Galileo’s telescopic discoveries, and especially his observation of sunspots, caused great debate in an age when the heavens were thought to be perfect and unchanging. Christoph Scheiner, a Jesuit mathematician, argued that sunspots were planets or moons crossing in front of the Sun. Galileo, on the other hand, countered that the spots were on or near the surface of the Sun itself, and he supported his position with a series of meticulous observations and mathematical demonstrations that eventually convinced even his rival. On Sunspots collects the correspondence that constituted the public debate, including the first English translation of Scheiner’s two tracts as well as Galileo’s three letters, which have previously appeared only in abridged form. In addition, Albert Van Helden and Eileen Reeves have supplemented the correspondence with lengthy introductions, extensive notes, and a bibliography. The result will become the standard work on the subject, essential for students and historians of astronomy, the telescope, and early modern Catholicism.
Galileo’s telescopic discoveries, and especially his observation of sunspots, caused great debate in an age when the heavens were thought to be perfect and unchanging. Christoph Scheiner, a Jesuit mathematician, argued that sunspots were planets or moons crossing in front of the Sun. Galileo, on the other hand, countered that the spots were on or near the surface of the Sun itself, and he supported his position with a series of meticulous observations and mathematical demonstrations that eventually convinced even his rival. On Sunspots collects the correspondence that constituted the public debate, including the first English translation of Scheiner’s two tracts as well as Galileo’s three letters, which have previously appeared only in abridged form. In addition, Albert Van Helden and Eileen Reeves have supplemented the correspondence with lengthy introductions, extensive notes, and a bibliography. The result will become the standard work on the subject, essential for students and historians of astronomy, the telescope, and early modern Catholicism.
Stingless bees (Meliponini) are the largest and most diverse group of social bees, yet their largely tropical distribution means that they are less studied than their relatives, the bumble bees and honey bees. Stingless bees produce honey and collect pollen from tens of thousands of tropical plant species and, in the process, provide critical pollination services in the tropics. Like many other insects, they are struggling with new human-made challenges like habitat destruction, climate change and new diseases. This book provides an overview of stingless bee biology, with chapters on the evolutionary history, nesting biology, colony organisation and division of labour of stingless bees. In addition, it explores their defence strategies, foraging ecology, and varied communication methods. Accordingly, the book offers an accessible introduction and reference guide for students, researchers and laypeople interested in the biology of bees.
Vol. 2: This is the second in a six volume compendium on the correspondences of John Wallis (1616-1703). Wallis was Savilian Professor of Geometry at Oxford from 1649 until his death, and was a founding member of the Royal Society and a central figure in the scientific and intellectual history of England.
The Correspondence of John Wallis (1616 -1703) is a critically acclaimed resource in the history of early modern science. Volume IV covers the period from 1672 to April 1675 and contains over eighty previously unpublished letters. It documents Wallis's role in the crucial debate over the method of tangents involving figures such as Sluse, James Gregory, Hudde, Barrow, Newton, and Christiaan Huygens. In this way it illuminates further an important part of the history of the calculus. Wallis's letters also provide valuable new insights into mathematical book production and the importance of the international exchange of books in the growth and dissemination of mathematical knowledge. We learn more about the part played by the intelligencer John Collins and the astronomer royal John Flamsteed in the edition of Jeremiah Horrox's Opera posthuma, published by Wallis in 1673. There are also new insights on the background to Wallis's early work on equations, and the reasons why he criticized Gaston Pardies's proposed tract on motion. The causes of the breakdown in Wallis's epistolary relation to Christiaan Huygens following the publication of the Horologium oscillatorium in 1673 are also revealed. Many letters reflect Wallis's active involvement in the Royal Society. Through the medium of correspondence the Savilian professor participated in numerous debates such as those over the anomalous suspension of mercury in the Torricellian tube or Hevelius's use of plain sights in positional astronomy. The volume allows us to gain a deeper understanding of the background to these debates. Furthermore, the volume throws important new light on the history of the University of Oxford and of the University Press in the early modern period. As keeper of the University Archives, Wallis was one of the institution's highest officers. Scarcely any event of note concerning the University did not require his involvement in some way, and this is reflected in numerous letters and documents which the volume publishes for the first time.
The responsiveness to societal demands is both the key virtue and the key problem of modern democracies. On the one hand, responsiveness is a central cornerstone of democratic legitimacy. On the other hand, responsiveness inevitably entails policy accumulation. While policy accumulation often positively reflects modernisation and human progress, it also undermines democratic government in three main ways. First, policy accumulation renders policy content increasingly complex, which crowds out policy substance from public debates and leads to an increasingly unhealthy discursive prioritisation of politics over policy. Secondly, policy accumulation comes with aggravating implementation deficits, as it produces administrative backlogs and incentivises selective implementation. Finally, policy accumulation undermines the pursuit of evidence-based public policy, because it threatens our ability to evaluate the increasingly complex interactions within growing policy mixes. The authors argue that the stability of democratic systems will crucially depend on their ability to make policy accumulation more sustainable.
Now available in paperback, this landmark biography was first published in 2000 to mark the 250th anniversary of J. S. Bach's death. Written by a leading Bach scholar, this book presents a new picture of the composer. Christoph Wolff demonstrates the intimate connection between Bach's life and his music, showing how the composer's superb inventiveness pervaded his career as a musician, composer, performer, scholar, and teacher.
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