A Really Short History of Nearly Everything

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If you burned this book now, its matter would be changed to ash and smoke, but the total amount of ‘stuff’ in the universe would be the same. Como dice el título, el libro te hace un repaso de casi todo, centrado en la evolución de la ciencia: cosmología, física, química, geología, paleontología, biología, genética, etc y etc... In Part 5, “The Stuff of Life,” Bryson explains that knowledge about deep oceans and the atmosphere at high altitudes is limited to testimonies from a handful of adventurous deep-sea divers and experimental balloon fliers until the 1950s. Since then, scientists have learned about Earth’s layered atmosphere and that ocean life is far more abundant and diverse than anyone previously assumed. Bryson worries that routinely dumping toxic waste into the oceans (like many nations do) is irreparably damaging a large part of the delicately-balanced ecosystem that keeps humans alive. Bryson also highlights that humans can’t survive for long in deep water or high altitudes—we are essentially “ground hugging beings” who can only thrive in a small sliver of Earth’s environment. In “A Really Short History of Nearly Everything” Bill Bryson does it again. He takes an impossible subject, and makes it not only readable, but fun, lively, and it still remains informative. More than informative, actually, it is insightful. Very insightful. In the introduction, Bryson recalls his childhood and remembers how he was fascinated by the image of a cross-section of our planet, but at the same time put down by the nature of the book that contained it. The dry presentation of the facts, that were accompanied only by a set of exercies to test the gained knowledge, puzzled him. How did these people know how our planet looks from the inside? And who exactly were they?

But I left school feeling that I’d missed out on part of my core education. And I had. So I’d had my eye on this book for some time. I’ve long been a fan of Bryson’s insightful yet amusing take on the world. Surely his commentary of all things scientific couldn’t be too painful, could it? The book walks through just about every significant scientific discovery from the creation of the universe to the present day. Well, not quite the present day, given this book was published some fourteen years ago. But given the universe is currently thought to be some 13.7 billion years old, I’m comfortable it covers the mother lode. A Short History deviates from Bryson's popular travel book genre, instead describing general sciences such as chemistry, paleontology, astronomy, and particle physics. In it, he explores time from the Big Bang to the discovery of quantum mechanics, via evolution and geology. Few books have been as influential on my life as Bill Bryson’s A Very Brief History of Nearly Everything. When I first read it at the age of 8, my love for science was ignited in a way that set my life on a fantastic course. I remember devouring it and becoming fascinated by all the wonders of life that have been discovered through the years.Edwin Hubble (1889-1953) was an American astronomer who is known for playing a vital role in the development of extragalactic astronomy. What became of Edwin Hubble after his death at his home on the 28th of September 1953, is a mystery. The whereabouts of his body were known only to his widow. It is not known whether he was buried or cremated or where his remains now lie. This secret his widow took to her own grave. His wife who adored him, devoted years of her life to writing an almost mythical account of her husband's life, much of which is evidently false. Couple of years ago I realized I know hardly anything about sciences, natural history and the like. Most of what I learned in high school, I'd forgotten. But no prob, thought I, isn't that what books are for? Bill Bryson's "A Short History of Nearly Everything" seemed perfect, but when I started reading that, it soon turned out it wasn't quite simple enough for my poor little brain. So when the YA version caught my eye, I jumped to the chance to learn stuff about nearly everything again. Uncover the mysteries of time, space and life on earth in this extraordinary book - a journey from the centre of the planet to the dawn of the dinosaurs, and everything in between. Bryson's book is very entertaining and informative. The illustrations are fun, if not terribly useful in helping to understand the text. There's a fair bit of repetition, which is good. Some of the info is given in s

It's the sort of book I would have devoured as a teenager. It might well turn unsuspecting young readers into scientists.' Evening Standard He then explores the history of geology and biology and traces life from its first appearance to today's modern humans, placing emphasis on the development of the modern Homo sapiens. As far as the title and content of the book is concerned, I have my remarks. The book is called A Short History of Nearly Everything and it only covers science and scientists. Not what I expected. Not to end on a negative note, Bryson is an enjoyable storyteller and the many short stories, along with the science lessons, nicely flow together. Bryson is not a scientist, but he did a fine job.

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Uncover the mysteries of time, space and life on earth in this extraordinary book - a journey from the centre of the planet, to the dawn of the dinosaurs, and everything in between. In Part 6, “The Road to Us,” Bryson explains that scientists think ice ages are caused by a combination of Earth wobbling on its axis and cool summers that fail to melt sufficient surface ice on the planet. Paradoxically, Bryson explains, it’s unclear to scientists whether increased atmospheric carbon dioxide from human pollution will trigger a harsh ice age or harsh global warming. To Bryson, one thing is certain: we are living on a “knife edge.” And indeed, isn't that what science education needs most: more humanity and less intimidation? Those science-phobes out there who freely admit their near-complete ignorance of the subject should do themselves a favor and buy a copy of this book. No, don't get it from your library. There's so much here you'll want to have a copy on hand to refer to later. The writing style is so accessible that I have to think I'd be some kind of scientists if my high school and college text books were written by Bill Bryson. His easy, breezy style makes even the most complicated topics easier to digest. A large part of the book is devoted to relating humorous stories about the scientists behind the research and discoveries and their sometimes eccentric behaviours. Bryson also speaks about modern scientific views on human effects on the Earth's climate and livelihood of other species, and the magnitude of natural disasters such as earthquakes, volcanoes, tsunamis, hurricanes, and the mass extinctions caused by some of these events.