WHEN we think of Leonardo da Vinci, it is usually the Mona Lisa or The Last Supper that spring to mind, but from a scientist’s perspective, it is the thousands of drawings the Italian genius left behind upon his death in 1519 that are his greatest legacy. Science writer Stefan Klein examined the original drawings in public and private collections, including the Queen of England’s collection at Windsor castle.
Klein outlines a life dedicated to study and speculation about anatomy, flying machines, weapons and hydrodynamics. The astonishing drawings showing the flow of water underline the power of da Vinci’s visual…
