Weirdly Enlightening: Flabbergasting facts that bemuse and beguile

by Tom Standage

The weird and wonderful can often be remarkably enlightening.

How does becoming a father shrink men's brains?

Why did Pakistan's government ask people to drink less tea?

What are the pros and cons of queuing?

Why do forests need wildfires?

How do you take a picture of a black hole?

The seriously curious minds at The Economist have put together a brand-new medley of conundrums and headscratchers from across the globe - this time, complete with a tantalising quiz section to pit your own wits against. From politics to science to economics, Tom Standage presents an enlightening compilation of all things weird and wonderful that are sure to bemuse and beguile the best of us.

272 pages, Paperback

About the author

Tom Standage is a journalist and author from England. A graduate of Oxford University, he has worked as a science and technology writer for The Guardian, as the business editor at The Economist, has been published in Wired, The New York Times, and The Daily Telegraph, and has published five books, including The Victorian Internet[1][2]. This book explores the historical development of the telegraph and the social ramifications associated with this development. Tom Standage also proposes that if Victorians from the 1800s were to be around today, they would be far from impressed with present Internet capabilities. This is because the development of the telegraph essentially mirrored the development of the Internet. Both technologies can be seen to have largely impacted the speed and transmission of information and both were widely criticised by some, due to their perceived negative consequences.

Standage has taken part in various key media events. He recently participated in ictQATAR's "Media Connected" forum for journalists in Qatar, where he discussed the concept of technology journalism around the world and how technology is expected to keep transforming the world of journalism in the Middle East and all around the world.

-Wikipedia