5 comments about Mean and Lowly Things: Snakes, Science, and Survival in the Congo.

1. "To understand the world, we must understand mean and lowly things." - Aristotle
   
   Kate Jackson recounts her expeditions with the flare of the best natural field scientists from Jane Goodall to Frank Buck - every bit as fascinating and courageous. Scientific exploration - hardships, danger, daring, mysteries, accomplishment, exotic cultural surprises. Including a glimpse into modern scientific camaraderie around the world and government bureaucratic malfeasance. Highly recommended glimpse of an intrepid person enjoying herself physically and intellectually.
   
   "No person who is enthusiastic about his work has anything to fear from life." -Samuel Goldwyn



2. Kate Jackson is a much-accomplished scientist at a releatively young age. I do happen to know Kate on a personal level...yet her blend of skills still amazes me. She is one part curiousity, two parts courage, and three parts intelligence. Her most impressive skill to me (with my more literary bent) is her sure ability at narrative---her descriptions pull you into the jungle and make you feel your rotting socks in the jungle heat. I think everyone should read Kate's book, as I am sure you have never met anyone like her either.



3. The reason that scientists don't know much about the reptiles and amphibians of the Congo, we learn in Kate Jackson's gripping Mean and Lowly Things is because it's a very difficult place to live and most scientists would rather work in places less remote. As a new Ph.D., Kate Jackson doesn't have much of a choice; she can go to the Congo and find snakes on her own, or she can play second, third, or fourth fiddle to some other researcher in a place with running water. Choosing the road less traveled seems to have made all the difference because Jackson turns out to be made of exactly the mettle needed for surviving in climates of perpetual damp, heat, bureaucracy, poverty, and, oh yeah, maggots, biting ants, malaria, sleeping sickness, foot long millipedes and of, course, cobras.
   
   Reminiscent of Raymond Ditmar's very out of print Snake Hunter's Holiday Jackson plunges into the submerged and remote forests of the Congo with a resolve and story telling ability that keep readers on the edge of their seats. Whether cheering along as she captures venomous snakes, or cringing as she describes discovering that maggots are growing under her skin, either way, it's a gripping and enjoyable book that makes you appreciate those people for who intentionally choose the difficult path, try harder when things seem hopeless, and persevere.



4. Mean and Lowly Things is a gripping firsthand account of Kate Jackson's adventures as a herpetological fieldworker in the Congo. While the book provides the reader with scientific detail it's written in a style which brings the experience of conducting field research vividly to life, and as such it mirrors the best travel literature. Keen observations of culture and life are balanced by frank description of the frustrations, fears and feelings of inadequacy which all travelers undergo when venturing to the fringes of the map.
   
   It becomes obvious within the first few pages that Jackson passionately believes in the epigram from Aristotle that opens the book: "To understand the world, we must understand mean and lowly things." Every page of the book breathes the excitement of discovery and the wonders of the forest, and she returns again and again to the message that there is indeed great value in studying toads and snakes.
   
   The opening chapters deal with Jackson's early years of study and work in museum collections, which provides a fascinating insight into the world of hard science with a personal angle. But we really get into the meat when she finally organizes her own expedition to a remote field camp deep in the African Congo. The skills needed on such a venture weren't taught in graduate school. They were simply things that had to be figured out for oneself through a process of trial and error. And when dealing with venomous snakes, errors can be costly. We travel with her as she learns the ropes on a trip marred by civil war, cultural barriers, and a medical evacuation due to raging infection caused by a scraped leg that came into contact with contaminated swamp water. Despite this experience, she comes away with "an altogether irrational longing to return."
   
   Jackson goes back to the Congo for two more expeditions, which are also described in the book. Her focus is on the work and on the phenomenon that she observes, and in that sense, as well as in the way she brushes aside discomfort and understates real dangers, her writing style takes one back to the great 18th and 19th century explorers who first described Africa's mysterious interior. In camp she slept beneath a patched orange tarpaulin on a simple groundsheet, covered in a mosquito net: a situation that caused her Bantu guide to quit because the living conditions were too harsh. The inedible food prepared by her cook - bland manioc which tasted like "a cross between a chunk of wood and an overcooked potato", and soup made with smoked fish which was often half rotten and infested with maggots - caused her to lose 10 pounds in the course of 5 weeks. And then there were the seemingly insurmountable cultural barriers.
   
