5 comments about My Family and Other Animals.

1. This book is very funny and enjoyable. It tells of the author's years as a boy spent on the Greek island Corfu. I love the stories of his adventures raising and studying the wildlife on the island. It is also funny because he recounts tales of his strange family. At some parts I found myself laughing out loud. You should read this book along with Birds, Beasts, and Other Relatives.



2. Not many adults ever reminisce about their childhood dreams. Those who do, generally label these as wishful thinking and sigh them away. Rarer are those who live lives of fulfilled dreams. Gerald Durrell, an eminent author, naturalist and expeditionist, was one of those uncommon individuals whose life's entirety was one long childhood dream come true. "My Family & Other Animals" is his most famous work, and is the first of his Corfu Trilogy.
   
   The kid Gerald Durrell, or Gerry, was eight years old when his family moved from England to the Greek island of Corfu. Through the eyes of the young, fauna-loving and ever-inquisitive Gerry, Corfu seems to be the strangest place on Earth, and all humans, whether inhabitants of Corfu or not, appear to be strange people. The book describes Gerry's meticulous observations and detailed experiences in Corfu amongst dogs, cats, toads, snakes, scorpions, owls, magpies, gulls and other creatures he keeps as pets in his house, and his family members who are bemused as well as troubled by Gerry's love for these animals and insects. Young Gerry's mother and siblings stay engrossed in their own worlds, leaving Gerry alone to spend his days as he wishes, free from burdens such as going to school and being nagged by elders. Thus begins Gerry's exploration of Corfu, starting with the garden in his villa, and eventually his domain of knowledge crosses over to the neighboring islands.
   
   The book will make you roar with laughter right from the preface itself. Descriptions of animals are unconventionally funny. Humans also are not spared. Imagine an entire family changing residence from one villa to another, just because one of them foolishly invited his friends so many that they would not fit in the current villa. After animals and humans, the third elaborately portrayed element is nature. Detailed descriptions of fig trees and setting suns create a Wordsworthian aura. Once Gerry sets on describing some of these, he can be drawn back only by some exquisitely crafted squirrel or a raucously howling dog.
   
   The best way to savor the book is to read it over several sittings, by allowing the excessive laughter to brighten many a dull day. An enlightening perspective of the work can be seen through Gerry's eyes. Animals, unlike humans, know exactly what they want. They are easier to please and easier to be understood. Most importantly, animals are easily befriended and are almost always loyal. When the book ends, it feels as if an intimate and jocular friend has left you forever.
   
   "My Family & Other Animals" is a beautiful comedy, and is highly recommendable for reading by people of all ages.
   
   http://readsafe.blogspot.com



3. This book, ironically, was on one of those horrible "summer reading" lists so many of us are forced to do in high school. It's the only one I was ever forced to read that I truly, genuinely loved. I laughed out loud literally every two or three pages, and though I have no natural interest in animals (especially insects), Durell makes his descriptions of the nature on Corfu as gripping and as touching as his descriptions of his family.
   
   It's been ten years since I first read this book, and when I get together with my old friends, we STILL argue about our favorite scenes, the best character, the most troublesome pet. This is a book you won't be able to put down the first time you read it, and will want to re-read the moment you finish it.



4. Ever wonder what kind of person takes such an interest in every form of flora or fauna there is? One who is hyperobservant, apparently. And when Gerald Durrell turns that eye on the eccentric characters in his family and around him on the island of Corfu, you'll absolutely love reading his words.



5. All of Gerald Durell's writings are terrific, but the ones about his family are truly laugh-out-loud wonderful! This is a book I have enjoyed over and over, and have given as a gift many times.

5 comments about Rocket Boys (The Coalwood Series #1).

1. Children in West Virginia mining towns became coal miners. They did not become rocket scientists. But it did not matter how well-known this was, for Homer "Sonny" Hickam, Jr. there was only one way out. He was the right age and had the right amount of ambition when the United States and Russia became entangled in the Space Race and as far as he was concerned, his fate was sealed.
   
   Hickam's writing carried the comfort of conversation with an old friend. It was remarkable how easily I became nostalgic for neither a time nor a place that I had ever known. The story drips with the passion of a man who if he had to do it all over again, probably wouldn't change a thing. He understood and appreciated the importance of everything that happened to him and helped him on his way.
   
   One thing that I found particularly fascinating was how closely this book resembled the old proverb that It takes a whole village to raise a child. And I mean no disrespect to Mr. Hickam when I point out how amazing his circumstance was in that he could not have done it alone. The stars seemingly aligned perfectly so that one boy from West Virginia could capture the hearts of so many people that he would be able to get such invaluable assistance. There was probably no way anyone else could have done what he did. And that is to his credit. (The way his path was guided by fate, or something like it, reminded me of how Ruth Reichl became a food critic in Tender at the Bone: Growing Up at the Table.)
   
   I loved this book for Hickam's ability to transport me from my favorite reading chair to a West Virginia high school in the late 50s. I found myself hanging on every word wondering what would happen next. There is something special about an intelligently written story about a successful man who takes no credit for himself, but rather gives it to each person who helped him make his dreams come true. Rocket Boys may now find itself among the short list of my favorite books.



2. I bought this book and the audio tapes and my son and I listened and read this amazing book together. Our plan was to read for 30 minutes a night...however it was sooooooo good we listened and read for 5 hours!
   
   We are now going to rent the movie that was made from the film! All systems go....we enjoyed the adventure!



3. I was a little disappointed by the ending and the fact that Homer Hickam gave John Kennedy the idea to go to the Moon but other than that I couldn't help but root for the band of misfits.



4. ... "On June 4, 1960, the Big Creek Missile Agency, fresh from its medal winning performance at the National Science Fair, is sponsoring a day of rocket launches at its Cape Coalwood range. Everyone reading these words is invited..." This quote can be found on page 356-357 of a book called Rocket Boys; this statement showed me that the success of the main characters was a result of personal hard work and teamwork.
   
