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This latest collection of cartoons from Sidney Harris, Einstein Atomized
(Copernicus, $14, ISBN 0 387 94665 9), continues his quest to make the
major science issues of the day accessible to nonscientists through humour. Some
are straightforward: a gardener inside a hothouse complains, “Everywhere you
look there’s a greenhouse effect. In here, we can’t grow a damn thing.” Others
are somewhat esoteric: a physicist at a particle accelerator institute says “We
have an agreement with the Department of Agriculture to accelerate some grapes,
lemons and hazelnuts.” A few are downright nerdy: “Dr Grommet is funded by a
major Hollywood film studio. He’s been asked to come up with an antigravity
device and an invisible raygun.” It’s worth buying the book for the odd gem of
the kind that makes you laugh out loud on the train: “What’s come over
Heisenberg? He seems to be certain about everything these days.”