   But all of that discomfort and frustration is eclipsed by the wonders of discovery and by the thrill of the chase. It's a message of life lived passionately, with purpose, and to the fullest. All of us could benefit from that.



5. "Mean and Lowly Things" is a phenomenal account of the trials and tribulations of herpetological field work in one of the most remote places of the world. Jackson tells her story of collecting amphibians and reptiles in the swamp forests of the Northern Congo without bias and in a way that highlights and accentuates the reasons why someone would long to camp in a secluded swamp forest to catch these creatures. "Mean and Lowly" gives down-to-Earth and easily accessible insight into the little-known area of herpetological field work. Jackson shows exactly how mundane things such as drinking water and dry clothes can be hard to come by in the field, yet how tenacity, passion and curiosity can overcome just about any seemingly insurmountable odd. From impossible government bureaucracies and maggots that grow in your skin, to traditional village customs and published scientific data, "Mean and Lowly" truly covers everything one has to deal with as a scientist in the field in an easy and enjoyable read meant for anyone. It is a wonderful and tantalizing book filled with stories that will make you want to leave for the rain forest tomorrow.

5 comments about A Primate's Memoir: A Neuroscientist's Unconventional Life Among the Baboons.

1. This book is hard to classify: Is it autobiography? Primatolgy? Travel adventures? Humanist philosophy? Humor? Basically it is all of these and more. It is a real page turner. Sapolsky has a truly marvelous sense of humor that includes knowing how to laugh at himself. I rank it with in the top 10 favorite books I've ever read. Bravo!



2. This book is an excellent insight into the 20 year life of a biologist who grow as a person while studying baboons and navigating the up and downs of life in Kenya.



3. This is a fun recollection of Sapolsky's experiences in Africa.
   
   Somebody looking for data might want to avoid it as the information is more about things that struck him through his observations with his baboon troop. Some would be reminded of Goodall's earlier books when he writes about his interactions with the baboon.
   
   There are many chapters on what he went through and the people he meet and interacted.
   
   Some are great such as Thomas who had the great ability to pull endless fish out of a river but it was offset by his other great ability to attract buffalo. As Sapolsky wrote: "Buffalo would scamper in from miles away to nail Thomas, toss him over their shoulders, and send his fish sailing into mudholes, thorn bushes, high into trees." Sapolsky comments about looking for him and find him cursing and spitting and cackling at some buffalo, threatening it with his trademark an astounding pelvic grind, as the monster approached.
   
   That whole imagery made me laugh.
   
   His own personal reflections of living in Africa are rather interesting as he interjects himself into the community. Some of his comments bring another picture to the Masai who many times are pictured as the noble warriors and yet they do questionable things.
   
   Probably one disheartening thing is the corruption that existed and probably still exists. As he prided himself on being a New Yorker; he finds himself being conned and regularly pressed for bribes. And yet, he himself takes to conning people when his money runs out.
   
   An outbreak of Bovine TB ravishes a Baboon troop and eventually hits his troop. Sapolsky finds himself unenviable task of killing Baboons as he tries to discover what is killing the Baboons and where is it coming from. Eventually, he figures it out and it involves corruption and the Masai. He can't even tell people about it because wealthy British hotel owners are against it and the local government is against it as it would hurt the tourist trade.
   
   One thing I thought was interesting was his comments about Fosse. He is not a fan.
   
   Overall it's a fun read.



4. This is a beautiful, poignant, fascinating and enlightening read. It's also a bit heart-wrenching. Despite the fact that it is ostensibly about baboons, each sentence within this book contains more humanity and feeling than a typical week of day to day living on our strange modern worlds.



5. I am a student of Bio-Anthropology, and I have to say that when it comes to bio-anthro, especially my specialty- Primatology- the textbooks NEVER tell you everything you need to know in order to be a good Primatologist, but Robert Sapolsky does in "A Primate's Memoir."
   
   Sapolsky delivers a narrative that is at once fanciful and credible. Too bizarre to be taken as anything other than reality. The experience of the author as a budding scientist in the Kenyan Serengeti, coming of age amidst the incongruous corruption and stark beauty of the African continent, as he works his way through the American Academic Dominance Hierarchy while conducting a long-term study on Savannah Baboons. He mixes cross-cultural social commentary with humorous storytelling. It is literally a laugh-out loud kind of book, particularly for the budding anthropologist. I would recommend this book to anyone interested in the field. In a way, it is like the primatological equivalent of "Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy," except that is all true. A brilliant book, which every anthropologist should read.
   
