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yates9's review against another edition
5.0
This book is great, but not for the reasons many reviewers describe. This book takes the reader along a quick trip to cover a number of areas where science is either undergoing a shift or where the phenomenon poses puzzles that are paradoxical. While doing so the book sets an accessible dialogue about how science and knowledge production works. The book is an educational piece for people that are not involved in science or the production of knowledge by experiment. I have not found other books that are as effective at bringing lay insight participation into the process of science.
jon_a's review
4.0
I found this to be an interesting book that brought up several interesting anomalies, most of which I'd never heard of or at least found new aspects that I was previously unaware of.
I would recommend this as a bit of light reading to anyone that was interested in science and discovery.
I would recommend this as a bit of light reading to anyone that was interested in science and discovery.
clarks_dad's review
3.0
A great introduction to the problems facing modern science, but I felt like it could have been so much more. The great thing about 13 Things is that the chapters can stand alone, and a reader can delve into the mysteries that interest them while avoiding some of the others that may be boring. Some chapters are definitely better than others. The best of them include: Free Will, the Placebo Effect, the Wow Signal and the chapter on the Pioneer anomaly.
The long and short of it is that Brooks uses Kuhn's The Structure of Scientific Revolutions as a framework for discussing how each of the anomalies could have the potential for major paradigm shifts in the sciences. It's an interesting idea, but not one that I think meshes well with ALL of the topics he mentions. Moreover, while the anomalies are interesting and hint to some tantalizing fact or law just beyond our current understanding, Brooks falls into a pattern-theme of orthodoxy vs. "real" scientific work, in which the big names of mainstream science crush the results of scientists whose results make them feel uncomfortable. The implication is, "If only they'd listen, we'd know the truth." As I've said, that might be true in some cases, but it starts to sound downright conspiratorial when repeated too often and in so many different facets of science.
Anyway, it's a short read, and a great jumping off point for interest in some of the anomalies. If nothing else its a neat summation of different arguments concerning some problems in modern science. The bibliography was disappointingly thin. I was hoping to be able to mine some of his resources for some more information, but so far, there's been nothing beyond what Brooks presents in the book.
The long and short of it is that Brooks uses Kuhn's The Structure of Scientific Revolutions as a framework for discussing how each of the anomalies could have the potential for major paradigm shifts in the sciences. It's an interesting idea, but not one that I think meshes well with ALL of the topics he mentions. Moreover, while the anomalies are interesting and hint to some tantalizing fact or law just beyond our current understanding, Brooks falls into a pattern-theme of orthodoxy vs. "real" scientific work, in which the big names of mainstream science crush the results of scientists whose results make them feel uncomfortable. The implication is, "If only they'd listen, we'd know the truth." As I've said, that might be true in some cases, but it starts to sound downright conspiratorial when repeated too often and in so many different facets of science.
Anyway, it's a short read, and a great jumping off point for interest in some of the anomalies. If nothing else its a neat summation of different arguments concerning some problems in modern science. The bibliography was disappointingly thin. I was hoping to be able to mine some of his resources for some more information, but so far, there's been nothing beyond what Brooks presents in the book.
book_cryptid's review against another edition
4.25
definitely not simple enough for the average reader, but for me it was the perfect balance of factual scientific information and metaphors to bring it into real life. learned lots of interesting stuff, will be reading up more on them, and just overall had fun :)
sharppointysticks's review
3.0
Fairly science heavy, so this book probably isn't for everyone... but I find this stuff fascinating so I enjoyed it very much.
leannaaker's review against another edition
4.0
Really great laypersons' guide to the way science really works. Arguments, upwellings, and some interesting topics to boot. Very good read.