   "Rocket Boys" by Homer H. Hickam, Jr. is a nonfiction account of a group of friends from Coalwood, West Virginia in the early 1960's who have a fetish for making rockets. Homer and his friends have a dream to shoot a rocket up into the clouds. This story gives the reader a message that dreams really can come true.
   
   Rocket Boys is one of the strongest books I have ever read. The author accomplished his goals to tell people that team work is one of the most important things to know in your life. This book is recommended for people that like space and rockets and who want a hopeful book to read. Reading Rocket Boys really gets you thinking about team work and how far you can get with it.



5. Homer Hickam grew up in a rural isolated mountain town but went on to win the National Science Fair.
   
   This book is his story and how he was successful.
   
   I bought 24 copies of this book to inspire my advanced 6th grade Reading class. They loved the book. In our discussions they mentioned never giving up. Homer and his friends kept trying until they had success.
   
   Thank you for sharing your life with us, Mr. Hickam.

5 comments about Tesla: Man Out of Time.

1. Nicola Tesla was a revolutionary inventor who gets little credit for his dramatic contributions to modern society. Tesla stood up to and won over Edison in the battle between direct current and alternating current which proved the practical choice. Tesla held the patents that first powered the Chicago World Exhibition and transformed Niagra Falls into energy to light Buffalo, NY. No one but Tesla knew when they threw the switch at Niagra that the new process would work at all. He held the patents for wireless communications before Marconi, used x-ray photography prior to Roentgen, and created the first prototypes of continuous cycle motors and transformers that are in common use today. He envisioned radio, television, and even defensive particle beam weapons before anyone else even thought they were remote possibilities.
   
   Tesla's ideas go way beyond the technology of his time. Tesla had rare gifts to visualize, design, and test ideas in his mind, so when he tooled a device it wasn't a process of trial and error. His rare gift allowed him to envision ideas that challenge scientists today. But because he was always ahead of himself, Tesla didn't stay still long enough to see his ideas come into fruition for the last half of his life. We still wonder if it's possible, as he pondered, to send power wirelessly, to use standing waves in the earth and atmosphere to provide free power anywhere.
   
   Margaret Cheney tells Tesla's life with a richness of detail that brings him into focus as a revolutionary thinker. Tesla's compulsive obsession with his ideas precluded romance and normalcy, but it set him apart as a figure who changed the world. A predominant figure in early 20th Century America, Tesla influenced the way we live today. You'll be enriched for learning about his fascinating life.



2. When a biographer chooses to write about science and/or a scientist one would presume the writer is going to be read by those who are interested in such matters. Those readers are likely to be at least somewhat put off by less than scrupulous dating and order of events. TESLA: Man Out of Time falls short in that area.
   
   However Tesla is of such preternatural and enduring fascination that I was only nit-picking. This book is a fine read, especially as an introduction to the great inventor and visionary.



3. Even 65 years after his death, Tesla still stirs such intense emotions that he seems less a scientist than a spiritual leader. Some consider him the greatest mind in science with near-mythical powers of observation and ratiocination; others dismiss him as a fuzzy-minded thinker who envisioned great things but executed on few of them. This sharp disconnect clouds Cheney's biography, which introduces the reader to both sides of Tesla but clearly leans toward the worshipful respect and the dismissal of critics as conspiratorial cranks.
   
   Bare facts: Tesla's ideas were instrumental in the invention and practical application of AC electric power generation, transmission, and distribution, and of wireless radio broadcasting (confirmed by the U. S. Supreme Court shortly after he died). He bested Edison technically in proving the superior benefit of AC (vs DC) power.
   
   He announced ground-breaking theories in many other areas, but was both perennially short of funds and psychologically unprepared to do the research and development to bring these ideas to practical fruition. From this monetary misery and method of madness arises much of the dichotomy of feelings about Tesla's place in science. Those who worship Tesla place the blame for these unfulfilled theories on parsimonious money men unwilling to fund the future or on shadowy conspiratorial enemies (governments or competing monopolies) who wanted to live in the past. Those who take a more traditional view of science credit Tesla for his theories, but are disappointed by his failures to experiment and to publish and present his ideas in traditional professional scientific refereed venues.
   
   What to do? Many of Tesla's wildest ideas have since been proven out and implemented by others. Some of his documented experiments have yet to be replicated, indicating that he was a thinker ahead of his time. The idea of wireless transmission of electricity seemed fantastic on the face of it, until I googled it and found this web site from June 2007 reporting on a successful test of "witricity" (a name Tesla would have loved):
   
   http://www.engadget.com/2007/06/07/mits-wireless-electricity-demoed-dubbed-witricity/
   
   On the other hand, especially as he advanced in years, his amazing mental powers seemed to diminish to the point that his unexamined ideas appeared to be less valid theories than frantic ravings of an old man obviously losing his ability to reason. Communications to and from Mars and death Rays that could surround the borders of the United States and melt enemy World War II planes in mid air have yet and are likely never to be taken seriously.
   
   Much is made of the disappearance of his papers after his death in 1943. Cheney considers options, but makes the mistake of crediting conspiracy in the absence of firm knowledge.
   
   In any case, Tesla was an amazing individual, whose life, even in the most even-handed of tellings, seems as fantastic as his craziest ideas. He was truly a "man out of time" in all its possible meanings--a man who belonged to the ages like Lincoln, a man ahead of his time like Da Vinci, a man who ran out of time to finish so much of what he started.
   
   See my review of the new novel The Invention of Everything Else that adds a fictional gloss on many of the events from Tesla's life that Cheney documents here. I was surprised, having read the novel first, how much I thought was fantasy turned out to factually based; while it adds nothing new to the biography, the novel does capture the mind of Tesla and the way he affected the world he created.