   BTW, all anthro textbooks should have chapters dedicated to the trials and tribulations one must endure while living among other cultures, dealing with third world corruption, and knowing how to negotiate the African social arena. I feel more worldly for having read this masterpiece.

5 comments about My Life as a Quant: Reflections on Physics and Finance.

1. I enjoyed this book very much. It's like a memoir, but focuses on his professional life. He talks about his training in physics, and how hard it is to get satisfactory (to him) employment. He switched to being a quantitative analyst on Wall Street. He talks a lot about what that really means, how the quants fit into the structure of Wall Street, and he even gets into some of the technical detail (I would have liked a bit more of that). It's well written and fun.



2. Very (very) shallow on technical content. Bizarre and boring anecdotes about the politics of the big investment banks. Detailed stories about uninteresting aspects of the author's life. I kept looking for some real beef, but gave up at some point.



3. 
   For someone interested in becoming a quant, this is a great book to read. I highly recommended it to you, as I did to many of my friends and students.



4. This is a book by one of the first people to move from Physics to Finance at a time when few physicists thought about it as a career option. It starts off around in grad school where Derman captures the elation of a new grad student at an ivy-league school working with Nobel prize winners and at the same time being intimidated at the standards that one has to meet to be accepted in that club.
   
   The postdoctoral chapters are a bit of a drag seemingly matching his life at the time. Finally, he describes his movement first to AT&T and then to Wall Street. The differences between working in academia and industry are well described.
   
   People who are looking for details on quantitative models and the like will be disappointed. While some models are described in seeming detail, the coverage of that side of things is superficial. It is a much better description of the journey from Physics to Finance and the emotional side of going over to a financial world which values everything by money from a academic world which at least seemingly, looks down on money.



5. My life as a Quant is a truly reference guide for Serious Market Analists and Quant prospectors.

5 comments about Prisoner's Dilemma.

1. I wont write a long review since others have done that. Ill just say that this is a great book for the layman if they want to understand something of the history of Game Theory and John von Neumann.



2. If you wondered why the Prisoner's Dilemma is a Dilemma or why the Theory of Games is more than a game, you should read this book.



3. The book is basically a biography of the illustrative John von Neumann in the context of game theory (or better science of conflict) and its role in the Cold War. Readers interested in learning more about game theory might be disappointed while discovering the biography of one of the most important scientist of the last century and the social history in the nuclear arms race. Additionally, readers will get a better understanding of the almost infinite complexity of prisoner dilemma and TIT FOR TAT-like strategies not taught at university.
   
   Concluding in JvN's words; 'Long-term survival of the human race depends on our devising better ways to promote cooperation than any now in existence'.



4. I do not have enough words of praise for this book. It so masterfully weaves together numerous areas of human interest. Who knew that game theory could be applied so broadly?
   The book is centered largely around the use of game theory during the cold war, and the life of John Von Neuman, but makes numerous other connections. For example, the parallel to the economic dilemma of "the Free Rider Problem" is discussed. Cooperation, as an evolutionary necessity, is talked about. The psychology of decision making is a focus. Most interesting was the connection that different styles of playing has to ones political views.
   I found myself pausing every few pages to absorb and integrate what was written into my world view. This is not a book that merely entertains -- it is a book that influences.



5. The Prisoner's Dilemma is one of those ideas that's so simple and so profound that it deserves to be studied by everyone who's interested in human nature. It manifests itself in many facets of life -- if you've ever had an argument that evoked the objection "What if everyone acted that way?", you've contemplated some variation of the Prisoner's Dilemma. (Joseph Heller suggested a clever but ultimately unsatisfying answer in Catch-22).
   
   Generally speaking the "dilemma" refers to the difficulty of making decisions when the consequences of any given choice depend on what someone else decides to do. The tension arises because there are usually benefits to cooperating with others, but as these benefits increase, the advantage to someone who chooses to cheat increase. Examples abound: If every country disarms they save money and lives, but then the one country that arms itself can quickly conquer the world. (Rodney King suggested a correct but unrealistic answer in the form of a question). Similar issues arise in the domains of biology, sociology, philosophy. Arguably policy-making is about nothing else.
   
   Not surprisingly, the human mind is highly attuned to cheaters -- witness the development of strategic reality tv shows, the visceral indignation at the welfare state, etc. All of these things can in principle be modeled using game theory, the development of which is the subject of Poundstone's highy readable book. Highly recommended for those interested in learning about the basics of the field, as well as its history.

