Product Description

Composed of short essays separated into topics, this popular science book is written in the form of a conversation between two people. It provides an understanding of the physical world by using such examples as the problem of unscrambling eggs, which leads into considerations of thermodynamics.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #21862 in eBooks
• Published on: 1998-04
• Format: Kindle Book
• Number of items: 1

From Publishers Weekly
Anyone who thinks popularized science has to be superficial should pick up this engaging volume, by a George Mason University physics professor. Ehrlich (The Cosmological Milkshake), writing in imitation of Galileo's Dialogues Concerning Two New Sciences, talks with an interlocutor who is mildly interested in both physical and biological science but not sophisticated regarding either of them, and considers more than 100 what-ifs in areas ranging from sex to space aliens to space and time. Throughout, the author retains a light touch, even when dealing with such subjects as the contributions of Maxwell, Einstein, Heisenberg and Planck, amid explanations of why unscrambling an egg is not impossible, why man emerged as the king of beasts because he was the best killer and why overpopulation is the greatest threat to our continued existence. But he demonstrates the humility of outstanding scientists as he points out that the "laws" of nature are provisional. The text is supplemented by witty but technically simple cartoons by Gary Ehrlich.
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist
Physics professor Ehrlich uses the device of dialogue with a scientifically innocent questioner to expound some of the marvels and mysteries of modern science. Following the speculative leads that what-if questions furnish, he takes readers on journeys into seemingly fantastic realms that yet are anchored to reality by solid and penetrating scientific knowledge. The subjects of inquiry range from biology to physics to materials and constants. Because of the number of questions, the discussions are limited in depth, yet they are informed throughout by Ehrlich's knowledgeable grasp and his charming sense of whimsy. Dennis Winters

Customer Reviews

An excellent, thought-provoking book.
I saw this book lying on the table at a friend's house and picked it up, which turned out to be a mistake, because I just kept reading it throughout my stay there. It kept me turning pages, wanting to find out more about the world. It is written in such a way that the average person can follow the concepts, and the dialogue between the two characters adds humor and allows for more questions to be asked. I highly reccomend this book for anyone mildly interested in learning more about the world they live in.

Science in the form of a series of "What if ..?" dialogs
Some of the most interesting things that you can do are to take an unusual, unlikely or impossible event, assume that it has happened and then logically follow through to the consequences. That is the content of this book and it is done with a combination of adherence to the laws of nature and humor. The events can be divided into two general categories: those that presuppose the alteration of a law of nature and those that might be possible within the current laws.
For example, "What if men had babies?" is true for some species and probably would not require the violation of a physical or biological law. Certainly, it would require a redefinition of the word "man", but that is really not so difficult. An example of a change in a physical law is "What if Planck's constant were much larger?" The consequences of a change in a physical law are much more difficult to ponder, because we as yet do not know all of the interrelationships between the laws of nature. Nevertheless, the author handles them all with a good deal of humor, never straying farther from the current state of knowledge than is necessary.
This is a very good general science book. Where necessary, the author explains some of the difficulties in assuming the precondition, and then describes the consequences in a relaxed, easy to follow style. Even if you have a phobia concerning science, you cannot help learning a great deal if you read this book.