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Title: A Short History of Nearly Everything
ISBN: 076790818X
Author:
Bill Bryson
Publicate Date: 2004-09-14
Publish: 2004-09-14
List Price: $16.99
Average Customer Rating: 4.5
Format: Paperback
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Amazon Lowest New Price: $9.38
Amazon Lowest Used Price: $2.48
Amazon Merchant Price: $11.55
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| Customer Review: |
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1: Excellent!
When you have questions, this book is going to be your friend...your curiosity answered in such an understandable scientific way. I enjoyed reading it.
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2: Excellent guide through the history of science
A short history of nearly everything is one of the best and most interesting books I have ever read. It gives you the answer to many of the great puzzles through history and not only the answer, but how the puzzles were solved. Another impressive thing about this book is that it is correct! I have a Ph.D. in chemistry and every time Bill Bryson is talking about topics I know something about, it is correct! He has really done great research for this book. Once I had finished it, I started on page 1 and read it again. Strongly recommended for everyone interested in science, history and the great minds through history.
If you like this book, you will probably also like books written by Simon Singh about "Fermat's last Theorem" and "The Code Book".
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3: LOVED IT!!!!!
I liked this book so much I purchased it for a friend rather than give up my copy.
I love all of Bill Bryson's books so this wasn't my first. I have to say I enjoyed it the most so far.
It is science that even someone who didn't pay attention in school can understand.
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4: Had I Only Known Then
Now at age 60, if only I had textbooks like this in college I may not have failed physics at RIT being that math was never my strong suit. For the first time in my life I have a basic understanding of what an atom is! I would have hung tough with physics and chemistry and invested the time and effort beyond the equations if it meant that I may have eventually stumbled onto an earth shaking discovery.
What fascinated me the most was how some of the most important scientific discoveries were made by uneducated illiterate lay people only to have their ideas and concepts usurped by the day's greatest egotists. I just mentioned to my wife a short time ago that maybe the reason for the current wild swings in climate, i.e. amplified storm intensities, mega-earthquakes, record snow in the mid-Atlantic, etc. is because the degree tilt of the Earth's axis is off the "norm" by a degree or so... our molten core must really be rocking, and that Chilean earthquake was a real punch in the planet's gut... and I'm no scientist. Had I had any sense of mathematics I'd probably be refining macular repair procedures at John's Hopkins. Hey, you never know.... Thanks for the inspiration but I wish I was 20 again!
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5: How we know what we know
The focus of this book is on how mankind acquired its current knowledge in a large swathe of scientific disciplines (astronomy, geology, biology, chemistry, physics, etc), including the charming hiccups along the way. It takes the reader on a journey from our ignorant past to the present, stirring an appreciation for the scientific method as it does so. It is well written, holds the reader's attention, and offers us glimpses into the characters of those giants on whose shoulders we now find ourselves. I enthusiastically recommend this book to anyone.
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