent
Featuring
Kate Clanchy, Annie Clarkson, Frank Cottrell Boyce, Stella Duffy, Sarah Hall, Tania Hershman, Trevor Hoyle, Maggie Gee, Michael Jecks, Zoe Lambert, Alison MacLeod, Sara Maitland, Adam Marek, Sean O'Brien, Christine Poulson, Jane Rogers and Emma Jane Unsworth
Like the creation myths they supersede, the revelations of science are seared into our collective imagination through storytelling. From Archimedes' bath to Newton's apple, vivid accounts of scientific discovery help us understand the principles behind each theory, and add to the larger narrative of how the universe works, and how we came to be here.
This anthology draws out and distills science’s love of narrative from a wide range of scientific disciplines, weaving theory into very human stories, and delving into the humanity of theorists and experimenters as they stood on the brink of momentous discoveries: from Joseph Swan’s original light-bulb moment to the uncovering of ‘mirror neurons’ lighting up empathy zones in the human brain; from Einstein's revelation on a Bern tram, to Pavlov’s identification of personality types thanks to a freak flood in his St Petersburg lab.
Each story has been written in close consultation with scientists and historians and is accompanied by a specially written afterword, expanding on the science for the general reader.
Together, they bring vividly to life the stories behind the 'eureka!' moments that changed the way we live, forever.
Features Alison MacLeod's 'The Heart of Denis Noble' - Shortlisted for the BBC National Short Story Award 2011
Book of the Week in The Independent
Featuring
Kate Clanchy, Annie Clarkson, Frank Cottrell Boyce, Stella Duffy, Sarah Hall, Tania Hershman, Trevor Hoyle, Maggie Gee, Michael Jecks, Zoe Lambert, Alison MacLeod, Sara Maitland, Adam Marek, Sean O'Brien, Christine Poulson, Jane Rogers and Emma Jane Unsworth
Like the creation myths they supersede, the revelations of science are seared into our collective imagination through storytelling. From Archimedes' bath to Newton's apple, vivid accounts of scientific discovery help us understand the principles behind each theory, and add to the larger narrative of how the universe works, and how we came to be here.
This anthology draws out and distills science’s love of narrative from a wide range of scientific disciplines, weaving theory into very human stories, and delving into the humanity of theorists and experimenters as they stood on the brink of momentous discoveries: from Joseph Swan’s original light-bulb moment to the uncovering of ‘mirror neurons’ lighting up empathy zones in the human brain; from Einstein's revelation on a Bern tram, to Pavlov’s identification of personality types thanks to a freak flood in his St Petersburg lab.
Each story has been written in close consultation with scientists and historians and is accompanied by a specially written afterword, expanding on the science for the general reader.
Together, they bring vividly to life the stories behind the 'eureka!' moments that changed the way we live, forever.
Features Alison MacLeod's 'The Heart of Denis Noble' - Shortlisted for the BBC National Short Story Award 2011
Awards won by Ra Page
Winner, 2012 Financial Times Book of the Year
(Shi Cheng)
(Shi Cheng)
'An inspiring tribute to inquiring minds.'
The Guardian 'A very alive, illuminating and good-natured collection.'
The Observer 'The pairings work brilliantly, giving stereoscopic vision... ingenious... unfailingly interesting.'
The Independent 'Exquisite... delectable.'
New Scientist 'Works brilliantly... ingenious... unfailingly interesting.'
The Independent, Book of the Week
'Exquisite... delectable'
New Scientist. Praise for Ra Page 'Read this book.'
Liz Lochhead 'An agreeably accomplished collection populated, as promised, by some intriguing characters.'
City Life 'Get with the zeitgeist and buy yourself a copy of Bracket.'
Leeds Guide 'Fills you with hope for the form.'
Time Out 'Short fiction is in good hands.'
The Independent 'If we need the uncanny --and I suspect we do -- then we also need it updating... laudable.'
Book of the Week, The Independent 'A masterclass in understated creepiness... a deliciously macabre collection that the old Austrian might well have enjoyed.'
Book of the Week, Time Out 'Delightful and disturbing.'
The Independent on Sunday 'It's not too great a stretch to see Comma as the literary equivalent of Factory Records.'
The Herald 'There is something about the defiance of language in this story.'
China Daily 'On balance, [the editors] perform a valuable service in making these rich, varied and rewarding stories known to a western audience, for all that the politics of cultural engagement remain fraught.'
Financial Times
'These stories tell us how the lives of these cities and citizens, or peasants-turned-citizens, are being tempered. The stories seem to say that one has to go through the fires of hell to reach some different stage of existence.'
The Independent 'Shi Cheng is a sort of mind map of both modern China, and also of what itâs like to be human.'
Asian Books Blog
'An exhilarating read.'
The Short Review 'Fascinating reading.'
Financial Times 'It might have been of interest to these pre-Mansfield masters to learn that there was a hidden country of prose out there; great short story writers, then and now, create countries of their own.'
Michael Caines writing about Morphologies in the TLS blog 'A worthy addition to the immense collection of criticism.'
The Guardian
The Guardian 'A very alive, illuminating and good-natured collection.'
The Observer 'The pairings work brilliantly, giving stereoscopic vision... ingenious... unfailingly interesting.'
The Independent 'Exquisite... delectable.'
New Scientist 'Works brilliantly... ingenious... unfailingly interesting.'
The Independent, Book of the Week
'Exquisite... delectable'
New Scientist. Praise for Ra Page 'Read this book.'
Liz Lochhead 'An agreeably accomplished collection populated, as promised, by some intriguing characters.'
City Life 'Get with the zeitgeist and buy yourself a copy of Bracket.'
Leeds Guide 'Fills you with hope for the form.'
Time Out 'Short fiction is in good hands.'
The Independent 'If we need the uncanny --and I suspect we do -- then we also need it updating... laudable.'
Book of the Week, The Independent 'A masterclass in understated creepiness... a deliciously macabre collection that the old Austrian might well have enjoyed.'
Book of the Week, Time Out 'Delightful and disturbing.'
The Independent on Sunday 'It's not too great a stretch to see Comma as the literary equivalent of Factory Records.'
The Herald 'There is something about the defiance of language in this story.'
China Daily 'On balance, [the editors] perform a valuable service in making these rich, varied and rewarding stories known to a western audience, for all that the politics of cultural engagement remain fraught.'
Financial Times
'These stories tell us how the lives of these cities and citizens, or peasants-turned-citizens, are being tempered. The stories seem to say that one has to go through the fires of hell to reach some different stage of existence.'
The Independent 'Shi Cheng is a sort of mind map of both modern China, and also of what itâs like to be human.'
Asian Books Blog
'An exhilarating read.'
The Short Review 'Fascinating reading.'
Financial Times 'It might have been of interest to these pre-Mansfield masters to learn that there was a hidden country of prose out there; great short story writers, then and now, create countries of their own.'
Michael Caines writing about Morphologies in the TLS blog 'A worthy addition to the immense collection of criticism.'
The Guardian
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