4. While there are many books on the life of Tesla, few come close to the quality of Man Out of Time. Margaret Cheney has created a well balanced book that tells both the positive and negative aspects of Tesla, without bias. Not only does she cover the history of the man, but explains the relevance of each event in his life in a way that is entertaining, fluid and engaging.
   
   I have read a great deal of books on Tesla, but this is the only one I buy to give to others. It isn't a laundry list of every invention, it is instead about the journey of the man through life, his relationships with industry leaders like Westinghouse, Edison and others. No other book explains the man himself like this one.



5. This is a story of a big talent. About a 100 years ago Tesla invented numerous things that we use until now and actually take for granted - alternating electric current, radio, radar, you name it... Big BRAIN!

5 comments about The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin.

1. Ben Franklin is the most amazing figure of American revolution. The essence of American life, a hero, a political figure, a self-made man, a scientist, a diplomat - turns out to be just a guy next door, a neighbor.
   
   I got this book on audio from a local library - and spent 6.5 wonderful hours listening to a friend, a teacher, a wise man. He is entertaining - but serious at the same time, he goes into great details of his dealings with people, business partners, politicians - but is never boring.
   
   Anyone who wants to learn how to connect with people, to become a better person, to grow a business and wealth, to be a good friend - and more - should read this book.
   
   I would recommend an audio format if you have choices - it really turns it into a conversation with Ben Franklin.



2. I've just finished reading the Autobiography of Ben Franklin, and I have gotten a belly laugh out of just about every chapter. The man is hilarious. I really haven't decided whether the whole book is an outright tongue-in-cheek put-on, or that old Ben is just such a practical, unemotional fellow, that his guidelines for living a virtuous life sound like a biology professor trying to explain to a slow student how to rationally distinguish his left hand from his right.
   The story of his courtship with "Miss Read", his eventual wife, I'm sure, is not something that "Miss Read" cut out of her husband's book and hid away in a trunk of loving memorabilia in an upstairs attic, along with her first love poem and a piece of her wedding cake. She was "deserving ... pitiable and a good and faithful helpmate", says Ben. And, believe it or not, she nearly lost Ben's attentions by her inability to get her parents to cough up one hundred pounds as her dowry. In fact, she did loose Ben for a good period during the negotiations, and in the interim Ben being left hot to trot explains that; "In the meantime, that hard to be governed passion of youth had harried me frequently into intrigues with low woman that fell in my way." He goes on to explain his thankfulness at not catching "distemper" or something worse.



3. This book is a kind of time machine that puts you straight into the Eighteenth Century. Benjamin Franklin comes over as a fearless and open character, although he is at pains to present himself as a solid and successful businessman in the printing industry. He is very much a man of his time. He concerns himself with God and self-improvement, then after he marries he says how glad he is that he did not catch VD from 'certain low women' beforehand. This, certainly consciously, echoes St Paul's advice on why people should marry.
   
   Within the text are probably whole layers of meaning and allusions to contemporary events and news culture that are lost on twenty-first century readers. He is certainly working within religious and classical traditions of what an autobiography should be: a conversation with God, carried on in public? or moral examples and advice to the young.
   
   Sometimes he is having a laugh at the autobiographical and literary form itself. For example, it is a commmonplace of Eighteenth Century Literature that you-the writer-had no intention of publishing your book until you were prevailed upon by your friends or the public. Franklin opens the second section of his autobiography with a letter purportedly from a Quaker who says that a life of Franklin would be worth even more than 'all Plutarch's Lives put together.'This must have raised a laugh in his local club, his 'junto' as he calls it.
   
   However, within the same pages, Franklin describes, clearly with pride, how he swims from Chelsea to Blackfriars in London-which is quite a physical feat, it being two or three miles. He is also at some pains to place much of his financial success on hard work, simplicity and the avoidance of alcohol. These aspects of his life would bequite important for his Low Church readers.
   
   Interestingly-as negative examples- he reports that his London workmates routinely down six pints of strong ale a day, both at home and in the printing office. For his contemporaries, this was unusual from the point of view of the English printers being not just drunkards, but -for his audience- very old fashioned. English people in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuroes -including babies hence the phrases 'tiny tots' 'small beer' etc.- drank beer and ale as drinking street pump water was correctly suspected to cause disease.
   
   Here, through the implication that beer drinking is old fashioned and unhealthy, especially when compared to American coffee drinking, Franklin is presenting his American readers with the idea that-once again- the Colonies, rather than being a backwater, are more modern that their British counterparts in the Imperial Capital of London.
   
   At the heart of his political thinking seems to be the moral rather than political idea that with moral virtue-and thus God- on your side, you are unstoppable, and sees the United States' future greatness to lie in this.
   He takes pains to connect political greatness with the moral quality and education of individual citizens, laying particular emphasis on literacy, and reports with pride how he helped to establish the first lending library in the United States, in Philadelphia.
   
   As a moralist rather than a politician, his republican beliefs do not seem as universal as, say, those of revolutionaries like Robespierre or Tom Paine. For him, the American Republic seems to be uniquely American. At one point he is pleased to report, and say that it is an aspect of his success in life that he has dined with a king, and names him as the King of Denmark. Tom Paine would never have dined with a king, unless it were to poison him!
   
   Now the non-PC bit as bang go his green credentials. The 1726 Journal has Franklin helping to kill and eat dolphins while travelling by sea. He says they are good to eat, and regards them as fish rather than mammals.
   
   Enjoy this book!



