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Grace Tjan's Reviews > A Short History of Nearly Everything
A Short History of Nearly Everything
by
by
What I learned from this book (in no particular order)
1. Phosphor was accidentally discovered when a scientist tried to turn human urine into gold. The similarity in color seemed to have been a factor in his conviction that this was possible. Like, duh. I’m no scientist, but shouldn’t it be obvious enough?
2. “In the early 1800s there arose in England a fashion for inhaling nitrous oxide, or laughing gas, after it was discovered that its use � was attended by a highly pleasurable thrilling�. For the next half- century it would be the drug of choice for young people.� How groovy is that?
3. If you are an average-sized adult, you contain within you enough potential energy to explode with the force of THIRTY very large hydrogen bombs. Assuming, that is, that you KNOW how to actually do this and REALLY want to make a point. Talk about a monstrous temper tantrum.
4. We are each so atomically numerous and so vigorously recycled at death that some of our atoms probably belonged to Shakespeare, Genghis Khan or any other historical figure. But no, you are NOT Elvis or Marilyn Monroe; it takes quite a while for their atoms to get recycled.
5. When you sit in a chair, you are not actually sitting there, but levitating above it at the height of a hundredth millions of a centimeter. Throw away those yoga mats, your ARE already levitating without knowing it.
6. The atomic particles that we now know as Quarks were almost named Partons, after you know who. The image of Ms. Parton with her, uh, cosmic mammaries bouncing around the atomic nuclei is VERY unsettling.Thankfully, that scientist guy changed his mind.
7. The indigestible parts of a giant squid, in particular their beaks, accumulate in sperm whales� stomachs into ambergris, which is used as a fixative in perfumes. The next time you spray on Chanel No. 5, you’re dowsing yourself in the distillate of unseen sea monsters. * Note to self: must throw away sea monster perfume collection*
8. The ‘maidenhair� in maidenhair moss does NOT refer to the hair on the maiden’s head.
BUT SERIOUSLY,
this is a fascinating, accessible book on the history of the natural sciences, covering topics as diverse as cosmology, quantum physics, paleontology, chemistry and other subjects that have bedeviled a science dolt like me through high school and beyond. Yes, it’s true, I failed BOTH chemistry and physics in high school. I can't judge how accurate Mr. Bryson represents the sciences in this book, but it surely beats being bogged down in A Brief History of Time and their ilk.
1. Phosphor was accidentally discovered when a scientist tried to turn human urine into gold. The similarity in color seemed to have been a factor in his conviction that this was possible. Like, duh. I’m no scientist, but shouldn’t it be obvious enough?
2. “In the early 1800s there arose in England a fashion for inhaling nitrous oxide, or laughing gas, after it was discovered that its use � was attended by a highly pleasurable thrilling�. For the next half- century it would be the drug of choice for young people.� How groovy is that?
3. If you are an average-sized adult, you contain within you enough potential energy to explode with the force of THIRTY very large hydrogen bombs. Assuming, that is, that you KNOW how to actually do this and REALLY want to make a point. Talk about a monstrous temper tantrum.
4. We are each so atomically numerous and so vigorously recycled at death that some of our atoms probably belonged to Shakespeare, Genghis Khan or any other historical figure. But no, you are NOT Elvis or Marilyn Monroe; it takes quite a while for their atoms to get recycled.
5. When you sit in a chair, you are not actually sitting there, but levitating above it at the height of a hundredth millions of a centimeter. Throw away those yoga mats, your ARE already levitating without knowing it.
6. The atomic particles that we now know as Quarks were almost named Partons, after you know who. The image of Ms. Parton with her, uh, cosmic mammaries bouncing around the atomic nuclei is VERY unsettling.Thankfully, that scientist guy changed his mind.
