This is the vivid, unconventional story of Athanasius Kircher, the legendary seventeenth-century priest-scientist who was either a great genius or a colossal crackpot . . . or a bit of both.
Kircher's interests knew no bounds. From optics to music to magnetism to medicine, he offered up inventi[...]
A "Scientific American "Best Science Book of 2012
An Atlantic Wire Best Book of 2012
A "New York Times Book Review" "Editor's Choice"
The "fascinating" ("The New Yorker") story of Athanasius Kircher, the eccentric scholar-inventor who was either a great genius or a crackpot . . . or a bi[...]