The Big Splash: A Scientific Discovery That Revolutionizes the Way We View the Origin of Life, the Water We Drink, the Death of the Dinosaurs, the C [Hardcover]

Louis A. Frank (Author), Patrick Huyghe (Author)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

If Frank, a University of Iowa physicist, is correct, millions of small comets made of ice and water strike the Earth's atmosphere every year; the continuous influx of cosmic HO, according to this theory, created our lakes, rivers and oceans, and will one day submerge the planet. The existence of small, previously undetected comets was confirmed by Clayne Yates of the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in 1988, yet Frank's theory continues to generate sharp controversy. He maintains that small comets could have carried organic materials--the seeds of life--to Earth and may have triggered the extinction of dinosaurs. Frank's credentials are impressive: he helped calibrate the first U.S. lunar probes and has made a number of discoveries in astronomy. Written with Huyghe ( Glowing Birds ), the narrative presents evidence for an intriguing hypothesis as it casts light on the turf wars and professional jealousies that can hinder scientific research.
Copyright 1990 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal

Frank, a professional physicist, has proposed a hypothesis that the Earth is regularly bombarded by approximately 20 small water/ice comets per minute. He has further speculated on the implications of his theory for the origin of the oceans, the extinction of the dinosaurs, the origins of life on this planet, and much more. Here, he presents the evidence he has assembled and the story of his struggles with various scientific critics of his work. His basic theory may well prove to be true, but his eagerness to claim all sorts of grandiose consequences for his theory appears to be a bit premature. Also, readers should be aware that Frank is not yet supported by a consensus of scientific specialists. Still, as a provocative work in a hotly contested area, the book is recommended for academic and large public libraries.
- Jack W. Weigel, Univ. of Michigan Lib., Ann Arbor
Copyright 1990 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 255 pages
• Publisher: Birch Lane Pr; First Edition edition (October 1990)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1559720336
• ISBN-13: 978-1559720335
• Product Dimensions: 8.8 x 6.2 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #256,893 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #16 in Books > Professional & Technical > Professional Science > Astronomy & Space Science > Comets, Meteors & Asteroids

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars The Big Letdown., March 15, 2000

By 

Fred Niffenegger (Waldo, Wisconsin, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Big Splash: A Scientific Discovery That Revolutionizes the Way We View the Origin of Life, the Water We Drink, the Death of the Dinosaurs, the C (Hardcover)

The subtitle overstates the significance of this book (A Scientific Discovery That Revolutionizes the Way We View the Origin of Life, the Water We Drink, etc). The Big Splash is very technical and , for those of us without a Doctorate in Geophysics it is quite a dry read. The references to the Space Program and the human elements that show the competition and back-stabbing that goes on in the scientific community are more interesting and help to move you to the end of the story, but, this is little solice for the feeling of being let down at the conclusion (or lack thereof) at the end of the book. Unfortunately, this book is probably the best you can find on the topic, though. I guess you cannot expect every scientific story to be a great read. If you need the data and answers to questions you can find in this book (like I did), you probably won't find it anywhere else. Grab a cup of strong coffee.

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Amazing and recently proved true!, June 19, 2004

By 

"1handclapping" (Broomall, PA USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Big Splash: A Scientific Discovery That Revolutionizes the Way We View the Origin of Life, the Water We Drink, the Death of the Dinosaurs, the C (Hardcover)

Every so often you read a book that changes the way you look at everything because it shows that something we took for granted is wrong. This is one of those books. Frank is not a terrific writer. There are slow passages and sections that are overly detailed and filled with arcane information. However, he is a scientist that stumbled on the origin of water on Earth . . . small comets that are constantly hitting Earth's atmosphere. This is astounding and went against all of the accepted geologic theories of the origin of water on the planet.
This book is also about the tunnel vision of scientists and the vicious in-fighting that goes on in academia when the status quo is challenged. There is a truism that scientists don't change their minds; they just die off and are replaced by scientists who believe the new theories.
I read this book when it first came out and was mightily impressed. Just recently a newly lofted satellite has proven Frank correct and a Scientific American article detailed the proof and the fact that his nay-sayers are now either eating crow or are marginalized in their continued denial. Highly recommended, especially for those interested in Earth sciences.

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Incredibly involving, well written book., June 30, 1999

By 

[e-mail] (Leavenworth, WA USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Big Splash: A Scientific Discovery That Revolutionizes the Way We View the Origin of Life, the Water We Drink, the Death of the Dinosaurs, the C (Hardcover)

Dr Frank develops a hypothesis that is very plausible, well supported and a suprisingly engrossing read. By the time I finished, my beliefs in the objectivity of the scientific community had been severly shaken.

He makes a rather complex subject easy to understand and enjoyable. If only I had been fortunate enough to have more teachers in college that could make a subject come alive.