5 comments about The Story of Science: Newton at the Center.

1. Our high school children found this to be a great adjunct for their science education. It's well written and has great graphics, so it keeps the attention and informs well in the process. We homeschool and use more specific texts at this level, but it is still a great overview.



2. I can't sing Hakim's praises enough - from her History of US series to the The Story of Science, all three volumes so far. I've been an avid science fan my whole life, but not a hard science major, and I gasped all the way through these books as I learned things I never knew, but thought I'd known, or finally understood things I'd known about but that had puzzled me. Get over the "distracting" sidebars - they didn't bother me at all and they were full of great stuff. I ate these books up and I was only reading them to preview for my homeschooler who hates math and is bored by science, but loves history. Joy Hakim has a wonderful ability to take a huge subject (all of US history, for instance, and the development and progress of scientific thought in this case) and make it manageable, new and a fun read. My daughter is discovering that science and math really are amazing and play a critical, pivotal role in the unfolding of human history.



3. I notice that one negative review has been repeated on multiple Joy Hakim books verbatim.
   
   I LIKE the sidebars and pictures. There is a ton of ART history and beautiful graphic design work in the books. Perhaps it is because my husband, son and I are all artists, but we particularly enjoyed the layout of the books. I felt a fusion of science with art in the presentation.
   
   The history is sound, well presented, and detailed enough in scope to touch on mathmatical concepts supporting the science.
   
   I'd reccomend this book for lovers of science history and for older homeschoolers. It is a bit too serious for younger homeschoolers. To me, this is more a book for a older preteen or teen audience.



4. My daughter is homeschooled, and after reading the entire History of US Series, I knew this science series would be a must. Honestly, I learned so much about US history than I ever learned in all my years of schooling through Ms. Hakim's books. Same with the "Story of Science" Series. Some may find the sidebars distracting, but we kind of made them into a separate lesson and learned a great deal of little-known facts. And it isn't only history or science - the author weaves a little bit of everything into these books in these sidebars. I really can't recommend her books enough. So far, they have been THE favorite resource in our four years of homeschooling!



5. Although I agree that the sidebars are distracting, the book is a delight--and not at all condescending or arrogant. My homeschool daughter and I tried skipping the sidebars and returning to them after we had finished the text proper. It didn't work because the sidebars give anecdotal information that works best when read with the text proper. I'm guessing Ms. Hakim went through the same thought process before deciding on the layout. I do question that the text is meant for middle school. Although Ms. Hakim does write "to" that age level, the subject matter may be more appropriate for high school and thus benefit from a less familiar (although still conversational) style. I hope that Ms. Hakim will provide workbooks to accompany the books eventually. And, we are all waiting for the world history via Hakim!

5 comments about Mr. Gatling's Terrible Marvel: The Gun That Changed Everything and the Misunderstood Genius Who Invented It.

1. I bought this book assuming that it it was a biography revealing details of how Gatling's life developed to lead him toward his many accomplishments. it is not; rather it is nine tenths sociological asides. There errors of fact misunderstandings of analysis, poor and inadequate illustrations and in general was a disappointing and frustrating read. I did read it but not happily.



2. Americans have affection for the inventor, the fellow that builds a better mousetrap or even just tinkers away in the basement attempting to make cold fusion happen. But we are nowadays conflicted about armaments; whoever that guy was who invented napalm we might not hold in much esteem. What are we to make of the man who invented the machine gun? He wrote in 1877, "It occurred to me that if I could invent a machine - a gun - which could, by rapidity of fire, enable one man to do as much battle duty as a hundred, that it would, to a great extent, supersede the necessity of large armies." Whether he was really so naïve, or whether he was deliberately trying to make his machine gun seem a tool of peace (the excuse used by every arms-maker or arms-dealer), isn't entirely clear. What is clear is that his invention made his name, a name you probably know even if you don't know the details of his life or gadget. In _Mr. Gatling's Terrible Marvel: The Gun That Changed Everything and the Misunderstood Genius Who Invented It_ (Viking), journalist and essayist Julia Keller tells all about this influential American inventor, and looks at many larger issues in American history as well. "The Gatling gun is a weapon of death," she writes, "but its story is not altogether grim. For it is also the story of a nation on the rise and of a man who, by inventing a new kind of machine, helped propel it in that upward trajectory."
   
