What science book is your most recent read? What do you think about it? Pt. 2

[Nancy]

I read that book by Simon Singh on Fermat's Last Theorum too, Krishna. I thought it was awesome!

[David]

OK--I bought the book by Simon Singh a few months ago, but never got around to reading it. I guess I will have to pick it up now! :-)

[Betsy, co-mod]

Krishna wrote: "can anyone tell about some good books on science which can easily be understood by even a school student."

Krishna, I recommend you check out our group bookshelves: https://www.goodreads.com/group/books....

Then if a book looks like it might interest you, check out some of the reviews. To get just the reviews of the people in this group, click the link for "View activity" at the far right of the list. That will bring up a list of the discussion threads in this group that mention the book, and the reviews of the book by group members.

Or, click on the book name to go to the main Goodreads page for the book, scroll down a little bit, to find reviews by general Goodreads members.

Reviews and comments in discussions both will often talk about whether the book is appropriate for the lay reader or only for the scientifically literate.

[Stephie]

I don't know if autobiographies count, but I recently finished Richard Dawkins' Appetite for Wonder. I really like seeing about one of my all time favorite authors life story. Not really a lot of science, but you can get a glimpse of a scientist's education.

[Betsy, co-mod]

Sure. Biographies definitely count.

[Lucy]

The Epigenetics Revolution

It's a bit on the technical side but understandable for any layman with basic genetics knowledge. It's one of the best science books I've read in recent time.

[Steve]

Even though The Collapse of Western Civilization: A View from the Future is fiction, I think it definitely qualifies as a science book.

A science historian from the 24th century writes dispassionately about what went wrong and how. Here's my favorite paragraph from early in the book:

"While analysts differ on the exact circumstances, virtually all agree that the people of Western civilization knew what was happening to them but were unable to stop it. Indeed, the most startling aspect of this story is just how much these people knew, and how unable they were to act upon what they knew. Knowledge did not translate into power."

[Kenny]

Thanks Steve! I've got that one on my ToBeRead list!

[Esther]

My recent science read is A Window on Eternity: A Biologist's Walk Through Gorongosa National Park

It's an easy and enjoyable read. Many awesome photos!

[minhhai]

I've just finished Parasite Rex (with a New Epilogue): Inside the Bizarre World of Nature's Most Dangerous Creatures

Well written. Mind-boggling stories of parasites: how they survive inside other animals, how they can control their hosts to do them favors, etc.

[Steve]

Neanderthal Man: In Search of Lost Genomes was written by Svante Paabo, who some consider to be the father of archaeogenetics. Some of the molecular genetics wasn't as clear to me as in other works I've read, but it was still very interesting right up to the last line. Here's my review:

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

[Susanna - Censored by GoodReads]

I had to send that one back to the library, Steve, but what I read of it was interesting. (Will have to get it back out.)

[Steve]

I think you should; the last chapters were the most interesting for me.

[[deleted user]]

Hi I just join and I'm a person who is really in to quantum physics and physics in general,I'm currently reading "Hidden Reality" from Brian Greene who is one of the physicist i admire the most.So far I think the book is really interesting and funny,it has lots of facts and because the author really was trying to relate to our everyday live so it is very easy to understand.
Thank you for letting me join your community

[Betsy, co-mod]

Peter, The Hidden Reality: Parallel Universes and the Deep Laws of the Cosmos was our group read for September 2012. Here is the discussion thread, if you're interested:

https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...

[[deleted user]]

Oh,thank you

[David]

I just finished reading a short book, A Case for Climate Engineering by Canadian environmental scientist, David Keith. He proposes to launch a large-scale research program, to determine the practicality and risks of climate engineering. The goal of the book is to persuade the reader that the decision to launch such a program is a very difficult one. Here is my review.

[David]

Today I finished reading The Sound Book: The Science of the Sonic Wonders of the World by Trevor Cox. The author is an acoustics engineer. He has traveled the world, looking and listening for interesting sounds and sound effects. The loudest animal, the quietest place in the world, a musical road that "sings" a song, echo chambers, sand dunes that sing tones--quite a variety of sonic environments. Here is my review.

[[deleted user]]

Yea,I love Michio Kaku

[Susanna - Censored by GoodReads]

Started Stuff Matters: Exploring the Marvelous Materials That Shape Our Man-Made World last night.

[David]

I just got around to reading the book that Krishna recommended, Fermat's Enigma: The Epic Quest to Solve the World's Greatest Mathematical Problem, by Simon Singh. It is an excellent book--I enjoyed it very much! Here is my review.

