Well, of course E = mc2; that's the last in chronological order of the five favorites that Guillen extols in this lively exposition of science for the layman. Good Morning America's science host and a Harvard instructor in physics and mathematics, Guillen (Bridges to Infinity, not reviewed) actually goes to great lengths to spare the reader the mathematical details of his equations. Instead, in showing how scientists developed these laws, he spices each chapter with emotional fervor and probes the innermost thoughts of his heroes in a way that scholarly biographers normally eschew. So, for example, we read that Isaac Newton, settled with an intellectual family after unhappier foster homes, ``just that suddenly had the inkling of what it was like to feel normal,'' or that the younger of the Bernoulli brothers (Daniel) was ``raring to flex his intellectual muscles,'' or that to Faraday ``facts were as sacred as scriptural voices.'' Add to the hyperbole the bits about our heroes' childhoods, marriages, scientific rivalries, and feuds (for which the Bernoullis were justly famous), and the result is a crowd- pleasing kind of book designed to make the science as palatable as possible. In fact, Guillen succeeds. With all the juicy bits and spoon-feeding (even using words in equations before symbols), he nicely explains: Newton's law of universal gravitation (with an epilogue on space travel); Bernoulli's law of hydrodynamic pressure (with epilogue on why planes don't fall down); Faraday's law of electromagnetic induction (with epilogue on dynamos); Rudolf Clausius and the second law of thermodynamics (epilogue on entropy and the Krakatoa explosion); and Einstein on special relativity (with epilogue on the atom bomb). Great for high schoolers, the math-anxious but curious, and others who want to knowbut not too much.
Pub Date: Sept. 15, 1995
ISBN: 0-7868-6103-7
Page Count: 288
Publisher: Hyperion
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 1995
An informal, first-person account of the discovery of a genetic link to male homosexuality by a scientist who has given thought to the ramifications of his findings. With the help of Scripps-Howard journalist Copeland, Hamer, a molecular geneticist who heads the National Cancer Institute's section on gene structure and regulation, describes in just the right amount of detail how he put together his research project on homosexuality. He relates how he obtained approval, funding, a research team, and a place to work; how he found the volunteers he needed (gay brothers willing to give blood samples and answer a lot of very personal questions); and what he learned from them and their family trees. Genetics being a statistical science, there's a fair amount of discussion of statistical techniques, but happily this is mostly presented with the general reader in mind. Hamer's account offers a glimpse into both the collegiality and the politics of science, and there's a delightful chapter on a confrontation he had at Harvard with critics of his research. The final portion of his book presents theories about how genes may influence sexual behavior and other human attributes and speculation about the implication of his research. In July 1993, in the midst of intense public debate over gays in the military, the journal Science published Hamer's paper, ``A Linkage Between DNA Markers on the X Chromosome and Male Sexual Orientation.'' Tabloids and TV talk shows took it from there. Hamer does not dwell on his time in the spotlight, but the experience evidently sharpened his awareness of public concerns and misconceptions. After noting the possible misuses of genetic research, Hamer concludes that the real danger lies in not studying sex at all. Appendixes include the Science article (not seen) and the interview questionnaire used with research participants. Nothing to titillate, but plenty to think about. (Illustrations, not seen) (Author tour)
Pub Date: Oct. 1, 1994
ISBN: 0-671-88724-6
Page Count: 320
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 1994
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
An analysis that will appeal more to engineers than to behaviorists and psychologists: informative, but with a relatively...
Leading neuroscientist Montague takes a biomechanical approach to explain the mental processes that occur in decision-making.
Like computers, the human brain processes data and produces a result—but with a twist, declares the author. The gray area of computational neuroscience lies in the value judgments that occur in biological systems. Nature, Montague posits in his debut, has equipped the biological machine with the added ability to determine the significance of a computation. Moreover, by storing these valuations as a byproduct of computation, the mind adapts and becomes increasingly more efficient. Repeated exposure to a typical risk-reward scenario, for example, causes the mind to anticipate outcomes. Montague revisits many of the old “right-brain” scenarios with a “left-brain” approach. With a graduate student, he replicated the famous “Pepsi Challenge” and found no relationship between the drink selected in the test and the drinks that subjects actually purchased in the stores. Though Montague’s research is thorough, his explanations vary from wry to impenetrably abstract, and the definition of value remains elusive. Value may be a burst of dopamine, a goal created from a pattern of inputs from the environment, an abstract emotion such as trust, or anything in-between. The essence of Montague’s work is that biological machines assign a value “tag” to each piece of data that they process. Whether tiny bacteria or human being, this is what differentiates us from the machines we create. The “soul” of the human machine may be the sum of these value tags. The answer to the titular question is itself a value judgment based on individual experience.
An analysis that will appeal more to engineers than to behaviorists and psychologists: informative, but with a relatively narrow audience.Pub Date: Nov. 2, 2006
ISBN: 0-525-94982-8
Page Count: 240
Publisher: Dutton
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2006
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