In Our Own Image: Personal Symmetry in Discovery [Hardcover]

The title of our volume refers to what is well described by the following two quota? tions: Godcreated man in his own image l and Man creates God in his own image. 2 Our approach to symmetry is subjective, and the term personal symmetry reflects this approach in our discussion of selected scientific events. We have chosen six icons to symbolize six areas: Kepler for modeling, Fuller for new molecules, Pauling for helical structures, Kitaigorodskii for packing, Bernal for quasicrystals, and Curie for dissymmetry. For the past three decades we have been involved in learning, thinking, speaking, and writing about symmetry. This involvement has augmented our principal activities in molecular structure research. Our interest in symmetry had started with a simple fascination and has evolved into a highly charged personal topic for us. At the start of this volume, we had had several authored and edited symmetry related books behind 3 us. We owe a debt of gratitude to the numerous people whose interviews are quoted 4 in this volume. We very much appreciate the kind and gracious cooperation of Edgar J. Applewhite (Washington, DC), Lawrence S. Bartell (University of Michigan), R.1. Introduction.- 2. Perception and Symmetry.- 3. Johannes Kepler.- 4. Buckminster Fuller.- 5. Linus Pauling.- 6. Aleksandr Kitaigorodskii.- 7. Desmond Bernal.- 8. Pierre Curie.- 9. Epilogue.- Name Index.`Istv?n and Magdolna Hargittai have written a dazzling book on symmetry in all its complex and beautiful variety, especially on its central role in today's science. ... It is a delight to read and ponder, sure to become a classic reference on a concept as fundamental to physics and chemistry as it has always been to aesthetics.'
Martin Gardner, Formerly of Scientific American, author of The New Ambidextrous Universe