Product Description

John Gribbin is one of the few science writers who is equally comfortable writing about biology as about physics, and this beginner's guide will take the reader through the basics and the fundamental issues of the crucial areas of modern science, from the birth of the universe through to the evolution of our own species, the nature of human behaviour and the workings of our minds. Crucially, the book will not only provide an overview of the central areas in a single volume, but also explain how the areas link up, what evolutionary theory has to say bout how we think, how sub-atomic particles came into being in the big bang, and atoms in stars.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #109765 in Books
• Published on: 1999-04-01
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 280 pages

Amazon.co.uk Review
John Gribbin, one of the world's great popularisers of science, is that rare creature: a scientist blessed with the ability to explain complex subject matter in a way which is comprehensible to non-scientists. Almost Everyone's Guide to Science is an essential book for the reader who is interested in science but doesn't know where to start. Gribbin gives a broad overview of physics and biology, starting with the atom before building up to larger objects: humans, the earth, the solar system and the universe. He also explains how scientific concepts are linked together--what evolutionary theory has to say about the way we think, how chaotic uncertainty and quantum uncertainty affect each other and how sub-atomic particles came into being in the big bang.

If you've been baffled by the debates between Stephen Jay Gould and Richard Dawkins,or Daniel Dennett and Roger Penrose, then this is the book to read. Gribbin, a Visiting Fellow in Astronomy at the University of Sussex, will show you where the world finds itself 400 years after Gallileo. As Einstein said in 1936: "The eternal mystery of the world is its comprehensibility."

About the Author
John Gribbin has a Ph.D. in astrophysics from Cambridge, and is now Visiting Fellow in Astronomy at the University of Sussex and consultant to New Scientist. His books have been translated into many languages, and have won awards in both Britain and the United States. He also writes science fiction.

Customer Reviews

If you're beginning an interest in Science - Buy this!
I am about halfway through reading this book, and I am hooked! It's better than a thriller or mystery novel - maybe because everything in it is true? I bought this book because I am starting an Open University degree in Science next year, and it has been 14 years since I have done any studying - let alone any Science. I did a Physics O'level, but remember none of it. This book is brilliant. I haven't been using it as a study aid exactly... I've just been reading it. And yet now I know all about how the atom was discovered, I know what Avogadro's number is. I know how many stars there are. If you're interested in Science - buy this book! It's excellently written and relatively easy to follow due to the everyday style examples given! The author says many of his other books were written for himself - books that hadn't already been written about a subject, and so can be quite technical - this book is for everyone else, and so does not dwell on the technical at all. It tells the scientific discoveries of the last few hundred years like a story! - I can't put it down!

A warm welcome
This book gives the reader a warm welcome, and assumes nothing of their prior knowledge - for a book purporting to discuss Science for all, this is a vital and tricky feat.

Complex subject matter is put firmly in its place without the need for alerting the weary with equations.

The structure of this book too, is excellently thought out, taking the reader on a guided tour of the universe, beginning with the Atom.

If Archimedes had owned this book, he may not have done so much of his own thinking in the bath.

A picture can be worth a thousand words
I like John Gribbin's writing style. He structures his books in a very logical manner (and this is no exception) and has a keen eye for leading the reader through the the story that he is telling. But...I found the lack of any illustrations regarding atoms, electrons, how atoms bind to each other to form molecules, etc a real problem. Its not his writing style that is at fault, its just that I just could not visualise what was going on, and after re-reading the relevant paragraphs three times I found that I had to look on the web to find some illustrations. And that helped - and I thought to myself - why didn't he include these in the book?.

The I dug out my 1966 3-volume set of Isaac Asimov's "Understanding Physics" - and you know what? - he didn't include any diagrams and illustrations either!!

Anyway, it is a good book and well worth the read if you have a curiosity about science. And, likewise, if you are not curious.......