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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
John Grant's "Bogus Science" is the latest in his series of highly readable and entertaining books, the first two being Corrupted Science: Fraud, Ideology and Politics in Science and Discarded Science: Ideas That Seemed Good at the Time.
Grant begins "Bogus Science" with the customary lament about the state of scientific knowledge in modern society. Among other things, according to recent polls, 20% of Americans believe the sun orbits the earth, 25% reject Darwin's law of evolution by natural selection, 36% think the matter is still open to question, and only 39% understand that evolution by natural selectiuon is a correct description of reality. A 2009 survey of Britons found, among other things, that 39% believe in ghosts, 22% in astrology and 27% in reincarnation. And these numbers have purportedly risen significantly since the 1950s, suggesting that people believe more unscientific things than ever. (Perhaps, but it's also possible that people are more willing to share their odd beliefs with a stranger than they were in the 1950s, or even that some folks enjoy giving silly answers to pollsters' silly questions.)
Regardless, the apparently dismal state of scientific knowledge and the presumed need to fix it are good excuses for a romp through the history of odd beliefs. Grant discusses the origins and status of a wide range of theories about flat and hollow earths, legendary vanished civilizations (Atlantis, Mu and Lemuria), perpetual motion machines, anti-gravity devices, ancient astronauts, seamonsters and Sasquatches, all in a readable style and with wit and erudition. The author is generally kind to his subjects and their beliefs, although he from time to time makes his views clear with a bit of sarcasm. On the whole, I think "Bogus Science" goes well with other "gently skeptical" books like Brian Dunning's Skeptoid: Critical Analysis of Pop Phenomena and "Skeptoid 2: More Critical Analysis Of Pop Phenomena" and Gregory Reece's Weird Science and Bizarre Beliefs: Mysterious Creatures, Lost Worlds and Amazing Inventions.
Grant begins "Bogus Science" with the customary lament about the state of scientific knowledge in modern society. Among other things, according to recent polls, 20% of Americans believe the sun orbits the earth, 25% reject Darwin's law of evolution by natural selection, 36% think the matter is still open to question, and only 39% understand that evolution by natural selectiuon is a correct description of reality. A 2009 survey of Britons found, among other things, that 39% believe in ghosts, 22% in astrology and 27% in reincarnation. And these numbers have purportedly risen significantly since the 1950s, suggesting that people believe more unscientific things than ever. (Perhaps, but it's also possible that people are more willing to share their odd beliefs with a stranger than they were in the 1950s, or even that some folks enjoy giving silly answers to pollsters' silly questions.)
Regardless, the apparently dismal state of scientific knowledge and the presumed need to fix it are good excuses for a romp through the history of odd beliefs. Grant discusses the origins and status of a wide range of theories about flat and hollow earths, legendary vanished civilizations (Atlantis, Mu and Lemuria), perpetual motion machines, anti-gravity devices, ancient astronauts, seamonsters and Sasquatches, all in a readable style and with wit and erudition. The author is generally kind to his subjects and their beliefs, although he from time to time makes his views clear with a bit of sarcasm. On the whole, I think "Bogus Science" goes well with other "gently skeptical" books like Brian Dunning's Skeptoid: Critical Analysis of Pop Phenomena and "Skeptoid 2: More Critical Analysis Of Pop Phenomena" and Gregory Reece's Weird Science and Bizarre Beliefs: Mysterious Creatures, Lost Worlds and Amazing Inventions.
Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta)
Amazon.com:
4 reviews
6 of 6 people found the following review helpful
A fun way to learn
2 Nov 2009
Format:Hardcover
John Grant's BOGUS SCIENCE is even more fun than his two earlier books in this series, DISCARDED SCIENCE and CORRUPTED SCIENCE, but it's also an earnest reminder that knowledge and progress, like free speech and freedom of the press, come with a price. Grant's comparison of Charles Fort to Camille Flammarion is a case in point. Fort, a collector of arcane news stories, uncritically accepted outlandish reports as proof of a sort of shadow reality, while Flammarion, an astronomer, made use of the scientific method to analyze the claims of spiritualists.
