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Wooden
Books Hardback editions are published in the US by Walker & Company, a division of Bloomsbury Publishing.
 Perspective and other Optical Illusions
Phoebe McNaughton
Are things really smaller when they are further away? Can something be clearly visible but not there at all? Is it possible to have a direct and true experience of reality?
In this delightful and informative little book Phoebe McNaughton takes us on a classical journey through the history of artistic perspective, showing how the eye can be tricked and confused, the brain befuddled, and the philosopher inside all of us awakened by the nature of illusion.
ISBN 0-8027-1633-4
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 The Mayan and other Ancient Calendars
Geoff Stray
Ever since mankind first began to count, people have clocked days, moons and years, tried to make sense of them in terms of each other, and formed calendars to order their lives. Then, not so very long ago, the Maya made an amazing leap, and included the visible planets too.
In this tiny recycled guide to ancient calendars, Geoff Stray explains the difference between lunar and solar calendars, the importance of precession, and why the Maya thought the current era would end in December 2012.
ISBN 0-8027-1634-2
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 Islamic Design
Daud Sutton
Across the Islamic world, illuminating Korans from Morocco to Malaysia, and adorning mosques, mausoleums and palaces, are hidden some of the most exquisite geometrical devices ever conceived by man.
In this excellent little book geometer Daud Sutton unravels the mystery of Islamic patterns, explaining where they come from, how to draw them, and hinting at the Divine messages they encode.
ISBN 0-8027-1635-0
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 The
Alchemist's Kitchen
Guy Ogilvy
EXTRAORDINARY NOTIONS & CURIOUS POTIONS
Packed with everything from ancient recipes for glues,
varnishes, and paints to spiritual preparations of herbal tinctures
and oils, including magical formulae and practices of alchemy, The
Alchemist's Kitchen will appeal to anyone fascinated by the
past and by the occult world. Guy Ogilvy takes you inside medieval
laboratories and kitchens, revealing the hows and whys of mythical
recipes and concoctions.
ISBN 0-8027-1540-0
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 Symmetry
David Wade
THE ORDERING PRINCIPLE
Symmetry underlies almost every aspect of nature
and our experience of the world, from the subatomic realms of quantum
mechanics to the equations of physics, in art, architecture and
our concepts of morality and justice. In this little book Welsh
writer and artist David Wade paints a picture of one of the most
elusive and pervasive concepts known to man.
ISBN 0-8027-1538-9
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 The
Golden Section
Scott Olsen
NATURE'S GREATEST SECRET
A concise and useful handbook on the Golden Section—also
known as the Golden Ratio and Golden Mean. The Golden Section is
a line segment divided into two parts, such that the ratio of the
short portion to the longer portion is equal to the ratio of the
longer portion to the whole. It is one of the most elegant and
beautiful ratios of the mathematical universe because of its combination
of elegance and simplicity—hence the divine nature of its
name. Drawing on art, architecture, philosophy, nature, mathematics,
geometry, and music—and beautifully illustrated in the Wooden
Books fashion with all manner of images—The Golden Section
will tell the story of this remarkable construct and its wide ranging
impact on civilization and the natural world.
ISBN 0-8027-1539-7
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 Sacred Number
Miranda Lundy
THE SECRET QUALITIES OF QUANTITIES
Numbers permeate every aspect of our lives; very
little happens without a basic ability to manipulate the simple,
whole numbers we all take for granted. Beautifully illustrated
with original contemporary images, Sacred Number introduces basic
counting systems; significant numbers from major religious texts;
the importance of astronomy, geometry, and music to number quality;
how numbers affect architecture. Lundy explains why the ideas of
Pythagoras still resonate, and she profiles each number from one
to twelve to show its distinct qualities: Why, for example, life
is associated with five, and eleven with the circle.
ISBN 0-8027-1456-0
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 The Compact Cosmos
Matt Tweed
A JOURNEY THROUGH SPACE AND TIME
Exploring the macrocosm from colossal galactic superclusters to
quiet backwater planets, Matt Tweed offers a primer on the cosmos
for anyone fascinated by the heavens. Taking a guided tour through
the universe, we ride past quasars, jets, and galaxies and examine
an array of ideas about space and time. Tweed traces the evolution
of stars and formation of planets, describing our “light
bubble” and why we can’t see any further than we do.
For an amusing and accessible description of extra-solar planetary
systems, black holes, pulsars, nebulae, great walls, dark matter,
red shifts, and much more, The Compact Cosmos is an indispensable
guide. Data tables, lists of cosmological constants, and maps of
the local cosmos to help you get around form a useful appendix.
ISBN 0-8027-1455-2
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 Weaving
Christina Martin
METHODS, PATTERNS AND TRADITIONS OF THE OLDEST
ART
In all early cultures, weaving represented the image of creation.
