The Thermodynamics of Pizza [Paperback]

Harold J. Morowitz (Author)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Filled with fun essays about the various sciences. My favorite is his analysis of the grotesque overpricing of cereals in 1991. And, as you may recall, all major American cereal manufacturers cut prices drastically in mid-1996. Thanks, Dr. Morowitz, but what took them so long to read your book?!

From Library Journal

These 52 essays by the author of Mayonnaise and the Origin of Life (LJ 11/15/85) and Cosmic Joy and Local Pain ( LJ 4/15/87) run the gamut from reflections on the bagel, olives, and pizza to a discussion of Thoreau's knowledge of the natural sciences and a comparison of the sailing voyages of Christopher Columbus and William Buckley. Avoiding the repetitive style of many essay collections with pieces that vary in length and difficulty, Morowitz, a distinguished biophysicist, comments on a broad range of subjects in contemporary and historic science. His language is not overly technical, making his pithy insights easily acessible to the general reader. Recommended for public and academic libraries. Library of Science Book Club alternate.
- Susan Klimley, Columbia Univ. Libs.
Copyright 1991 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product Details

• Paperback: 247 pages
• Publisher: Rutgers University Press (January 1, 1992)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0813517745
• ISBN-13: 978-0813517742
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 5.5 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #868,565 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Entertaining essays on science, December 14, 1999

By 

Eugene Mah "physics geek" (Charleston, SC USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Thermodynamics of Pizza (Paperback)

The only reason I bought this book was because of the title. Saw it in the bookstore and I just had to have it. Fortunately I wasn't disappointed. The title essay is an entertaining read on modeling heat transfer of a pizza. For young scientists, it's a very good tutorial on the process of developing models of real life situations. Worth the price of the book by itself. The remaining essays diverge to cover a wide range of sciency topics, most of which are worth a read.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Thought provoking antidotes that will amuse and enlighten, August 23, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: The Thermodynamics of Pizza (Paperback)

This collection of essays has something for everyone, interested in the sciences. Harold Morowitz's wit and wisdom make hard to understand subjects easy to comprehend. From brownian movement as it relates to the stock market to as the tittle suggests the insulating value of pizza crust this book is a winner.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Moderately Entertaining but Sometimes Awefully Dull, August 26, 2011

By 

Michael Graczyk (Texas) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: The Thermodynamics of Pizza: Essays on Science and Everyday Life (Hardcover)

From the title and description, I thought that this book would be a playful treatment of nontechnical topics from a technical perspective. However I discovered after reading that this book is actually a playful treatment of a variety of topics all from a pseudotechnical perspective. It is a little bit entertaining, but not especially interesting to read.