   Richard Jordan Gatling was born in North Carolina in 1818. He was a born tinkerer, not a farmer or store owner, occupations he had tried before his first invention came to him. He invented a seed planter that contained seeds in a hopper and dropped them one by one into just the right placement in the furrow, a great improvement over flinging seeds in all directions. Keller believes that the idea of the seed dropping into just the right place was transformed into bullets in a hopper dropping into just the right breach (of six) for Gatling's most famous invention. Gatling's machine, which looks like a small cannon on a tripod, with a circular hopper for bullets mounted above the breech and a "coffee grinder" handle to make the six barrels go around, wasn't the first attempt at a machine gun, but it was certainly the best. It worked efficiently and reliably, and should have been immediately taken up by the Union Army, but it was not. The arms-buying division of the Army was too conservative to experiment. The Gatling gun's most notable use during the years of the Civil War didn't even require it to be fired. There were bloody riots against the draft in 1863 in New York City, and the police stationed Gatling guns on rooftops. The intimidation worked and the mobs backed down. It had real use in the Spanish-American war, and Teddy Roosevelt valued it. Part of the Gatling gun's image problem is that it was bought by many foreign governments and colonial powers to suppress native populations who had no weapons to match the Gatling's efficiency.
   
   So Richard Gatling may have hoped to bring peace, and at times his intimidating device calmed a situation by its mere appearance and not by causing rapid and multiple deaths. He would have liked those instances. His gadget, however, did bring a new industrialization to warfare. He was a decent man whose deadly gun was the making of his fortune and his fame; he went on to patent many other inventions, including a bicycle, a device to control wagon reins, and two years before he died in 1903, a new type of flush toilet. No one remembers those, of course. Keller's informative book, however, convincingly shows that like more famous figures such as Thomas Edison and Henry Ford, Gatling played an important role in changing the rural antebellum America into an industrialized nation.



3. The book should have contained pictures of how the invention actually worked. Diagrams would have been helpful in order to understand why this gun worked and why it worked so efficiently.



4. One of the merits (and there are many) of Julia Keller's Mr. Gatling's Terrible Marvel is that the book is more than a biography of Richard Jordan Gatling (1818-1903), inventor of the automatic weapon which bears his name. It's also a well-written, well-researched, and insightful reflection on American self-identity and the icons by which we define ourselves.
   
   We think of ourselves as humanitarian, ingenious, curious, mechanically skillful, industrious, problem-solving, determined, and upwardly mobile (the rags-to-riches aspect of the Great American Dream). As Keller points out, Gatling came to symbolize all these qualities. In the last quarter-century of his life, he was frequently pointed to as a man who personified the best of American qualities. His best known invention, the Gatling gun, was enshrined as "a laudable American accomplishment, another example of native ingenuity and craftsmanship and problem-solving acumen: America at its muscular, can-do best."
   
   But as Ms. Keller also points out, there's a certain irony to all this. Gatling invented his gun in the hopes that its incredible killing power would end the Civil War quickly. As Keller says, the gun's "brutal spit-spot efficiency would, [Gatling] hoped, persuade nations of the waste and folly of war."
   
   In fact, however, military conservatism sidelined its use on the battlefield. The only time it was used during the conflict was against civilians in the New York Draft Riots of 1863. It would be much used--some might say over-used--in the succeeding decades in the Indian Wars and by federal troops and state militia against striking workers. Foreign governments bought thousands of the guns to acquire and hold onto colonies, and Teddy Roosevelt, hero of the Spanish-American War, claimed that the Gatling was the decisive factor (along with Teddy himself, of course) in defeating the Spanish. Much like Alfred Nobel and his dynamite, then, Richard Jordan Gatling found his "humanitarian" invention used in quite nonhumanitarian muscular ways.
   
   There's also irony in other aspects of Gatling's life too: after he sold the Gatling patent to Colt, his financial fortunes dipped; and although he continued inventing right up to the end of his life (his patents include a flushable toilet), he would forever be remembered almost exclusively for his killing machine.
   
   America, argues Ms. Keller, has always had an ambivalent attitude to weapons (probably because their use against other humans tends to upset part of our self-identity as humanitarian). In the earliest days of the Republic, statesmen debated about them. That debate was cast in a completely different light by Gatling's invention of his lethal gun, which not only helped change the face of warfare, but also influenced the way in which Americans and the rest of the world thought about the ethics (and aesthetics) of killing in wartime. As Keller notes, killing became more impersonal, less one-on-one. Mr. Gatling's Terrible Marvel invites readers to reflect deeply on these kinds of issues.
   
