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Boffinology: The Real Stories Behind Our Greatest Scientific Discoveries
The history of science is often seen as a story of advancement but nothing could be further from the truth. Science, it is true, has progressed, but rarely in the direction intended and seldom for the reasons given. This has a lot to do with the people responsible. Meet Thales, credited as 'the father of science', whose only real claim to fame is that he often fell into ditches, discover how Archimedes never said Eureka and hated baths anyway and how the most lucrative ancient Greek invention was not democracy but the slot machine. Justin Pollard also fills us in on Issac Newton who liked to disguise himself and lurk in London's less salubrious pubs, how eleven people claimed to have invented the steam engine and why the first website was twelve foot across and made of wood.
324 pages, Paperback
First published September 2, 2010
6 people are currently reading
99 people want to read
About the author
Justin Pollard
17 books99 followersJustin Pollard was born in Hertfordshire and educated at St. Albans School and Downing College, Cambridge where he was president of the Poohsticks Society.
Since then he has written nine books, a few articles for magazines like History Today, BBC History Magazine and the Idler and he is currently one of the writers of the BBC panel show QI.
He is one of the founders of Unbound - http://www.unbound.co.uk - a new crowd-funding site putting authors directly in touch with their readers.
He also runs a company called Visual Artefact which provides scripting and historical advice for feature films. His credits include Shekhar Kapur’s ‘Elizabeth’, Joe Wright’s ‘Atonement’, Tim Burton’s ‘Alice in Wonderland’ and Pirates of the Caribbean 4.
In television drama he is the historical consultant for the BBC TV/Showtime series ‘The Tudors’ - which gets him into a lot of trouble with other historians.
He is also the co-founder of crowd-funding book website www.unbound.co.uk.
He lives in Dorset where he grows vegetables and wonders where all the sheep have gone.
Since then he has written nine books, a few articles for magazines like History Today, BBC History Magazine and the Idler and he is currently one of the writers of the BBC panel show QI.
He is one of the founders of Unbound - http://www.unbound.co.uk - a new crowd-funding site putting authors directly in touch with their readers.
He also runs a company called Visual Artefact which provides scripting and historical advice for feature films. His credits include Shekhar Kapur’s ‘Elizabeth’, Joe Wright’s ‘Atonement’, Tim Burton’s ‘Alice in Wonderland’ and Pirates of the Caribbean 4.
In television drama he is the historical consultant for the BBC TV/Showtime series ‘The Tudors’ - which gets him into a lot of trouble with other historians.
He is also the co-founder of crowd-funding book website www.unbound.co.uk.
He lives in Dorset where he grows vegetables and wonders where all the sheep have gone.
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Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews
January 18, 2011
An interesting book, with an interesting title!
Justin Pollard is a well known historian and writer. He also consults on movies to verify the historical accuracy of scenes and details presented in them. For example, he worked on “Alice in Wonderland”, “Elizabeth” and “Atonement”. Although he has written many books about history -specifically about events not commonly known- this was the first book of his that I have read.
The title instantly drew me (with the alluring key words being: Real Stories and Scientific Discoveries). The introduction, opening quote and table of contents of the book were quite appealing as well. It is always fun to read the real stories behind acclaimed scientific discoveries and revered boffins*.
The stories are organized in 10 sections. They were a refreshing collection and did not include boring repetitions of the falsehood of Newton being hit by an apple nor Tycho Brahe’s metallic nose for a change! I do not agree with the order they are placed in though, as I found some stories more fitting under a different section. In any case, the author did an amazing job with the data collection and sorting. It took him years of research to have the material published in this book; such commendable work indeed!
The book can be read continuously or by occasionally going back to it for an entertaining “packet” or two. However, being one that prefers the preceding method, I personally think that the only drawback from reading about ≈100 characters at one go, is that once you finish with the book, you will most probably not be able to remember all names, dates and anecdotes!
