NATURE|Vol 444|14 December 2006 BOOKS & ARTS Saving time

Betts has produced a finely crafted biog- Time Restored: The Harrison Timekeepers raphy, full of lovingly observed insight into and R. T. Gould, the Man Who Knew Gould’s character, including his many per- (Almost) Everything by Jonathan Betts sonal failings. But the book is much more than Oxford University Press: 2006. 480 pp. a biography. In the introduction, Betts tells us £35, $69.50 how he has loved clocks since childhood, and we learn that he is now in charge of preserving Lisa Jardine the Harrison timekeepers for posterity. Time In her best-selling popular science book Restored, then, is a loving restoration of a repu- Longitude, Dava Sobel told the tale of horolo- tation, to set alongside the clocks to which both NATIONAL MARITIME MUSEUM, LONDON MUSEUM, MARITIME NATIONAL gist John Harrison’s eighteenth-century quest Gould and Betts have devoted so much care to design and build a precision timekeeper and attention. accurate enough to determine longitude at sea. Chapter 4 is a concise retelling of the whole Towards the end of the book, she introduces longitude story, including a readily compre- us to another ‘lone genius’ with a lifelong fasci- hensible account of precisely what the problem nation with clocks, Lieutenant Commander of longitude entails, and the technical details of Rupert T. Gould. It was Gould who, in the the timekeepers that Harrison built to solve it. early twentieth century, found Harrison’s chro- Here, in one book, readers can find an authori- nometers neglected and largely forgotten in a John Harrison’s eighteenth-century timekeepers tative account of Harrison’s quest, and details of cupboard at Greenwich Royal Observatory, have been beautifully restored by Rupert T. Gould. the workings of the Harrison clocks, alongside where they had lain, “dirty, defective and cor- the painstaking reconstruction of the compli- roded”, since the 1760s. Gould devoted much daughter Jocelyn with her. In the lawsuit that cated life of one of the key protagonists in the of the rest of his life to restoring them to their followed, the details of the couple’s private life history of the timekeepers. former glory. (she accused him of violence, drunken fits and In Longitude, Sobel wrote that the restored Without Gould’s efforts, we would not unreasonable sexual demands) caused a scan- Harrison timepieces at the Greenwich old today have the pleasure of seeing Harrison’s dal. Gould was ostracized by polite society and observatory “constitute John Harrison’s endur- timekeepers, intact and in full working order, his job prospects were permanently damaged. ing memorial, just as St Paul’s Cathedral serves in their own gallery in the old observatory at Gould’s exceptional talents were not limited as monument to Christopher Wren”. Betts Greenwich. Over a period of 13 years, Gould to clock restoration. He was a talented artist, shows us with extraordinary elegance that in — who had no horological training — pains- producing both exquisite line drawings and the case of the Harrison clocks, the memorial takingly dismantled the timepieces, cleaned bizarre imaginative art in the manner of Aubrey is a double one: to Harrison and to Gould, the every working part, arranged for the manu- Beardsley. He wrote with flair and eloquence, complicated, depressive, brilliant, failed navi- facture by specialist horologists of replacement captivating readers with a series of eccentric gation officer without whose obsessive atten- and missing pieces, and rebuilt them, meticu- books on a range of curious topics, and gained tions and unstinting labours the clocks would lously documenting every step in a series of a considerable reputation as a broadcaster, first almost certainly have been lost for ever. ■ illustrated notebooks. as a regular contributor to the BBC’s children’s Lisa Jardine is director of the AHRC Centre Jonathan Betts’ compelling, information- hour, and then as a panellist on the intellectual for Editing Lives and Letters at Queen Mary, packed new book, Time Restored, at last gives radio roundtable, The Brains Trust. University of London, London E1 4NS, UK. us a richly detailed account of Gould’s life. It is a life every bit as colourful as Harrison’s, and equally dogged by heartache and setback. Academically bright, although suffering from 2006 wrapped up a debilitating lack of self-confidence, Gould seemed destined for a successful career in the Royal Navy. But on the eve of the First World Mary Purton Tim White who provide elegantly expressed War he suffered the first of a series of nerv- It has been a strange year for science books. scientific arguments to counter the claims of ous breakdowns that were to blight his life. His Some authors have presented new ideas about intelligent design. This book should appeal to mental health collapsed again at the outbreak science — there has been a tussle over string “those who already see evolutionary biology as of the Second World War. His periods of clini- theory, for example, and in Moral Minds Marc a science”, according to John Tyler Bonner (see cal depression were brought on by fear of three Hauser has suggested that morality is as innate Nature 442, 355–356; 2006). Michael Shermer’s things, he said: lightning, revolution and hell. as language (see Nature 443, 909–910; 2006). Why Darwin Matters is perhaps more accessi- In all, he experienced four major breakdowns, But perhaps the dominant theme running ble for the public, but neither book is likely to during which he suffered severe memory loss through many of the popular science books sway creationists from their belief. and was unable to speak for long periods. published this year has been, surprisingly, Many of the scientists who made it to the Recovery each time was slow. Working with religion. top of the bestseller lists focused specifically his beloved clocks was what restored him and The continuing debate about the teaching on religion. Daniel Dennett’s book Breaking the gave him a sense of purpose. of creationism in schools has no doubt fuelled Spell provides essentially a natural history of Perhaps as a result of his mood swings, this preoccupation. Many scientists, particu- religion but skirts around the cultural reasons Gould’s private life was a disaster. As restoring larly those in the United States, have been why religion has developed and become such the Harrison clocks became an obsession, he moved to take a stand against proponents of a dominant force in politics today, in the view neglected his children, drank heavily at home, creationism and intelligent design. Intelligent of reviewer Michael Ruse (see Nature 439, 535; and saw his marriage to Muriel Estall disinte- Thought, edited by John Brockman, is a collec- 2006). In Six Impossible Things Before Break- grate. She left the family home, taking their tion of essays from the likes of Jerry Coyne and fast, Lewis Wolpert treads similar ground but