In this beautiful book, Martin presents the history, folklore,
and techniques of weaving through various cultures. She explains
and illustrates the three basic weave structures-plain weave, twills,
and satins-along with many famous weaving patterns. Traditions
of dyeing, fiber preparation, and spinning are introduced along
with the rich legacy of myths and legends they have engendered.
Diagrams illustrate the construction of various looms, from the
simple backstrap loom to the complex and revolutionary Jacquard
loom. For anyone who has ever knitted, sewn, or woven, this book
is a treasure.
ISBN 0-8027-1457-9
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 Q.E.D.
Burkard Polster
BEAUTY IN MATHEMATICAL PROOF
Q.E.D. presents the most famous mathematical proofs
in a charming book that will appeal to non-mathematicians and math
experts and aficionados alike. Grasp in an instant why Pythagoras’s
theorem must be correct. Follow the ancient Chinese proof for the
formulae of pyramids, and Archimedes’s method for finding
the area of a circle and the volume of a sphere. Discover the secrets
of pi and why squaring the circle really is impossible. Study the
subtle art of mathematical domino tumbling, and find out how slicing
cones helped save a city and put a man on the Moon. Q.E.D. takes
readers deep into mathematical thought by examining why well-known
theorems and formulae are true and presenting them in a visually
exciting form.
Burkard Polster is a mathematician at Monash University
in Melbourne, Australia. His previous books include The Mathematics
of Juggling and The Geometrical Picture Book.
ISBN 0-8027-1431-5
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 Dowsing
Hamish Miller
A JOURNEY BEYOND THE FIVE SENSES
Dowsing is one of the most ancient and peculiar arts
or sciences known to man. Widely used for millennia to find water,
it is today employed by builders, plumbers, and electricians the
world over. In ancient times it was an invaluable tool for locating
minerals and metals in the earth, and it briefly became a mainstream
science in the eighteenth century before frustrated scientists,
unable to pin it down, expelled it from the arena of respectability.
Today dowsing remains one of the most widely used paranormal skills,
and yet little is understood about it. This book, by a master dowser,
tells the story of dowsing and its principles, offering instructions
for making dowsing instruments, locating water, and dowsing your
home.
Hamish Miller is the most famous dowser alive, regularly appearing
on television and radio shows worldwide.
ISBN 0-8027-1430-7
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 The
Human Body
Moff Betts, M.D.
A BASIC GUIDE TO THE WAY YOU FIT TOGETHER
Starting with the ancient Indian and Chinese systems
of charkas and acupuncture meridians, this book compares the discoveries
of antiquity to our current understanding of glands, nerves, and
DNA. From single-celled embryo to fully grown human, Dr. Betts charts
the major systems of the body, the inter-related workings of organs
and the revelations of microbiology. Find out why you couldn’t
live without bacteria or cholesterol; how your kidneys and lungs
are mirror images of each other; and why you are a mix of your grandparents,
but only a meeting of your parents. Packed with rare historical
engravings and beautiful contemporary drawings, The Human Body will
charm and inform anyone as to how the most complex organism in the
world all fits together.
Dr. Moff Betts lives and practices in Wales.
ISBN 0-8027-1429-3
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Li
David Wade
DYNAMIC FORM IN NATURE
Architect David Wade has spent a lifetime gathering
and organising the extraordinary families of surface patterns that
nature throws up at every scale. The study of these shapes was known
in ancient China as Li, and was the sister science to Feng
Shui. It is a subject virtually unknown in the West. In this delightful
book, illustrated to a phenomenally high standard by the author,
we see branching patterns, animal spots, crack patterns and much
much more.
- Sand and wave patterns
- Big cat markings
- Branching types
- Bark and leaf designs
- Soap and marbling swirls
- An introduction to phylotaxis, the often
five-fold structure of growing plant forms
- Speckle families
- Maze-like structures
- Crystaline and rock forms
- Appendix of animal markings
This is a truly exciting, unusual and fascinating
book, and to our knowledge the first time this subject has ever
been presented. It will appeal to scientists and artists alike and
has far-reaching applications in graphic design, architecture and
other visual arts and sciences. This is the first Wooden Book to
deal solely with irregular forms, and brings an enticing and enigmatic
new edge to the series.
ISBN 0802714102
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 Essential
Elements
Matt Tweed
FROM ALCHEMY TO THE PERIODIC TABLE
A small dense introduction to the history of the elements.
From the four elements of antiquity, to the five Chinese elements
and the seven metals, and on to Mendeleyev's discovery of the periodic
table, this book introduces the reader to the complex and beautiful
world of the particles of which everything is made.
- Covers the formation of the elements in the big
bang and stars
- Exciting visual ways of presenting the periodic
table
- Gazeteer of the elements shows the octave system
and the principle properties of many familiar and not so familiar
substances
- Atomic bonding and crystal structures examined
and explained
- DNA
- Radioactivity and isotopes
- Subatomic particles and introductory quantum mechanics
- An examination of the latest theories about 'what
makes matter'
- Extensive appendices feature constants, carbon
chemistry and orbital shapes
This is a wonderful book for anyone with a passing interest in
the tiny building blocks of our universe. Most of the information
in it will not date.
