Category: Quantum | Mechanics Physics Theory

Book Review | Two incredible Science Biography collections anchoured together: “Magnificent Minds” and “Remarkable Minds”, featuring women of Science & Medicine by Pendred E. Noyce

Posted Tuesday, 9 February, 2016 by jorielov , , , 2 Comments

Ruminations & Impressions Book Review Banner created by Jorie in Canva. Photo Credit: Unsplash Public Domain Photographer Sergey Zolkin.

Acquired Book By:

I was selected to review “Remarkable Minds” by JKS Communications: A Literary Publicity Firm. JKS is the first publicity firm I started working with when I launched Jorie Loves A Story in August, 2013. I am honoured to continue to work with them now as a 2nd Year Book Blogger. As I was speaking with the publicist at JKS, I realised this was a duology release (at least at this point in time) thereby I enquired if it were possible to receive both editions rather than the last. I received my complimentary ARC copy of Remarkable Minds and a hardback copy of Magnificent Minds direct from the publisher Tumblehome Learning in exchange for an honest review.  I did not receive compensation for my opinions or thoughts shared herein.

Why I am extremely excited and wicked happy for these biography anthologies:

To read my strong appreciation on behalf of Tumblehome Learning Publishing, please direct your attention to the top anchour of my review for ‘The Contaminated Case of the Cooking Contest’.

The following note is an excerpt of my reply to JKS when the review was first pitched:

I just pulled up the pub site and found out this is a companion to *Magnificent Minds*! I never read the first collection of stories either, but what I liked about both releases is how women in history are being showcased! I learnt a small bit about Augusta Ada Bryon yesterday when I was looking through Creston Book’s front list; as they have an Early Reader story upcoming this Autumn about her! Nice to see she made the cut in *Magnificent Minds!*

*Remarkable Minds* is truly the type of book I would have loved to have found as a fourteen year old freshman who was struggling through Biology 101! I loved learning about DNA & Genetics but science, math, and medicine did not come easy to a dyslexic! It was the film “The Race for the Double Helix” where I saw in a teleplay format how Rosalind Franklin gave so much to the understanding of DNA yet is sidelined in both history and science. She was only one of a few women I was seeking out at that point in time and so, I definitely agree on the need for books that can help others like me who are curious to follow history’s mirror of women fore-founders of science to discover these wicked awesome books!

The reason I wanted to share this excerpt with you is to share my initial joy in finding out there are two anthology collections of biographies celebrating women in science & medicine on equal ground. For girls like me who grew up with a deep appreciation for the sciences but without a clear-cut way to pursue them with their learning difficulties and/or in combination with a harder road to navigate in general (most Academia paths are hard on funding long-term, especially when you get into research, etc) – it was quite lovely seeing a publisher take the time to find a way to encourage those of us who are on the brink of discovering our niche in the world. Perhaps a young reader similar to me will find a renewed encouragement about pursuing the Sciences (or Medicine) full-time and re-define how a path can be forged to do so!

Fun Stuff for Your Blog via pureimaginationblog.com

Similar to anthologies of Fantasy I regularly review, I decided to select the women who stood out to me the most from the collective whole of whom are featured within both biographies.

Fun Stuff for Your Blog via pureimaginationblog.com

Book Review | Two incredible Science Biography collections anchoured together: “Magnificent Minds” and “Remarkable Minds”, featuring women of Science & Medicine by Pendred E. NoyceRemarkable Minds
Subtitle: 17 Pioneering Women in Science and Medicine

For centuries, women have risen above their traditional roles to pursue a new understanding of the natural world.

This book, which grows out of an exhibit at the Grolier Club in New York, introduces the lives, sayings, and dreams of 16 women over four centuries and chronicles their contributions to mathematics, physics, chemistry, astronomy, and medicine.

Some of the notable women portrayed in the book include French mathematician Marie-Sophie Germain, known for her work in Elasticity theory, differential geometry, and number theory; Scottish chemist Elizabeth Fulhame, best known for her 1794 work An Essay on Combustion; and Rita Levi-Montalcini, who, with colleague Stanley Cohen, received the 1986 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for their discovery of nerve growth factor.

A companion volume to Magnificent Minds by the same author, this book offers inspiration to all girls and young women considering a life in the sciences.


