The Need for Better Regulation of Outer Space by Pippa Goldschmidt (11-May-2015) Paperback

by Pippa Goldschmidt

Pippa Goldschmidt, author of the acclaimed novel The Falling Sky, brings together an outstanding collection of short stories on the theme of science and its impact on all our lives. In turns witty, accessible, fascinating and deeply moving, Goldschmidt demonstrates her mastery of the short form as well as her ability to draw out scientific themes with humane and compelling insight.
Goldschmidt allows us to spy on Bertolt Brecht, as he rewrites his play Life of Galileo with Charles Laughton after the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. She introduces us to Albert Einstein as he deals with the loss of his first child, Liesel. We meet Robert Oppenheimer scheming against his tutor, Professor Patrick Blackett, at Cambridge University, having fallen in love with Blackett's wife. She tells the story of a female university student starting a love affair with her lecturer paralleled alongside the 'relationship' between Alice and Bob, two imaginary figures that symbolise the theory of relativity.
Goldschmidt's scope can be epic, at other times intimate, providing a forensic examination of relationships and the forces that influence them.

Genres: Short Stories, Short Story Collection, Fiction, Science Fiction, Literary Fiction, Adult

Paperback

First published January 2, 2015

Reviews

[Jen Campbell · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5/5

[Δημήτριος Καραγιάννης · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is literary work of the highest level. It feels genuine, it is detailed but not tiresome, and it definitely describes with potency images of the world out there. Anything more and I would spoil it. Suffice it to say that the reader will encounter certain key figures in the world of science such as Robert Oppenheimer or Albert Einstein, and their human weaknesses and contemplation of life will shock you.

[Patrick · Rating 4 out of 5]

An enjoyable collection of - in the main, slightly melancholy - short stories not so much about science as about the every day lives of scientists and what that life is like. Probably seems novel to me because so few literary fiction types really have first-hand experience of this world and the fact that Pippa Goldschmidt has an academic science background perhaps helps in that these stories ring true to what I know of that world. Best stories were "Furthest South”, about someone escaping a collapsing relationship by going off to work over the winter in Antarctica, “The Nearest Help is a Million Light Years Away” about a search for dying planets and "The Elephant in the Observatory" about the largely forgotten bombing of Edinburgh Observatory by a suffragette in 1913.

[Andrea · Rating 4 out of 5]

Smart and witty stories with a twist of science flavour.

[Katie Lumsden · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great collection - I especially enjoyed its journey into historical areas and the history of science. Very well written with a mix of interesting stories.

[Alice · Rating 3 out of 5]

It took me forever to get through this book of short stories! It was a really mixed bag. There were a few that I just couldn't get into, which slowed me down. The stories were mostly interesting and a little dark. If I were the kind of reader who skipped bits they didn't like, I think I'd have enjoyed this more! I'm glad I read it though, I learned some interesting things about science peoples. :3

[Uralte Morla · Rating 5 out of 5]

Was für ein wunderbares Buch voller grandios geschriebener, berührender Geschichten!
Auch für Nicht-Wissenschaftler eine absolute Lesempfehlung!

Nicht immer sind es berühmte Namen, wie Einstein, Turing oder Oppenheimer, die Pippa Goldschmidt in dem Erzählband in den Mittelpunkt stellt. Oft schreibt sie über namenlose Wissenschaftler oder ambitionierte Studenten. Was sie von den bekannten Namen unterscheidet? Rein gar nichts. Goldschmidts Protagonisten sind allesamt Menschen, die mit ihren Emotionen, mit ihrem Alltag zu kämpfen haben. Dem jungen Oppenheimer fällt es als Student genauso schwer sozialen Anschluss zu finden, wie einer namenlosen Frau in ihrem Büroalltag. Alan Turing muss ähnlich um seine Gleichberechtigung kämpfen, wie eine junge Wissenschaftlerin, die den Kurs eines Meteoriten berechnet hat. Außenseiter sind es, die im Mittelpunkt der Erzählungen stehen. Einzelgänger, die sich häufig hinter ihren Formeln oder Reagenzgläsern verstecken und leise für ihre Stimme kämpfen. Komisch sind sie dabei, verzweifelt, traurig oder verbittert. Aber niemals verbissen.
Goldschmidt schreibt über sie in einer unverschnörkelten Sprache, in verdichteten kurzen Sätzen.
Am Ende möchte man sich kaum von ihrer Sprache lösen. Nicht von den schönen Sätzen, noch von den verschrobenen Figuren, mit denen man – trotzdem nur kurz getroffen – noch unendlich lange Fahrstuhl fahren möchte.

