Customer Reviews

New Everyday Science Explained: From the Big Bang to the human genome...and everything in between

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This book is a fun, quick, and inexpensive run-down of the most important terminology in physics, chemistry, and biology. It just scratches the surface and it's not a fraction as comprehensive as its title suggests, but it would make a fine gift for a young, curious student of science. The large color photographs accompanying the text are, as one would expect from National Geographic, both eye-catching and illuminating. They really make it more of a picture book than a reference work.

Physical terms that are briefly defined include entropy, orders of magnitude, mass, gravity, inertia, force, conservation of energy, momentum, friction, leverage, simple machines, adhesives, pressure, fluids, buoyancy, waves, reflection, refraction, resonance, interference, heat, conduction, convection, radiation, the Coriolis force, gravity, magnetism, charge, electricity, conductors, insulators, motors, generators, resistance, light, telescopes, microscopes, the spectrum, lasers, medical imaging, the photoelectric effect, and radioactivity.

Chemical and biological terms include elements, molecules, compounds, crystals, alloys, water, pH, halogens, oxygen, nitrogen, carbon, hydrocarbons, plastics, life, cells, sugars, metabolism, fats, proteins, hormones, DNA, species, evolution, cancers, bacteria, viruses, vaccines, immunity, nerves, muscles, the heart, heart attack, stroke, blood, digestion, the liver, vitamins, minerals, bones, teeth, the brain, vision, perception, hearing, taste, smell, pain, emotion, behavior, drugs, sleep, dreams, and aging.

Numerous short sidebars cover such topics as centers of gravity, temperature inversions, electromagnetic fields, computer chips, ultraviolet light, x-rays, bar codes, compact discs, fission, ionic bonds, nebulas, glass, steel, the water cycle, the carbon cycle, membranes, replacement hormones, mitosis, cholera, malaria, flu, retroviruses, allergies, reflexes, blood pressure, ulcers, cholesterol, analgesics, and many others.

Curt Suplee attempts to explain science in short excerpts beginning with the first section, Matter and Motion, through the fourth section focusing on The Chemistry of Life, which ends in a brief description of how and why we dream and how we age.

Obviously the fields of science are far too broad to have any depth of explanation in a book this short. However, as an introduction to the numerous fields of science this book is an outstanding beginning. This book would be most valuable for the aspiring young scientist in late elementary school through middle school. A child may review each of the fields covered in this book, which encompasses physics, chemistry, engineering, biology, chemistry, and medicine, and determine whether science truly is for them, and, if so, which field of science.

Even adult readers will find this book to be a great refresher for many of the topics covered in classes long gone. Suplee manages to explain a facet of each of the topics he covers enough to provide a basic background, and yet does so in a way that does not talk down to readers.

Since this book is a National Geographic book, you know that it will be filled with incredible photography to match each of the subjects. There are pictures of the Tacoma Narrows Bridge that collapsed in 1940, shown in such a way that it captures what happened in just two photographs. There are photographs of Mars and the stars, and even a rusty car. Photographs of cells and the brain are also provided. Even an excellent explanation of the bad effects of poor nutrition and what happens when you eat too much fat.

This book is a good general science book that could help provide the start of a research project. Others may use it as a coffee table book, particularly in the hardcover edition with the dust jacket on it. A casual guest will be impressed with your scientific interests and your appreciation of good books.

Review of The New Everyday Science Explained: from the Big Bang to the human genome...and everything in between by Curt Suplee.

Publisher: National Geographic, Washington, DC.

Reviewer: Dr W. P. Palmer

The major claim of this book is that `Through reader-friendly language, real-world examples, 21st Century findings and hundreds of photographs and illustrations, The New Everyday Science Explained guides you entertainingly to new understanding of the chemical, physical and biological miracles that shape our world'. And `...this groundbreaking book will astound you with the secrets of nature's everyday special effects'. Does the book live up to these superlatives?
Well, yes, it is a colourful, well-illustrated book and it is worth having a copy in a school or home library, particularly as there seem to be bargain prices around for it now. It is what I call a coffee-table book and it may interest some of those whom the dull school science textbook has turned away from science.
After the introduction, there are four main sections, which attempt to integrate the `chemical, physical and biological miracles'. These are: Matter and motion: Forces of nature: The right stuff: The chemistry of life: this corresponds to two sections of physics followed by a section of chemistry followed by a section of biology. The book has an index and suggestions for further readings. Integration between the sciences is thus not particularly profound. There have to be choices of subject matter and reasonably enough in a book where the photographs and illustrations do most of the talking, the choice of subject matter appears to be dictated by the photographs. Many of the illustrations are humorous cartoons which are used as one way of explaining new concepts. However the order in which new concepts are introduced is not always the best learning order for a beginner, though there is interesting and useful information provided throughout the book.
There were some negatives. The pages of the book which I have, tended to stick together. The date of publication is not in the usual place, but appears to be 1996 (p. 271). The 2004 date stated online does not appear within the book. The claim of 21st century findings is hard to substantiate and although the book looks new and exciting, its contents are in fact rather conservative and generally within a curriculum for fifteen year olds.
So, in the view of this reviewer, its claim to be `groundbreaking' is hyperbole, but it is nonetheless worthwhile for its excellent photography.
BILL PALMER

Curt Suplee really opened my eyes to the chemical and physical science I encounter everyday. The book is full of beautiful photographs and simple and amusing illustrations in addition to Mr. Suplee's excellent prose.

Just too much gloss and not enough information. Where's the Beef?