4. Benjamin Franklin, one of history's most remarkable human beings, was born in Boston in 1706. Largely self-taught, he became a respected scientist whose experiments on electricity received international acclaim. He invented the lightning rod, the Franklin stove, bifocals, the glass harmonica, an odometer and more. He was a self-made man who became wealthy as one of America's first commercial printers. He was a respected civic activist, a leading author, a politician and a political theorist. Many of the wise maxims expressed in his immortal Poor Richard's Almanack remain relevant and routinely quoted. Franklin is considered one of America's most accomplished diplomats. He served as minister to France during the Revolutionary War. In that post, he engineered a vital political alliance with the French, winning crucial military and financial aid. We think that anyone who loves history will find this spellbinding autobiography a rare delight. Franklin was on intimate terms with many of the most famous individuals in prerevolutionary America. Indeed, he seemed to have personal dealings with virtually everyone of merit in the New World. His autobiography, written in the best of the archaic language of the time, is a literary classic. Don't deprive yourself of this singular opportunity to learn what the American colonies were like during the prerevolutionary era, as reported by the extraordinary genius who first conceptualized the idea of the United States as an independent nation.



5. Written over a period of nearly thirty years and covering his life only until 1759 (he died in 1790), the Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin nonetheless established the lore associated with the man. While many biographies of Franklin penned since his death have attempted to officially correct the record and convey a truer picture of him, a sense of the old Franklin endures in no small part due to his autobiography.
   
   In this book, we encounter Franklin the reader, printer, civic leader, writer, inventor, diplomat and so much more. While perhaps the depths of his knowledge in his chosen fields are insufficient to classify him as a genuine renaissance man, he is, all the same, versatile, engaged, and devoted to self-improvement. Franklin is ambitious and desirous of seizing the day and enjoying all that life has to offer. He is also someone who is clearly proud of his accomplishments. Pride seems to be one contemporaneous arrow of criticism against him that found its mark. So much so, in fact, that he later added humility to his original list of 12 virtues. He writes that "there is, perhaps, no one of our natural passions so hard to subdue as pride." Franklin is also quite forthcoming with respect to his own failure to acquire humility, although he admits to success "with regard to the appearance of it." It is, of course, possible that this introspection is all carefully constructed artifice designed to endear Franklin to the reader and to help secure his place in history as an enormously talented, but forgivably flawed man. While Franklin was certainly capable of shaping his public image, I think he reveals enough of himself for us to ascertain that there is truth amongst whatever tall tales or exaggerations exist in this brief volume.
   
   The first part of this book, considered by many to be the best, exists as a letter to his son. It is here that we learn something of Franklin's early life. We find a 12 year old, bookish Ben Franklin indentured to his brother James as a printer, despite his yearning to be at sea. Eventually, Ben manages to extricate himself from this arrangement by "asserting" his freedom and counting on his brother not to force the issue. While this was a success, he later believed it was somewhat unfair of him, even though his brother occasionally delivered blows to the young man. Franklin's maritime proclivities eventually wane and he makes his way to Philadelphia. It is here that Franklin comes into his own. The establishment of his printing business, invention of the Franklin stove, formation of the first "circulating library" in the U.S., and the first fire department in Pennsylvania is recounted. We are given accounts of his time in London, dalliances with women, and some of the "errata" of his life. Lest we forget, there are also the virtues which he intended to make a part of his character: Temperance, Silence, Order, Resolution, Frugality, Industry, Sincerity, Justice, Moderation, Cleanliness, Tranquility, Chastity, and Humility.
   
   While the remaining parts of the book may not be as strong or cohesive, they still impart interesting information and insight into the man. The Touchstone edition of the book contains a short introduction by Lewis Leary that is a worthwhile preface to the autobiography despite his disapproval that part of the book is "burdened with morality." And yet, it is this morality and quest for "moral perfection" that is, above all, the driving force of Franklin. However future generations judge Benjamin Franklin, his contributions to the burgeoning United States of America and the reputation thereof are as undeniable and appealing as he himself is.

5 comments about 21: Bringing Down the House - Movie Tie-In: The Inside Story of Six M.I.T. Students Who Took Vegas for Millions.

1. I picked this book up at Logan International Airport in Boston after finishing a meeting at MIT. I had no backgound of the story, other than it involved a modified card counting scheme in Vegas. It was a compelling, fast-paced story that was made more fantastic given I had just left the campus. The book was finished by the time I landed at Dulles. I have a 14 year-old math wiz that I can see being drawn into the high stakes game. For Ben Mezrich's first outing in non-fiction, I feel he did a great job.



2. I saw the movie 21 and this was still a suspenseful account, with lots of interesting details about learning card counting that didn't make it into the film.
   Nice writing.



3. 21: Bringing Down the House - Movie Tie-In: The Inside Story of Six M.I.T. Students Who Took Vegas for Millions my review for the book is excellent. and this was my first time using amazon and i was very pleased.



4. I'm not much of a book reader, even though I enjoy buying books I hardly ever read one completely and almost never a non economics book. But this particular book has given me the opportunity to feel everything the author wrote as if I was there, I don't know if I'm growing into a book reader but this book has an excellent writing very friendly and easy to read, it keeps your attention, long waiting hours on the doctor, bank or anywhere become short while you read it. Also it's a great introduction for the movie 21: Blackjack. If you're interested in card counting this isn't a "how to" book, although there is a essay in the last chapter on card counting that makes a more in depth description on the subject, it's more of a novel based on real facts. As one of the praises for the book says: "Perfect for a read on the plane down to Vegas".



5. I saw the movie and was intrigued. The movie wasn't great by any means, but it did just enough to inspire me to want to know the "real story". The first thing I noticed about the book, was it was a lot smaller than I thought it would be. The thing I remember about the book after having read it, is that it was too long.
   
   Frankly, I thought the book was too long and boring. There were parts that were interesting, and parts that kept me wanting to read more.... but "just barely". Most of the book was a chore to finish. I almost gave up a few times, figuring I've read enough. I did finish it, it wasn't horrible, but I'd rate it below average.

5 comments about Surely You're Joking, Mr. Feynman! (Adventures of a Curious Character).