Whichever way you choose, it is a book worth reading for scientists and non-scientists alike!
*Boffin: A British slang term for scientist, engineers, medical doctors or those engaged in scientific research. The closest American equivalent to the word “boffin” is “egghead”. Hence, the picture of the cute glasses-clad eggs on the cover of the book (or at least, I assume!) :-)
Justin Pollard is a well known historian and writer. He also consults on movies to verify the historical accuracy of scenes and details presented in them. For example, he worked on “Alice in Wonderland”, “Elizabeth” and “Atonement”. Although he has written many books about history -specifically about events not commonly known- this was the first book of his that I have read.
The title instantly drew me (with the alluring key words being: Real Stories and Scientific Discoveries). The introduction, opening quote and table of contents of the book were quite appealing as well. It is always fun to read the real stories behind acclaimed scientific discoveries and revered boffins*.
The stories are organized in 10 sections. They were a refreshing collection and did not include boring repetitions of the falsehood of Newton being hit by an apple nor Tycho Brahe’s metallic nose for a change! I do not agree with the order they are placed in though, as I found some stories more fitting under a different section. In any case, the author did an amazing job with the data collection and sorting. It took him years of research to have the material published in this book; such commendable work indeed!
The book can be read continuously or by occasionally going back to it for an entertaining “packet” or two. However, being one that prefers the preceding method, I personally think that the only drawback from reading about ≈100 characters at one go, is that once you finish with the book, you will most probably not be able to remember all names, dates and anecdotes!
Whichever way you choose, it is a book worth reading for scientists and non-scientists alike!
*Boffin: A British slang term for scientist, engineers, medical doctors or those engaged in scientific research. The closest American equivalent to the word “boffin” is “egghead”. Hence, the picture of the cute glasses-clad eggs on the cover of the book (or at least, I assume!) :-)
September 15, 2018
A collection of mind-blowing stories from the history of science, told in the most amusing of tones. Justin Pollard just became my favorite science teacher.
April 15, 2012
I'm a fan of the series QI and Pollard works on the show, you can see the similarities in the book, where interesting facts have been trawled from history and presented in a series of bite-sized chunks. I've been slowly working my way through one of Pollard's other books: The Interesting Bits: The History You Might Have Missed, which is very similar, but focuses on more general history.
Boffinology focuses on 'the real stories behind our greatest scientific discoveries.' I love books about science but they can be very dry and stuffy, which is why I'm a big fan of the books like Bill Bryson's A Short History of Nearly Everything and Francis Spufford's Backroom Boys. Unlike those books, Boffinology reads more like a series of weekly newspaper columns that have been compiled into a book. As such it's great for dipping in and out of, reading the odd anecdote (which is more what they are, they're not long enough to be stories) before putting it down.
It's not so great if you just want to sit down and read the book. Because there's no narrative and because each story is so short, it feels very disjointed. Likewise, while the subject matter is loosely organised into sections, no story has any real link to the one that precedes or follows it.
As for the subjects themselves, well some are interesting, highlighting the bizarre nature of scientific discovery, from random luck and pure chance to the darker aspects of experimenting on cadavers, strangers, loved ones and even oneself. In many cases though, the reason these have often been lost in the annals of history is because they just weren't that interesting or important.
Having said that, the range of topics mean that for every story such as Einstein being asked if he would like to be President of Israel (exactly what has that got to do with scientific discovery?) I found something interesting, such as Sir Issac Newton's time in the Royal Mint (again, exactly what that has to do with scientific discovery I don't know). Then you have things like the invention of the steam engine, for which so many people could have claim it's hard to say who actually invented it and shows how history gets mangled. Perhaps the book had better be titled as 'lesser known stories and history of famous scientists or inventions.' A bit less bombastic perhaps.
Anyway, not a bad read, a bit dry and very bitty, but as I said enough material and topics covered that you're bound to find something interesting. Perhaps better for commuters where the short chunks work well if you only have limited reading periods.