[Marc]

Simon Singh is a great author. I particularly enjoyed his "Big Bang: The origin of the universe"

[David]

I just finished reading Consciousness and the Brain: Deciphering How the Brain Codes Our Thoughts, by Stanislas Dehaene. After reading it, I feel like I understand the biological underpinnings of consciousness. The book really describes how our brain gives us conscious thoughts, and how much more unconscious thinking is going on without our awareness. The book introduces the author's theory of consciousness, and backs it up with a huge body of experimental evidence. Here is my review.

[Steve]

This is probably borderline science but it definitely has to do with testing a hypothesis and it was quite an interesting read, at least for me: Amelia Earhart: The Mystery Solved

Here's my review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

[Robbower]

Krishna wrote: "can anyone tell about some good books on science which can easily be understood by even a school student."

Almost all of the popular science books in your local bookstore are written for a general audience. Writing is typically on a 10th grade reading comprehension level, and very little science or math education is presumed by most authors.

For life sciences, I'd recommend anything by E. O. Wilson, Richard Dawkins, Richard Fortey, Alison Jolly, Lynn Margulis, James Watson.

For astronomy and cosmology, you still can't beat Carl Sagan.

For physical sciences, Lee Smolin, Brian Greene.

Some authors have published works both for general audiences and for more advanced audiences. Stephen J Gould published tons of material about life sciences, but his major opus on evolutionary theory is a challenge. Roger Penrose tries very hard to be accessible to the layman, but can't dispense with advanced mathematics.

Don't disparage yourself by asking for material for a high school student. The average adult has little more science knowledge than you have. Immerse yourself in a variety of scientific material, and you will find a life calling.

[Re]

Krishna wrote: "can anyone tell about some good books on science which can easily be understood by even a school student."

Isaac Asimov has written something like 200 books on every aspect of science. They are not difficult to read. On Youtube I recommend Crashcourse by the Green brothers and the ScienceShow by Hank Green..

[Steve]

Just finished Mars Rover Curiosity: An Inside Account from Curiosity's Chief Engineer. A delightful read and a must for those who have loved following space exploration missions since the days of Viking and Apollo. Here's my review:

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

[Jim]

My most recent was Before the Dawn: Recovering the Lost History of Our Ancestors by Nicholas Wade. I gave it 4 stars. If it had jumped around in time or been a bit more cohesive, I would have given it 5. As it was, I highly recommend it to anyone with an interest in how the Human Genome Project, biology, & archaeology are working together to form a better picture of our evolution.

My review is here:
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

[Steve]

Hi Jim, and welcome to the group. I read Wade's book a while back and loved it. You might also enjoy the more recent Neanderthal Man: In Search of Lost Genomes by Svante Paabo. After reading Before the Dawn I also read Wade's The Faith Instinct: How Religion Evolved and Why It Endures and found it fascinating.

[Jim]

Thanks, Steve. Wade is a pretty good writer. I've been thinking of his 'Faith Instinct', but our library doesn't have it in audio. I'll look up 'Neanderthal Man'.

[Kenny]

I just read the new Edward O. Wilson book - The Meaning of Human Existence and was somewhat disappointed. Very well written as are all his books for popular audiences. The problem I had with it was that it never really seemed to address the title and was more of an attempt at pushing his view of cultural evolution than anything else. Almost a bait and switch. :(

[Jim]

Did you write a review of it, Kenny? If so, can you provide a link? We're not friends & I didn't see your review in the first page of community reviews. There's over 60 pages & I'm not up to hunting that far.

[Kenny]

Jim wrote: "Did you write a review of it, Kenny? If so, can you provide a link? We're not friends & I didn't see your review in the first page of community reviews. There's over 60 pages & I'm not up to hun..."

I did just post a review, but it's really nothing more than I posted above. :)

[Jim]

OK, thanks.

[Kenny]

I'm not much for detailed analytical literary reviews....just a reader with an opinion. :) but here's the link: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

[Jim]

Thanks. IMO, reviews are one of the things that makes GR the most enduring social site I have ever belonged to. Even short reviews add a lot to picking out a book to read. Sometimes I've had as little or even less to say about a book, especially if it is the umpteenth in a fiction series. If I'm reading book 4, 14, or even 24 in a series, I generally know what I'm going to get. It's just a matter of degrees off the base & how well it moves the series along.

[David]

Jim wrote: "Thanks. IMO, reviews are one of the things that makes GR the most enduring social site I have ever belonged to. Even short reviews add a lot to picking out a book to read. Sometimes I've had as ..."

I agree completely with you, Jim. I always look up reviews on GR before investing my time reading a book. There are so many great books out there--why waste time reading a dud?