1. One of the most entertaining biographies I have read to date. Richard P. Feynman is not your stereotypical lab-coat scientist; his relentless curiosity has led him down many adventurous paths and generated hundreds of humorous stories. Don't let the `theoretical physicist' subtitle distract you, this book is as much about the pursuit of science, as it is about the innate curiosity and passion about making the best of your life - through the eyes of Richard P. Feynman. This book is guaranteed to make you laugh. Enjoy it, and make sure to share it with your friends.



2. I love physics and reading biographies and in a way this is a perfect book. It does not go into physics issues though, it is more about the life of a great scientist and a very different and profound person, Feynman. The only strong criticism may be that he was known for telling stories about himself, and generally knew how to portray an image of a very smart and original man. I don't mind, however, and still like to believe he was all of that.
   
   Not just fun, but also an opportunity to be introspective.



3. Richard Feynman is a theoretical physicist, Nobel prize recipient on Physics, professor of Caltech, a serious academic. However, he is also a curious character and a man of many talent. This book about him is not an autobiography but are little stories on him throughout his life. There is very little about physics. Rather, it demonstrates Feynman's attitude towards everything around him.
   
   When he was in Princeton graduate college, he was invited to a tea party at the Dean's house. The Dean's wife served him tea and asked "Would you like cream or lemon in your tea?" He said "I'll have both, thank you.", quite absent-mindedly. The response was "Surely you're joking, Mr. Feynman.", the title of this book.
   
   Feynman is curious, and this may well be an important attribute for learning. The book has detailed description of how he learned to crack safes when he was in Los Alamos participating in the Manhattan project. He learned painting for a while and had his own painting exhibition. When he was in Brazil lecturing, he learned to play frigideira in a samba band and joined the Carnival parade. He also played all-drum music for a ballet performance. With all these talent, he admitted that he did not know painting, and did not know how to read music score.
   
   This demonstrates now one should treat work and other activities as one. There is no such thing as work-life balance for him. He did anything that interested him wholeheartedly, leading to wonderful achievement in both study, work, hobbies and entertainment. It really reminds us that playing out so-called life activities half-heartedly is a waste of time.
   
   There are so many humourous passages in the book and I can only quote a few.
   
   - Judging Books by Their Covers.
   When he served on an advisory committee on textbooks for the government, a book publisher submitted a volume of three books for evaluation. The last one was incomplete and only the covers with some blank pages were included. To his surprise, Feynman found out that committee members gave good rating to the books, which exposed that they didn't even bother to read them before rating them.
   
   - Is Electricity Fire?
   He was asked by a group of young rabbis "Is electricity fire?" He was glad that the theology academics were interested in physics and went on to explain the phenomenon. However, it turned out that the rabbis were trying to abide by the doctrine that they should not use fire on Sundays and thus wanted to know if this should include all electrical appliances. Quite a disappointment for him to find out that the rabbis were not modernizing but just trying to follow ancient doctrines to the letter.
   
   - A Touch of Brazil.
   When he did some lectures in Brazil, he was amazed that the students were well prepared for the lectures. They could answer questions on the reading materials right away. However, they could not answer similar but simple questions put in another way. Feynman finally found out that the students memorized all the papers distributed, as well as all the notes of the lectures. They learned without thinking, read without understanding. There is a familiar situation in Hong Kong where students did the same. We also seldom have questions asked, topic discussed, or even intellectual arguments.
   
   - Cargo Cult Science.
   On scientific studies, Feynman quoted an example. Islanders of a South Pacific Island saw what the army did there in the war: cargo planes landing bringing all sort of good things. A few decades later, they were found constructing long and flat mud strip with torches on both sides mimicking a runway. The leader would sit in a wooden shed, with wooden plates covering his ears like a headphone. They kept doing this but still wondered why the cargo planes never landed. They used accurate scientific observation and imitated the original way to near likeness. But such superficial scientific method without reasoning could not yield any results.
   
   Stories in the book are so diverse and I could only quote 1% of them in the review. You are recommended to take a look.



4. For a physicist Mr. Feynman was a fantastically curious individual. Although, compulsive and a bit "different" his passion for life and curiosity with the world around him were remarkable. His wit and wisdom along with stories of his antics and general mischief acted as a magnet pulling me to the next page. This book was hard to put down and reminded me to remain curious throughout life. Well worth the time it takes to read, I will be reading other books by Mr. Feynman.



5. Although Mr. Feynman is undoubtedly a smart man, with many things to credit to his name, this book seemed like nothing but his attempt to show how smart he was and is. However he comes off as extremely arrogant and pompous, the problem being that his anecdotes are ruined by his comments on how stupid others are compared to himself. Almost every other paragraph is a story in which he felt he outsmarted someone, but in reality, his accomplishments seem very exaggerated and insignificant. The way he talks about not being considered a sissy by struggling against his frat brothers, outsmarted the waitress with dumb puzzles, and outwitted his frat when stealing a door are NOT impressive in the least, and I feel that a average person could accomplish the same things. The fact that he writes about it in a manner so that he tries to make himself some child genius is what ruins the book and makes him seem stupider rather than smarter. I'm sorry Mr. Feynman, you may be a great physicist, but you must be joking if you think you're a writer, and a clever one at that. I may not be able to solve physics problems like you, but I can assure you...I am much more clever if compared to your life stories (and that's not saying much).

5 comments about Benjamin Franklin: An American Life.

1. Isaacson persuasively portrays Franklin as the cultural father of his country. Washington may have been more important from a political perspective, but culturally he was part of an aristocratic, noblesse oblige, and chilvaric tradition that is more European than American. Franklin was the champion of middle class values -- the protestant ethic and the spirit of capitalism and the virtues of the common man.
   
   Presidents starting with Jackson ran as the embodiment of Franklin, not of Washington. No one wants to be portrayed as elitist, and Franklin's promotion of social mobility and middle class virtues became the standard.
   
