Farmer Buckley's Exploding Trousers & other odd events on the way to Scientific Discovery

by Stephanie Pain

The irresistible stories in Farmer Buckley's Exploding Trousers reveals the little-known byways of scientific progress, where setbacks and mishaps are the norm, breakthroughs are the exception, and advances meant to improve people's lives can spectacularly backfire.

Meticulously research by the internationally acclaimed New Scientist magazine, these stories of haphazard discovery, delusion and greed include the doctor who thought he could cure madness with a quick spin in a centrifuge, the engineer who came up with a radio that ran on gas, and the two young men who dug a giant hole and discovered the centre of the galaxy. Not to mention the intriguing case of New Zealand farmer Richard Buckley and his spontaneously combusting nether garments…

Whether you're a believer in science or a sceptic, Farmer Buckley's Exploding Trousers will be a blast of exhilarating and frequently hilarious fresh air. It's an inspiring reminder of how the most unpromising lines of enquiry can sometimes, against all the odds, lead to brilliant results.

Genres: Science, Nonfiction, History, Essays

228 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 2011

Reviews

[David Schwan · Rating 4 out of 5]

A short fun book that looks at some obscure events that led to scientific discoveries. Highlights include the treating of cancer by viruses, the inventor who used X-ray's as a tool to eliminate skin blemishes (very popular, very dangerous and in use through the 1950's), the accidentally made tropical rain forest. This book does a good job of showing that new discoveries can be due as much to serendipity as hard work.

[Brenda Greene · Rating 3 out of 5]

50 very short stories from the 1800s to the early 2000s, mainly about invention in medical, chemical, mathematical and engineering by men, particularly those that were commercialised.

Well structured into 10 chapters by a broad theme. Written in a chatty, factual style that you might use at a dinner party.

The blurb states that whether you are a believer in science or not the book is an inspiration for enquiry. Science is not a belief, it's a method of inquiry.

The writing, premise, structure etc are hard to fault, but it felt flat because neither the excitement of discovery nor the process was conveyed.

It's like a cross between Readers' Digest and Horrible Histories. Something kind of interesting or amusing to read when you want a non- taxing distraction.

[Mark · Rating 5 out of 5]

Get in me knowledge

What a brilliant little book that had staggering feats of science and discovery that were a delight to read about.

I can safely say that this was one of the best books in the vein of a textbook that I have ever read.

[Tamara Curtin · Rating 3 out of 5]

An excellent reminder that progress doesn't always look a lot like progress. Great stories, a good read for commutes as it's broken into short bits.

[Annette McIntyre · Rating 3 out of 5]

An interesting book that covers the somewhat twisty way in which science progresses.

[Amberly · Rating 1 out of 5]

this book was dull, The writing was fine and The paced of plot was bit rush for my liking also the cover of the book was stunning.

[Jeanette · Rating 4 out of 5]

This historical and scientific non-fiction book is not going to be for everyone. But if you love science, as much or not more than you love history, and are intrigued in how methods become "invented" or how products developed- this book will be enjoyed.

The Farmer's pants are the least interesting chapter, but made a snappy title. Deaths were caused by this interaction of an early weed (ragweed) killer compound on wool or cloth cottons while dispensing. Buckley was lucky as his were not on at the time they combusted.

Some of the most intriguing to me were: Mae West vest development (I had no idea), early spinal aesthesia (this one is beyond modern belief), Mark Twain's moveable print failure (he was always broke for a reason), early myths about cotton that most people believed in Europe (lambs grew on stalks), early cancer cure tries that sometimes worked (injecting malaria, syphilis, other infected materials right into the tumors), electrical cables and other transport methods (this one is super technical and some may be bored), computer chips before their times, air balloons testing atmosphere and weather streams, early blood transfusions (you won't believe this one), early cures for kidney stones- one supported by the UK government, new nose making techniques, many of the inventions or fields of knowledge that have come out of war (second only to space travel) which includes some dental information that I had had no idea about at all.

And many more. It's written in a rather snarky tone in a few spots with a tiny bit of ridicule mixed in. Something I usually dislike, but it was mild here and some of the life taking experiences rather deserved it.

This is very interesting to those who study History. It also underlines what truly fires progress in some of these fields. More good things come out of bad, than come out of good, in other words. To me this book also exemplified how totally fearless, out of ignorance but still fearless, that a proportion of humans, mostly males and mostly young men, have been. Lots of graves in the "asking" of questions, especially in the chemical and aeronautic fields.

