San Antonio College Library

A global view of science and technology as it developed over the centuries.

Albert Einstein may be best known as the wire-haired whacky physicist who gave us the theory of relativity, but that's just one facet of this genius's contribution to human knowledge and modern science. As József Illy expertly shows in this book, Einstein had an eminently practical side as well. As a youth, Einstein was an inveterate tinkerer in the electrical supply factory his father and uncle owned and operated. His first paid job was as a patent...

Since ancient times, people have believed that breakthrough ideas come from the brains of geniuses with awesome rational powers. In recent years, however, the paradigm has begun to shift toward the notion that the source of creativity lies "out there," in the network of connections between people and ideas. In this provocative book, Richard Ogle crystallizes the nature of this shift, and boldly outlines "a new science of ideas." The key resides in...

This book examines the use of computers to automate the process of inventing. The author argues that since software can conceive of and abandon ideas without biases, and with greater speed and range, computers could boost inventive abilities to undreamed of heights. This would enable small teams, or even consumers, to compete with corporations. The author also looks at how this would affect patents.

Biography of the persecuted genius who helped create the modern computer.

Presents brief descriptions of selected scientific principles to illustrate the interplay between science, engineering and society. Case studies emphasize technological developments growing directly from scientific discoveries, such as telegraphy as a result of discoveries in electromagnetism.

It is hard to imagine any device more crucial to modern life than the microchip and the transistor from which it sprang. Every waking hour people of the world take their vast benefits for granted - in cellular phones, ATMs, wrist watches, calculators, computers, automobiles, radios, televisions, fax machines, copiers, stoplights, and thousands of other electronic devices. Without a doubt, the transistor is the most important artifact of the twentieth...