Places to find the book:

Borrow from a Public Library

Add to LibraryThing

ISBN: 9780990782902

on 1st September, 2015

Format: Paperback ARC

Pages: 192

Published By: Tumblehome Learning (@TumblehomeLearn)

Available Formats: Hardcover

Converse via Twitter: #ScienceBiography + #WomenOfScience + #SciencePioneers

#TumblehomeLearning and #JKSLitPublicity

About Pendred E. Noyce

Pendred E. Noyce

Pendred E. (Penny) Noyce is a doctor, education advocate, writer and publisher.

Penny grew up in California’s Silicon Valley when it was still mostly apricot orchards and fields of mustard. Along with her brother and sisters, she rode ponies, put on plays, and explored the rapidly changing countryside. She graduated with a degree in biochemistry from Harvard University and an M.D. from Stanford University. After her internship and residency in internal medicine in Minneapolis-St. Paul, she worked at the East Boston Community Health Center. During a year in London, she received a diploma in Tropical Medicine and Hygiene. Subsequently, she supervised medical residents at Newton-Wellesley Hospital, but she left the practice of medicine after the birth of her fifth child.

In 1991, Penny became a founding trustee of the Noyce Foundation, which supports K-12 mathematics and science education across the U.S. For nine years she also helped lead a statewide effort to improve mathematics, science, and technology education in Massachusetts. Currently she serves on the Massachusetts Board of Elementary and Secondary Education.

A past trustee of Radcliffe College, Penny has served on a number of nonprofit boards, mostly of organizations involved in science and math education. She currently chairs the boards of the Rennie Center for Education Research and Policy and Maine’s Libra Foundation.

Penny is author or co-author of eight novels for children ages 9-12, including Lost in Lexicon and The Ice Castle from Scarletta Press and six books in the Galactic Academy of Science series from Tumblehome Learning. Her most recent book, this one nonfiction, is Magnificent Minds: Sixteen Pioneering Women in Science and Medicine. As cofounder of Tumblehome Learning, which publishes science mystery and adventure stories for young people, Penny serves as Tumblehome’s editor and chair.

Penny and her husband, Leo X. Liu, MD, live in Boston with their youngest child, who will be leaving for college in one more year.

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Posted Tuesday, 9 February, 2016 by jorielov in #JorieLovesIndies, Astronomy, Astrophysics, Bits & Bobbles of Jorie, Blog Tour Host, Book Review (non-blog tour), Children's Literature, Education & Learning, Illustrations for Stories, JKS Communications: Literary Publicity Firm, Juvenile Fiction, Mechanical Engineering, Middle Grade Novel, Non-Fiction, Quantum | Mechanics Physics Theory, Quantum Physics, Science, Vignettes of Real Life

Book Review | A #LuminisBooks special focus on #stringtheory with Chris Katsaropoulos. Two stories, two books, and a world of thought: “Antiphony” & “Entrevoir”.

Posted Monday, 28 December, 2015 by jorielov , , , 0 Comments

Ruminations & Impressions Book Review Banner created by Jorie in Canva. Photo Credit: Unsplash Public Domain Photographer Sergey Zolkin.

Acquired Book By:

I was selected to review “Entrevoir” by JKS Communications: A Literary Publicity Firm. JKS is the first publicity firm I started working with when I launched Jorie Loves A Story in August, 2013. I am honoured to continue to work with them now as a 2nd Year Book Blogger. I received my complimentary copy of Entrevoir direct from JKS Communications in exchange for an honest review. I did not receive compensation for my opinions or thoughts shared herein.

Whilst I was discussing reviewing Entrevoir, I enquired about Antiphony as to the best of my understanding although the two stories are independent of each other, I felt it would behoove me to read them in tandem rather than to attempt to read Entrevoir without knowledge of Antiphony. Therefore, I received a complimentary copy of Antiphony without obligation to post a review as I did so for my own edification.

On my fascination with the Quantum World:

The following is an excerpt of my response to the JKS publicist who contacted me. I elected to share most of this conversation as it illuminates my interest in Quantum Physics and how relevant my curiosity has remained me with me ever since I first started researching the field; both in my early twenties and previously as a young adult teen.

