Book Reviews March 2006

Einstein's Cosmos Michio Kaku Weidenfeld & Nicolson, 2004 ISBN: 0297847554 Albert Einstein's theories had a revolutionary effect on physics at the start of the 20th century, but these theories are often hidden in mathematical equations and can be hard to understand. In this book Michio Kaku takes the reader through the simple ideas which lead Einstein to his theories. Thus we heard about Einstein's early struggles culminating in his 'miracle year' of 1905. This was followed by the development of general relativity and Einstein's rise to fame when it was experimentally confirmed. Then, in the last 30 years of his life, Einstein worked away from mainstream physics in his search for a unified theory. It's a well written book, being highly informative as well as having an easy to read style and is to be recommended to anyone wanting to find out about Einstein's work. Continued..

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Power, sex, suicide Nick Lane Oxford University Press, 2005 ISBN: 0192804812 Mentioned in Full Review It is thought that approximately one and a half billion years ago two types of bacteria forged a symbiotic union to create the eukaryotic cell. Those that became mitochondria may seem to have the subservient role, but in this work by Nick Lane we hear how recent discoveries in the subject are changing this view. The presence of mitochondria not only allowed eukaryotic cells to become much larger than bacteria, but also enabled them to join together to form multicellular organisms. Mitochodnria then had an important part to play in preventing cells from rebelling. They were also involved in the evolution of sex, and explain why there are two distinct sexes. Continued..

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The Gecko's Foot Peter Forbes Fourth Estate, 2005 ISBN: 0007179901 People have always based the design of things they make upon structures from the natural world. One might expect us to move away from this as we become more immersed in technology, but in Peter Forbes' new book he shows that on the contrary, new technology has brought new ways of seeing nature, which in turn has lead to new inspiration in engineering. Thus the microscopic bumps on a lotus leaf lead to self-cleaning materials, while the filaments on the gecko's foot promise a new way of sticking things together - the gecko can walk on the ceiling. We also hear about attempts to build minature aircraft, based on the methods of flight used by insects. Continued..

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The Fruits of War Michael White Simon & Schuster, 2005 ISBN: 0743220242 When reading this book one sees that virtually all technology had an origin which was linked to military purposes. And that's the problem - the subject area is much too wide, and ends up as a general history of technology. White is a skilled writer, and the result is a lot more readable than most history of technology books, but on the whole I found it uninspiring. I think it would be most useful for anyone looking for a subject to write about - you could find one thing that interested you and then follow it up using the references at the end of the book. Continued..

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Mary Somerville and the world of science Allan Chapman Canopus ISBN: 0953786846 Mary Somerville was an influential figure in nineteenth century science, but the story of her life isn't as well known as one might expect. In this book Allan Chapman helps to spread the word about this example of that peculiarly British phenomenon, the Grand Amateur in science. It isn't simply a biography, it also introduces the reader to what was happening in the scientific community at the time, and one appreciates Chapman's wide knowledge of the history of science. The books seems rather short, but Chapman manages to pack in a lot of information, in his own highly readable style. Continued..

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Beyond Pluto John Davies Cambridge University Press, 2002 ISBN: 0521800196 Mentioned in Full Review In this book John Davies describes the search for Kuiper Belt Objects, from the early days when a few dedicated astronomers struggled to find these elusive objects, to the successes of 1990's when it became a hot topic. Davies also presents us with the model of how our solar system is presently understood to have been created, and why KBOs may represent the most pristine remnants from that event. The book is easy to follow and will appeal both for the human story, and for the science generated by the birth of this new area of study. Continued..

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The End of Time Julian Barbour Weidenfeld & Nicolson, 1999 ISBN: 0297819852 Mentioned in Full Review The first part of this book takes a very simple universe with just three particles, making a triangle. Barbour shows how a configuration of such a universe can be represented as a point in a hypothetical space, Platonia. This leads on to discussions of absolute space and time. The book then introduces the reader to quantum mechanics and relatvity and so is suitable for the non-specialist reader. The book concludes with a discussion of Barbour's claim that the flow of time is an illusion, that all that we truly experience are instants. Barbour is a skilled writer, and I think that anyone interested in the philosophy of time will find much of interest in this book. Continued..

