Reviews from Amazon

Chandra

The battle between Subrahmanyan Chandrasekhar and Sir Arthur Eddington over the fate of collapsing stars is a well known example of how a young researcher had his ideas unfairly treated because of the views of an established scientist. Wali's biography covers this period in detail, but also tells of Chandra's subsequent career as an eminent astrophysicist. We hear of his central position in the astrophysics community as editor of the Astrophysical Journal and of him being awarded the Nobel prize in 1983. The book serves as an excellent example of a scientist who didn't dwell on the wrongs that had been done to him, but instead went on to excel in his field of study.

The last chapter of the book consists of conversations with the author, giving an indication of Chandrasekar's views on his life and the people he worked with. However, on the whole I felt that the book was rather formal compared to Arthur Miller's Empire of the Stars. Wali's book is certainly a more comprehensive biography, but I didn't feel that it did so well in communicating Chandra's outlook on life and the problems he had faced. (For a discussion between the two see this discussion at physicstoday.org)

Amazon.com info

Paperback 352 pages
ISBN: 0226870553
Salesrank: 228578
Weight:1.2 lbs

Published: 1992 University Of Chicago Press

Amazon price $28.00

Marketplace:New from $27.97:Used from $13.00

Buy from Amazon.com

Amazon.co.uk info

Paperback 352 pages
ISBN: 0226870553
Salesrank: 1637348
Weight:1.2 lbs

Published: 1992 University of Chicago Press

Amazon price £16.50

Marketplace:New from £16.50:Used from £15.25

Buy from Amazon.co.uk

Amazon.ca info

Paperback 352 pages
ISBN: 0226870553
Salesrank: 1151336
Weight:1.2 lbs

Published: 1992 University Of Chicago Press

Amazon price CDN$ 21.31

Marketplace:New from CDN$ 21.31:Used from CDN$ 19.86

Buy from Amazon.ca

Product Description
Chandra is an intimate portrait of a highly private and brilliant man, Subrahmanyan Chandrasekhar, a Nobel laureate in physics who has been a major contributor to the theories of white dwarfs and black holes. "Wali has given us a magnificent portrait of Chandra, full of life and color, with a deep understanding of the three cultures—Indian, British, and American—in which Chandra was successively immersed. . . . I wish I had the job of reviewing this book for the New York Times rather than for Physics Today. If the book is only read by physicists, then Wali's devoted labors were in vain."—Freeman Dyson, Physics Today "An enthralling human document."—William McCrea, Times Higher Education Supplement "A dramatic, exuberant biography of one of the century's great scientists."—Publishers Weekly

Product Description

Chandra is an intimate portrait of a highly private and brilliant man, Subrahmanyan Chandrasekhar, a Nobel laureate in physics who has been a major contributor to the theories of white dwarfs and black holes.

"Wali has given us a magnificent portrait of Chandra, full of life and color, with a deep understanding of the three cultures—Indian, British, and American—in which Chandra was successively immersed. . . . I wish I had the job of reviewing this book for the New York Times rather than for Physics Today. If the book is only read by physicists, then Wali's devoted labors were in vain."—Freeman Dyson, Physics Today

"An enthralling human document."—William McCrea, Times Higher Education Supplement

"A dramatic, exuberant biography of one of the century's great scientists."—Publishers Weekly

One of the Great Tamil Scientists *****
This book "Chandra" is a biography of Chandrasekhar, who is one of the most inspiring and fascinating scientists of Tamil Nadu, India and most certainly a famous scientists in the world. Chandrasekhar was famously called by friends and colleagues as Chandra. Dr.Chandrasekar is a cousin of Sir C.V.Raman who is also a nobel laureate (Raman effect). Nice to have a uncle in the family as a nobel lauraete to follow his footsteps. Both these scientists and the mathematics genius Ramanujam about whom I will review in a separate book review after the current book review, these there scientists are my all time admirable scientits from Tamil Nadu, India. While Raman and Chandra was genius scientists in physical sciences, Ramanujan was a genius of genius in mathematics............. Anyways, let me get to Chandra and his biography, this book was written extremely well by a Physics professor Kameswar Wali......................................... UNDER CONSTRUCTION....I am still workin on it...............come back later...

