How Much Does the Earth Weigh (Marshall Brain's How Stuff Works) [Paperback]

Marshall Brain (Editor)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 29, 2001

Have you ever wondered... How many sheets of paper can be produced from a single tree? Why do FM radio stations end in an odd number? What causes a sonic boom? Where is the world's fastest computer located?

If you've ever scratched your head and thought, why?," you'll love How Much Does the Earth Weigh? With more than 100 of the most popular questions culled from the intriguing "Question of the Day" segment of HowStuffWorks.com, this fun book answers questions you never even thought to ask.

Written in Marshall Brain's award-winning style, this book explains in language you can understand the complexities behind some of the world's imponderables. You'll never look at a light socket, gas pump, or Web page the same way again!

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Marshall Brain resides in Raleigh, North Carolina, and works as the CEO and Chairman of the Board for HowStuffWorks. He has a degree in electrical engineering from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, and an MS incomputer science from NCSU. His Previous books include The Teenager's Guide to the Real World which was recognized by The New York Public Library as one of the 50 top books for teens in 1999. Brain has also written 10 technology books on computer languages, operating systems, and networking. Marshall was included in Ernstand Young's Top 25 Entrepreneurs in North and South Carolina in 1999.

Product Details

• Paperback: 144 pages
• Publisher: Wiley; 1 edition (September 29, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0764565192
• ISBN-13: 978-0764565199
• Product Dimensions: 5.2 x 0.4 x 8.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7.7 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,414,597 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

12 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Now I know!, December 20, 2001

By 

Craig Clarke "Living After Midnight: Hard and... (New England) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: How Much Does the Earth Weigh (Marshall Brain's How Stuff Works) (Paperback)

Your interest in this book will depend upon how curious you are about the world around you. The people at HowStuffWorks have returned with another tome of difficult questions answered in an approachable way. (The only caveat is that the explanation does not always answer all parts of the question.)

It includes descriptions of how Caller ID works, how much "all the money in the world" is, as well as the immortal "Why is the sky blue," ending on the ambitious titular question.

This is an ideal bedside (or lav-side) book and if you are interested in trivia or how the world works, I recommend it without reservation.

6 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars A number of errors, alas, June 2, 2006

By 

Phelps Gates (Chapel Hill, NC USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: How Much Does the Earth Weigh (Marshall Brain's How Stuff Works) (Paperback)

This book is fun reading, especially if you have a few minutes to spare in the smallest room in your house. At the risk of sounding picky, I do have to point out that there are some obvious errors. For example: Why do US FM station frequencies always end in an odd number? The authors claim that it's just a whim that all the FM spectrum slices (0.2 MHz each) "start on odd number boundaries". But this would make the FM band extend from 88.1 to 108.1: wrong!

The true explanation is much simpler. The FM part of the spectrum extends from 88 to 108 MHz. The 0.2 MHz slices actually start on even boundaries, as you would expect: the lowest slice is from 88.0 to 88.2. A station on this slice has frequency 88.1, the CENTER (unmodulated) frequency of the slice, not the start. The last slice, of course, is from 107.8 to 108.0, with nominal frequency 107.9.