7. The indigestible parts of a giant squid, in particular their beaks, accumulate in sperm whales� stomachs into ambergris, which is used as a fixative in perfumes. The next time you spray on Chanel No. 5, you’re dowsing yourself in the distillate of unseen sea monsters. * Note to self: must throw away sea monster perfume collection*
8. The ‘maidenhair� in maidenhair moss does NOT refer to the hair on the maiden’s head.
BUT SERIOUSLY,
this is a fascinating, accessible book on the history of the natural sciences, covering topics as diverse as cosmology, quantum physics, paleontology, chemistry and other subjects that have bedeviled a science dolt like me through high school and beyond. Yes, it’s true, I failed BOTH chemistry and physics in high school. I can't judge how accurate Mr. Bryson represents the sciences in this book, but it surely beats being bogged down in A Brief History of Time and their ilk.
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A Short History of Nearly Everything.
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Reading Progress
November 30, 2009
– Shelved
December 4, 2009
– Shelved as:
2009
December 4, 2009
– Shelved as:
general-non-fiction
December 5, 2009
–
25.47%
"I like the idea that the atoms that make up our bodies came from somewhere else; stardust, plants, animals, people."
page
175
December 7, 2009
–
41.48%
"Bizarre trivia : Phosphor was accidentally discovered when a scientist tried to turn human urine into gold."
page
285
Started Reading
December 9, 2009
–
Finished Reading
Comments Showing 1-34 of 34 (34 new)
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@amang : ajaib nggak tuh? hehehe.@Rauf : I thought so too, but no. They come from half-digested giant squid beaks.
What do you think of no. 3? Everyone is a potential Galactus.
Makasih udah divote ya. : )
Anytime :Dno. 3:
That's what's commonly known as spontaneous human combustion right?
Rauf wrote: "Anytime :Dno. 3:
That's what's commonly known as spontaneous human combustion right?"
No. It's something different. If you spontaneously combust, the energy that you release is only enough to destroy yourself. But in this kind of explosion, the energy released is equal to 30 hydrogen bombs. Turns out that those comic book stories have some basis in scientific theory.
Whoa.Was such an explosion ever occured and did Bryson write about that in this book? Or is it more speculative?
From what I understand from the book, theoretically it's possible. Obviously if someone had ever exploded in that particular way, you'd have heard about him/her from about every history book there is. :D
:DMaybe it happened in 1902, somewhere in a lonely desert, and all the people who saw it happened already bit the dust come World War I...
It could happen.
Hmmm. But how come the eyewitnesses didn't speak or write about it before they kicked the bucket? Maybe it's a super secret government experiment....
Only a few of them survived.Most who witnessed the exploding man were standing within the blast radius and got obliterated....
Ah well. In every mushroom cloud there's a silver lining; at least that's what Owl City said.
:)
Ookay. But why didn't the survivors blab about it?Sounds like a pretty good plot for a comic book/sci-fi novel...
Like I said, they all got killed in WWI :DOr others think people who talk about it are crazy.
Oh there's a story in here somewhere...
...meant to say it sounds like this idea has already been used in Heroes, the TV series. A character, Peter Petrelli, does indeed blow up New York City using the energy contained in his body that he does not know how to control.
No, actually in the end Nathan flew off and took Peter with him and he exploded whilst airborne so Pete didn't really destroy NYC.
"...meant to say it sounds like this idea has already been used in Heroes."Interesting. I don't watch Heroes, though.
PLEASE READ* Do you remember when he talked about stromatolites-the ancient rock structure dated from 3.5 billion years ago, made from cynobacteria-blue/green algae. He says the scientist agree that these were the first origins of life. My question is how do scientist know that the rock is the object that is 3.5 billion yrs old and not the organisms? Because the organisms could just have appeared when man first appeared.(Adam and Eve)
I had to check out the partons in more detail. It seems likely that Bryson invented the idea that they refer to Dolly, given that she was 17 at the time.
Manny wrote: "I had to check out the partons in more detail. It seems likely that Bryson invented the idea that they refer to Dolly, given that she was 17 at the time."Hmm, now I wonder if Bryson had a Dolly fixation. Do share your findings on the Dolly question, Manny.