One of the Great Tamil Scientists *****

This book "Chandra" is a biography of Chandrasekhar, who is one of the most inspiring and fascinating scientists of Tamil Nadu, India and most certainly a famous scientists in the world.

Chandrasekhar was famously called by friends and colleagues as Chandra. Dr.Chandrasekar is a cousin of Sir C.V.Raman who is also a nobel laureate (Raman effect). Nice to have a uncle in the family as a nobel lauraete to follow his footsteps.

Both these scientists and the mathematics genius Ramanujam about whom I will review in a separate book review after the current book review, these there scientists are my all time admirable scientits from Tamil Nadu, India. While Raman and Chandra was genius scientists in physical sciences, Ramanujan was a genius of genius in mathematics.............

Anyways, let me get to Chandra and his biography, this book was written extremely well by a Physics professor Kameswar Wali.........................................

UNDER CONSTRUCTION....I am still workin on it...............come back later...

Profoundly moving *****
This is a story that begs to be recounted. A brilliant and shy young scholar from a conservative S.Indian family wins a scholarship to study Physics at Cambridge. He spends the few weeks at sea en route to England working on the Physics of stellar collapse. His results puzzle even the eminent theorists of his day, Eddington among them. Undaunted by his detractors, trying to adapt to an alien culture with its cold winters and bland, non-vegetarian cuisine, the young scientist plugs on convinced that his calculations are correct. Eventually, the much older Chandrasekhar gains international renown for his work and is honored with the Nobel Prize for Physics. The book is, overall, a chronicle of a great man's journey. He gains in stature and experience, but his fundamental character remains the same. Over and over we are given the same impression of Dr.Chandrasekhar by those who knew him as family, friend and/ or colleague. He is portrayed as dedicated to his work, dignified, disciplined in all aspects of his life, holding himself and the others around him to the utmost high standards. The books is more about the man, than about his work. Of course, his life cannot be portrayed without referencing his work. Wali frequently alludes to it but only as a backdrop to the various stages and incidents of the scientist's life. Wali's goal is to capture the essence of the man, and he has done so admirably.

Profoundly moving *****

This is a story that begs to be recounted. A brilliant and shy young scholar from a conservative S.Indian family wins a scholarship to study Physics at Cambridge. He spends the few weeks at sea en route to England working on the Physics of stellar collapse. His results puzzle even the eminent theorists of his day, Eddington among them. Undaunted by his detractors, trying to adapt to an alien culture with its cold winters and bland, non-vegetarian cuisine, the young scientist plugs on convinced that his calculations are correct. Eventually, the much older Chandrasekhar gains international renown for his work and is honored with the Nobel Prize for Physics.

The book is, overall, a chronicle of a great man's journey. He gains in stature and experience, but his fundamental character remains the same. Over and over we are given the same impression of Dr.Chandrasekhar by those who knew him as family, friend and/ or colleague. He is portrayed as dedicated to his work, dignified, disciplined in all aspects of his life, holding himself and the others around him to the utmost high standards.

The books is more about the man, than about his work. Of course, his life cannot be portrayed without referencing his work. Wali frequently alludes to it but only as a backdrop to the various stages and incidents of the scientist's life. Wali's goal is to capture the essence of the man, and he has done so admirably.

Inspiring *****
A must read for any aspiring scientist in any branch of the sciences -- not just astronomy or physics. The book starts with a detailed account of his childhood and sheds light on Chandra's ancestry. Wali reveals the scientist in himself by paying great attention to every detail, and reveals to us the foundations of a genius in the making. An enlightening tale with very little scientific mumbo-jumbo but oodles of history. The book provides insight into the young Chandra's brilliance, and recounts a wizened Chandra navigating the high seas of politics in academia. As a countryman, I am enlightened and inspired.

