How I Killed Pluto and Why It Had It Coming - Hardcover

Brown, Mike

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0385531087 ISBN 13: 9780385531085

Publisher: Spiegel & Grau, 2010

Synopsis

The solar system most of us grew up with included nine planets, with Mercury closest to the sun and Pluto at the outer edge. Then, in 2005, astronomer Mike Brown made the discovery of a lifetime: a tenth planet, Eris, slightly bigger than Pluto. But instead of its resulting in one more planet being added to our solar system, Brown’s find ignited a firestorm of controversy that riled the usually sedate world of astronomy and launched him into the public eye. The debate culminated in the demotion of Pluto from real planet to the newly coined category of “dwarf” planet. Suddenly Brown was receiving hate mail from schoolchildren and being bombarded by TV reporters—all because of the discovery he had spent years searching for and a lifetime dreaming about.

Filled with both humor and drama, How I Killed Pluto and Why It Had It Coming is Mike Brown’s engaging first-person account of the most tumultuous year in modern astronomy—which he inadvertently caused. As it guides readers through important scientific concepts and inspires us to think more deeply about our place in the cosmos, it is also an entertaining and enlightening personal story: While Brown sought to expand our understanding of the vast nature of space, his own life was changed in the most immediate, human ways by love, birth, and death. A heartfelt and personal perspective on the demotion of everyone’s favorite farflung planet, How I Killed Pluto and Why It Had It Coming is the book for anyone, young or old, who has ever dreamed of exploring the universe—and who among us hasn’t?

About this title

Review:

Praise for "How I Killed Pluto and Why It Had It Coming"
"Brown's brisk, enjoyable "How I Killed Pluto and Why It Had It Coming "chronicles the whole saga [of the demotion of Pluto] and, in the process, makes Pluto's sad fate easier to take. If we've lost a planet, we've gained a sprightly new voice for popular science...Writing with an appealing wit, Mr. Brown resists the glibness to which science popularizations sometimes fall prey. Instead he leavens his scientific account with a memoir of how he discovered the joys of becoming a husband and a father during the same period that he thought he was discovering planets. It's a refreshing twist on stereotype: the scientist neither as madman nor mystic, but mensch...The cheerful, unaffected tone makes it hard not to like Mr. Brown, and to root for him when he finds himself in the midst of controversy... Amazingly, the author spins these parliamentary proceedings into a nail-biting roller-coaster ride: the skullduggery of secret com

"Brims with humor and charm . . . exhilarating."--"Los Angeles Times"
"[An] out-of-this-world science memoir . . . brilliant . . . brings clarity and elegance to the complexities of planetary science. Brown is also a surprisingly self-effacing and entertaining genius."--Minneapolis "Star Tribune"
"Brown's brisk, enjoyable "How I Killed Pluto and Why It Had It Coming" chronicles the whole saga [of the demotion of Pluto] and, in the process, makes [its] sad fate easier to take. If we've lost a planet, we've gained a sprightly new voice for popular science."--"The Wall Street Journal"
"Eminently readable and entertaining . . . blends elements of sleuthing, international intrigue, and the awe and wonder intrinsic to the exploration of space.""--The Oregonian"
"An unlikely hybrid of Dennis Overbye's "Lonely Hearts of the Cosmos" and Anne Lamott's "Operating Instructions.""--"The New York Times Book Review"
" "
"[Brown] might be the finest scientist alive today. . . . We're all better off for this man's breathtaking commitment to science.""--The Boston Globe"

Brims with humor and charm . . . exhilarating. "Los Angeles Times"
[An] out-of-this-world science memoir . . . brilliant . . . brings clarity and elegance to the complexities of planetary science. Brown is also a surprisingly self-effacing and entertaining genius. Minneapolis "Star Tribune"
Brown s brisk, enjoyable "How I Killed Pluto and Why It Had It Coming" chronicles the whole saga [of the demotion of Pluto] and, in the process, makes [its] sad fate easier to take. If we ve lost a planet, we ve gained a sprightly new voice for popular science. "The Wall Street Journal"
Eminently readable and entertaining . . . blends elements of sleuthing, international intrigue, and the awe and wonder intrinsic to the exploration of space. " The Oregonian"
An unlikely hybrid of Dennis Overbye s "Lonely Hearts of the Cosmos" and Anne Lamott s "Operating Instructions." "The New York Times Book Review"
""
[Brown] might be the finest scientist alive today. . . . We re all better off for this man s breathtaking commitment to science. " The Boston Globe""

-Brims with humor and charm . . . exhilarating.---Los Angeles Times
-[An] out-of-this-world science memoir . . . brilliant . . . brings clarity and elegance to the complexities of planetary science. Brown is also a surprisingly self-effacing and entertaining genius.---Minneapolis Star Tribune
-Brown's brisk, enjoyable How I Killed Pluto and Why It Had It Coming chronicles the whole saga [of the demotion of Pluto] and, in the process, makes [its] sad fate easier to take. If we've lost a planet, we've gained a sprightly new voice for popular science.---The Wall Street Journal
-Eminently readable and entertaining . . . blends elements of sleuthing, international intrigue, and the awe and wonder intrinsic to the exploration of space.---The Oregonian
-An unlikely hybrid of Dennis Overbye's Lonely Hearts of the Cosmos and Anne Lamott's Operating Instructions.---The New York Times Book Review

-[Brown] might be the finest scientist alive today. . . . We're all better off for this man's breathtaking commitment to science.---The Boston Globe

"Brims with humor and charm . . . exhilarating."--Los Angeles Times

"[An] out-of-this-world science memoir . . . brilliant . . . brings clarity and elegance to the complexities of planetary science. Brown is also a surprisingly self-effacing and entertaining genius."--Minneapolis Star Tribune

"Brown's brisk, enjoyable How I Killed Pluto and Why It Had It Coming chronicles the whole saga [of the demotion of Pluto] and, in the process, makes [its] sad fate easier to take. If we've lost a planet, we've gained a sprightly new voice for popular science."--The Wall Street Journal

"Eminently readable and entertaining . . . blends elements of sleuthing, international intrigue, and the awe and wonder intrinsic to the exploration of space."--The Oregonian

"An unlikely hybrid of Dennis Overbye's Lonely Hearts of the Cosmos and Anne Lamott's Operating Instructions."--The New York Times Book Review

"[Brown] might be the finest scientist alive today. . . . We're all better off for this man's breathtaking commitment to science."--The Boston Globe

About the Author:

Mike Brown is the Richard and Barbara Rosenberg Professor of Planetary Astronomy at the California Institute of Technology. In 2006 he was named one of Time magazine’s 100 People Who Shape Our World as well as one of Los Angeles magazine’s Most Influential People in L.A. He lives in Southern California with his wife and daughter.

About this edition

• Publisher: Spiegel & Grau
• Publication date: 2010
• ISBN 10: 0385531087
• ISBN 13: 9780385531085
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 267