Boffinology focuses on 'the real stories behind our greatest scientific discoveries.' I love books about science but they can be very dry and stuffy, which is why I'm a big fan of the books like Bill Bryson's A Short History of Nearly Everything and Francis Spufford's Backroom Boys. Unlike those books, Boffinology reads more like a series of weekly newspaper columns that have been compiled into a book. As such it's great for dipping in and out of, reading the odd anecdote (which is more what they are, they're not long enough to be stories) before putting it down.
It's not so great if you just want to sit down and read the book. Because there's no narrative and because each story is so short, it feels very disjointed. Likewise, while the subject matter is loosely organised into sections, no story has any real link to the one that precedes or follows it.
As for the subjects themselves, well some are interesting, highlighting the bizarre nature of scientific discovery, from random luck and pure chance to the darker aspects of experimenting on cadavers, strangers, loved ones and even oneself. In many cases though, the reason these have often been lost in the annals of history is because they just weren't that interesting or important.
Having said that, the range of topics mean that for every story such as Einstein being asked if he would like to be President of Israel (exactly what has that got to do with scientific discovery?) I found something interesting, such as Sir Issac Newton's time in the Royal Mint (again, exactly what that has to do with scientific discovery I don't know). Then you have things like the invention of the steam engine, for which so many people could have claim it's hard to say who actually invented it and shows how history gets mangled. Perhaps the book had better be titled as 'lesser known stories and history of famous scientists or inventions.' A bit less bombastic perhaps.
Anyway, not a bad read, a bit dry and very bitty, but as I said enough material and topics covered that you're bound to find something interesting. Perhaps better for commuters where the short chunks work well if you only have limited reading periods.
December 9, 2017
Great
Amazing read as a science teacher and even equally to a commoner...enjoyed every storey of the book... Great job justin
Amazing read as a science teacher and even equally to a commoner...enjoyed every storey of the book... Great job justin
May 19, 2021
I read /Boffinology: The Real Stories Behind Our Greatest Scientific Discoveries/, by Justin Pollard:
https://books.google.ae/books/about/B... tells us
"The history of science is often seen as a story of advancement but nothing could be further from the truth. Science, it is true, has progressed, but rarely in the direction intended and seldom for the reasons given. This has a lot to do with the people responsible.
Meet Thales, credited as 'the father of science', whose only real claim to fame is that he often fell into ditches, discover how Archimedes never said Eureka and hated baths anyway and how the most lucrative ancient Greek invention was not democracy but the slot machine.
Justin Pollard also fills us in on Issac Newton who liked to disguise himself and lurk in London's less salubrious pubs, how eleven people claimed to have invented the steam engine and why the first website was twelve foot across and made of wood."
Pollard tells us the true stories of many inventions, discoveries, and inventors, researchers, and scientists, from the steam engine, to the meter, Isaac Newton's stint as Warden of the Mint for silver coins, windscreen wipers, Neils Bohr's stint as a soccer player, Morse code, toothpaste, the CRT, phosphorus, Mendeleev figuring out the Periodic Table in a dream, and similarly, Kekule coming up with the inner structures of molecules and how chains of atoms could form and be re-arranged, in two dreams.
Pollard goes on to explain the origins of quinine, Post-its, Kevlar, Penicillin, heroin, LSD, Radium, caffeine, chromatography, and tea-bags in a world that used to be 100% loose leaf tea.
That's the first half of the book. You'll need to read the book to see what else he covers, and to learn the stories about the above.
I'll leave you with the best quote from the book, about half-way through:
"If physics is a mind game, chemistry is a performance art."
https://books.google.ae/books/about/B... tells us
"The history of science is often seen as a story of advancement but nothing could be further from the truth. Science, it is true, has progressed, but rarely in the direction intended and seldom for the reasons given. This has a lot to do with the people responsible.
