(Ebook) What Scientists Actually Do by Joan Horvath, Nicole S. Wong, Greg Bear ISBN 9781933277080, 1933277084

(Ebook) What Scientists Actually Do by Joan Horvath, Nicole S. Wong, Greg Bear ISBN 9781933277080, 1933277084

With the passionate, conversational tone of a knowledgeable and fun-loving friend over coffee, rocket scientist Joan Horvath describes what scientists, engineers, and mathematicians do and why they do it. Through personal and compelling anecdotes, What Scientists Actually Do describes how the never-more-important world of science progresses from raw data to established theory and how it sometimes goes awry in the currents of politics and mass media. It gives the general adult reader tools to evaluate the significance of breakthroughs and controversies in this crucial realm. This book's clearly stated concepts and perspectives will be especially useful to parents, teachers, and everyone eager to become a savvier consumer of science news.About the AuthorJoan Horvath founded management consultancy Takeoff Technologies in 2000. Takeoff assists companies with locating and using technology, and in particular helps entertainment and media companies understand science. Before starting Takeoff, she had a 16-year career as a "rocket scientist" at the California Institute of Technology's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, a NASA center for the exploration of the solar system. At JPL she played key roles on various spacecraft, particularly the Magellan spacecraft to Venus and the TOPEX/Poseidon earth orbiting spacecraft that measured the El Nino phenomenon accurately for the first time. She teaches in the Graduate Industrial Design program at Art Center College of Design in Pasadena, and has taught graduate and undergraduate classes for the University of Phoenix. She is the author of technical papers and nonfiction popular articles. She is a coauthor of the 2006 coffeetable book Saturn: A New View from Harry Abrams Publishers. Ms. Horvath has a BS in Aeronautics and Astronautics from MIT, and an MS in Mechanical, Aerospace, and Nuclear Engineering from UCLA. She lives in Pasadena, California, with her astronomer husband, and tries to find time to hike, bicycle and figure skate.