100 Mysteries of Science Explained

by The Editors of Popular Science

Answers on subjects from dark matter to disappearing bees, from the magazine that’s been enlightening and entertaining Americans for nearly 150 years.   What happened to the Neanderthals? When is the next Ice Age due? Why do we hiccup? From end-of-the-world scenarios to what goes on within our own brains and bodies, the experts at Popular Science magazine uncover the secrets of the universe and answer 100 of science’s most mysterious questions.   With sections on Physical Matter and Forces, Space, Human Body, Earth, Other Life-Forms, and Human Triumphs and Troubles, 100 Mysteries of Science Explained takes you into the fascinating world of black holes, time travel, DNA, earthquakes, and much more.

Genres: Nonfiction, Science, Ebooks

286 pages, Kindle Edition

Published September 11, 2020

Reviews

[Carolyn Walsh · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a fascinating book. The editors of Popular Science intend to provide answers to questions that have puzzled you, and also raise questions about subjects that have never entered your mind. It is divided into the following sections: Physical Matter and Force, Space, the Human Body, Earth, Other Life Forms, and Human Triumphs and Troubles.

Each of these sections has chapters that include a question and its answer. Sometimes the answer is inconclusive —stating that no one knows for sure, or the reader finds the explanation too technical. When a straightforward answer is provided, it is a fascinating and informative read.

This is not a book to be read from beginning to end in the typical manner. It is best to browse while reading one or two chapters of interest, skipping the rest. It makes an interesting and pleasant break from everyday reading or tasks. 3.5 Stars.

[Alan · Rating 1 out of 5]

I thought it was poor. For most of the "mysteries" presented, the explanation was "we don't know". Most of the write-ups were basically a summary of the leading theories, including those that are entirely unscientific. In the section How Were the Easter Island Statues Built? they present a series of hypotheses, including: "Ancient alien proponent Erich von Daniken claims the moai were built and erected by extraterrestrials" - as if ancient aliens are a thing, and the only question is whether or not they visited Easter Island. It seemed quite inappropriate to include this. They then go out of their way to dispute the work of a team of actual scientists who proposed that the moai may have been stood upright and "walked" into place by rocking them back and forth. I actually saw the team demonstrate this on TV some years ago - I recall they were somewhat rushed and had quite a small team, but they did it. As far as I can tell, it's entirely plausible that the builders could have used this technique, but with more time and manpower. Ancient aliens? Don't waste my time.

Additionally, some of the content was dumbed down to a level where it actually did the topic a disservice. For example, in Do Atoms Last Forever? the description of radioactive beta decay was reduced to "... a carbon-14 atom will lose an electron and become nitrogen-14". Simply losing an electron is really just a description of ionisation, and is nothing like beta decay. Ironically, an accurate description of beta decay would have been quite a bit more interesting than what was offered up, as a neutron in the atom's nucleus actually transmutes into a proton and an electron, the latter getting emitted from the nucleus, not from the outer electron cloud as is the case with ionisation.

I would not recommend this publication to anyone.

[Jessica · Rating 2 out of 5]

Meh. Not great. There was an entry about Stonehenge, and I was curious to know what Popular Science had to say about it. And you know what they had to say? "No one really knows what it was used for." Ugh. Lots of those kinds of explanations.
There were some better entries that actually explained some things, but many of them were either to technical or poorly written/boring.
Not sure if I'm any smarter after reading this book.

[Aldrin Edward · Rating 3 out of 5]

A bit outdated, but still a fun read. The photo captions were riddled with punctuation errors on the Kindle version.

[Hsnyong · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good read

The content of this book provide some interesting information and knowledge that are common but uncommon to us.
Good reading.

[Bradley White · Rating 3 out of 5]

Overall it is quite good, but errors detract from the writing (like E=mc).

[William Barrick · Rating 5 out of 5]

This collection of Popular Science short reports makes for engaging reading. The editors organized the 100 articles in 6 categories: Physical Matter and Forces, Space, Human Body, Earth, Other Life-Forms, and Human Triumphs and Troubles. The topics include the Mpemba effect, cold fusion, Fermi bubbles, dark energy, a Holodeck, yawning, tickling, hiccuping, aging, volcanic lightning, underwater icicles, animal migration, cockroaches, bees, Stonehenge, Easter Island, Neanderthals, the Antikythera mechanism, and the pyramids — just to name a few. Its publication in 2016 means that it is not terribly out of date. Prepare for science trivia or even Jeopardy by reading this informative work.