I am keenly interested in this author and his works, as I personally love string theory and quantum physics — I started to collect books on the subject in my early twenties, including but not limited to “Lucifer’s Legacy” and the works of Dr. Brian Greene. I approach it through Copernicus, Aristotle, and Einstein’s legacies of thought and dimensional observations on the subjects, but I have a keen interest in da Vinci as well, who was a bit ahead of his time across all fields. It isn’t often quantum physics is a featured subject for either non-fiction or fictional releases, and I’m always giddy as a cat when I discover a new author or physicist, who is endeavouring to have us enlarge our perspective and point of view on the world and realms by which we live inside.

I pulled up the author’s Twitter feeds and liked the esoteric and metaphysical tweeting he was projecting inasmuch as the clarity of his thoughts being conveyed in such a small space! I love introspective and thought-provoking texts, especially when your shifting from how we view and understand our world and the cosmos above us.

I was going to ask, can “Entrevoir” be read and understood without having read “Antiphony”? Sometimes physicists carry forward their thoughts from one release to another, so I wasn’t sure if perchance this is the case here or if they are substantially heading off in different directions from one release to the other?! [the key reason I requested to read both of these titles together]

Anything to do with the quantum world, either in fiction (esp hard science fiction) or non-fiction is going to appeal to me, as I love black hole science, string theory, quantum mechanics, dimensional space and the theory of the time continuum, as well as straight-up quantum physics and the curious attraction I have to studying symmetry vs asymmetry in both design and elemental physics. I started to soak inside the theories after picking up “A Wrinkle in Time” which opened the door to understanding the projections of the theories inside “Flatland” by Edwin Abbott. From these two explorations as one was rooted in fact and the other was expressed in fiction (fiction is a beautiful gateway to the imagination, to help us harbour a direct connection in how to purport what was not able to be fathomed by granting us the grace of familiarity), I moved forward into the works I mentioned above: “Lucifer’s Legacy” and the works of Dr. Greene.

You have a keen eye to notice [in reference to the publicist] where my interests lie, as Dr. Brian Greene is one contemporary physicist alongside Dr. Michio Kaku I have my eye on. Another is a mathematician: Dr. Clifford Pickover, where I get to explore where mathematics have a sublet of inspiration on the bearing of how art is seen, produced, and explored — especially when it comes to fractals!

Sometimes I just like to “browse” the science shelves in book shoppes to see what jumps out at me, and therein, I discover other wicked sweet things like ‘quasars, quirks, and the little bits’ which make up the interior fabric and framework of outer space possible. Mathematics is the language of how the design of our world is possible but it also bears understanding to become closer to God. He left behind such a prism of insight just by the science of how everything kinetically works together. Most scientists (i.e. Issac Newton, Einstein, etc) were attempting to understand God through the language of mathematics and the intricacies of quantum physics; this fascinates me, and as I follow their paths, I start to see what they discovered too. The infinite beauty of how all of what we know and everything we have yet to know is plausible; it’s joy doubled and bound through eternity.

Fun Stuff for Your Blog via pureimaginationblog.com

Book Review | A #LuminisBooks special focus on #stringtheory with Chris Katsaropoulos. Two stories, two books, and a world of thought: “Antiphony” & “Entrevoir”.Entrevoir

The unveiling of a new work of art by Jacob Marsteller is typically one of the most highly anticipated events in the international art scene—but not this time. Jacob's new piece is a labyrinth of gossamer fabric perched on the peak of a mountain called Entrevoir in a remote corner of the south of France. It looks as if nobody except Jacob's teenage children and a few neighbors from the village will bother to show up at the gallery.

As Jacob finishes dressing for the party, he and his wife Marya begin to argue. She warned him that moving from the vibrant art scene of New York to a tiny village in the middle of nowhere would be a fatal mistake for his career. As she turns her back to him and walks down the stairs, Jacob tells her there was a reason he had to come here to create this piece—and that's when Jacob's whole world begins to unravel. Without realizing what is happening, he is lifted out of his body and taken to another dimension, where he becomes the watcher, the witness, and experiencer of lives he lived six decades ago and thousands of years ago, on other planets and as the highest forms of life.

In the span of one instant and over the course of millions of years, Jacob comes to understand that he is not his body, he is not his mind, and he is not even his soul. By the end of the amazing unveiling of Jacob's true self, he will experience the greatest transfiguration any human being has ever known: the realization of the ultimate nature of human life, and of spirit itself.


