A Matter of Degrees: What Temperature Reveals About the Past and Future of Our Species, Planet, and Universe

This is a wonderful account relating the role temperature plays in widely varying disciplines, ranging from physiology to cosmology. Though Segre is a physicist and quips that physics is pretty much the family business, his understanding and enthusiasm for a broad range of problems under the blanket of science is truly astonishing. The majority of non-fiction works in this genre tend to focus on a relatively narrow area which often happens to be the author's domain of expertise. The more general approach this book takes without watering things down is truly refreshing.The tone reflects the excitement of the non-specialist, surely. Also, in describing the events and often surprising turns a field has taken, Segre's sketches of the personalities involved are colorful without relying too much on what often turns out to be insider perspectives. While there is a place for that, and several writers, particularly David Lindley, has used it to sharp advantage, Segre's account skims over the trees for the forest.What I found very noticable was the even balance between weighing the current state of knowledge with the absence of any overarching statement about where things are headed. This caution, for example, was not something that was expressed in James Gleick's 'chaos,' for example. For all its novelty of expression, the basic science was at times suspect, as practitioners like David Ruelle has pointed out in his 'chance and chaos.'While the narrative for the subjects like geothermal vents and global warming were quite seamless, I thought Segre's treatment of low-temperature physics was a little stilted and disjointed. This was a bit of a dissapointment because one would expect a somewhat more cohesive picture from a well-known neutrino physicist. The dialogue between Einstein and Bohr could have been richer and more contextual, and the time-span of interesting events could have stretched somewhat longer.A missed opportunity, however, is only one side of the coin, and a book can only be so long. One hopes that some equally competent author pieces together the somewhat difficult if specialized story of laser cooling of atoms, or delve into why low temperatures are so interesting in revealing the quantum nature of materials.I actually bought this copy after borrowing it from the library for following up on the excellent bibliography and references. I also appeared animated enough about it for my wife to whisk my copy away for her commute...

It is hard to say which is more compelling: A Matter of Degrees' strength as a book of science history or its strength as a work of literature. Segre writes with such elegance, clarity and charm that it is easy to forget that this is a work we read for self-improvement rather than self-indulgence.In a step-by-logical-step fashion, Segre leads the reader first to appreciate the importance of temperature and its regulation in living things into an understanding of thermo dynamics generally. We see things from the standpoint of giants like Newton, Davey, Rumford, Carnot and Kelvin, through moderns like Einstein, Bohr, Heizenberg, et al.--all the way up to discoveries circa 2001. We also see how even the great ones have stumbled and struggled with their misapprehensions, and will doubtless continue to do so.From the warmth of mammalian bodies to the warmth of the greehouse effect, from the shriek of the first steam engines to the flickering near-nothingness of the neutrino, Segre ties the first to the last to show how an understanding of temperature leads to an understanding of origin. And by that I do not mean the origin of life--I mean the origin of everything.This book is for people who--A) Did not take any science courses in college but wish they had;B) Did take science courses in college but wish they hadn't;C) Want to see how a master teacher teaches his area of mastery; orD)Are even passingly curious about How It All Began and How It All Might End.

The publisher does not really describe what the book is about, as there is almost nothing about the changing universe and temperature - which discussions demand a much more thorough treatment of entropy and complexity. In particular, why is it that local increases in order may occur in spite of the second law?So much discussion about the author's background as a physicist, but then he omits such a basic physical concept about the changing universe?A great disappointment,If you really want to know the basic science of life and its evolution in terms of physical science do NOT get this book.Instead, look to  Into the Cool: Energy Flow, Thermodynamics, and Life .If you really want to know the basic science of the universe and its evolution in terms of physicsal science do NOT get this book.Instead turn to  The Big Picture: On the Origins of Life, Meaning, and the Universe Itself

Sinplicity is reached when u realize something that is so obvious that u cannot help but realize it. I thought about what Segre wrote, about running naked in Antarctica and searched cute harp seals. This biography is a worthy read, even thoug I’m a quick reader it made me slow down

For me this was an excellent book and recommend it to everyone interested in always learning new things. Segre's easy way of explaining tough matters is admirable. In this book you learn lots of stuff, like the average internal temperature of humans, earth temperature, what is absolute zero and quantum dynamics, all of them sauced with lots of history.

Fantastic for those with or without scientific backgrounds. Would be a superb text for a liberal arts course in science and science history.

I was interested in both the topic and the author. The book is excellent, both an entertaining reading for people interested in the relationahip of ScieNce and history and also for teaching purposes.

If you live anywhere else than in the US, every point of reference will require additional thoughts and calculations, which gets annoying. When the author says '100 degrees' he doesn't mean boiling hot, just lukewarm....Except sometimes, he does, because he also uses a Celsius scale every once in a while "it takes one calorie to raise one gram of water 1 degree Celsius." However, the temperature of the human body is 98.6, while the Sahara desert temp can reach 130 F...I wish he had chosen a single scale for the whole book, and I wish that scale had been Celsius

One more way of finding out self- ignorance. Well written and lots of learning.