   Highly recommended.



5. Brilliant cultural study of the 19th century through the lens of weapons inventions and innovations. Keller places the Gatling Gun smack in the middle of Americas growth and westward expansion. She explores the contradictions of Gatling's life and the contradictions in Americas view of itself. From steam boats to small pox to agricultural inventions to the first "machine" gun we travel with Richard Gatling through the great American experience
   Keller explores the importance of the American patent system and patent office, to America's rise and economic expansion. She really puts her finger on the pulse of this country in the 19th century.
   Packed full of great history, well paced, and a joy to read.

5 comments about The Map That Changed the World: William Smith and the Birth of Modern Geology.

1. I am not an expert on geology and although I had just learned about rocks and minerals in school, this book seemed very edious at tmes. I remember cute little details from the book and the main ideas but when they talked about canals, coal, strata, dips etc, my mind went blank. I really tried to read it and absorb it all but I found it difficult. I still think you should give it a try but I found it very "unstable"



2. As an ardent student of geology and paleontology for over 50 years, this book was particularly fascinating. It is the story of the birth of a modern scientific standard, the geological map, brought about by the efforts of a man, William Smith. By today's standards, he was an 'amateur', but he literally created the standard through his observation and study and analysis and patience and struggle. The story is told as a walk through time, both geological time and the time of one person's life. In taking us on these journeys, the author is magnificently successful and this is a book worth reading many, many times. Simon Winchester is at his best in this one.



3. As a fan of the history of science, it is not that moment of "Eureka" that fascinates me but of "Is that supposed to happen?" And this book fits that perfectly. It follows the story of the father of modern geology, William Smith, and some of the obstacles he faced. Unlike some other books of this genre, this book takes an in-depth look at William Smith's life, and the outcome was not always flattering. He faced many obstacles, some imposed by conservatives within the world of science and some self-imposed. Interestingly, Smith did not set out to discover geology, he just happened to be observant while working on canal construction and he connected the dots --more like rock strata-- much the same way that Fleming did in the discovery of penicillin. This book is a must read if you are interested in how needless conservatism can hold back good science.



4. Prior to about 1800, Geology did not exist as a science. Oh, there were people who were interested in various aspects of it, but the science was born with the publication of James Hutton's book on "The Theory of the Earth" in 1795. Then, in about the next half century, what we now regard as "modern geology" came into being. Most of the leading characters in this fascinating history were from the British Isles. Let's say that this was the period of time from the publication of Hutton's book up to the Publication of Darwin's ideas regarding evolution. Well, it was a scientific revolution that led to our understanding of the Earth and it's complex history and led to the understanding of the history of life on our planet. It carried profound social implications that are argued right down to the present time.
   
   William Smith was one of the most important contributers to the development of modern geology. He's an interesting character in that he was not highly known or highly regarded until after his death. Scientists, in those days, were mostly from the elite classes and were tied in with a museum or university, whereas Smith was an orphan from a working-class family and he was largely self educated, both in civil engineering and in geology. He somehow managed to get a job with a coal company that involved constructing a canal from the northern coal district southward to the population centers of southern England. This task brought him into contact with the earth and he recognized that he was crossing major layers of the earth's exposed crust. He recognized each of the layers (now referred to as formations), recognized that they followed in a sequential order and plotted their distribution on a base map. Well, this type of thing is rather routine in the present world, but it had never been done until Smith's time and was a revolution in itself. As he was mapping his formations he became interested in the peculiar petrified remains (what we now call fossils) that he observed in the sedimentary rocks. Smith recognized them as formerly living things, but he had little knowledge of biology and many of the remains were of a type that were wholly extinct. No problem. There were a lot of more educated amateur collectors around that aided him with their understanding. Smith observed and collected more and more fossils and finally announced that each of his formations contained it's own distinctive remains and these remains followed one another in a determinable order. This was a stunning discovery and proved to be very controversial. The prevailing thoughts of the day said that fossils occurred at random. No one had ever guessed that they occurred in an order. Well, Smith had his maps and could demonstrate his discovery to anyone who might be interested. Furthermore, the formations followed superposition with the oldest on the bottom and the youngest on the top; thus, if you showed the order of fossils you showed the order in which the different types of life appeared and disappeared through the interval of time represented by the formations. It was a simply amazing discovery and led to the development of the modern geologic time scale. It is now known as "faunal (and floral) succession," one of the basic principles of geology. All of this might seem rather elementary in view of today's knowledge, but this was about 30 years prior to the publication of Darwin's book on evolution. Darwin, by the way, was said to regard William Smith as a most ingenious man.
   
