Synopses & Reviews
Revered today as, perhaps, the greatest of Renaissance painters, Leonardo da Vinci was a scientist at heart. The artist who created the
Mona Lisa also designed functioning robots and digital computers, constructed flying machines and built the first heart valve. His intuitive and ingenious approacha new mode of thinkinglinked highly diverse areas of inquiry in startling new ways and ushered in a new era.
In Leonardos Legacy, award-winning science journalist Stefan Klein deciphers the forgotten legacy of this universal genius and persuasively demonstrates that today we have much to learn from Leonardos way of thinking. Klein sheds light on the mystery behind Leonardos paintings, takes us through the many facets of his fascination with water, and explains the true significance of his dream of flying. It is a unique glimpse into the complex and brilliant mind of this inventor, scientist, and pioneer of a new world view, with profound consequences for our times.
Review
Kirkus Reviews, 3/15/10 “A lucid examination of Leonardo da Vinci (1452–1519), emphasizing his immense secret journal…This richly illustrated, engrossing account makes a good case that da Vinci was not only ahead of his time but ahead of our own.”
Mark Rosheim, scientist, inventor, and author of Leonardo's Lost Robots
“With my Leonardo library that would require a truck scale to weigh, how did I miss Ludovico Sforza using a remote mill in Mora Bassa for trysts with the Lady with Ermine? The answer: Leonardo’s Legacy author Stefan Klein took the trouble to track it down and talk to the natives. Klein also recognizes Leonardo’s visuospatial gifts: his powerful problem-solving technique of thinking in analog, coupled with a determination that spanned decades, meant that he returned to problems over and over until they yielded up their secrets. Leonardo is not just a regular guy who worked hard to succeed, and no self-help book will turn you into him. Klein concludes with an important question – why are there no modern Leonardo's? He cites our modern education system as toxic to creativity and exploration, in contrast to Leonardo’s Old World mentorship with his master, Verrocchio. Join Klein as he travels around the world to the castles, great libraries, canals and even the backgrounds of Leonardo’s paintings––you couldn’t have a better or more fun guide.
Financial Times “Undercover” blog, 4/2/10 “A really accessible, wide-ranging discussion of just how amazing Leonardo Da Vinci was and what it means for us today.”
Library Journal, 4/15/10
“Klein masterfully connects Leonardo’s tangible work (for example, paintings) to his ideas in his notebooks within the political and economic world where he functioned. What is most amazing is Klein’s ability to show readers how Leonardo’s powers of observation could make up for his lack of mathematical knowledge or engineering training…In short, Klein successfully enters Leonardo’s mind through his notebooks and includes readers along the way. Highly recommended and required reading for history of science scholars and enthusiasts.”
The Bookseller (UK), 4/16/10 “[Stefan Klein] provides some fascinating insights into modern research, the painstaking reconstructions of the existing notebooks and papers that have led to many new discoveries, but above all this informative guide provides the general reader with a rounded and detailed portrait of da Vinci and his times”
Review
Kirkus Reviews, 3/15/10 “A lucid examination of Leonardo da Vinci (1452–1519), emphasizing his immense secret journal…This richly illustrated, engrossing account makes a good case that da Vinci was not only ahead of his time but ahead of our own.”
Mark Rosheim, scientist, inventor, and author of Leonardo's Lost Robots
“With my Leonardo library that would require a truck scale to weigh, how did I miss Ludovico Sforza using a remote mill in Mora Bassa for trysts with the Lady with Ermine? The answer: Leonardo’s Legacy author Stefan Klein took the trouble to track it down and talk to the natives. Klein also recognizes Leonardo’s visuospatial gifts: his powerful problem-solving technique of thinking in analog, coupled with a determination that spanned decades, meant that he returned to problems over and over until they yielded up their secrets. Leonardo is not just a regular guy who worked hard to succeed, and no self-help book will turn you into him. Klein concludes with an important question – why are there no modern Leonardo's? He cites our modern education system as toxic to creativity and exploration, in contrast to Leonardo’s Old World mentorship with his master, Verrocchio. Join Klein as he travels around the world to the castles, great libraries, canals and even the backgrounds of Leonardo’s paintings––you couldn’t have a better or more fun guide.
Financial Times “Undercover” blog, 4/2/10 “A really accessible, wide-ranging discussion of just how amazing Leonardo Da Vinci was and what it means for us today.”
Synopsis
By the international bestselling author of The Science of Happiness and The Secret Pulse of Time, a fresh exploration of Da Vincis real code”science!
Synopsis
Revered today as perhaps the greatest of Renaissance painters, Leonardo da Vinci was a scientist at heart. The artist who created the Mona Lisa also designed functioning robots and digital computers, constructed flying machines, and built the first heart valve. His intuitive, ingenious approacha new mode of thinkinglinked highly diverse areas of inquiry in startlingly original ways, ushering in a whole new era.
In Leonardos Legacy, award-winning science journalist Stefan Klein provides an illuminating new look at Leonardos unique genius” (Publishers Weekly), which delves into the brilliant, complex mind of this quintessential Renaissance man.
About the Author
Stefan Klein is an award-winning European science writer and author of the international bestsellers The Science of Happiness and The Secret Pulse of Time. He lives in Berlin, Germany.