(http://www.pnn.de/potsdam-kultur/1273...)

[David Brook · Rating 5 out of 5]

Brilliant! A wonderful set of varied length stories, which aren't dogged down in science - which can put some off - but glorious observations about individuals and how they navigate their circumstances. The scientific settings - both contemporary and historical - just make it perfect for me.

[P.D. Viner · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great collection of stories. Each one tantalised and left me wanting more. I am not generally a lover of short stories but really did like this collection.

[Lindsay · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm a sucker for science metaphors.

[Jeary · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have no idea where I stumbled upon this book and why I ended up ordering it... but it arrived here yesterday and after a few pages I wouldn't put it down anymore.
All the story have a sciency flavour, while not being scientific. They are little trips into the minds and lives of (imaginary) scientists, quirky and strange... and still it is possible to relate to them. (I mean... who did not feel like poisoning their PhD advisor at least at _some_ point...)

[Louise · Rating 3 out of 5]

Some really good ones and some not so great ones, as it follows for lot of short story collections. I haven't read one for a while, though and I have missed them. This particular collection also introduced me to several historical figures in the arts and sciences, which led to several hours down Wikipedia wormholes.

[Barrita · Rating 3 out of 5]

Historias casi fantásticas sobre ciencia, o gente que hace ciencia. Hubo algunas tan breves que apenas me estaba interesando cuando ya habían terminado, pero el concepto es muy bueno y en general son historias entretenidas.

[Roxie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Most of these are quite average, but a few are truly remarkable. Some I loved so much, I'll keep this book so I can return to those over and over again.

[Jim · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting collection of science-oriented short stories. The pieces on Oppenheimer and Einstein have prompted me to read their biographies.

[Asia · Rating 3 out of 5]

DNF at about 60%? I enjoyed a few of the stories but most of them were just ok. I might pick this back up in the future and read the last two stories but I'm really not feeling it right now.

[Sarah · Rating 3 out of 5]

Picked up on a whim, interesting mixed bag of short stories with a Jewish and scientific slant

[Hayley Dunning · Rating 3 out of 5]

Some great insights, some too obscure.

[Nicola Peard · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was truly blown away by the scope of these stories, and how well they reached across subject and form. I’ll be thinking about this collection for a long time

[Ed Kay · Rating 4 out of 5]

Some really lovely stories in this collection, balancing science and feminism with elements of fantasy and magic realism. Plus the writing, at times, is beautiful. Goldschmidt is adept at finding metaphor within the language of physics.

[Marian · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5/5.00 I admire what Goldschmidt is doing here: Having done some learning and research in several scientific fields, she's crafted a collection that combines some of that knowledge with characters in flux or in crisis. Some are more "scienc-y" than others, and in structure, length, tone, setting, and time period they vary quite a bit - impressive! - but she achieves a pleasing coherence. Now, it may be unfair, but in reading this work I can't help but think of Andrea Barrett's stories, which are much more deeply informed and often achieve a paradoxical power given the delicacy of her prose and characterization. Probably no other fiction writer can match her for science-laced stories for me. Having read her, I wished for a bit more authority in terms of the science and a bit less goofiness, for lack of a better word, from this collection. It is very much worth reading if science stories intrigue you.

[Fabian Neidhardt · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wunderschönes Cover, ein Buch, das ich gern in der Hand halte, und ein Titel, der mich ziemlich neugierig macht.

17 Geschichten von Pippa Goldschmidt, die nicht alle etwas mit dem Weltraum zu tun haben, aber alle auf ihre ganz eigene Art und im besten Sinne nerdy sind.