   Isaacson's book is readable and interesting. He certainly makes a persuasive case for Franklin's seminal importance in American history.



2. This is exactly what I look for in a biography -- it's about one of the most important people in the history of our country, and after I was about a chapter into the book, I could not put it down. I found myself reading it every time I had a free moment. It is easy to read and loaded with useful and interesting information about a fascinating man. I would recommend this to anyone, whether it be a history buff or just someone who enjoys a good read. On a side note, it's funny to me how differently the Franklin-John Adams relationship is portrayed by Isaacson compared to how David McCullough described it in his Adams book.



3. When I took US History in College, the various instructors took pot shots at Benjamin Franklin, not really giving the poor old guy a chance. This book give a more balanced look at Ben's whole life and the events that changed his outlook on life. I still take to heart his creed to never speak sharply or argue in anger with anyone, speak softly and use reason to convince your fellow man (woman). This advice alone has allowed my to make headway in places that I would have never been able to before. This book also gives the reader the sense of sadness regarding Franklin's family, especially the very long time periods that he was away from his wife. Tragically, his wife died without him while he was in France. Franklin gave much to this country, I appreciate his contributions to this day and I read this book years ago.



4. A very entertaining and highly informative bio. It seems as though Mr.Franklin gets slighted in other subjects bio's, mainly for being away from America for so long during the Revolutionary years. But you'll find in this enjoyable bio that he was hardly sitting around doing nothing during his time in France. His strength was in diplomacy and knowing how to manipulate France and Britain to our benefit, and was a major influence in the outcome of our quest for freedom. Also, take a good look around you, chances are that he had something to do with the invention or idea that brought whatever it is you're looking at to fruition.



5. Walter Isaacson has penned an enjoyable, informative and well-paced biography on the incredible life and historic times of Benjamin Franklin.
   
   With crisp overviews of personalities like John Adams, Thomas Jefferson and Edward Bancroft - to name but a few - Isaacson brings a wonderful dimension to describing a complete picture of many issues.
   
   Though the chapter - Bon Vivant: Paris, 1778-1785 - briefly slows the pace of the nearly 500 pages, this is an entertaining read which shows how history can come to life through the energetic research of an author.

5 comments about Einstein: His Life and Universe.

1. More than any book on Einstein, this delves into his human side. This fascinating man was a complex matrix of human success and failure, and perhaps near super human characteristics.



2. I picked this book up in its audio form as something to listen to when I was on the road. Turns out that I unwittingly purchased the "abridged" edition and, in retrospect, I'm glad I did. I wasn't looking for an incredibly in-depth look at the brilliant theoretical physicist, nor certainly at his groundbreaking work. As it turns out, I got just about all that I could handle (and was not too overwhelmed) in the abridged version.
   
   This work can be divided into two clear avenues; one dealing with the history and details of Einstein's personal life, the other attempting to present and explain his work. The two are intertwined in a very efficient and well presented manner.
   
   I am of above average intelligence, though not scientific by nature. While I was able to roughly follow parts of the narrator's descriptions of relativity and quantum mechanics, at other times I was completely lost. Luckily, the deep stuff was "relatively" confined and not so drawn out as to lose continuity.
   
   One of Einstein's greatest strengths was his ability to explain his incredibly complex theories in ways more understandable to laymen, using examples involving trains, lightning bolts, falling elevators, etc. It was through these "thought experiments" and not through complex labratory work that most of his theories were developed.
   
   As with most great men, Einstein was not without his faults, and the author willingly points them out. In doing so, Einstein comes across not as a bad person, but more as a typically flawed human being. He was certainly an amazing person and one of the most scientifically gifted theoreticians in history.
   
   While I cannot attest to the readability of the unabridged text (and suspect that the science could be overwhelming), the abridged audio version, which consists of six CDs encompassing seven hours of narration, can be highly recommended.



3. Walter Isaacson's biography of Time's "Person of the 20th Century", Albert Einstein, welcomes us to the world of one of history's most famous scientists. So well known that his name is nearly a common noun synonym for genius, but still misunderstood on many fronts, Einstein emerges much more intact than most famous people subjected to a biography of this length. He wasn't a great father for most of his life, perhaps shockingly so in one case. At one time a revolutionary figure in his field, he became quite conservative in his views late in his career, with his major contribution coming tangentially as others answered his objections to more modern theories of uncertainty and reality. Often thought of as the father of the atomic bomb, Einstein played a very minor role, other than to recognize the awesome potential of E = mc2 and making the effort to communicate his concern to those who needed to know in the volatile days leading up to World War II. The story of the emigration of Einstein and other German scientists is chilling in its implication. Had they stayed and developed the bomb for Hitler, the world might be a much different place today.
   
   A book about a theoretical physicist has a good chance to sail right over the general reader's technical ability to understand it. Isaacson does a good job of keeping that part of the story near the ground, presenting concepts and Einstein's famous "thought experiments", but essentially no higher mathematics. I did better with E = mc2 and issues of uncertainty and reality presented later in the book than with the theory of relativity. Isaacson does his best work examining Einstein's conceptual mind--his career-long search for a unified field theory that would explain all the major forces in the universe, and his long dedication to a unified form of world government that would mediate the risks inherent with nationalism and mechanized, even nuclear, weapons. The stories about Einstein's family life, while humanizing and revealing, were the least interesting to me, though they did convey Einstein's basic humility with his place in the cosmos.
   
   It took me quite awhile to read this book, but I'll give it five stars, particularly for biography readers and those with a scientific bent.



4. I have read Biographys about Einstein before but this was by far the Best ,the Author has such a natural way to describe the inner workings of a Complexed Genius.



5. Isaacson appears to have truly stepped inside the head of this great man. His explanations of the science are understandable to those who are not professional physicists, but more importantly, we get to see the man behind the famous equations. What was he really like? How was this super-star also a human being? What were his imperfections?
   
