Weird Science and Bizarre Beliefs: Mysterious Creatures, Lost Worlds and Amazing Inventions (Paperback)

by Gregory L. Reece (Author)

Editorial Reviews

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“A wide-ranging and surprising account of some of the wilder and woollier areas of human belief and the outer limits of credulity.” --Louis Theroux

 

Product Description
Does the giant Yeti roam the mountain ranges of Tibet? Does a real-life Shangri-La lie waiting to be discovered in a Himalayan valley? Do transmissions from lost civilizations beam messages of salvation to humankind? What lost creatures lurk in the murky depths of Scotland's brooding Loch Ness? And who - or what - is responsible for the implacable monoliths which tower over Easter Island? The obsession that so many now have with the uncanny and unnatural is itself a mystery. It prompts serious questions which could have remarkable answers. Drinking deep from the wells of esoteric knowledge, Greg Reece undertakes a heroic quest for solutions. Braving the darkest recesses of cult belief, he stalks the twilight borderlands of contemporary culture, where, at the outer edges of mainstream thought, things become downright freaky and outlandish.Taking his life in both hands, the author explores a subterranean cavern reputed to be the home of elusive blue-skinned troglodytes; goes hiking in the backwoods for a glimpse of Bigfoot; investigates the truth of Alternative Archaeology in search of Atlantis; and tests for himself the time-travel and anti-gravity theories of famed inventor Nikola Tesla. Unashamedly revelling in the unexplained, "Weird Science and Bizarre Beliefs" is both a penetrating analysis of the hidden underbelly of science, pseudo-science and religion and an unforgettable journey into the innermost depths of the fantastic and the peculiar.

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Product Details Paperback: 224 pages Publisher: I. B. Tauris; 1st edition (December 9, 2008) Language: English ISBN-10: 1845117565 ISBN-13: 978-1845117566 Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 5.5 x 0.9 inches Shipping Weight: 12 ounces (View shipping rates and policies) Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (1 customer review) Amazon.com Sales Rank: #1,615,428 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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1 Review 5 star:    (0) 4 star:  (1) 3 star:    (0) 2 star:    (0) 1 star:    (0)           Average Customer Review 4.0 out of 5 stars (1 customer review)		Share your thoughts with other customers:
Most Helpful Customer Reviews 4.0 out of 5 stars The Folklore of the Fringe, March 29, 2009 By  William Holmes "semloh2287" (Portland, OR USA) - See all my reviews (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)       "Weird Science" is a sympathetic and interesting book about "mysterious creatures, lost worlds and amazing inventions, and about the people for whom they are real" (p. 4). Although Dr. Reece admits to be being fairly skeptical in his own world view, his book is not about critical thinking. Instead, he takes "an appreciative look" (p. 5) at the wilder and woolier frontiers of human belief. And what a world it is! Reece begins with a discussion of the hunt for Yeti, Bigfoot, and other creatures that might (but probably don't) exist in the real world. As eccentric as such hunts can sometimes be, they seem positively down to earth compared to what follows. After recapping some of the iconic milestones of big primate cryptozoology, Reece sets off for stranger shores, examining beliefs that Bigfoot and other creatures are supernatural, interdimensional or otherwise inexplicable beings. Having separated from terra firma, the sky's the limit: the rest of the book discusses some of the very odd and even odder beliefs about Atlantis, Mu, Lemuria, the Hollow Earth, ancient wisdom, the chariots of the gods, Tesla coils, death rays and perpetual motion machines. There are times when you can almost see Reece's eyes rolling at what he is reporting, but he does a fair job of being sympathetic to his subjects. All in all, the book makes an entertaining case for Reece's argument that "[t]he kind of diverse and idiosyncratic beliefs and theories in this book are, oddly enough, a good thing for mainstream science. It is only in a competitive marketplace of ideas that science is is forced to really make its case" (p.224). I'm not sure I buy that thesis--there are plenty examples of cults like Aum Shinrikyo whose bizarre beliefs involve trying to destroy the world or at least kill a lot of people--but the idea that science can tolerate and even benefit from a bit of odd, creative dissent is appealing.		Ad feedback   Search Customer Reviews Only search this product's reviews

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Product Details

• Paperback: 224 pages
• Publisher: I. B. Tauris; 1st edition (December 9, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1845117565
• ISBN-13: 978-1845117566
• Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 5.5 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #1,615,428 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4.0 out of 5 stars The Folklore of the Fringe, March 29, 2009

By	William Holmes "semloh2287" (Portland, OR USA) - See all my reviews (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

"Weird Science" is a sympathetic and interesting book about "mysterious creatures, lost worlds and amazing inventions, and about the people for whom they are real" (p. 4). Although Dr. Reece admits to be being fairly skeptical in his own world view, his book is not about critical thinking. Instead, he takes "an appreciative look" (p. 5) at the wilder and woolier frontiers of human belief.

And what a world it is! Reece begins with a discussion of the hunt for Yeti, Bigfoot, and other creatures that might (but probably don't) exist in the real world. As eccentric as such hunts can sometimes be, they seem positively down to earth compared to what follows. After recapping some of the iconic milestones of big primate cryptozoology, Reece sets off for stranger shores, examining beliefs that Bigfoot and other creatures are supernatural, interdimensional or otherwise inexplicable beings. Having separated from terra firma, the sky's the limit: the rest of the book discusses some of the very odd and even odder beliefs about Atlantis, Mu, Lemuria, the Hollow Earth, ancient wisdom, the chariots of the gods, Tesla coils, death rays and perpetual motion machines.

There are times when you can almost see Reece's eyes rolling at what he is reporting, but he does a fair job of being sympathetic to his subjects. All in all, the book makes an entertaining case for Reece's argument that "[t]he kind of diverse and idiosyncratic beliefs and theories in this book are, oddly enough, a good thing for mainstream science. It is only in a competitive marketplace of ideas that science is is forced to really make its case" (p.224). I'm not sure I buy that thesis--there are plenty examples of cults like Aum Shinrikyo whose bizarre beliefs involve trying to destroy the world or at least kill a lot of people--but the idea that science can tolerate and even benefit from a bit of odd, creative dissent is appealing.