821 ©2006 Nature PublishingGroup BOOKS & ARTS NATURE|Vol 444|14 December 2006 provides a more succinct summary of the evo- the multiverse theory — the idea that many Shurkin is the first full biography of William lution of the ‘need to believe’ (see Nature 442, different exist and explanations for Shockley (see Nature 442, 631–632; 2006). And 137; 2006). how we came to be in this one (see Nature Francis Crick was the focus of a short biogra- Francis Collins’ The Language of God, an 443, 145–146; 2006). Paul Davies’ The Goldi- phy by Matt Ridley (Francis Crick; see Nature account of how his Christian faith is compat- locks Enigma gives the topic a more popular 443, 917–918; 2006) — a fuller treatment by ible with his work as a scientist, has sought to treatment (see Nature 444, 423–424; 2006). Robert Olby is expected next year. This year’s engage both sides in a less confrontational dia- Playwright Michael Frayn Pulitzer Prize for biography, logue (see Nature 442, 110 and 114–115; 2006) also considers our relation- meanwhile, went to Kai Bird — as has Owen Gingerich in God’s . ship with the Universe, and and Martin Sherwin for Ameri- But Richard Dawkins isn’t interested in recon- much more, in his book can Prometheus, their portrait ciling science and religion. In The God Delu- The Human Touch, which of Robert Oppenheimer. sion, which has topped the bestseller lists in will be reviewed in Nature While many scientists have both the United States and Britain this autumn, next week. been preoccupied with religion, Dawkins argues with the fervour of a preacher After a spate of books on some novelists have turned to that religion has no place in the modern world, string theory in 2005, the science for inspiration. Allegra and that atheism is the ‘true path’ (see Nature hottest hope for a ‘theory Goodwin’s Intuition proved to 443, 914–915; 2006). of everything’ came in for be an exciting page-turner, Dawkins’ domination of the genre of popu- criticism this year, with the examining the psychological lar science books was celebrated earlier in the appearance of Lee Smolin’s motives for scientific fraud year with the publication by Oxford University The Trouble with Physics and in a cancer-biology lab (see Press of a thirtieth-anniversary edition of his Peter Woit’s Not Even Wrong Nature 440, 996–997; 2006). book The Selfish Gene, and Richard Dawkins: (see Nature 443, 482, 491 and Die Vermessung der Welt by How A Scientist Changed the Way We Think, a 507–508; 2006). Daniel Kehlmann, a fictionalized account of collection of comments and testimonials edited Jane Goodall was the subject of one of the scientists Alexander von Humboldt and Carl by Alan Grafen and Mark Ridley (see Nature year’s notable biographies, Jane Goodall by Friedrich Gauss, was a bestseller in Germany 441, 151–152; 2006). Dale Peterson (see Nature 443, 915; 2006). last year. An English translation by Carol Brown Physicists have also been questioning our Philip Ball delved into history for The Devil’s Janeway, Measuring the World, is now available place in the Universe. Cosmologist Alex Doctor, his biography of Paracelsus (see Nature and will be reviewed in Nature next month. ■ Vilenkin’s Many Worlds in One takes a look at 441, 152–153; 2006). Broken Genius by Joel Mary Purton is Nature’s book review editor.

CHRISTMAS READING

A selection of books on the Giant Leaps present for a Drosophila and tobogganing otters. Both lighter side of science for the by John Perry & Jack Challoner geneticist, this book is an have a bibliography but no index. holiday period. (Boxtree, £12.99) exploration of flies through myth, This is an amusing guide to the literature, art and biology. Bang! Why Don’t Penguins’ Feet key discoveries, inventions and by , & Freeze? events in science, technology and How to Cut a Cake Chris Lintott (Carlton, £20) edited by Mick O’Hare medicine from UK newspaper by Ian Stewart (Oxford Queen guitarist and (Profile, £7.99). The Sun and London’s Science University Press, £9.99, $14.95) astrophysicist May joins the The book version of New Museum, told in ‘sensational’ Various mathematical presenters of for Scientist’s ‘Last Word’ column tabloid style (see picture). conundrums are featured, such this lavishly illustrated “complete continues to top the bestseller as why phone cords get tangled, history of the Universe”. lists in the run-up to Christmas Fly which way of tying shoelaces uses with more than 180,000 copies by Steven Connor (Reaktion the shortest amount of lace, and Ken Libbrecht’s Field Guide sold in Britain so far. Books, £12.95, $19.95) how to play never-ending chess. to Snowflakes Perhaps the perfect by Ken Libbrecht (Voyageur Moths That Drink Press, $12.95, £7) Elephants’ Tears Explore the icy world of by Matt Walker (Portrait snowflakes, from stellar dendrites Books, £9.99) to sectored plates, with this Why Pandas Do wonder of microphotography. Handstands by Augustus Brown For more serious reading, (Bantam Press, £9.99) Oxford University Press has These two are collections of themed box sets from its Very facts about curious animal Short Introductions series. The behaviour. So if you want to Brain Box (£25) has books on know which cats purr and evolution (by Brian and Deborah which don’t, or why female Charlesworth), consciousness brown trout fake orgasms, (Susan Blackmore), intelligence Walker’s book is the one. (Ian Deary), cosmology (Peter Brown offers similar fare, Coles) and quantum theory including winking cuttlefish (John Polkinghorne).

822 ©2006 Nature PublishingGroup