   Simon Winchester steps in and chronicles this most important period in the history of geology. He portrays Smith himself and the early 1800s world in which Smith functioned. He really does an excellent job. I've always regarded Smith as one of the most important early geologists and Winchester does a fine job of giving me a feel or the early 1800s social and scientific setting in which Smith operated. Oh, one might remark that Winchester is a bit of a windbag, or that he writes with a British accent. No problem at all. He gives a wonderful account of William Smith's life and times. I highly recommend this fine book to anyone who is interested in the history of geology.



5. I'd read Krakatoa and enjoyed that, so I thought I'd give Map a try. It took me a while to get into it, but I was well rewarded. The author does a nice job recreating the pre-Darwinian geology scene in Britain. I'd never known much at all about the whole coal-and-canal connection and found it fascinating. I did think that I knew a lot more about geology and paleontology - obviously, I was wrong, as I'd never heard of William Smith, whom the author has convinced me is an extremely important figure.
   
   The author is a good writer who writes books about very interesting subjects. I hope he keeps 'em coming. My only complaint is that, at least in this book, the writing is somehwat repetitive (though this wasn't a problem with Krakatoa, as far as I remember).

5 comments about Carrying the Fire: An Astronaut's Journeys.

1. My father gave me his copy of CARRYING THE FIRE in 1975 when I was eleven. His recommendations were rare, so I knew the book was special--I was not disappointed. Mike's narrative is beautifully delivered, poignant and funny as hell. This is a personal account that lets the reader enter the world of Apollo from Mike's point of view. The complexities of the Apollo 11 mission (and spaceflight in general) are presented in a flowing, readable style--you won't want to put this book down. Reading it again after all these years, I enjoyed the experience even more. He was a young man on that flight, but his insight, intelligence and humor reveal him to be a deep thinking, passionate, brave human being who helped change the history of mankind forever. As a high school English teacher, I can honestly say that this book is more than a good read, it is a must read for anyone interested in knowing what it was like to fly to the moon on the adventure of a lifetime! FIVE STARS--read it!
   



2. Of all the astronaut bios & autobios this one is the best. Michael Collins' style is natural and funny.



3. I was reading Deke! By Donald K. (Deke) Slayton and Michael Cusset. Deke Slayton was the highly respected chief astronaut and godfather to the astronauts of the Mercury, Gemini and Apollo missions; In this book, I noted a positive reference to Michael Collins's book Carrying The Fire so I figured this as a must read.
   Michael Collins takes the reader through the stages of astronaut training and spaceship design and his own flights of Gemini 10 and the pioneering Apollo 11 with self- depreciating humour and irony. He manages to present a great amount of technical detail in an easily understood fashion in an articulate, intelligent, flowery, almost British manner.
   With a forward by Charles Lindbergh himself, this book is nearly 500 pages but seems only half that by the man who stood station 60 miles above Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin on that historic first lunar landing.



4. The best (and one of the earliest) book by an Apollo astronaut. Very witty, with candid appraisals of other astronauts. Actually written by the astronaut himself. A must for anyone interested in the Apollo program.



5. I've read a fair number of books on Apollo, but not very many astronaut biograpies. I chose this one mostly because of its good reviews on this page!
   
   It's definitely well written, surprisingly humorous, and full of fascinating details on the Gemini 10 and Apollo 11 mission that I had never heard about. (His short descriptions of the other astronauts are particularly funny.)
   
   His book really answers the question: What would it really be like to fly critical missions during the space race? To work with other famous astronauts (not just Neil and Buzz but also John Young)? He makes his nuanced and deep emotions clear throughout, giving the book an "everyman's" perspective.
   
   Can't recommend this one enough.

5 comments about The First American: The Life and Times of Benjamin Franklin.

1. This is perhaps the best biography I have ever read for the following reasons:
   The author has the wit, ironic tone, and command of the language that is worthy of Ben Franklin the writer.
   The prose is beautiful and is seamlessly interwoven with quotes from letters, articles, contemporary commentaries, and Ben's own memoirs.
   This book reads like a novel, tells a great story about a brilliant, admired, and patriotic man who lived an incredible life. He was a true renaissance man whom Brands has captured in all his many facets.



