Is there anything lovelier than a friend opening their bag and saying “I saw this book and thought of you.”? And is there anything quite like the alarm and confusion you feel when the book they cheerfully withdraw is called “Crap Taxidermy”? Actually, there is something exactly like that sense of alarm and confusion. It … Continue reading
Following on from my review of Gaia, yesterday, I thought it was time to review this book of beautiful postcards. These pictures have been chosen for the book because they show both the beauty of nature, but also the impact that humans are having on our environment. Each postcard has an accompanying paragraph. For instance … Continue reading
Well, that was an intriguing read, and much more nuanced than I was expecting it to be. This book is a relic from E’s days studying geology, when they had to engage with this as a possible theory of the world. Lovelock’s premise (which will be the title of my next album) is that instead … Continue reading
Pandora’s Breeches is a brilliant study of women in science during the Enlightenment. Fara effortlessly dismantles the ‘great man’ approach to scientific history by introducing the women, and for that matter all the other people, who were involved in the scientific breakthroughs of the Enlightenment. From the glittering intellectual Emelie du Chatelet to the painfully self-abnegating … Continue reading
On Friday E and I spent the night at the Natural History Museum in London at a Dinosnores event. It was a brilliant opportunity to explore the museum when it isn’t packed full of people and there were also some great talks, a comedy show and a gin tasting! All of which is relevant because it … Continue reading
This is a little gem of a book. I don’t think there is a single page in this brilliant summary of mad, quirky psychology experiments that doesn’t have something fascinating written on it. In fact, I’m going to put that to the test by writing this review by randomly flicking to 4 pages and telling … Continue reading
I confess that I may have been motivated to pick this up in response to E’s generally lackadaisical approach to time keeping. It would, at least, give me something to think about while I sit or stand in the cold and rain waiting for her to arrive. But, I have to say, this was one … Continue reading
Why is there something rather than nothing? Why do we exist? Why this particular set of laws and not some other? This book is not for the fainthearted. At times, it stretches your credulity and fills you with existential doubt about the world around you. This begins right away in Chapter 1 which boldly contends that … Continue reading
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