[Nancy]

High Price: A Neuroscientist's Journey of Self-Discovery That Challenges Everything You Know About Drugs and Society
Just finished. The science part is fascinating. The author studies drug use and abuse. His findings are in stark contrast to what we are told and public policy relating to drugs. To sum up briefly, drug abuse is generally a symptom, not a cause, of a dissatisfying life; and (no surprise here) a lot of people take illegal drugs and still go on to live normal and productive lives.
My own conclusion: the penalties for drug use cause ruin far more lives than the drugs themselves.
The book would have been better without quite so much autobiographical detail. Yes, the author was an underprivileged black kid and had lots of sex as a teenager, etc etc. I could have lived without that, but then, a sociologist might be intrigued. Maybe its just me.

[Jim]

This isn't strictly scientific, but it's a societal issue & does have a lot of good facts in it. There's some interesting thoughts on education, too. If it's really not a good fit, let me know & I'll delete this post or you can.

I found Made by Hand: Searching for Meaning in a Throwaway World by Mark Frauenfelder in my library's audio book selection. I thought it would be interesting & it sure was. It was great to see what he discovered by trying to learn some DIY. It's more than just being handy, it's an entirely new way of looking at the world. I gave the book 4 stars in my review here:
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

[Kenny]

Excellent Jim! We need to return a bit to that way of life. The modern industrial throw-away world is destroying the planet, we need to learn to better live in harmony and at least evaluate how/when to produce throw-away products vs long-term repairable products.

[Jim]

Kenny wrote: "Excellent Jim! We need to return a bit to that way of life. The modern industrial throw-away world is destroying the planet, we need to learn to better live in harmony and at least evaluate how/whe..."

I agree. I thought I'd be thrilled with The World Without Us by Alan Weisman, but could only give it 2 stars because his agenda unbalances the book badly. I reviewed it here:
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

[Eric]

I just finished The Violinist's Thumb: And Other Lost Tales of Love, War, and Genius, as Written by Our Genetic Code. It was an alright book. I was a little disappointed because I felt like it didn't live up to his other book, The Disappearing Spoon: And Other True Tales of Madness, Love, and the History of the World from the Periodic Table of the Elements, which we read as a book club book. I felt like the first half of this book was fairly basic stuff that I already knew, and there were a lot of seemingly unrelated tangents. There were some interesting tidbits here and there though.

[David]

I just finished reading The Social Conquest of Earth, by Edward O. Wilson. It's not an easy-reading book, but some of the topics are fascinating. Wilson is an excellent, renowned scientist, with some strong opinions about evolution, social behavior, and the future of humans on earth. Here is my review.

[Kenny]

Thank you for that David. I have the book but it has slipped on my TBR list.

[Jim]

Here are the best science books of 2014 by Science Friday. Might give someone an idea.
http://www.sciencefriday.com/segment/...

[Kenny]

Jim wrote: "Here are the best science books of 2014 by Science Friday. Might give someone an idea.
http://www.sciencefriday.com/segment/..."

Hmmmm....funny sorta list....I only recognize a couple of the books there and it includes "The Martian" a novel....hmmmm

[Rodney]

Jim wrote: "Here are the best science books of 2014 by Science Friday. Might give someone an idea.
http://www.sciencefriday.com/segment/..."

Thanks Jim for the link. I enjoyed the site. Led me to the next book I want to read. Ha!: The Science of When We Laugh and Why
by Scott Weems

[Tuyen]

I just finished reading Why Does E=mc²? by Brian Cox. It wasn't really what I expected. There were bits that were redundant in there for me just because I had just finished reading The Elegant Universe: Superstrings, Hidden Dimensions, and the Quest for the Ultimate Theory by Brian Greene. It did lead me to look into reading about the Standard Model since they showed the equation in the book but didn't really expound on it.

[Jim]

I'm listening to The Medusa and the Snail: More Notes of a Biology Watcher by Lewis Thomas who is probably best known for The Lives of a Cell: Notes of a Biology Watcher. I read that back in high school, but can't seem to recall any of it. I've ordered both books as used paperbacks for under $7 since audio isn't cutting it. The ideas are too big & need more thought than I can give them just listening.

He has another book, too. I didn't get it yet. It's amazing me how pertinent his ideas & observations are even though the books are 40 years old, the essays older than that since they were originally published elsewhere, mostly in the New England Journal of Medicine.

[Kenny]

I love his work and re-read those two books quite often. He does tend to mix cold-war politics and science which turns me off a bit these days, but did not when I first read them.

Just found Lives here: http://www.arvindguptatoys.com/arvind...

and for any one that enjoys those I'd even more highly recommend The Immense Journey: An Imaginative Naturalist Explores the Mysteries of Man and Nature by Loren Eiseley, as well as his other work. Incredible stuff!