   Isaacson has done a fantastic job with this book - it is very readable and difficult to put down as a result.

1 comments about The Man Who Loved China: The Fantastic Story of the Eccentric Scientist Who Unlocked the Mysteries of the Middle Kingdom.

1. There are 2 facets of Simon Winchester's work that make him one of my favorite authors. Firstly, he brings amazing players in History forward that I very often have never heard of. Secondly, he makes reading History tremendously fascinating. The latter should be a given, how can our past be anything but fascinating? The reality is that History books can be painful to read.
   
   Noel Joseph Terrence Montgomery Needham is the subject of Mr. Winchester's 19th work, sound familiar? Not to me. However by the end of the book I look forward to seeking out more about this man as Mr. Winchester has a knack for catalyzing a reader's interest well beyond the book he offers. Professor Needham was a astonishing man who filled his 94 years with remarkable travels, eccentric behavior and a decision so poor the reader will ask was he a fool or a knave? (Question posed by the author)
   
   What is not in dispute is the marvelous history of China Professor Needham documented through first hand investigation over thousands of miles traveled in China (many in war time) and the decades of research that followed. The only other historian that comes to mind as being so single minded in his pursuit of a subject is Sir Martin Gilbert and his decades long work on Sir Winston Spencer Churchill.
   
   The work is also timely as it coincides with China's re-entry as a focal point for the world. China's existence is best measured in millennia and her scientific contributions when listed are nearly as long and often pre-date conventional wisdom on who was first with a given invention. Think you know where printing was first documented, suspension bridges first built, how about the compass, blood circulation or perhaps a flame-thrower?
   
   China's recent history is no indicator of its fantastic past and the latter may more likely be an indicator of what is yet to come. This is another great read by a wonderful author who never disappoints.

5 comments about The Deniers: The World Renowned Scientists Who Stood Up Against Global Warming Hysteria, Political Persecution, and Fraud**And those who are too fearful to do so.

1. The author, Lawrence Solomon, comes from an "environmentalist" background having worked as an activist against nuclear power expansion and world rain forest protection, and as a journalist or the National Post of Toronto. This book stems from a series of newspaper articles on individual scientists that disagreed in some way with the "conventional wisdom" or "political correctness" of Global Warming, specifically, man's role in Global Warming. It is evident at the conclusion of the book that Mr. Solomon has considerable respect for the 30+ scientists which he has interviewed for the book. There is little question that in Mr. Solomon's words the question of man's role in Global Warming is not settled science.
   
   This is really a remarkable book. The reader is able to take advantage of an author that has been able to converse with a cross section of some of the most outstanding scientists, an author who is obviously devoted to environmental ethics, and an author that can write with the clarity of a experienced journalist. Reading this book is a real education. The scientific questions broached touch on multiple topics in science, ranging from glaciers to malaria, from Antarctic to hurricanes, from low clouds to the Sun and the way the Sun and the planetary system impacts cosmic radiation, from geologic history to the way science is done, and finally to a plethora of scientific approaches to understanding the physics, chemistry, geochemical distribution and history of carbon dioxide in the earth, oceans, atmosphere.
   
   What is important here? Public policy will be formulated on the results of science. One of Solomon's major concerns is that poor public policy stemming from poor science or misinterpreted science will have a negative impact on the world's poor. In addition to the science itself Mr. Solomon is very concerned with the way the results of science are received and acted upon in our political world.
   
   Mr. Solomon treats each scientist with respect, giving each a mini resume. His order of treatment makes pedagogic sense and thematic sense. A real challenge of the book is to cover the scope of the science in a responsible and understandable way. In my opinion he does that admirably and concisely way.
   
   He begins with a discussion of the word, Deniers, explaining its derogatory usage. meaning and emphasizes that most of these scientists do not consider themselves deniers. My sense is that both Solomon and the scientists discussed would have preferred the word Skeptics to Deniers. The word Deniers does set up the context of the book into the tension and edginess, that present circumstances deserve. The first scientist depicted is Edward Wegman, who along with a group of select scientists was asked by Congress to critique the famous hockey stick graph. Selected important graphs and data displays are used in the text with comparisons and unusually complete captions. Each chapter contains references and highlights available articles and their web locations or urls.
   
   After you finish this book you will have a better understanding of how the temperature of the earth is measured and how the temperature history of the earth is approximated. An understanding of the cycle, sources and sinks of carbon dioxide is crucial and selected scientists that have give their life work to study of carbon dioxide in ice, in the ocean, in the earth, in the atmosphere, and in the earths history are reviewed. Does carbon dioxide drive temperature or does temperature drive carbon dioxide? This is the all important question to answer, and must be answered before we attempt to use policy to "correct" global warming. Is the earth really warming or is it beginning to cool?
   
   This is not an easy book to read. Frankly the scope of the science covered in the book is staggering. I will definitely re-read portions if not all of the book. But, because of the clarity of Solomon's language and the importance of the content he has amassed, I will. As scientist, myself, I am very impressed with what Mr. Solomon has done here. Even though this book's mission is to elucidate the view point of the skeptics, I believe this synthesis will help scientists and the public on both sides of the issue.
   
   The book challenges, at the core, the case for man's impact on global warming as a consequence carbon dioxide emissions. Questions are raised as to whether the earth is actually warming. It is pointed out that the temperature record stations are un-representative of the earth's surface with the ocean being under-represented, and that measurements considered to be most representative (satellite-mounted microwave sounding units -- MSU) have not shown a record of warming since initiated in 1979.
   
   There are critical comments about the management and agenda of the IPCC. The IPCC is self described as: "... a scientific inter governmental body set up by the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) and by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP)" from the IPCC web site. In this book the IPCC stands accused of changing and dictating the conclusions of the scientists doing the work in their own organization.



