Overview

'Does the scientist's world conform to the real one? Nature usually answers this question with an emphatic 'No!'. It has in fact been said that Nature delights in saying 'No' and only with the greatest reluctance condescends to reveal her secrets. For this reason the scientist's life is not an easy one. However, on those rare occasions when his world does conform to the real one, and for this reason does throw light on the world around us, the rewards and the satisfactions are great and more than compensate for the many disappointments' - Herbert A. Hauptman. In this memoir of a long, distinguished career devoted to scientific research, world-renowned mathematician Herbert A. Hauptman recounts both the joys and the disappointments of his lifelong quest to induce nature to 'reveal her secrets'. In 1985, Dr. Hauptman received the greatest honour that any scientist can receive, when the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences awarded him and his colleague, Jerome Karle, the Nobel Prize in chemistry. Drs Hauptman and Karle were recognised 'for their outstanding achievements in the development of direct methods for the determination of crystal structures'. This work has proved to be of the greatest importance because it relates molecular structure to biological activity, thus permitting a better understanding of life processes and making possible the development of many new disease-fighting drugs. Dr. Hauptman vividly describes the difficulties of the mathematical work that led up to his discovery as well as his joy when he finally hit upon a method of unravelling the structure of crystals. In addition, he provides a personal account of his background, family, his formative studies in high school and college, and the experiences that motivated him to pursue a life devoted to scientific research. A strong advocate of the naturalistic worldview and a critic of supernaturalism in any form, he reflects on the alleged compatibility of science and religion and emphasises the importance of scientific understanding for contemporary civilisation. Complete with an appendix containing the original monograph (co-authored with Jerome Karle), which became the basis for their Nobel Prize-winning work, this fascinating and moving memoir offers important insights into the nature of scientific research and the value of the scientific outlook on life.

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9781591024606

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Reviews

""In an era when pop star Miley Cyrus can put out an autobiography at the grand age of 15, it's refreshing to read a memoir from someone who has a life worth recording. Herbert A. Hauptman is one of this area's living treasures. He won the Nobel Prize in chemistry in 1985 for his groundbreaking work in X-ray crystallography, research that helped pave the way in the development of powerful drugs. But the 91-year-old Hauptman, long affiliated with the medical research institute that bears his name, isn't widely known here. Hopefully Hauptman's new memoir will help him draw the recognition he deserves. At its best, Hauptman's memoir is a provocative account of his views on science as it relates to society, politics, education and religion. On the Beauty of Science is a sure-to-be-controversial call to arms, as Hauptman argues forcefully that science and religion are incompatible and that Americans must learn to think more critically about science and other issues. Hauptman's memoir is sure to inspire a passionate debate between believers and nonbelievers, and I'll bet that was his desire all along."" --Buffalo News, Sunday, November 2, 2008

In an era when pop star Miley Cyrus can put out an autobiography at the grand age of 15, it's refreshing to read a memoir from someone who has a life worth recording. Herbert A. Hauptman is one of this area's living treasures. He won the Nobel Prize in chemistry in 1985 for his groundbreaking work in X-ray crystallography, research that helped pave the way in the development of powerful drugs. But the 91-year-old Hauptman, long affiliated with the medical research institute that bears his name, isn't widely known here. Hopefully Hauptman's new memoir will help him draw the recognition he deserves. At its best, Hauptman's memoir is a provocative account of his views on science as it relates to society, politics, education and religion. On the Beauty of Science is a sure-to-be-controversial call to arms, as Hauptman argues forcefully that science and religion are incompatible and that Americans must learn to think more critically about science and other issues. Hauptman's memoir is sure to inspire a passionate debate between believers and nonbelievers, and I'll bet that was his desire all along. --Buffalo News, Sunday, November 2, 2008

"""In an era when pop star Miley Cyrus can put out an autobiography at the grand age of 15, it's refreshing to read a memoir from someone who has a life worth recording. Herbert A. Hauptman is one of this area's living treasures. He won the Nobel Prize in chemistry in 1985 for his groundbreaking work in X-ray crystallography, research that helped pave the way in the development of powerful drugs. But the 91-year-old Hauptman, long affiliated with the medical research institute that bears his name, isn't widely known here. Hopefully Hauptman's new memoir will help him draw the recognition he deserves. At its best, Hauptman's memoir is a provocative account of his views on science as it relates to society, politics, education and religion. On the Beauty of Science is a sure-to-be-controversial call to arms, as Hauptman argues forcefully that science and religion are incompatible and that Americans must learn to think more critically about science and other issues. Hauptman's memoir is sure to inspire a passionate debate between believers and nonbelievers, and I'll bet that was his desire all along."" --Buffalo News, Sunday, November 2, 2008"

Author Information

Herbert A. Hauptman (Buffalo, NY) is president of the Hauptman-Woodward Medical Research Institute, research professor in the Department of Biophysical Sciences, and adjunct professor in the Department of Computer Science at the University at Buffalo. Besides the Nobel Prize in Chemistry, Dr. Hauptman has received many other honors, including election to the National Academy of Sciences. He is the author of more than 170 publications.

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