Meet Thales, credited as 'the father of science', whose only real claim to fame is that he often fell into ditches, discover how Archimedes never said Eureka and hated baths anyway and how the most lucrative ancient Greek invention was not democracy but the slot machine.
Justin Pollard also fills us in on Issac Newton who liked to disguise himself and lurk in London's less salubrious pubs, how eleven people claimed to have invented the steam engine and why the first website was twelve foot across and made of wood."
Pollard tells us the true stories of many inventions, discoveries, and inventors, researchers, and scientists, from the steam engine, to the meter, Isaac Newton's stint as Warden of the Mint for silver coins, windscreen wipers, Neils Bohr's stint as a soccer player, Morse code, toothpaste, the CRT, phosphorus, Mendeleev figuring out the Periodic Table in a dream, and similarly, Kekule coming up with the inner structures of molecules and how chains of atoms could form and be re-arranged, in two dreams.
Pollard goes on to explain the origins of quinine, Post-its, Kevlar, Penicillin, heroin, LSD, Radium, caffeine, chromatography, and tea-bags in a world that used to be 100% loose leaf tea.
That's the first half of the book. You'll need to read the book to see what else he covers, and to learn the stories about the above.
I'll leave you with the best quote from the book, about half-way through:
"If physics is a mind game, chemistry is a performance art."
January 13, 2018
Entertaining:
Fascinating stories based around scientific discoveries and inventions. Each story is concise and amusing or interesting in some way. Although I read it straight through, it is the sort of book you could do a 'pick and mix' type of reading - read a few stories, put down for a couple of months and then read another few.
Fascinating stories based around scientific discoveries and inventions. Each story is concise and amusing or interesting in some way. Although I read it straight through, it is the sort of book you could do a 'pick and mix' type of reading - read a few stories, put down for a couple of months and then read another few.
September 20, 2010
Ever since Justin Pollard mentioned that his newest book was going to be based on science discoveries, I knew it was going to brilliant and I wasn't wrong.
In Pollard-esque style, the book is filled with fascinating tales and stories behind what really happened in the science world and what really happened behind some of our most popular inventions.
Boffinology is filled with hidden gems of factual information that is both interesting and helpful in the understanding of how things work and why we use items the way we do. You do not need to be a fan of science or even care about science to like this book (although if you are, even better!). But if you enjoy trivia or are curious about how modern day items came to be, this is the book for you.
You can read the book front to cover, as I did, or use it as a pick-up-flip-to-a-page and read book. Each page will not disappoint although I guarantee you won't be able to read just one story.
The book is broken into 10 Chapters, each containing 10 Quite Interesting *ahem* stories.
Stop reading this review and click buy. You won't regret it.
In Pollard-esque style, the book is filled with fascinating tales and stories behind what really happened in the science world and what really happened behind some of our most popular inventions.
Boffinology is filled with hidden gems of factual information that is both interesting and helpful in the understanding of how things work and why we use items the way we do. You do not need to be a fan of science or even care about science to like this book (although if you are, even better!). But if you enjoy trivia or are curious about how modern day items came to be, this is the book for you.
You can read the book front to cover, as I did, or use it as a pick-up-flip-to-a-page and read book. Each page will not disappoint although I guarantee you won't be able to read just one story.
The book is broken into 10 Chapters, each containing 10 Quite Interesting *ahem* stories.
Stop reading this review and click buy. You won't regret it.
January 10, 2014
interesting facts I didn't know.
November 5, 2015
This book contains a collection of pieces about some scientific discoveries and scientists.
Interesting in places but the writing was very flat / dry.
Interesting in places but the writing was very flat / dry.
April 1, 2016
I really enjoyed this book - both entertaining and informative. Towards the end I started to lose focus, but I just think that I am scienced-out at this point: time for a good, old-fashioned novel!
December 31, 2018
3 Stars = I liked the book. I'm glad I read it.
Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews