E-Book Overview
Science is such a vast arena of knowledge that people looking for a better grasp of its secrets often wonder where to begin. The answer: with the essentials. Now, finally satisfy your desire for scientific inquiry in a way that makes this enormous field accessible, understandable, and undeniably captivating. Professor Viskontas boils down the scientific world into 12 key concepts every educated person should know. Devoting two lectures to each concept to give you more time to engage with it, her 24-lecture series is an engaging and enlightening introduction to everything from the behavior of subatomic particles to the latest theories about the Big Bang. Throughout, you'll get accessible looks at key building blocks of scientific knowledge, including brain plasticity, fluid mechanics, electromagnetism, genetics, quantum theory, emergence, evolution, thermodynamics, the Big Bang, and the nature of matter. Each concept is presented in a clear, concise way that will inform and delight you, and that will give you the opportunity to probe the invisible life of living cells, visit the universe seconds after its birth, and much more. Concepts that may have eluded you in school, that you may not be familiar with, or that you simply never appreciated for their intricate beauty are now brought to vivid life in a way that sticks. Welcome to the world of science - reduced to its powerful essence.
E-Book Content
Topic Science & Mathematics “Pure intellectual stimulation that can be popped into the [audio or video player] anytime.” —Harvard Magazine 12 Essential Scientific Concepts “Passionate, erudite, living legend lecturers. Academia’s best lecturers are being captured on tape.” —The Los Angeles Times “A serious force in American education.” —The Wall Street Journal Professor Indre Viskontas is a Cognitive Neuroscience Affiliate at the Memory and Aging Center at the University of California, San Francisco, and holds a Ph.D. in Cognitive Neuroscience from the University of California, Los Angeles. In addition, she is a member of the collegiate faculty at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music. Professor Viskontas has published more than 35 book chapters and papers related to the neural basis of memory and creativity. Defying traditional career boundaries, she also performs as an opera singer. She currently cohosts Inquiring Minds, a popular science podcast. Professor Photo: © Jeff Mauritzen - inPhotograph.com. Cover Image: © imagewerks/Getty Images. Course No. 1126 © 2014 The Teaching Company. PB1126A Guidebook THE GREAT COURSES ® Corporate Headquarters 4840 Westfields Boulevard, Suite 500 Chantilly, VA 20151-2299 USA Phone: 1-800-832-2412 www.thegreatcourses.com 12 Essential Scientific Concepts Course Guidebook Professor Indre Viskontas University of California, San Francisco; San Francisco Conservatory of Music Subtopic General Science PUBLISHED BY: THE GREAT COURSES Corporate Headquarters 4840 Westfields Boulevard, Suite 500 Chantilly, Virginia 20151-2299 Phone: 1-800-832-2412 Fax: 703-378-3819 www.thegreatcourses.com Copyright © The Teaching Company, 2014 Printed in the United States of America This book is in copyright. All rights reserved. Without limiting the rights under copyright reserved above, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form, or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise), without the prior written permission of The Teaching Company. Indre Viskontas, Ph.D. Cognitive Neuroscience Affiliate, Memory and Aging Center, University of California, San Francisco Professor of Music, San Francisco Conservatory of Music P rofessor Indre Viskontas is a Cognitive Neuroscience Affil