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Paging Through History's Beautiful Science.

Submitted by Jim Downey on November 15, 2008 - 1:05pm.

If you would like a small insight into why I love doing what I do for a living, be sure to check out this delightful feature which was on NPR's Weekend Edition this morning:

Paging Through History's Beautiful Science

by Joe Palca

Listen Now [6 min 13 sec]

What makes something beautiful?

Is it exquisite colors? Elegant form or striking style? Or can something be beautiful simply for the ideas it contains?

The answer to that last question is a resounding "yes," according Dan Lewis, Dibner senior curator of the History of Science and Technology at the Huntington Library in San Marino, Calif. He's the man responsible for a new exhibition at the library called "Beautiful Science: Ideas That Changed the World."

* * *

The exhibition focuses on four areas of science: astronomy, natural history, medicine and light. Some of the books featured are Isaac Newton's Principia Mathematica, the book where Newton codified the laws of motion and gravity; Nicolaus Copernicus' De Revolutionibus, the description of a solar system which had the sun, not the Earth, at its center; and Petrus Apianus' Astronomicum Caesarium, a collection of strikingly beautiful, hand-illustrated star charts published in 1540.

And be sure to take a few minutes to listen to the audio link embedded there, where you will hear this comment from Lewis:

That's probably the question I get asked the most: 'why aren't you wearing gloves?' People will gasp audibly when they see that I am handling this stuff. We found that the lack of sensitivity you suddenly get when you're wearing gloves is is far worse than anything you might have on your hands. Well, almost anything you might have on your hands. It's always my premise that rare book librarians and archivists and doctors are the people who wash their hands more than anyone else.

I love it. I get this question/response from people all the time. They assume that I must always wear gloves when working on books - and this is exactly what I tell them. I lose count how many times a day I will wash my hands - it's just automatic that I do so after this or that operation, or between handling books, and certainly after I have eaten or touched any food. It's not a compulsion, just a job requirement.

Anyway, check out the story, and be sure to look at the different images/multi-media components, as well. Some great stuff there - the sort of things I get to work on and handle regularly!

Jim Downey

(Cross posted to my blog.)

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