Grant provides splendid entertainment as he regales us with accounts of doomsday cults, Bigfoot hoaxes, flying saucers, the Bermuda Triangle, and flat-earthers (or "planists," as they prefer being called). From Plato to crytohistorian Graham Hancock, the myth of Atlantis is examined in detail, with a sense of fair play and good humor. Why are a few paragraphs by the great philosopher considered fact rather than fiction by some, despite a total lack of convincing geological evidence after more than two thousand years? Why do cult members continue to believe in end of the world prophets no matter how many times they come up short? What happened when Alfred Russell Wallace took a bet that he could prove the earth was not flat? It's all in this book. The larger question is what separates bogus science from genuine science? As Grant eloquently illustrates, it's a matter of trying to make the evidence fit the Procrustean bed of predetermined hyphotheses, rather than constructing hypotheses in light of the facts. Sometimes this is a result of religious conviction, sometimes not.
Like the first two volumes, this is a very reasonably priced hardcover, well organized and attractively presented. I intend to read it again and recommend it highly to any curious reader.
Grant provides splendid entertainment as he regales us with accounts of doomsday cults, Bigfoot hoaxes, flying saucers, the Bermuda Triangle, and flat-earthers (or "planists," as they prefer being called). From Plato to crytohistorian Graham Hancock, the myth of Atlantis is examined in detail, with a sense of fair play and good humor. Why are a few paragraphs by the great philosopher considered fact rather than fiction by some, despite a total lack of convincing geological evidence after more than two thousand years? Why do cult members continue to believe in end of the world prophets no matter how many times they come up short? What happened when Alfred Russell Wallace took a bet that he could prove the earth was not flat? It's all in this book. The larger question is what separates bogus science from genuine science? As Grant eloquently illustrates, it's a matter of trying to make the evidence fit the Procrustean bed of predetermined hyphotheses, rather than constructing hypotheses in light of the facts. Sometimes this is a result of religious conviction, sometimes not.
Like the first two volumes, this is a very reasonably priced hardcover, well organized and attractively presented. I intend to read it again and recommend it highly to any curious reader.
6 of 7 people found the following review helpful
Readable and fun
8 Nov 2009
Format:Hardcover
The heart of 'Bogus Science' is an exceptionally readable and fascinating nutshell history of certain topics which, while they fly in the face of accepted scientific knowledge, still attract a degree of attention particularly from amateur enthusiasts. These include what's often called "The Flat Earth Hypothesis" as well as Perpetual Motion Machines and the New Age abuse of the term "Quantum." I enjoyed this lengthy section of the book quite a lot, because the author writes entertainingly about personages that are obscure to anyone who is not educated in the history of physics or astronomy, or to someone unaware of New Agers' attempts incorporate technical terms from particle physics into their framework. The author, rather than portraying all practicioners of 'Bogus Science' as cranks or nutcases (as is far too common in this type of literature), often presents them in a more even-handed fashion. Most people who have believed in 'Bogus Science' are not hysteria cases, but people who have allowed personal biases to cloud interpretations of data or who are attempting to work on ideas far removed from their own areas of expertise. The author's style is reminiscent of Stephen Jay Gould at his best, and I thoroughly enjoyed this portion of the book.
Unfortunately, the book's beginning and ending are very misleading. The beginning quotes several statistics which alarmingly suggest that the amount of nonscientific (or even antiscientific) thinking in the United States has increased to such a point that our very future is at stake. This claim is directly contradicted by the book's repeated use of historical examples - there have always been persons who practice 'Bogus Science' and some of the true howlers in the book are drawn from time periods where the author claims Americans respected science far more than they do today. I don't see any evidence from the book that 'Bogus Science' is on the rise. The end of the book, on the other hand, deals with cryptozoology - a field plagued by hoaxes and frauds. Much to my surprise, the author retains what seems to be an open mind regarding Bigfoot, describing the creature as improbable but possible, and reminding us that the Komodo Dragon was not discovered until the beginning of the 20th Century. There's a huge difference between discovering a large organism near a populated area versus a remote island, and I was stunned that author would literally end his book with such a glib comparison.
