快猫短视频

Nine Crazy Ideas in Science by Robert Ehrlich, Princeton University Press,
拢16.50, ISBN 0691070016

ROBERT EHRLICH scores Nine Crazy Ideas in Science on a scale of zero
to four 鈥渃uckoos鈥�. He defines zero cuckoos as 鈥渨hy not?鈥� and four cuckoos as
鈥渃ertainly false鈥�. The ideas he discusses are apt to make your eyes pop at least
some small distance out of their sockets. Try this: more guns mean less crime.
This is a proposition that the gun lobby in the US no doubt welcomes and
Charlton Heston would say it ensures him a good night鈥檚 sleep. But for Ehrilich
it merits three cuckoos.

Other ideas vary in their impact. That sun exposure may be beneficial is not
a particularly sensational idea. However, try getting your brain round the
concept that the Solar System has two suns, or that time travel is possible, or
that there was no big bang. Laced with statistics, Ehrlich鈥檚 in-depth
exploration of such apparent absurdities is hard work. He even-handedly lays out
the arguments for and against, and it becomes something of a game to weigh them
up and see if the number of cuckoos you think an idea deserves matches Ehrlich鈥檚
score.

This is an unusual book鈥攕ome might even feel tempted to throw it at the
wall. The rest will feel entertained and enlightened, if a little exhausted.
Cartoons bring occasional respite.