[Eliatan · Rating 4 out of 5]

I've read New Scientist for years, and was expecting to find some repeat content in this book, but was pleasantly surprised to discover all new information. Good science is about good stories, and these were well written, very accessible and very left field... lots of great factoids for small talk with strangers. Think Horrible Histories for grown ups. I bought this for my science mad son, and it was a winner for us both. And while maybe you can't judge a book by its cover, you can judge it by its name, and who could resist one as intriguing as this. Spolier alert: it was the fertiliser that made them explode!

[Jim Whitefield · Rating 5 out of 5]

This little gem from 'New Scientist' is packed with dozens of very short stories about obscure scientific discovery and advancements, some accidental discoveries and and some not so great ideas that never made it. Every entry is interesting and entertaining and some are also funny - as with Farmer Buckley's trousers which really did explode. The things I didn't know! Enlightening and sometimes surprising; it is the perfect volume to keep in the loo to read while seated on the throne - or to take to the doctor's or dentists surgery to read while waiting. Highly recommended.

[❂ Murder by Death · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent series of essays/short stories about some of the more interesting ways science has advanced throughout the ages. One or two are cringe worthy, but almost every single one of the stories contains some fascinating fact. The essays are based on the "Histories" section of NewScientist Magazine, an excellent publication in it's own right. I'll be looking for more of the books NewScientist has put out in the future. Very easy to read, written for anyone interested in science but not interested in getting bogged down in a scientist vocabulary.

[Rachel · Rating 4 out of 5]

An interesting and informative book about different scientific discoveries and how they came about. Very easy to read in small chunks as each discovery covers no more than about 4 pages. However, it didn’t have the same type of charm and enjoyment for me as the New Scientist Question books such as will we ever speak dolphin and I cannot really put my finger on why. I think it is probably because it is stating why has happened already and doesn’t have the same kind of humour because it doesn’t contain personal ideas and opinions. Still a very worthy addition to the New Scientist collection.

[Simon · Rating 4 out of 5]

Farmer Buckley's Exploding Trousers & other odd events on the way to Scientific Discovery is a collection of nutty scientific facts and anecdotes where serendipity paved the way for great discoveries. Some are funny, some are fascinating and some are just depressing that they failed to take hole (solar power, for example).

It's a short and easy read and can be enjoyed in tiny bites or massive chunks. Like chocolate.

[Kallen Kentner · Rating 5 out of 5]

With a title like that, how could you resist picking up this book? Better yet, through a series of essays, often surprising, often amusing and always interesting, this book explores the lesser-known stories of scientific discovery, missteps.... and failure.

Read the full review on GeekyLibrary.

[Jennifer · Rating 5 out of 5]

The book is divided in short chapters, each telling the story of a scientific discovery. The stories are never boring and the language is not too academic. I really enjoyed the book and can recommend it to everybody (not only to science Freaks :)

[Paul Childs · Rating 3 out of 5]

If you like short stories of historical discoveries that are summed up quickly and somewhat interesting then this is a good book to pick up. I covers some discoveries you have heard about, some that were before their time, and others that where too late in being discovered to be of much use.

[Kevin Lanahan · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a book of short essays on how various things got discovered. It's a history of science and engineering, and nicely written, but is not particularly compelling.

I would recommend it as bathroom reading, since the stories are generally short and unrelated to the next.

[Robert · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent read. The book (the version I read) could have done with a few illustrations, and there were almost no references to papers that the editors had sought to base their articles. Never mind, Wikipedia came to my rescue.

[Paul Cuthbert · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was an easy read of short stories. I enjoyed them and they weren't very obvious where they were going. I like anecdotes and this was very anecdotal.

[Danie Cutter · Rating 2 out of 5]

Interesting facts but very drily written. Would best with stories condensed even further and left for the geeky blokes to read in the bathroom

[Mat Surtees · Rating 5 out of 5]

I picked this book up on offer in a waterstones bargain bin, and I didn't put it down til I'd read all the amusing anecdotes about scientific discoveries gone slightly awry. A great read!!

[Abraham Ray · Rating 2 out of 5]

it was ok, just not for me that's all.

[Cat. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fun-but-serious essays on how the creative process works--and sometimes doesn't work--in mysterious ways.

[Christof · Rating 3 out of 5]

Quite a few interesting historical accounts of scientific breakthroughs. Most accounts just scratch the surface though.

[Anwen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Enjoyable bathroom reading

[Mills College Library]

509 F2337 2011

[Megan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very interesting factoids, arranged into well written little snippets. I could read another full book or two of these.

[Mike · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lots of fun, interesting anecdotes, proving that the 2nd half of "trial and error" could still lead to monumental discoveries, however accidental or coincidental.