13 Things That Don't Make Sense

13 Things That Don't Make Sense : The Most Intriguing Scientific Mysteries of Our Time Author: Michael Edward Brooks Format: Paperback | 256 pages Dimensions: 130 x 194 x 22mm | 220g Publication date: 12 Sep 2012 Publisher: Profile Books Ltd Publication City/Country: London, United Kingdom Language: English Edition statement: Main ISBN10: 186197647X ISBN13: 9781861976475 Science starts to get interesting when things don't make sense. Even today there are experimental results that the most brilliant scientists can neither explain nor dismiss. In the past, similar anomalies have revolutionised our world: in the sixteenth century, a set of celestial irregularities led Copernicus to realise that the Earth goes around the sun and not the reverse. In Things That Don't Make Sense\ Michael Brooks meets thirteen modern-day anomalies that may become tomorrow's breakthroughs. Is ninety six percent of the universe missing? If no study has ever been able to definitively show that the placebo effect works, why has it become a pillar of medical science? Was the 1977 signal from outer space a transmission from an alien civilization? Spanning fields from chemistry to cosmology, psychology to physics, Michael Brooks thrillingly captures the excitement and controversy of the scientific unknown. # About the Author Michael Edward Brooks (born 7 May 1970) is an English science writer, noted for explaining complex scientific research and findings to the general population. Brooks holds a PhD in Quantum Physics from the University of Sussex. He was previously an editor for New Scientist magazine, and currently works as a consultant for that magazine. His writing has appeared in The Guardian, The Independent, The Observer, The Times Higher Education Supplement, and Playboy.