An author of educational works intended especially for young women, Jane Haldimand Marcet (1769 1858) sought to combat the notion that technical topics were unsuitable for female students. Inspired by conversations with the famous scientists she entertained, she wrote textbooks in the lively form of discussions between a teacher and her two female pupils. Published anonymously at first, they found broad popularity: Michael Faraday, as a young bookbinder's apprentice, credited Marcet with introducing him to electrochemistry. The present work, an introduction to physics, astronomy and the...