In this episode we’re looking at a foundational text of modern math and science, Sir Isaac Newton’s Philosophiæ Naturalis Principia Mathematica. The volume with us today is a beautifully bound third edition, published in 1726 (a first edition, worth millions, would have probably stayed back at the shop, although Ken does describe an electric encounter with Newton’s own annotated copy). Concerned that these laws of motion might be too easy to understand? Don’t worry, the book is also written in Latin. We’ll round out the episode with a chat about more recent collectible math books—and take an interesting digression into the history of the dust jacket—on this dynamic new #brattlecast.
Brattlecast #107 - Favorite Books
In this episode, Ken talks about some of his favorite book encounters, from a long career filled with them. There’s Isaac Newton’s own copy of Principia Mathematica, an unsuccessful prospector’s gold rush diary, and a book woven entirely out of silk. It’s nearly impossible to pick a single favorite, but overall, the books that came with a great story have made more of an impression on him than the ones that were simply monetarily valuable.
As things open up again, we’d like to encourage our listeners to visit our shop at 9 West Street in Downtown Boston to see this and thousands of other fascinating items!
Brattlecast #87 - The Descent of Man
In 1859 Charles Darwin published one of the most influential, and controversial, books ever written: The Origin of the Species. Twelve years later, his follow up, The Descent of Man, and Selection in Relation to Sex, in which he applied his theory of evolution to human reproduction, would prove to be equally shocking and transformative. We’ll take a look at a first edition copy of The Descent of Man, explore some of the questionable ideas it would launch, and trace the evolution of these naturalist classics as they were published in hundreds of different editions from the 1800s to the present day.