Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #39332 in Books
• Published on: 2005-02-03
• Binding: Paperback
• 656 pages

The Guardian
Critical Mass fizzes with ideas and insights

Independent on Sunday
`more than a book, this in an intellectual curiosity'

Glasgow Herald
`lucid, accessible and engaging'

Customer Reviews

Fun to read - Changes your perspective!
I really enjoyed this book, I just grabbed it at the airport because I needed something to read.
It must be hard, covering so many topics.
You may need a background in physics to understand the first few chapters, this is certainly not true for the rest.
For me the book contains a lot of new concepts on fields partly new to me, traffic planning, biology, economy, international politics.
The simple models on integration and game theory almost make me run to a computer to start modeling and programming (if I had time).

The philosophical references make it even more interesting!
I certainly would recommend it!
(unless you have a grade in all of the fields above)

Next time you're in a traffic jam, be sure to have it on the seat next to you ;-)

Hard Work, but worth making the effort
Like other reviewers, at times I found this really hard work to read - coming as I did from a non-science background. The first few chapters are necessarily tough, as they set a lot of the groundwork and understanding for the rest of the book. I recommend sticking with it, as reading this book offered me a different perspective on 'how things are' to many of the more arts-based ones I've tended to be more influenced by previously. If we're to understand the challenges society faces going forward, then it's important to make the effort and engage with this sort of thinking and rationale - even if I finished the book not entirely convinced by his central arguments.

Some interesting stuff but almost obscured
There are some interesting chapters in this book, if nothing particularly groundbreaking, but it is almost spoilt by the first 2 or 3 which are excessively long and dull. I nearly gave up after the 3rd chapter but I'm glad I continued as there are some really interesting bit and pieces after that. The author does have a slightly annoying habit of turning an unimportant anecdote into the link to the next chapter without explaining its significance.