{"id":22363,"date":"2025-02-11T13:58:22","date_gmt":"2025-02-11T13:58:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.embl.org\/about\/info\/szilard-library\/?p=22363"},"modified":"2025-02-11T14:35:12","modified_gmt":"2025-02-11T14:35:12","slug":"leo-szilards-birth-anniversary","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.embl.org\/about\/info\/szilard-library\/blog\/2025\/02\/leo-szilards-birth-anniversary\/","title":{"rendered":"Leo Szil\u00e1rd’s birth anniversary"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

On the occasion of Leo Szil\u00e1rd’s birth anniversary on February 11th, librarians have prepared a special book display featuring titles related to Szil\u00e1rd’s life and work.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Leo Szil\u00e1rd was one of the founding fathers of both EMBL and EMBO. To honor his role, the EMBL library was named after Szil\u00e1rd in 1975, following the suggestion of Sir John Kendrew, the first EMBL Director General.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

More information about Leo Szil\u00e1rd’s life and the development of the idea of EMBL can be found on the dedicated library page<\/a>, and all titles from this special collection are available for browsing in the library catalog<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Leo Szil\u00e1rd was a physicist, molecular biologist, and a vocal opponent of the nuclear arms race during the Cold War.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The new book selection covers a wide range of topics: some books quote Szil\u00e1rd, others explore his role in the Manhattan Project, his contributions to physics research, and some publish his science fiction novels. The publication dates of these books range from 1971 to 2023, highlighting the enduring impact of Leo Szil\u00e1rd on science over the decades.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Below is an overview of the new books, along with comments from their reviewers and publishers.<\/p>\n\n\n

\n <\/span>\n \"\"

\n \n Analogia : the entangled destinies of nature, human beings and machines (Penguin Books 2022) <\/a>\n <\/h3>\n

By Georg Dyson<\/p>\n

George Dyson plots an unexpected course through the past 300 years to reveal the hidden connections that underpin our digital age, ending with a premonition of what lies ahead.<\/p>\n<\/article>\n\n\n

\n <\/span>\n \"\"

\n \n Disturbing the universe (Basic Books 1993) <\/a>\n <\/h3>\n

By Freeman Dyson<\/p>\n

Detailing a unique career not limited to his groundbreaking work in physics, Dyson’s autobiography discusses his interest in minimizing loss of life in war, in disarmament, and even in thought experiments on the expansion of our frontiers into the galaxies.<\/p>\n<\/article>\n\n\n

\n <\/span>\n \"\"

\n \n Terminal philosophy syndrome : ecology and the imponderable (Nova Science Publishers (2023) <\/a>\n <\/h3>\n

By Michael Charles Tobias and Jane Gray Morrison<\/p>\n

This book points the finger to the human as catalyst for countless ways of self-destruction and devastation of innumerable forms of non-humans. Tobias and Morrison call for a mind shift, a radical move from passivity to bold changes in thinking and lifestyle.<\/p>\n<\/article>\n\n\n

\n <\/span>\n \"\"

\n \n Realism, utopia, and the mushroom cloud : four activist intellectuals and their strategies for peace, 1945-1989 (University of Chicago Press) <\/a>\n <\/h3>\n

By Michael Bess<\/p>\n

Two world wars, concentration camps, the obliteration of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, and continued preparations for nuclear war illustrate the modern world’s propensity for mass destruction. Bess examines the lives and ideas of four intellectuals that confronted this trend: Louise Weiss (France), Leo Szilard (USA), E.P. Thompson (England), and Danilo Dolci (Italy).<\/p>\n<\/article>\n\n\n

\n <\/span>\n \"\"

\n \n Einstein for the 21st century : his legacy in science, art, and modern culture (Princeton University Press 2008) <\/a>\n <\/h3>\n

Edited by Peter L. Galison<\/p>\n

In this wide-ranging collection, eminent artists, historians, scientists, and social scientists describe Einstein’s influence on their work, and consider his relevance for the future. <\/p>\n<\/article>\n\n\n

\n <\/span>\n \"\"

\n \n The light fantastic : science fiction classics from the mainstream (Scribner 1971) <\/a>\n <\/h3>\n

Edited by Harry Harrison<\/p>\n

This anthology contains Leo Szilard’s SF novel “The Mark Gable Foundation”.<\/p>\n<\/article>\n\n\n

\n <\/span>\n \"\"

\n \n Strange glow : the story of radiation (Princeton University Press 2017) <\/a>\n <\/h3>\n

By Timothy J. Jorgensen<\/p>\n

More than ever before, radiation is a part of our modern daily lives. This book describes mankind’s extraordinary, thorny relationship with radiation, including the hard-won lessons of how radiation helps and harms our health.<\/p>\n<\/article>\n\n\n

\n <\/span>\n \"\"

\n \n How to find a Higgs boson – and other big mysteries in the world of the very small (Yale University Press 2020) <\/a>\n <\/h3>\n

By Ivo Boely van Vulpen and translated from the Dutch by David McKay<\/p>\n

How did physicists combine talent and technology to discover the Higgs boson, the last piece in our inventory of the subatomic world? Answering this and many other questions, Ivo van Vulpen \u2014 a CERN particle physicist and member of the team behind the detection\u2014invites us on a journey to the frontiers of our knowledge. <\/p>\n<\/article>\n\n\n

\n

\n <\/h3>\n <\/article>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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