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Sign up todayThe Impossible Man
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Learn moreThe first biography—“a stunning achievement” (Kai Bird, American Prometheus)—of the dazzling and painful life of Nobel Prize–winning physicist Roger Penrose.
When he was six years old, Roger Penrose discovered a sundial in a clearing near his house. Through that machine made of light, shadow, and time, Roger glimpsed a “world behind the world” of transcendently beautiful geometry. It spurred him on a journey to become one of the world’s most influential mathematicians, philosophers, and physicists.
Penrose would prove the limitations of general relativity, set a new agenda for theoretical physics, and astound colleagues and admirers with the elegance and beauty of his discoveries. However, as Patchen Barss documents in The Impossible Man, success came at a price: He was attuned to the secrets of the universe, but struggled to connect with loved ones, especially the women who care for or worked with him.
Both erudite and poetic, The Impossible Man draws on years of research and interviews, as well as previously unopened archives to present a moving portrait of Penrose the Nobel Prize–winning scientist and Roger the human being. It reveals not just the extraordinary life of Roger Penrose, but asks who gets to be a genius, and who makes the sacrifices that allow one man to be one.
Patchen Barss is a Toronto-based science journalist who has contributed to the BBC, Nautilus magazine, Scientific American, and the Discovery Channel (Canada), as well as to many science and natural history museums. His previous books include The Erotic Engine: How Pornography Has Powered Mass Communication, from Gutenberg to Google, and Flow Spin Grow: Looking for Patterns in Nature.
Jonathan Beville is an audiobook narrator of suspense and thrillers, as well as historical fiction, science fiction, current affairs, and business titles. A classically trained actor, Jonathan has also enjoyed a successful career in the international business. He has had the privilege to live in both Europe and the Middle East, and has worked on projects taking him to more than eighty countries around the world. An avid SCUBA diver, Jonathan brings a spirit of adventure and a deep love for travel and exploration into the recording booth, and draws on people and experiences from his journeys around the world to inspire character voices in his narration. The father of two daughters, Jonathan resides in Maryland with his family.
Reviews
“Barss uses the skills of a fine novelist to tell the story of one of the true giants of twentieth-century mathematics and physics, Roger Penrose, in a biography that reveals the complex and compelling character of the man alongside the importance of his contributions to geometry, relativity, and a wide range of other fields. The biography that Penrose deserves.”
“A penetrating, warts and all biography…Barss’s sensitive handling of Penrose’s tumultuous personal life puts this a notch above other ‘great minds’ biographies…A haunting portrait of a brilliant scientist unwilling to confront his personal shortcomings.”
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