A How-to Book on bringing science to Everyman

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	• A Short History of Nearly Everything Bill Bryson Broadway, 2004 - 560 pages average customer review:based on 638 reviews view larger image
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highly recommended

Another Bill Bryson?

A Walk in the Woods
For those whose first introduction to Bill Bryson was "A Walk in the Woods" and the somewhat similarly light-hearted trip around continental USA in his mother's '84 (I think) Chevette, starting in Des Moines (to which, it seems to me, Bryson is unkind), "A Short History of Nearly Everything" is a major change in the course of his writing. It is a wonderfully fresh view of, yes, everything that goes into this massive miracle that is life and this universe (these multiverses is perhaps a better term) in which we find ourselves. Starting with an introduction which for me was ample reason to buy the book, he treats successively all of the major aspects of "everything" from Big Bang to evolution of man.
Bryson is quick to assert his own lack of science training, but that may be the key to the book's capacity to capture essential features of "everything." If he was short on science background, he was diligent in seeking support from excellent sources for this book. As an engineer who spent most of his professional life working in the field of nuclear and particle physics, I found it delightful, and have given copies to many close friends and relations. I think it's a great reference to, yes, everything that's basic to everything!

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A How-to Book on bringing science to Everyman

So often scientific books lose us lay people with their PhD language. Not Bill Bryson. Using his infamous skill as a story-teller, he approaches the history of science with the same non-threatening approach John McPhee applied to the geology of America. Technicalities are dispensed with broad, non-pedagogic strokes while the surrounding humanity draws the reader into the intellectual excitement that is science. Readers can't fail but want to read more.

While I had studied most of Bryson's scientific topics at some foggy point in my academic career, by the time I finished this book, he had me living them. If all students read this book, we'd have more female (and male) scientists to solve the world's problems.

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Great gift!

This book is the perfect gift for ANYONE, esp those who seemingly already have everything.

Amazing

Bill Bryson gives the reader the challenge of understanding everything--taking history from the big Bang Theory to the creation of human beings. The book is an amusing way to learn about "nearly everything." Perhaps sometimes oversimplified and not entirely correct, the book grabs you and takes you into one of the most fascinating journeys you'll ever take. Funny, clear, and entertaining--it reads very fast. Quite a feast!

reviews: 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, page 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20

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