Places to find the book:

Borrow from a Public Library

Add to LibraryThing

on 15th April, 2015

Pages: 208

Book Synopsis for Antiphony:

Chris Katsaropoulos dramatically depicts the downfall of Theodore, a String Theory physicist who commits the biggest faux pas in the world of science, proposing to his colleagues at a major international conference that perhaps consciousness—God—could be the missing piece in discovering the Final Theory of the universe. To the horror of everyone at the meeting, Theodore proposes, “What if the Universe is really a giant thought?”

ANTIPHONY traces the downward spiral of Theodore’s career in the wake of what he has said, and the remarkable transformation that leads him into the depths of madness . . . or the revelation of the Final Theory, the ultimate secret of the universe.

Katsaropoulos explores Theodore’s downfall with a depth of feeling and meaning that is expressed in a lyrical style that challenges readers to think beyond what is readily apparent and on the surface of things. As novelist Al Riske put it in his recent review of ANTIPHONY, “Katsaropoulos has a way of delving deeply into what seem like small moments—the whole novel takes place in just three or four days—and capturing all their nuances and vibrating tension.”

As Riske says in his review, “Throughout Antiphony, the protagonist experiences dreams and visions that fill pages the way a flash flood fills a ravine—a torrent of words flowing into the space between the margins and pressing onward to the next page and the next. It makes me wonder how he did it.”

Is there a God, and if so, is science fighting a losing battle in its search for the ultimate Theory of Everything? In the end, ANTIPHONY lets each reader decide for themselves…

Read an Excerpt of the Novel:

Antiphony via Midpoint Trade Books (Luminis Books)

[ Antiphony ] Add to Riffle | Public Library

Genre(s): Science Fiction based on Science Fact | Quantum Theory

Spiritual Metaphysics | String Theory | Hard Sci-Fi | Literary Fiction

Published By: Luminis Books (@LuminisBooks) | Blog

Available Formats [for both]: Paperback and Ebook

Converse via Twitter: #StringTheory, #SciGeek,

#LuminisBooks and #JKSLitPublicity

About Chris Katsaropoulos

Chris Katsaropoulos is the author of more than a dozen books, including two critically acclaimed novels, Fragile and Antiphony, and Complex Knowing, the first collection of his poems. He has been an editor at several major publishing houses and has published numerous trade books, textbooks, and novels over the course of his publishing career. He lives in Carmel, Indiana.

Interview on Luminis Books Blog | About "Antiphony"

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Posted Monday, 28 December, 2015 by jorielov in #JorieLovesIndies, ARC | Galley Copy, Astrophysics, Asymmetry, Bits & Bobbles of Jorie, Blog Tour Host, Book | Novel Extract, Book Review (non-blog tour), Debut Author, Debut Novel, Fly in the Ointment, Genre-bender, JKS Communications: Literary Publicity Firm, Literary Fiction, Quantum | Mechanics Physics Theory, Quantum Physics, Scribd, String Theory, Superstrings, Supersymmetry, Vulgarity in Literature

Book Review | “Wishful Thinking” by Kamy Wicoff #SRC2015 No.2

Posted Tuesday, 30 June, 2015 by jorielov , , , 0 Comments

BookSparks Summer Reading Challenge 2015

I quite happily am spending Summer soaking through the lovely discoveries I am making through the annual BookSparks Summer Reading Challenge! This particular Summer challenge has become quite dear to me due to how wicked lovely my local library has been in giving me an added layer of joy whilst BookSparks has coordinated the blog tours attached to the reading challenge in such a way to continue to *surprise!* me by finding books arriving by Post I was not even sure would be posted! (full story revealed on this post)

This marks my second review out of ten, and although I was originally meant to post my ruminations on Monday, the 29th of June, I needed the extra hours to fully immerse myself into Wishful Thinking! Partially due to a slow-shift back into reading after my illness and partially due to a *major!* upgrade my blog undertook over the weekend yielding to a few wonky tech issues that left me unable to blog.

My next review for #SRC2015 was meant to appear on Thursday, however, I believe it will be closer to Saturday, as I equally need more time to fully embrace my next summer read! I am hoping after I post #SRC2015 No.3, I’ll be back on track with my pre-booked schedule!