Attractive, clear diagrams throughout by the author,
make light work of an often complex subject. This book will appeal
to high-school students and alchemists of all ages.
ISBN 0802714080
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 Harmonograph
Anthony Ashton
A VISUAL GUIDE TO THE MATHEMATICS OF MUSIC
This book is an introduction to the evolution of simple
harmonic theory, from Pythagoras, through Just Tuning to Equal Temperament.
- The magical world of musical harmony is introduced
with the alchemical systems of Robert Fludd's Divine Monochord
and the Pythagorean seven-note systems
- Examine the way the modern tuning system produces
its own geometrical patterns
- Breathtaking Harmonograph drawings show the octave
as triangle, the fifth as pentagram and more
- Clear diagrams show the elementary principles of
harmonics, overtones and the monochord
- New visual depiction of Amplitude in harmony
- Resonance theory and beautiful Chladni pictures
are examined
- Complete appendix of Lissajous figures
- How to build your own Harmonograph
This beautiful and inspiring book will appeal to musicians,
mathematicians, designers and artists. To our knowledge it is the
first book of its kind.
ISBN 0802714099
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 A
Little Book Of Coincidence
John Martineau
A most unusual guide to the solar system, A Little
Book of Coincidence suggests that there may be fundamental relationships
between space, time, and life that have not yet been fully understood.
From the observations of Ptolemy and Kepler to the Harmony of the
Spheres and the hidden structure of the solar system, John Martineau
reveals the exquisite orbital patterns of the planets and the mathematical
relationships that govern them. A table shows the relative measurements
of each planet in eighteen categories, and three pages show the
beautiful dance patterns of thirty six pairs of planets and moons.
ISBN 0802713882
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 Platonic
& Archimedean Solids
Daud Sutton
Whereas Sacred Geometry introduced readers
to two-dimensional forms, Platonic & Archimedean Solids
presents the world of three dimensions, which was understood as
early as neolithic time. Daud Sutton elegantly explores the eighteen
forms - from the cube to the octahedron and icosidodecahedron -
that are the universal building blocks of three-dimensional space,
and shows the fascinating relationships between them. For anyone
interested in design, architecture, and mathematics, this will be
a delight.
ISBN 0802713866
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 Sacred
Geometry
Miranda Lundy
Geometry is one of a group of special sciences - Number,
Music and Cosmology are the others - found identically in nearly
every culture on earth. In this small volume, Miranda Lundy presents
a unique introduction to this most ancient and timeless of universal
sciences.
Sacred Geometry demonstrates what happens to
space in two dimensions - a subject last flowering in the art, science
and architecture of the Renaissance and seen in the designs of Stonehenge,
mosque decorations and church windows. With exquisite hand-drawn
images throughout showing the relationship between shapes, the patterns
of coin circles, and the definition of the golden section, it will
forever alter the way in which you look at a triangle, hexagon,
arch, or spiral.
Miranda Lundy is a designer and artist. She
lives and works in Cornwall, England.
ISBN 0802713823
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 Stonehenge
Robin Heath
Once part of a large culture of stone circles, Stonehenge—built
around 3000 B.C. and developed over the next 1,500 years—is
the most famous. The remains of a once-wealthy and evidently learned
tribal community, it reflects the apparently disparate subjects
of archaeology, astronomy, metrology, sacred geometry, and even
shamanism. How were eclipses predicted at Stonehenge? Why were some
stones brought all the way from Wales? What is the secret geometry
of seven eights? These and many other questions are answered—and
Stonehenge's secrets revealed—in this fascinating small book.
ISBN 0802713858
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 Sun,
Moon, & Earth
Robin Heath
Every organism on Earth responds to four major cycles:
the solar and lunar day, the synodic month and the year. We all
dance to these primary rhythms. This book reveals the poetic cosmology
that lies within the cycles of the Sun and Moon as seen from the
Earth.
Experience the uniquely connected universe that Robin
Heath presents; solstices, eclipses and equinoxes all concisely
described and illustrated. The timeless beauty of our universe has
never been more apparent or intriguingly simple.
Author and illustrator Robin Heath is a mathematician
and engineer.
ISBN 0802713815
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 Useful
Mathematical and Physical Formulae
Matthew Watkins
A compact volume of mathematical and physical formulae
presented in a concise manner for general use.
Collected in this book are commonly used formulae
for studies such as quadratics, calculus and trigonometry; in addition
are simplified explanations of Newton's Laws of Gravity and Snell's
Laws of Refraction.
A glossary, a table of mathematical and physical constants,
and a listing of Imperial and Metric conversions is also included.
Matthew Watkins is a musician and mathematician.
Illustrator Matthew Tweed is a musician and
producer.
ISBN 0802713807
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