Birds Up Close: An Engineer Explores Their Hidden Wonders
June 23 @ 1:00 PM – 2:00 PM
On Tuesday, June 23, at 1 p.m., the Rockport Public Library will host a presentation by renowned MIT Engineering Professor Lorna Gibson. She will introduce her new book, “Birds Up Close: An Engineer Explores Their Hidden Wonders.”
Gibson, a lifelong birder, combines her expertise in materials science with ornithology to offer a unique perspective on how birds function, from the physics of flight to the evolution of their unique features.
Described by Kirkus Reviews as “best suited for the geekiest birders and engineers,” the book covers topics like feather structure, bone density, flight dynamics, and specialized bills, with over 150 illustrations. Books will be available for purchase following the talk.
In addition to being the Matoula S. Salapatas Professor of Materials Science and Engineering and a MacVicar Faculty Fellow at MIT, Gibson is a member of the Board of Directors of the Massachusetts Audubon Society.
CLICK HERE to learn more about Lorna Gibson and her new book on the MIT Press website.
PRAISE FOR THE BOOK:
Watching a bird in flight is amazing enough, but to really grasp how extraordinary birds are, let Lorna Gibson take you deep inside them — inside their bones, their feathers, their eggshells, though X-rays and scanning electron microscopes — to understand why she’s in awe of the evolutionary forces that have crafted in birds miracles not just of flight, but of material science and engineering, her specialties. ~Scott Weidensaul, author of Return of the Oystercatcher
Professor Gibson invites us to marvel at birds anew, unpacking the astonishing adaptations behind the creatures we love. Her lively explorations show why they so deserve our astonishment, growing ever more remarkable the better we understand their inner workings. ~Irby Lovette, Cornell Lab of Ornithology Director