2. Hands down, one of the best books I've ever read. This book is wonderfully detailed without getting lost in the minutia. It was the first book I read on this era and has compelled me to read everything I can get my hands on about the founding fathers.



3. This, without doubt, must be considered as one of the finest and most thorough work done with regards to paying full tribute to the biography of Benjamin Franklin. You may learn many things you didn't know about this remarkable man as well as being refreshed on the things you had partially forgotten since history classes of your school days. He was to be considered a Founding Father of our Country, but his influence began long before the seeds of Revolution began to form, and his bright and steady, surefooted approach to diplomacy without submission or compromise of principals was nothing short of the genius we knew he possessed.
   
   His humble beginnings, which he was never ashamed of, did not hamper him, but rather enriched his understanding of the human condition in his continual search for truth, justice, science extraordinaire; and a philantropic desire to further higher education for youthful successors. Feet of clay, he undoubtedly had, as do we all; but they were lovable feet from start to finish. We have heard it all before about this most famous of our first citizens, but it is well to begin again to pay tribute to him, especially in this age of uncertainty, bizarre political events, the lack of leadership.
   
   Perhaps the most amazing element about Franklin was the apparent lack of ego. He did not do things for personal gain but rather for the overall good of the people, a goal he genuinely seemed to embrace above all else. His sense of humor was also unique for such a man; his penchant for penning controversial ideas under the guise of pen names was nothing short of genius in itself. It was a safety valve attached to a desire to effect change - you tentatively "test the mood" before admitting authorship. Waiting a decade for public opinion to soften is often soon enough if the ideas are sound enough to claim later as your own! Let the seed be sown, to rise not during the winter chill, but later, afterward - when the spring sun warms the soil and brings it to life under more suitable conditions.
   
   Moreover, not only were his covertly penned arguments gems of far-reaching vision, but this most excellent, prudent strategy was developed at the age of.....of....16!
   
   We need him to come again to the service of this country, which will always be his; but I fear there was only one of him made. Thankfully, we were able to have such a man in the right place at the right time, especially at the end of his career, when he was such heartwarming support for our Revolutionists as they "committed with their lives, their fortunes and their sacred honor".



4. This book was an excellent review of Revolutionary War history and of a true founding father. The prolific references in this book to primary sources domonstrate what an inspired inventor and early American Benjamin Franklin was.



5. H.W. Brands has created a stunning insight into the life of Benjamin Franklin. It is a classic of our times and should be required reading for anybody interested in how and why America came about. Brands is a scholar of immense quality. In a time when biographies of the founding fathers have become fashionable, Brands stands out as one of the strongest historians around. Not only is he a better writer than the more populist David McCullough, he is a better historian. Brands' analysis is clear, crisp, and powerful. A must read.

5 comments about Tihkal: The Continuation.

1. Why hunt for mushrooms when you can make your own psilocybin



2. This is a fine contribution although 'The Continuation' might lead one to believe that both Pihkal and Tihkal are of the same sphere. I suppose they are, if one isn't well-read regarding the metabolism and synthesis of these two very different families of compounds. As a synthetic organic chemist, I appreciated not only the autobiographical sketch but also the synthesis/observation section. Some of his methods are a bit dated. However, they are indeed valid if you don't mind sacrificing yield and purity.



3. This book is thinner (in every sense) than it's more famous older sibling "PIHKAL", but is well worth getting if you're curious about what became of Shulgin after angering the government by publishing PIHKAL. For those with an academic interest in psychedelic drugs, it's almost a mandatory purchase, containing dozens of novel new tryptamine-based psychoactives (including several LSD derivatives), many of which are now available through the so-called "research chemical" trade. For better or worse, Shulgin's two books are landmark works in the developing relationship between the public, the government, and a dizzying array of new psychoactive drugs.



4. A penetrating, intellectually substantive work that earns its right at center stage on your bookshelf. Filled with enlightening perspectives and solid scientific thought, hours are spent absorbing its wisdom.

   Highly recommended.




5. This book is the much anticipated follow up to PIHKAL, and although it does contain some interesting information, the narratives are often disjointed and whimsical. It is as though the authors said almost everything that needed to be said in PIHKAL and included this additional commentary to satisfy themselves rather than the reading audience.

   The chemistry section, however, is superlative, and is more than well worth the cost of the book in and of itself if you are interestd in the subject matter.