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Venomous earth Andrew Meharg Palgrave, 2005 ISBN: 1403944997 This book starts with a look at the scandal of arsenic poisoning in Bangladesh in which tubewells put in with the help of oveerseas aid delivered water with high levels of arsenic to the population. We then find out about the occurence and use of arsenic throughout the ages - well known as a poison, but also taken for supposed health benefits. In fact poisoners have got let off by claiming that the victim was taking arsenic voluntarily. There's also arsenic on wallpaper and even in food colouring! A depressing subject maybe, but an entertaining read for anyone, in particular those wanting to put the risks we face today into context. Continued..

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Empire of the Stars Arthur I Miller Little, Brown, 2005 ISBN: 0316725552 Mentioned in Full Review The first chapter of this book concerns the events of 11th January 1935, the day when Eddington severely attacked Chandrasekhar's ideas on white dwarfs and stellar collapse at a meeting of the Royal Astronomical Society in London. The rest of the book revolves around this day, looking at what led up to it and what the effects were in the following decades. Its a fascinating story, and demonstrates Miller's skill in sorting out the interactions between the different players. He examines the importance of hard work against personal influence in the struggle to succeed, and indeed what is meant by success. Continued..

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Cosmology : The Science of the Universe Edward Harrison Cambridge University Press ISBN: 052166148X Mentioned in Cosmic horizons This is a substantial book with 26 chapters thus giving a comprehensive introduction to the science of cosmology. However the reader needn't be intimidated, as each of the chapters can be read on its own if desired, and the book mostly uses only simple mathematics. There is plenty of historical material and philosophical discussion - readers with questions like 'does the universe have a centre or an edge' will find help in this book. Each chapter ends with sections entitled 'Reflections', 'Projects', 'Further reading' and 'Sources', and so the reader is certainly encouraged to think about and helped to delve deeper into the subject. Continued..

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Cosmological Inflation and Large-Scale Structure Andrew Liddle and David Lyth Cambridge University Press ISBN: 052166022X This is a textbook which looks at models of the universe with an inflationary phase due to a scalar field. It examines how such models can be used to account for the structure we see now, that is the cosmological microwave background and the clustering of galaxies. Its approach is analytic rather than being based on numerical simulations, and it's impressive how much can be achieved with this approach. It would suit graduate students, and possibly those at an advanced undergraduate level - it is laid out as a textbook which the student can work through, rather than being a collection of research papers Continued..

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The truth about Hormones Vivienne Parry Atlantic Books, 2005 ISBN: 1843544288 Mentioned in Full Review Some adult education colleges offer women's health courses, and if a man should accidentally turn up at one he would probably be rather embarrased. I sometimes had a feeling of this sort while reading this book, since its a book written by a woman and is clearly aimed at women readers. However, further on I felt the book progressed towards its main subject, that is sorting out some of the myths about hormones and treatments based on them. Some, such as HRT are well researched, others such as slimming or anti-aging treatments are less so. Anyone who is contemplating such a treatment or is worried about the effects of hormones in the environment would do well to read this book. Continued..

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The Ancestor's Tale Richard Dawkins Weidenfeld & Nicolson ISBN: 0297825038 Mentioned in Aventis prize Full Review This book takes us on a pilgrimage backwards in time, being joined by other living things along the way. Each chapter represents the organism at a joining in the evolutionary tree, which Dawkins calls a concestor.Thus we go from concestor 1 to concestor 39. There are also 'Tales' from various animals, each being an essay on some relevant topic in evolution. I felt that the structure of the book helped to remember what was read, and that Dawkins deals with a complex subject in a non-technical way. Certainly this book would make an impressive addition to anyone's bookshelf. Continued..

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The war in the air H G Wells Penguin, 1908 ISBN: 0141441305 When I started reading this book, I was rather surprised not to find any film version of the story. There is plenty of action with the smuggling of secret plans, followed by a large scale aerial attack on the USA. If the book had continued in this vein, with initial setbacks but eventual victory over the aggression (and perhaps the setting up of a better world order as in Wells' other books) then it would definitely have been material for the cinema, especially with monorails, that epitome of modernity, everywhere. However, the war doesn't go that way, instead we hear about the struggles of the hero, Bert Smallways (who has been mostly a spectator in the first part of the book), in a post-apocalyptic world. Since we've had plenty of exposure to this sort of idea nowadays it felt a bit of a letdown. Continued..