It was such a joy to snuggle into this novel – it nearly felt autobiographical, too! Wicoff is definitely an author I want to keep my eyes on and continue to see where her bookish endeavours take us!

Rainbow Digital Clip Art Washi Tape made by The Paper Pegasus. Purchased on Etsy by Jorie and used with permission.
Ruminations & Impressions Book Review Banner created by Jorie in Canva. Photo Credit: Unsplash Public Domain Photographer Sergey Zolkin.

Acquired Book By: I originally found BookSparks PR last Spring, when I came upon the Summer Reading Challenge a bit too late in the game. I hadn’t forgotten about it, and was going to re-contact them this Spring to see if I could join the challenge this year instead. Coincidentally, before I sorted this out, I was contacted by one of their publicists about Linda Lafferty’s Renaissance historical novel, “The Sheperdess of Siena”. 

At the time when I was confirmed to be a part of the #SRC2015 official blog tour schedule, we were not able to get confirmation on which books we selected to review on our respective blogs would be sent to us by the publishers and/or publicist at BookSparks, thereby I submitted purchase requests at my local library for all *10!* books I selected to read and review.

I elected to read “Wishful Thinking” via the complimentary copy I received by BookSparks as the library copy arrived just after this lovely book arrived by postal mail. By participating in the #SRC2015 challenge I am reading the novels in exchange for my honest reviews; whether I am receiving a complimentary copy or borrowing them through my local library. I did not receive compensation for my opinions or thoughts shared herein.

Book Review | “Wishful Thinking” by Kamy Wicoff #SRC2015 No.2Wishful Thinking
by Kamy Wicoff
Source: Direct from Publicist

Genres: Women's Fiction, Motherhood | Parenthood, Magical Realism, Time Travel Fiction, Quantum Physics



Places to find the book:

Borrow from a Public Library

Add to LibraryThing

Published by She Writes Press

on 21st April, 2015

Format: Paperback Edition

Pages: 384

Jorie Loves A Story Cuppa Book Love Awards Badge created by Jorie in Canva. Coffee and Tea Clip Art Set purchased on Etsy; made by rachelwhitetoo.

written by Kamy Wicoff | Site | @kwicoff | Facebook | Instagram

Published By:She Writes Press (@shewritespress)
originated from She Writes (@shewritesdotcom)
an imprint of Spark Points Studio LLCGoSparkPoint (@GoSparkPoint)
& BookSparks
(@BookSparks)
Available Formats: Paperback, Ebook

Converse via: #WishfulThinking & #SRC2015 Read More

Reading this book contributed to these challenges:

  • #SRC2015 | BookSparks
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Posted Tuesday, 30 June, 2015 by jorielov in #JorieLovesIndies, #SRC2015 | BookSparks, 20th Century, Animals in Fiction & Non-Fiction, Bits & Bobbles of Jorie, Blog Tour Host, Book | Novel Extract, Book Cover | Notation on Design, Book Cover | Original Illustration & Design, Bookish Films, BookSparks, Cats and Kittens, Clever Turns of Phrase, Death, Sorrow, and Loss, Debut Author, Debut Novel, Disillusionment in Marriage, Divorce & Martial Strife, Equality In Literature, Family Drama, Family Life, Fathers and Daughters, Genre-bender, Humour & Satire in Fiction / Non Fiction, Indie Author, Indie Book Trade, Inspiring Video Related to Content, Jorie Loves A Story Cuppa Book Love Awards, LGBTTQPlus Fiction | Non-Fiction, Library Love, Life of Thirty-Somethings, Life Shift, Local Libraries | Research Libraries, Magical Realism, Modern Day, Mother-Son Relationships, Motherhood | Parenthood, Multi-cultural Characters and/or Honest Representations of Ethnicity, New York City, Passionate Researcher, Public Service | Community Officers, Quantum | Mechanics Physics Theory, Realistic Fiction, Science Fantasy, Scribd, Second Chance Love, Single Mothers, Sisterhood friendships, Story in Diary-Style Format, Terminal Illness &/or Cancer, Time Shift, Time Travel, Time Travel Adventure, Time Travel Romance, Vulgarity in Literature, Women's Fiction