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carouselbuckets's review against another edition
3.0
Busy book covering a lot of ground. I had expected more about modern human history or geography but focus was on more ancient aspects of history of world.
anastasia_st's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
informative
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
slow-paced
3.0
judemay's review against another edition
Because I soon realised it was a science book and I find science quite dry and numb. I tried to like it, I really did, but it’s not going to help me in any way and it’s boring as well.
maskedturtle's review against another edition
5.0
Lemme just say this book is incomparable in terms of its lavish accounts of scientists and scholars. In a way it encourages me to pursue science because I realized that these scientists had all kinds of personalities and all of them contributed to what is now understood about the universe.
Before reading this book, I constantly doubt myself about my potential as a physicist. I am studying in an obscure university instead of world-known institutions that produce an amazing number of Nobel physics Laureates like CalTech and MIT. I am not particularly brilliant in any sort of way. It sometimes takes me several hours to figure out a simple problem. All in all, I am very discouraged from now and then. Among all those brilliant minds, I often say to myself, why do you think you can achieve something, especially in physics, a field that requires great intellectual brightness and deep insights?
I found the answer in this book. I have read many of Bill Bryson's works before. They are funny and delightful, a perfect combination of British humor and American slangs, but nothing more than that. So when I decided to plunge into this book, I found myself addicted. Besides studying, all my leisure time is devoted to reading this book right now. It's a truly multi-perspective book which incorporates anecdotes and science together. What intrigues me the most is the life accounts of those scientists. Of course I knew Einstein was a third-class clerk in a patent office before but I never learned anything about the resources he could access and that his style could be characterized as pure thinking. When I read the chapter about the development of physics, I originally wanted to skip the chapter because I already knew all of the stories but Bill Bryson's unique language is irresistible.
Anyways, enough of my personal mumblings. It's a really great book and it may change what you think about science.
Before reading this book, I constantly doubt myself about my potential as a physicist. I am studying in an obscure university instead of world-known institutions that produce an amazing number of Nobel physics Laureates like CalTech and MIT. I am not particularly brilliant in any sort of way. It sometimes takes me several hours to figure out a simple problem. All in all, I am very discouraged from now and then. Among all those brilliant minds, I often say to myself, why do you think you can achieve something, especially in physics, a field that requires great intellectual brightness and deep insights?
I found the answer in this book. I have read many of Bill Bryson's works before. They are funny and delightful, a perfect combination of British humor and American slangs, but nothing more than that. So when I decided to plunge into this book, I found myself addicted. Besides studying, all my leisure time is devoted to reading this book right now. It's a truly multi-perspective book which incorporates anecdotes and science together. What intrigues me the most is the life accounts of those scientists. Of course I knew Einstein was a third-class clerk in a patent office before but I never learned anything about the resources he could access and that his style could be characterized as pure thinking. When I read the chapter about the development of physics, I originally wanted to skip the chapter because I already knew all of the stories but Bill Bryson's unique language is irresistible.
Anyways, enough of my personal mumblings. It's a really great book and it may change what you think about science.
alexeysidoruk's review against another edition
4.0
I do not know if this book made me smarter or brought something new to understanding the world. But it definitely was very enjoyable. I can not help but love how the author interwinds quantum mechanics with geology and biology.
sortedstocks's review against another edition
funny
informative
inspiring
lighthearted
slow-paced
4.0
acciohannah's review against another edition
4.5
4.5 stars
My first Bill Bryson read! An amusing, easy to digest history of, well, nearly everything. Some common knowledge, with a healthy amount of context added. Easy to follow and entertaining nearly the entire 600 pages. Definitely felt a bit dated at times, but for a book written 20 years ago, that’s not too surprising. I really liked this one. Definitely will pick up some more Bryson in the future.
My first Bill Bryson read! An amusing, easy to digest history of, well, nearly everything. Some common knowledge, with a healthy amount of context added. Easy to follow and entertaining nearly the entire 600 pages. Definitely felt a bit dated at times, but for a book written 20 years ago, that’s not too surprising. I really liked this one. Definitely will pick up some more Bryson in the future.