As a student in Cambridge, Alan Hodgkin first became interested in the basis of nerve conduction, using single nerve fibers from a shore crab in his experiments. In 1963, he won the Nobel prize for his work on nerve conduction, and in 1970 became President of the Royal Society. Chance and Design is a fascinating chronicle of Hodgkin's life, providing a glimpse into the world of Cambridge undergraduates in the thirties, the motivation behind his research into nerve conduction, his work on centimeter radar during World War II, and his life as a Cambridge academic after the war. The book concludes with an account of the Nobel prize ceremony in 1963. This highly readable autobiography gives an insight into the working patterns and private life of an eminent scientist, and will appeal not only to scientists, but also to those interested in gaining an understanding of what inspires scientific research.

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"There is much in this autobiography besides Hodgkin's classic work on neurophysiology. For the physicists, there is a technical account of the development of airborne radar. For the general reader, the book contains vivid descriptions of Hodgkin's happy childhood among the often eccentric members of his many-branched Quaker family and of the Cambridge scene in the 1930s." Nature

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Product details

• Date Published: January 1994
• format: Paperback
• isbn: 9780521456036
• length: 428 pages

• dimensions: 237 x 191 x 22 mm
• weight: 0.73kg
• availability: Available