Inspiring *****

A must read for any aspiring scientist in any branch of the sciences -- not just astronomy or physics. The book starts with a detailed account of his childhood and sheds light on Chandra's ancestry. Wali reveals the scientist in himself by paying great attention to every detail, and reveals to us the foundations of a genius in the making. An enlightening tale with very little scientific mumbo-jumbo but oodles of history. The book provides insight into the young Chandra's brilliance, and recounts a wizened Chandra navigating the high seas of politics in academia. As a countryman, I am enlightened and inspired.

A great book on the life of an extraordinary scientist ****
Here is an account of the life of one of the legendary scientific figures of the 20th century. Chandra has often been compared with Lord Rayleigh and Poincare, emphasizing not just the manner in which he conducted research but also that he was a part of the same classical tradition. However, he was a person so private that very little of his life or his work is known outside of the scientific community. The book serves to remedy this. It is also worth reading because of Chandra's connection with names that have now passed into history: Hardy, Rutherford, Dirac, Bohr, Eddington, Raman, Heisenberg, Sommerfield, and even Ramanujan. The tales and connections are a fascinating read. I specially recommend the chapter on his wife Lalitha, a remarkable woman from a remarkable family. Wali's portrayal is both sensitive and revealing. His aim is clear, namely to bring to the public eye a man noted for his reticence and extreme privacy. Don't miss reading this book.

A great book on the life of an extraordinary scientist ****

Here is an account of the life of one of the legendary scientific figures of the 20th century. Chandra has often been compared with Lord Rayleigh and Poincare, emphasizing not just the manner in which he conducted research but also that he was a part of the same classical tradition. However, he was a person so private that very little of his life or his work is known outside of the scientific community. The book serves to remedy this. It is also worth reading because of Chandra's connection with names that have now passed into history: Hardy, Rutherford, Dirac, Bohr, Eddington, Raman, Heisenberg, Sommerfield, and even Ramanujan. The tales and connections are a fascinating read. I specially recommend the chapter on his wife Lalitha, a remarkable woman from a remarkable family. Wali's portrayal is both sensitive and revealing. His aim is clear, namely to bring to the public eye a man noted for his reticence and extreme privacy. Don't miss reading this book.

Chandra: The Man who shed a lot of light on Black Holes ****
The book is an excellent document of Chandra's personal and professional life. It is the only such work available on the Astrophysicist. It could have been made a very interesting read, if it included a technical exposition(At least a Layman's version) of Chandra's work on White dwarf's, Black Holes, Chandra's own analysis of Newton's Principia and more. I mean a book on the lines of Robert Kanigel's "The Man who knew Infinity" which is about the Mathematician S. Ramanujan. I thought the author(who is a physics educator himself) who took so much of pains wandering in the undergrowth of Chandra's Lifestyle did not plough enough into his scientific theories, which would have made the book a great hit. But it does reveal a lot about Chandra's interaction with heavyweights such as Paul Dirac, Eddington, Pauli, Bohr, Born, Russel, John Von Neumann, Novikov, Stromgren and a host of others. I thought the research done in these parts were first rate. On the whole I enjoyed reading the book very much

Chandra: The Man who shed a lot of light on Black Holes ****

The book is an excellent document of Chandra's personal and professional life. It is the only such work available on the Astrophysicist. It could have been made a very interesting read, if it included a technical exposition(At least a Layman's version) of Chandra's work on White dwarf's, Black Holes, Chandra's own analysis of Newton's Principia and more. I mean a book on the lines of Robert Kanigel's "The Man who knew Infinity" which is about the Mathematician S. Ramanujan. I thought the author(who is a physics educator himself) who took so much of pains wandering in the undergrowth of Chandra's Lifestyle did not plough enough into his scientific theories, which would have made the book a great hit. But it does reveal a lot about Chandra's interaction with heavyweights such as Paul Dirac, Eddington, Pauli, Bohr, Born, Russel, John Von Neumann, Novikov, Stromgren and a host of others. I thought the research done in these parts were first rate. On the whole I enjoyed reading the book very much

Kameshwar Wali

Chandra