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Liked It “Excellent. Capra has missed Leonardo's fascination with sacred geometry,but the book is well written and worth reading. Places Leonardo as a systems thinker.” see full review » see other reviews » |
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“Excellent. Capra has missed Leonardo's fascination with sacred geometry,but the book is well written and worth reading. Places Leonardo as a systems thinker.”
Guillaume wrote this review Monday, July 6 2009. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“Well, Fritjof Capra has done it again. Knowing our Shelfari members, I’m sure someone will site a book on da Vinci that they prefer to this one. Yet any fan of Leonardo will most certainly enjoy this book. I started reading it around the time that I went on my first skydiving excursion. As our little Cessna was ascending into the sky, I could not help but feel that he would have given his eye teeth for what I was about to experience. His fascination with the science of flight was unmistakable. Capra has included Leonardo’s sketches in the book (including the “flying machine”).
Bronte wrote this review Wednesday, February 25 2009. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
Teaching us to question by experience and prove by first-hand knowledge, this man was a truly remarkable soul whose life should rightly be celebrated. Informative, yet easy to read, Capra put so much time and research into this book. It is worthy of accolade and will forever hold a place on my bookshelf. Stay curious, my friend…”
“A bit lagging sometimes, and not very well organized, but it's got some interesting facts and ideas that I think you won't find in many other books on Leonardo (or so the author says...)”
foitza wrote this review Tuesday, September 23 2008. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“I'm not absolutely certain about this, but I think I have a similar basic understanding of Leonardo Da Vinci as your typical educated U.S. citizen. I know he was a brilliant artist during the Renaissance and dabbled a bit in science and engineering endeavors. While "The Science of Leonardo: Inside the Mind of the Great Genius of the Renaissance," reaffirmed these beliefs, it provided much, much more information that it nearly hard to believe about the great Da Vinci. The most important thing, in my opinion, is that the man essentially invented the scientific method. This, as you may already know, is the process by which all scientists conduct research in our world. It seems bizarre to even consider that a method could be invented. However, before Da Vinci's time, no one was attempting to study nature and the elements in this manner. Through the scientific method, Da Vinci made many amazing discoveries ... in fact, way too many for this short article. With the power of artistry, he was able to create detailed anatomical drawings of the human body, sketches of types of water flows and pictures of many trees and plants. His work led to advances in cognitive science, hydraulics and botany many years later. And this doesn't include his research within the engineering and math (specifically geometry) fields, as well as general urban planning. The man somehow made advances in all of these fields, and of course, had time to whip up the "Mona Lisa." The sad part in Da Vinci's work is that most of it lie hidden for centuries before being published. Most of what we know today about Da Vinci's studies remained a mystery until the 1700s. It's reasonable to think that if civilization would have known more about his discoveries during his time, or even immediately after his death, we would already be a more advanced civilization than we are today. This book would appeal to a large group of people, especially history buffs and anyone with affection for science, math and engineering. Basically, people interested in knowledge should be intrigued by the life of Leonardo Da Vinci, history's greatest life-learner.”
bwoods43 wrote this review Sunday, February 24 2008. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“Fascinating read! I knew DaVinci was a renaissance man, yet I had no idea of the scope of his works. Capra did an excellent job of showing DaVinci's studies as well as DaVinci's thoughts and beliefs. Some of the topics DaVinci studied are of an advanced nature and are a little complex for the non-mathematician. However, for those who are mathematically inclined, Capra provides an appendix going further into various mathematical concepts. A great read for any who are interested in the ancestors of the modern scientist. As Capra himself contemplated, how different would our world be today if DaVinci’s works were published.”
Amber M wrote this review Friday, February 15 2008. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“Excellent book, I'm glad I picked it up. (I saw it completely by chance while walking through an airport recently.) The book is basically broken down into two parts: biography of the man and a history of his scientific activities. The former retreads a lot of familiar territory, but comes from a different perspective of most. The latter is a mix of scholarly analysis, personal opinion, and discussions of excerpts from Leo' notebooks (with a healthy dose of diagrams to add to the reading pleasure.)
G Brett Miller wrote this review Tuesday, April 22 2008. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
Not what I'd call a "substantive" biography or history, but well worth the read if for nothing else than the fresh perspective.”
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