Biographies I want to read

I love reading and also collecting biographies and autobiographies of famous men and women, especially scientists and mathematicians. I somehow make it a point to buy and read at least one biography/memoir every year. There have been some scientists/mathematicians/engineers about whose life and research I have been wanting to learn more from a long time. Let me present here some people whose biography I am very eager to read.

Please let me know if you have already read any of these books or any other book on these famous personalities. Also suggest me any other good biographies that you have read.

1. Made in Japan – Akio Morita and Sony by Akio Morita

   

   I heard about this book at one of my previous workplaces. A top executive in my previous company recommended this book to us at the new employee orientation. This book talks about the person who started Sony as a company in a garage and Sony’s contribution towards audio tapes. I have been on the lookout for this book for quite sometime.

2. The Man Who Changed Everything: The Life of James Clerk Maxwell by Basil Mahon

   

   As the title of the book says, he was a man who changed everything. His equations formed the basis for electromagnetism. Even though I studied about him and his equations in school, I do not remember them very well. I want to read this book and learn more about his life and research.

3. The Electric life of Michael Faraday by Alan Hirshfeld

   

   Faraday is known as the father of electricity. What is interesting is that he did not have a formal education in science and still he made some starling discoveries and theories. I learnt a bit about his life thanks to Cosmos (TV series), but would love to know more about his life. I like the title of this book.

4. Alan Turing: The Enigma by  Andrew Hodges, Douglas R. Hofstadter

   

   Being a student of computer science, I have studied Turing machines and have read little bit about Alan Turing and his contributions to Computer Science. I would love to read more about him and his contributions.

5. My brief history by Stephen Hawking

   

   I am one of the biggest fans of Stephen Hawking. According to me, he is one of the most brilliant scientists today and I love all his books. After I heard that he wrote a book on his own life, I have been trying to get hold of his new book. A movie based on his life is coming out soon and it would be great to read before watching the movie. This book is on my must-read list.

6. Ada, the Enchantress of Numbers: A Selection from the Letters of Lord Byron’s Daughter and Her Description of the First Computer by Ada King Lovelace

   

   Ada Lovelace is the first computer programmer. They even named a programming language “Ada”. I have read some articles about her, being a computer science student. But I would love to read and learn more about her. This book sounds interesting as it is a collection of letters written by Ada herself.

7. The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot

   
   I have heard a lot about this book and have read quite a few reviews. Until recently, I was unaware of HeLa cell line and how Henrietta’s cells were used to develop a vaccine for polio, for research on cancer, AIDS and so many other deadly diseases. I want to read more about this wonderful woman and her unique cells.