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Wild Minds Marc Hauser Penguin Books ISBN: 0141007184 When we see the behaviour of an animal, for instance an ant returning to its nest, we naturally tend to interpret it in terms of human behaviour. But how valid is this interpretation - can we say that animals think in the same way as humans? That is the question addressed by Wild Minds by Marc Hauser . Each chapter looks at an aspect of mind, such as self-awareness and explains what research has been done to study this aspect in animals. Thus our intuitive view of animal thought processes is critically examined via scientific studies. The book is well written, and will be enjoyed by anyone with an interest in the behaviour of animals. Continued..

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The Periodic Table Primo Levi Abacus ISBN: 0349121982 Each of the 21 chapters has the name of a chemical element and comprises a story linked to that element (no chemical knowledge is required). Mostly the chapters are autobiographical, although some are episodes from other peoples lives, and a few are short stories which Primo Levi has written. We see Levi's early life followed by a struggle to find employment in Fascist Italy. There is just one chapter of his time in Auschwitz - Levi has written about this in other books. After the war he struggles with self-employed, but finds he is better suited to working in large companies. We get a unique insight into the mind of a scientist turned author, the chapters are very well written, and I think all readers will find this book highly enjoyable Continued..

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Seeing Voices Oliver Sacks Picador, 1990 ISBN: 0330320904 Having read other books by Sacks, I found this something of a disappointment. He seems to jump too rapidly between different areas - a bit of history, a bit of applied linguistics, a bit of politics. Coupled with the fact that many of the pages are dominated by footnotes, this results a book which is difficult to read. Sacks became aware of the poor deal the deaf have been getting in our society - essentially being denied the use of their own language - and wanted to get this message out to a wider audience. However, in his enthusiasm for the cause, I feel Sacks has not given sufficient consideration to the readability of the book. That said, if you are not put off by the way it is laid out, then you will find much of interest in the book, for example the account of the students' strike at Gallaudet University (where Sacks does stay on one topic for a decent length of time). Continued..

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The Born-Einstein Letters Albert Einstein and Max Born Macmillan, 1971 ISBN: 0333112679 Max Born, one of the founders of quantum theory, was a friend of Einstein from their time as professors at the University of Berlin , and they kept in touch for until the end of Einstein's life. This book is a collection of the letters between them together with explanatory notes by Born. Such correspondence provides an insight into some of the issues which Einstein and Born thought important. For instance in political issues the two were generally in agreement, but Born made it known that he wanted nothing to do with the atomic bomb, whilst unbeknown to him, Einstein signed a letter encouraging its development by the USA. Continued..

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An intelligent persons guide to genetics Adrian Woolfson Duckworth, 2004 ISBN: 0715634232 In the coming years it is likely that the applications of genetics will play an important part in shaping our lives, and so it important that people have sufficient knowledge of the subject to make informed decisions on how society should react to these possibilities. This book is an attempt to fill that need. However, it is not a book to teach you genetics, and I feel that the reader needs to know the basics of the subject before starting it. What it does do is to provide a background of the subject, with each chapter starting with a historical anecdote and then describing an area of research in genetics mostly in a non-technical fashion (one chapter does get a bit technical, with a sudden increase in the average word length.) Continued..

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Fusion - the search for endless energy Robin Herman Cambridge University Press, 1990 ISBN: 0521383730 After the first H-bomb was exploded, it was thought that fusion would follow much the same path as fission - it would quickly become a source of power generation. However, although in priniciple we know how to use fusion to generate electricity, putting it into practice has turned out to be much harder than expected. This describes the long struggle for a working fusion reactor. Books on the history of technology can sometimes be somewhat dull, but Herman manages to avoid this by skillfully mixing biographical details of the participants with information about the technology and the politics behind the funding. As such it gives an insight into 'Big Science' - how an area goes from struggling for limited funds to getting ever larger amounts of money from the state. Continued..

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Fred Hoyle: A life in science Simon Mitton Aurum press, 2005 ISBN: 1854109618 Fred Hoyle was a prominent figure in British astronomy for many years, but in his later years was considered something of a maverick. This has meant that he is possibly less well known than his achievements merit. Hence Mitton's new book is an important step in bringing these achievements to the attention of a wider public. Central to the book are the upheavals which astronomy went through in the 1960s. No longer was it just looking through your nearest telescope, there was information from many wavelengths becoming available, theoretical astronomy was becoming a subject in its own right, and observational astronomy meant visiting a distant observatory. Mitton succeeds very well in describing Hoyle's participation in this turbulent time. Continued..

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