The heart of this book is a great read. I just wish that an editor had ensured it had a consistent point-of-view from beginning to end.
Unfortunately, the book's beginning and ending are very misleading. The beginning quotes several statistics which alarmingly suggest that the amount of nonscientific (or even antiscientific) thinking in the United States has increased to such a point that our very future is at stake. This claim is directly contradicted by the book's repeated use of historical examples - there have always been persons who practice 'Bogus Science' and some of the true howlers in the book are drawn from time periods where the author claims Americans respected science far more than they do today. I don't see any evidence from the book that 'Bogus Science' is on the rise. The end of the book, on the other hand, deals with cryptozoology - a field plagued by hoaxes and frauds. Much to my surprise, the author retains what seems to be an open mind regarding Bigfoot, describing the creature as improbable but possible, and reminding us that the Komodo Dragon was not discovered until the beginning of the 20th Century. There's a huge difference between discovering a large organism near a populated area versus a remote island, and I was stunned that author would literally end his book with such a glib comparison.
The heart of this book is a great read. I just wish that an editor had ensured it had a consistent point-of-view from beginning to end.
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
Some Odd Things That People Sincerely Believe
8 Aug 2010
Format:Hardcover
John Grant's "Bogus Science" is the latest in his series of highly readable and entertaining books, the first two being Corrupted Science: Fraud, Ideology and Politics in Science and Discarded Science: Ideas That Seemed Good at the Time.... Grant begins "Bogus Science" with the customary lament about the state of scientific knowledge in modern society. Among other things, according to recent polls, 20% of Americans believe the sun orbits the earth, 25% reject Darwin's law of evolution by natural selection, 36% think the matter is still open to question, and only 39% understand that evolution by natural selectiuon is a correct description of reality. A 2009 survey of Britons found, among other things, that 39% believe in ghost, 22% in astrology and 27% in reincarnation. And these numbers have purportedly risen significantly since the 1950s, suggesting that people believe more unscientific things than ever. (Perhaps, but it's also possible that people are more willing to share their odd beliefs with a stranger than they were in the 1950s, or even that some folks enjoy giving silly answers to pollsters' silly questions.)
Regardless, the apparently dismal state of scientific knowledge and the presumed need to fix it are good excuses for a romp through the history of odd beliefs. Grant discusses the origins and status of a wide range of theories about flat and hollow earths, legendary vanished civilizations (Atlantis, Mu and Lemuria), perpetual motion machines, anti-gravity devices, ancient astronauts, seamonsters and Sasquatches, all in a readable style and with wit and erudition. The author is generally kind to his subjects and their beliefs, although he from time to time makes his views clear with a bit of sarcasm. On the whole, I think "Bogus Science" goes well with other "gently skeptical" books like Brian Dunning's Skeptoid: Critical Analysis Of Pop Phenomena and Skeptoid 2: More Critical Analysis Of Pop Phenomena and Gregory Reece's Weird Science and Bizarre Beliefs: Mysterious Creatures, Lost Worlds and Amazing Inventions.
Regardless, the apparently dismal state of scientific knowledge and the presumed need to fix it are good excuses for a romp through the history of odd beliefs. Grant discusses the origins and status of a wide range of theories about flat and hollow earths, legendary vanished civilizations (Atlantis, Mu and Lemuria), perpetual motion machines, anti-gravity devices, ancient astronauts, seamonsters and Sasquatches, all in a readable style and with wit and erudition. The author is generally kind to his subjects and their beliefs, although he from time to time makes his views clear with a bit of sarcasm. On the whole, I think "Bogus Science" goes well with other "gently skeptical" books like Brian Dunning's Skeptoid: Critical Analysis Of Pop Phenomena and Skeptoid 2: More Critical Analysis Of Pop Phenomena and Gregory Reece's Weird Science and Bizarre Beliefs: Mysterious Creatures, Lost Worlds and Amazing Inventions.
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