Hitting the Books: Renee Descartes had his best revelations while baked in an oven

Some of us do our best thinking in the shower, others do it while on the toilet. Renee Descartes, he pondered most deeply while ensconced in a baker's oven. The man simply needed to be convinced of the oven's existence before climbing in. Such are the quirks of the most monumental minds humanity has to offer. In the hilarious and enthralling new book, Edison's Ghosts: The Untold Weirdness of History's Greatest Geniuses, Dr. Katie Spalding explores the illogical, unnerving, and sometimes downright strange behaviors of luminaries like Thomas "Spirit Phone" Edison, Isaac "Sun Blind" Newton, and Nicola "I fell in love with a pigeon" Tesla. Little Brown and CompanyExcerpted from Edison's Ghosts: The Untold Weirdness of History's Greatest Geniuses by Dr. Katie Spalding. Published by Little, Brown and Company. Copyright © 2023 by Katie Spalding. All rights reserved.When René Descartes Got BakedRené Descartes, like Pythagoras before him and Einstein after, occupies that special place in our collective consciousness where his work has become … well, essentially a short-hand for genius-level intellect. Think about it – in any cartoon or sitcom where one character is (or, through logically-spurious means, suddenly becomes) a brainiac, there are three things they’re narratively bound to say: ‘the square of the hypotenuse is equal to the sum of the squares of the other two sides’ – that’s Pythagoras; ‘E = mc2’ – thank you, Einstein; and finally, ‘cogito ergo sum’. And that is... Continue reading at 'Engadget'

[ Engadget | 2023-05-28 14:30:30 UTC ]
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The Book Truck Hits the San Diego Streets

Fondo de Cultura Económica (FCE), based in Mexico City, is one of the largest publishers in Latin America and has had an office in San Diego since 1990. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2015-10-09 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Digital sales hit supermarkets 'more than other book retailers'

Big publishers are likely to feel a squeeze on their supermarket sales as a result of the sector experiencing a “once in a generation change”. Two of Britain’s biggest supermarkets, Tesco and Sainsbury’s, are also big retailers of books. Both retailers reported slumps in profits in their recent... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2014-11-25 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Books donated to fire-hit art school

Glasgow School of Art replaces 22% of its most popular books that were lost in a fire at its Mackintosh building in June. Continue reading at BBC News

[ BBC News | 2014-09-15 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Hungry Girl’s First Diet Book Hits Big

Lisa Lillien, better known as “Hungry Girl” to her fans, has eight bestselling cookbooks under her belt, and her first diet book, 'The Hungry Girl Diet: Big Portions. Big Results. Drop 10 Pounds in 4 Weeks,' has hit the ground running. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2014-04-21 00:00:00 UTC ]
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L.A. Times Festival of Books Hits the Mark Again

The spirit of literary camaraderie makes itself known at the 19th L.A. Times Festival of Books. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2014-04-13 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Key to hit books discovered, study claims

Academic Yejin Choi says her algorithm can predict 'highly successful literature' with 84% accuracyAuthors, publishers and literary critics struggling to unlock the secrets of successful writing can breathe a sigh of relief, after a computer science professor has announced an algorithm that can... Continue reading at The Guardian

[ The Guardian | 2014-01-10 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Ylvis's YouTube hit becomes children's book

Much-watched song by Norwegian musical comedy duo due out in US as illustrated storyNorwegian musical comedy duo Ylvis may be very silly, but that's not likely to hold back their next venture, an illustrated children's book based on their massive YouTube hit song, The Fox, which is to be... Continue reading at The Guardian

[ The Guardian | 2013-11-12 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Digital Art Books Hit a (Gallery) Wall

“I’ll corroborate what you’ve probably been hearing,” says Abrams CEO Michael Jacobs, when asked to discuss the state of digital publishing in the art and photo book market. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2013-08-23 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Short Books hits top spot with Fast Diet

Independent publisher Short Books has scored its first ever Official UK Top 50 number one. The... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2013-01-29 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Print book sales hit 2012 high

Thanks to the record-breaking popularity of E L James' Fifty Shades trilogy, printed book... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2012-07-03 00:00:00 UTC ]
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More Baking for BBC Books

BBC Books is adding to the roster of "Great British Bake Off" titles, with a new July... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2012-05-17 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Accent Press acquires celeb bake book

Accent Press is publishing a celebrity baking title, with a foreword by "Great British Bake... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2012-05-17 00:00:00 UTC ]
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July books spending hits seven year low

Written By: Philip Stone Publication Date: Thu, 04/08/2011 - 15:50 Spending on physical books in July slumped to its lowest level in seven years as ebooks continue to encroach onto traditional bookseller territory. According to Nielsen BookScan data, £111.5m was spent on printed books in the... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-08-04 00:00:00 UTC ]
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London Book Fair Charity: Book Aid International Sends More Books to Ukraine

Following its first 25,000-book shipment to Kyiv, Book Aid International at London Book Fair announces that 15,000 more books are heading to Ukraine. The post London Book Fair Charity: Book Aid International Sends More Books to Ukraine appeared first on Publishing Perspectives. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2024-03-13 09:25:56 UTC ]
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14 New November Book Club Picks, From GMA Book Club to The Stacks Book Club

These are the books all of the book clubs are reading this month. Grab a copy and learn how to join in. Continue reading at Book Riot

[ Book Riot | 2023-11-10 11:36:00 UTC ]
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Lauren Graham’s Week: Background Binges and Books, Books, Books

The former “Gilmore Girls” star and best-selling author shares what she watched, read and listened to in a week. Continue reading at The New York Times

[ The New York Times | 2020-02-12 15:00:10 UTC ]
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Lauren Graham’s Week: Background Binges and Books, Books, Books

The former “Gilmore Girls” star and best-selling author shares what she watched, read and listened to in a week. Continue reading at The New York Times

[ The New York Times | 2020-02-12 15:00:10 UTC ]
More news stories like this | All news stories tagged with: #best-selling author #background binges #lauren graham


National Book Tokens launches Hidden Book and Book Island Games

National Book Tokens has launched its annual festive campaign, with the return of its Hidden Book Game for a seventh year, and Book Island Game for children for a second year. Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2019-11-13 22:34:50 UTC ]
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Books: The new Trump book, plus book reviews and news

For book lovers and politics fiends, 2018 has gotten off to a bang with the early publication of “Fire and Fury: Inside the Trump White House” by Michael Wolff. Welcome to the new year! I’m Carolyn Kellogg with this week’s books newsletter. THE BIG STORY Excerpts from “Fire and Fury” that... Continue reading at Los Angeles Times

[ Los Angeles Times | 2018-01-06 00:00:00 UTC ]
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London Book Fair 2014: Big Books, No Huge Book

While no single title has emerged as the hot book of this year’s London Book Fair, a number of titles were generating buzz as the trade show kicked off on Tuesday. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2014-04-08 00:00:00 UTC ]
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