2. 
   Richard Vigilante has launched an eponymous publishing company--Richard Vigilante Books--that takes advantage of all the new Amazonian efficiencies to produce great books in days rather than years.
   
   His first book, replete with statistics and material as recent as February 2008, ends the global warming debate before Al Gore can even start his new $300M climate change panic campaign.
   
   Entitled The Deniers and already a #3 Amazon best seller in Canada and leaping listwise in the US, it tells the story of "The World Renowned scientists who stood up against global warming hysteria, political persecution, and fraud"
   
   Gore recently declared, as I recall his words, that scientists opposing his theory are the kind of people who party together with the flat earth society, with holocaust deniers, and with cultists who claim that the Apollo moon landing was concocted on a back lot in Burbank.
   
   But it turns out that these denier folk comprise most of the world's leading climate scientists, physicists, and statisticians, including hundreds of participants in the IPCC reports that Gore cites as an impregnable consensus. Among the scores of deniers interviewed and analyzed in the book are Freeman Dyson, the world's most eminent living physicist, Hendrik Tennekes, director of research, Royal Netherlands Meteorological Institute who asserts that the global warmers cannot tell the difference between "clouds and clocks," David Bromwich, president of the International Commission on Polar Meteorology who can find no global warming signal "from the mainland of Antarctica right now," and Reid Bryson, "father of scientific climatology," the world's most cited climatologist and a sainted environmentalist, who responds to a question about Gore's movie: "Don't make me throw up."
   
   Covering the range of global warming claims, from the famed "hockey stick graph" to a predicted rise of mosquito borne diseases, the book is fascinating and even profound on the flaws of computer modelling, the irrelevance of consensus to science, the crippling effects of excessive specialization, and the mounting evidence of a coming cooling trend.
   
   Its author is Canadian environmentalist Lawrence Solomon, who ends with a cogent explanation of how carbon taxes and offsets devastate the environment.
   
   George Gilder



3. DISCLOSURE: I have not read this book yet but am giving it 5 stars for the reason mentioned below.
   
   Before I bought the book, I wanted to find out "who" these scientists were.
   
   I did a google search on those mentioned in the publisher's note and was suitably impressed. I found a wealth of high quality information regarding each one of them. In particular I liked Dr. Edward Wegman's report to the House Committee on Energy and Commerce on the statistical methods used to arrive at the "Global Warming" conclusion.
   
   These guys are the real deal folks. I am buying this book as of today.
   
   BTW: How do we overcome the media machine that continually hypes the "Global Warming Crisis?" This book is all well and good, but its target audience is those that are already skeptical of or actively against the GW hypothesis. This information has to somehow reach the average Joe who has drawn an opinion about GW without researching the facts.
   
   Suggestions anyone?



4. The Gore-ists understand consensus is a defacto establishment of reality. It matters not if the tenants of the Global Warming religion are true, the societal clergy has established it as 'the truth'.
   This book is important because it attempts what true science does....It ponders reality beyond the established consensus and at least attempts to open minds to the possiblility that a different consensus is possible.
   Al Gore is not a man of science by any measurement but certainly is a man trained in the power of consensus. He is, de facto, the Pope of this reality. Science is always the product of a few challenging the Pope until a consensus becomes 'reality'. Then, of course, someone else will challenge the new reality...etc, etc, etc.



5. I just saw Solomon's presentation on C-SPAN. While he recognizes that global warming may pose a problem, he points out that there is not an absolute consensus. It's a shame that the Competitive Enterprise Institute sponsored his talk, as their positions are often dismissed as public relations efforts from the fossil fuel industry.
   Solomon expressed a great deal of concern over the effects of some of the responses to global warming. He cited the "cap and trade" program which has led to the purchase of massive eucalyptus plantations which are forcing small farmers off their land and levelling forests of biodiversity. The film Refugees of the Blue Planet goes into the sad details of monoculture tree farms. Solomon is also deeply concerned about the resurgence of nuclear energy, which he sees as economically unsound; plus, there is the unresolved issue of what to do with the waste. Although, a segment of the series E2: Energy covers some of the advances in nuclear technology.
   To his credit, Solomon suggests that we need to hear more from the poorer nations of the Global South as to how we should address these issues. Some poorer nations want to be able to rapidly develop their own fossil fuel economies, while others prefer that their gas and oil resources be exploited at a conservative pace, if at all. The Price of Fire: Resource Wars and Social Movements in Bolivia
   
   There is a great deal about the natural world that we don't understand. Hopefully, global warming won't cause a catastrophe, and it's comforting that some scientists are not concerned. It would be helpful to see more head-to-head debates between the deniers and the "alarmists." In addition to his C-SPAN appearance, I've heard Solomon on a few right-wing talk shows and would like to see him challenged by people like Ross Gelbspan, author of Boiling Point: How Politicians, Big Oil and Coal, Journalists, and Activists Have Fueled a Climate Crisis--And What We Can Do to Avert Disaster. Gelbspan regularly confronts the deniers, and he has some powerful counter-arguments, and reveals the investment in perception management campaigns by Exxon and others to protect their markets and profits. Everything's Cool
   
   Lastly, as with terrorism, we don't know if or when climate change may bring disaster, but it would be prudent to take precautions. Developing renewable energy that emits fewer greenhouse gasses and doesn't involve the impacts of mining coal Big Coal: The Dirty Secret Behind America's Energy Future and oil drilling can be seen as a "pre-emptive" strike against a potential threat. The booming field of Natural Capitalism: Creating the Next Industrial Revolution not only provides a less degraded environment, but also enhances the profits that all sorts of businesses are already realizing.
   Green to Gold: How Smart Companies Use Environmental Strategy to Innovate, Create Value, and Build Competitive Advantage
   
   A couple other resources on the economic, technological and social transformations already taking place:
   Sustainable Industries
   Big Ideas for a Small Planet: Season 1 (2pc)