Nature and People

You can familiarize yourself with the entire book in electronic form via the link on the SZKEO website. The gift illustrated edition is printed on domestic pigmented cream-colored book design paper with a bookmark of the same color and a cap.

The collection includes scientific conversations by the remarkable science popularizer Yakov Isidorovich Perelman (1882–1942), published by him from 1901 to 1918 in the magazine "Nature and People." The book introduces readers to the world of scientific knowledge, helps cultivate a taste for studying the exact sciences, and sparks interest in independent creative activities.

For middle school students, college students, and vocational school students, for anyone wishing to fill gaps in their education.

Yakov Isidorovich Perelman (1882-1942) was neither a physicist, nor a mathematician, nor an astronomer; he graduated from the Forestry Institute in St. Petersburg (now SPbGLTU). He was not a writer or educator; however, he corresponded with the leading scientists and writers from around the world, worked on compiling new textbooks and problem sets in mathematics and physics, delivered over two thousand popular lectures, wrote around a hundred popular science books, and countless journal articles. He made no scientific discoveries or inventions but participated in the development of the first Soviet anti-hail rocket project, initiated the introduction of decree time in our country, was one of the founders of the genre of popular science literature, and coined the term "science fiction." He held no academic degrees or titles, but grateful readers invariably addressed him in their letters as "Dear Professor!"

All because, in his writings, Yakov Isidorovich presented complex scientific problems in his own unique style, with astonishing clarity and vividness; in what seemed like the driest and dullest topics, he could reveal bright, captivating traits, making them extremely understandable even to the unprepared reader. It is no surprise that the books of the "people's professor of the Soviet Union" have undergone dozens of reprints, been translated into many languages, from English to Hindi, and their total circulation has now reached tens of millions of copies.

This edition collects almost all the scientific conversations by Ya. I. Perelman, published by him from 1901 to 1918 in the magazine "Nature and People." Why "almost all"? The fact is that a significant number of these conversations were published without any signature, and it is now impossible to firmly establish the authorship of each one. Furthermore, over the past century, some essays—such as "Position of the Planets for 1903"—have inevitably lost their relevance and are hardly informative for the reader of the XXI century.

In editing the articles included in the collection, we only replaced some outdated figures, made separate additions and notes, but wherever possible, we retained the spirit of the time in which they were created—when new discoveries had not yet been properly interpreted, airplanes were often called aeroplanes, Albert Einstein was a humble employee of the Patent Office, and English fantasist Herbert Wells delighted readers with his new compositions. Fortunately, the scientific content of Yakov Isidorovich's articles is selected in such a way that it can never become outdated.