Well, it's absolutely true that Feynman wanted to call quarks "partons". I saw a reference to that just a couple of months ago in Susskind's The Cosmic Landscape (he says he offended Murray Gell-Mann by using his rival's term). But even though I can well imagine Feynman doing it as an act of homage to Dolly, the chronology just doesn't work. Bryson made this up.
Manny wrote: "Well, it's absolutely true that Feynman wanted to call quarks "partons". I saw a reference to that just a couple of months ago in Susskind's The Cosmic Landscape (he says he offended Murray Gell-Ma..."Interesting. Thanks for sharing your findings, Manny. I guess Bryson just had to use that anecdote's comic potential, even if he had to fudge the chronology a bit. Ever since reading this book, everytime I hear quarks being mentioned, I always have this mental image of Ms. Parton with her, uh, cosmic mammaries, bouncing around the atomic nuclei. :D
That is scientifically inaccurate. Quarks normally come in threes, so you would need the chick from Total Recall. Though for the pedants in the audience, I suppose Ms Parton could still be a pion...
Ah, of course. But 'that chick from Total Recall' just doesn't have the same effect. Nobody even remembers her name. Dolly's better, even if we have to fudge a bit on the technical/anatomical details.
Well seeing how big they are, it's kind of like a "Buy two get one free" special offer... so I think it's still valid.
Morning Sandy! Happy New Year :-)
ETA: You too Manny, sorry I forgot to wish you a Happy New Year!
Morning Sandy! Happy New Year :-)
ETA: You too Manny, sorry I forgot to wish you a Happy New Year!
Happy New Year to both of you!I just think this is one of those sad cases where the joke absolutely ought to work, but fate has unkindly decreed that it won't. In an ideal universe, quarks would have been discovered ten years later and you'd need two of them to make a hadron. That would have been truly perfect.
Manny wrote: "That is scientifically inaccurate. Quarks normally come in threes, so you would need the chick from Total Recall. Though for the pedants in the audience, I suppose Ms Parton could still be a pion..."Our generation Total Recall chicks would be Sharon Stone and Rachel Ticotin. Those two I remembered right away. Newer 2012 Total Recall chicks would be Kate Beckinsale and Jessica Biel. I had to look the newer movie version up.
The new version has very little in common with the old one, except that it also has a woman who possesses 50% more assets than one would normally expect.
I came to this thread thinking that Manny's post was referring to a divorced woman having control of only 50% of the matrimonial property, while a married woman has control of 100%.
Ian wrote: "Fun review, Sandy."Glad you enjoyed it, Ian. The extra asset that Manny was talking about is not welcomed by most women, I think. Who needs an extra one, unless, I dunno, you're having triplets?
Hayes wrote: "Well seeing how big they are, it's kind of like a "Buy two get one free" special offer... so I think it's still valid.Morning Sandy! Happy New Year :-)
ETA: You too Manny, sorry I forgot to wish ..."
Hahaha. I heard that she got them reduced a few years ago because of back aches or some other postural problem.
Happy (belated) new year to you all! In this part of the world, we'll soon have another new year in February (the Chinese one). And later in the year, the Hindu and the Muslim ones. That's four new year holidays in a year.
ar, darn it. i really have to read this book :((too lazy to pay)
> When you sit in a chair, you are not actually sitting there, but levitating above it at the height of a hundredth millions of a centimeter. My SO says when he sits in a chair he merely does so to stop it flying off into space. ;-)
You are the one from Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, your review is similar. I notice we have a similar taste in books and also similar thoughts about stuff.
Bryson is nothing short of transparent describing his inclination, motivation and even alludes to limitations in his compiling of this research with it's exquisitely picked cast of emeriti/professor types obviously veritable nexus in their fields representing a priceless & outstanding focus alone, readers are encouraged to research further and could hardly accuse any contributor to the book to digest the research and esteemed opinions as the last word in these topics.
:D