Ich glaube, das ist bei jeder Sammlung von Geschichten so, nicht alle werden dir gefallen, aber selbst die schwächeren Stories in diesem Buch zeigen mir neue Facetten. Von Weiblichkeit, von Physik, von Geschichte, von Männern.

Immer wieder kam ich an den Punkt, an dem ich die Protagonistinnen der Geschichten nicht verstanden, nicht nachvollziehen konnte. Und das habe ich gelernt: Ich weiß nicht genug, um alles nachvollziehen, alles verstehen zu können.

Und ich liebe die Übersetzungen von Zoë Beck, in diesem Fall besonders den Titel.

Eine schöne und schön verpackte Sammlung kleiner, im besten Sinne, nerdiger Geschichten. Gerne mehr davon.

[Dana · Rating 2 out of 5]

Best story:
The equation for an apple: The name sucks but Oppenheimer as a potential crazy is portrayed well. It's a bit longer than the rest so you get to understand the character.

There is too much Post WWII politics compared to the amount of science which as a nerd, I didn't much enjoy. It's weird but I think this was aiming to make pure science seem appealing from a more literally point of view and I'm not sure it succeeded or else it attempted to humanize scientists in a way? Many of the stories were completely forgettable and in my mind they run into each other perhaps it was intentional?
There was a story about Einstein which I positively despised an another about Allen Turing which was extremely sad but didn't allow itself any length to express its sentiment.

This is probably a good read I just cannot for the life of me get into short stories.

[Russell Jones · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book. Every story had something new to offer. Each one was brilliantly written, full of beauty and intrigue. Whether you know plenty about science and scientists, or nothing at all, there's something to learn.

At the same time, it's not overly simplistic or too complex, and at the heart of every tale is a human dimension which should connect. My particular favourite was Furthest South, in which two rivals who are researching neutrinos go on an expedition in the Antarctic to Scott's memorial. This turns into an exploration of the impact we leave on the earth, what remains when we die, the nature of jealousy and more.

So if you haven't already guessed it, I strongly recommend giving this book a read!

[Sophie · Rating 2 out of 5]

*2.5 stars*

I loved the premise of this: short stories flitting between scientific events, situations and famous scientists, reimagining these famous moments. And a few I really enjoyed, but most I didn't. The ones so short they were practically flash fiction were my favourites.

I actually felt that a lot of these stories, and the male protags of them, were very against women. They were holding down their homes, had given up careers, raising a family while the husbands were off being scientists etc and they were always vilified or sexualised by the protag. I know some of this was period appropriate, but there was so much scope to celebrate the unspoken women behind these men and it went the other way. Disappointing.

[Maybel · Rating 3 out of 5]

An interesting but rather melancholic mix of short stories, exploring human experiences with some based on historical events. Goldschmidt definitely has a flair for capturing thoughts and emotions. I wouldn't recommend reading this in one go, as I had to stop often, being so saddened by how poorly the men were treating women in most stories. I was definitely intrigued by the use of science as metaphors and found myself most engaged with the shorter of the stories.

Here are the stories I liked the most:
Introduction to relativity - 4
The first star - 4
How accurate do you need to be (to get on in life)? - 4
The voice-activated lift - 5
The competition for immortality - 5
The need for better regulation of outer space - 5
Identity theft - 4
No numbers - 4

[Pat · Rating 2 out of 5]

I wanted to like this book -- a book of short stories about science and scientists, what's not to like? And a few of them lived up to my expectations, but after a while it just felt like I was reading the same story again and again. I thought The Falling Sky was great, and so had high hopes for this, but it just didn't click for me.

[Basmaish · Rating 2 out of 5]

I love it when fictional stories and science are mixed together and in this books there's a short story about Alan Turing and Einstein and needles to say those were the two I enjoyed the most. There are a couple of stories that didn't click with me, but overall it was an ok read.

[B · Rating 4 out of 5]

Short stories and science. A combination I've been waiting my whole life for and one I'll be looking forward to read more and more.

Really enjoyed this collection.

[Jordan · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.75