|
And 113 Other Tantalizing Science Questions
Answered
Edited by New Scientist
Pegasus
November 16, 2011 / ISBN 160598261X
Science and Mathematics
Amazon
Reviewed
by Beth E. McKenzie
New Scientist
is a science and technology magazine that carries a column called
The Last Word. Readers pose questions and readers provide answers
similar to the collegial interactions you find at universities.
It is up to you to decide whether to accept the answer as is or
if you are interested enough to research further.
Why Can't Elephants Jump? is a collection of various topics
from The Last Word. Some of the questions are insightful, some silly.
Some of the answers are brilliant, some are amazing and others,
well, you have to wonder.
Here is a quick taste of what I learned:
· Elephants probably CAN jump, but probably wouldn't survive
it.
· There is a green mammal - the green ring-tail possum.
· Almost everybody, child and adult, picks their nose
· Rats get the plague but mosquitoes don't get malaria
· The continental pole of inaccessibility (look it up!) is
in the Gobi Desert
· You can see the Earth's curvature from about 18km up- where
the Concordes cruise
· If the sun went out tomorrow the earth's surface could
freeze in about 45 days.
· You really can hear things better if the wind is blowing
from the source toward you.
· You can see the trail of footprints from Apollo 14 here:
bit.ly/PdSU
And finally, the most amazing piece of practical knowledge that
I will carry with me from this book addresses a time-honored question
that has puzzled the finest minds of the western world since 1953.
Shaken or Stirred?
No, I'm not telling you the answer. But after you find out what
the experts at New Scientist have to say you should read Casino
Royale to find out how it compares with the advice of the original
master.
|
