DISCOVER NEW BOOKS ON DISCOVERY

This week, we are focused on Beautiful Discovery, both the process and the result. Today we look at a wonderful curated collection of beautiful books focused on scientific discovery.

Birds of Paradise are so beautiful, they must have come from paradise. When you see one, it’s not hard to understand why people might think that. When they were first brought to Europe from their native New Guinea, in the early 16th century, Birds of Paradise inspired study to determine how these gorgeous creatures really came to be.

“Drawn from Paradise: The Natural History, Art and Discovery of the Birds of Paradise with Rare Archival Art,” by David Attenborough, and Errol Fuller, presents their own collection of over 200 hand-painted images and drawings by Jacques Barraband, William Hart, John Gould, Rubens, and Breughel, to name a few. The book also includes a brief history of the discovery of these bright and fanciful birds.

Illustration: Richard Bowdler Sharpe. Monograph of the Paradiseidae.

The Greater Bird of Paradise is one of more than forty other distinct species currently recognized, each representing amazing differences in size, shape, and color patterning.

Drawn from Paradise chapters are ordered according to the sequence in which each species was discovered.

Artists, art lovers, ornithology enthusiasts, and birdwatchers, will love this book.

(Harper Design, 2013)

Photo: Courtesy of Spirit Science.

“Into the Wind: My Six-Month Journey Wandering the World for Life's Purpose,” by Jake Ducey, is an astounding recounting of self-discovery and transformation. At nineteen years old, Ducey made a break with everything in his life --  both good and bad -- drugs, college, and a basketball scholarship.

He had no map, no money, and no plan as he traveled through Guatemala, Australia, Indonesia, and Thailand, almost dying along the way. He ended the trip with two weeks of silent meditation. His story is powerful and empowering. You may discover things about yourself as you read it.

Now, at 21 years old, Jake is the world’s youngest published inspirational author, and is the Director of Self Reliance Institute, where he has built both a school and an orphanage in San Marcos, Guatemala.

(Waterfront Digital Press, 2013)

Photo: Courtesy of the Washington Times.

“Science Set Free: 10 Paths to New Discovery,” by bestselling author Rupert Sheldrake, offers new ideas, that boldly ask us to set aside some commonly held beliefs, and bend our rules, in order to allow for new answers to stubborn questions.

Dr. Sheldrake, breaks out of assumptions that have calcified into dogmas, and turns them into exciting possibilities for new discovery.

"Science is ready to evolve beyond materialism and dogma. Rupert Sheldrake is a pioneer who is paving the way for the future of the sciences."  

—Deepak Chopra, M.D., author of War of the Worldviews

“This provocative and engaging book will make you question basic assumptions of Western science.  I agree with Rupert Sheldrake that, among other problems, those assumptions hinder medical progress because they severely limit our understanding of health and illness. I will recommend Science Set Free to my colleagues, students, patients, and friends.”

—Andrew Weil, M.D., author of Spontaneous Happiness

Photo: Courtesy of Amazon.

“Brush Country Backyard: A Naturalist's Journey of Discovery and Learning in South Texas,” by ornithologist Karen Benson, is a charming account of the authors exploration of south Texas brush country, an area with the one of the highest recorded numbers of bird species in the US. Throughout her rugged journey, Benson, writes beautifully about the bird and plant life she finds along the way, snapping portraits of the bits that inspire her.

This 34-chapter book shines as an e-book on a hi-res tablet, with its retina-arresting exquisite color photography.

(Pauraque Ridge Press, 2013)

Photo: Courtesy of Live Science.

Many a discovery was made by accident. “Brilliant Blunders: From Darwin to Einstein - Colossal Mistakes by Great Scientists That Changed Our Understanding of Life and the Universe,” by Mario Livio, is a collection of stories about the some of the luckiest errors ever made.

Oops became opps. Big miscalculations and and misperceptions by Charles Darwin, William Thomson (Lord Kelvin), Linus Pauling, Fred Hoyle, and Albert Einstein inspired groundbreaking discoveries.  Pauling’s errors led to Watson and Crick’s discoveries of DNA, for example.

Scientific brilliance came from the ability to not only get past failure, but to recognize new answers to big questions. Mistakes are essential to progress. And, that’s really a good thing -- because everybody makes them.

(Simon & Schuster, 2013)

Photo: Courtesy of NHBS.

“Wonders of Life: Exploring the Most Extraordinary Phenomenon in the Universe,” by Brian Cox, is a companion to the acclaimed Discovery Science Channel series. Cox joins the never ending quest to discover the origins of life and presents his findings in both a scientific and romantic way. With beautiful four-color illustrations, and clear colorful storytelling, this book will take you on a journey through space and time, through extreme locations, from the bottom of the sea to the hearts of deep jungles.

Cox is seeking to discover: What is life? Why do we need water? Why does life end?

(Harper Design, 2013)

Read about beautiful Discovery all this week, as it relates to Arts/Design, Nature/Science, Food/Drink, Place/Time, Mind/Body, and Soul/Impact

Get busy and enter the BN Competitions, Our theme this week is Beautiful Discovery. Send in your images and ideas. Deadline is 10.13.13, 11:59 PST.