What Remains to be Discovered: Mapping the Secrets of the Universe, the Origins of Life, and the Future of the Human Race - Hardcover

Maddox, John Royden

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 068482292X ISBN 13: 9780684822921

Publisher: The Free Press, 1998

Synopsis

A study that reviews the history and accomplishments of science to this point in history also explores the future agenda of science

About this title

Review

If there was nothing left to be discovered the whole science enterprise would grind to a halt and there is no sign of that. However, there does seem to be a significant waning in public confidence in the purpose and achievements of science. John Maddox, as ex-editor of Nature, the international science journal, is ideally placed to do a bit of "crystal- ball" gazing and read the future of science.

Writing for the informed general reader, Maddox approaches his task with enthusiasm and considerable erudition. He introduces and reviews the discoveries and achievements of the main growth areas of science over the last few decades. Some predictable problems emerge, such as the origins of the universe, life and matter. These may raise as many problems as they solve. But there are others, such as the continuing mapping out of the genome of a range of organisms which should be relatively straightforward, provided the money is available. The results will however have extraordinary ramifications and possibilities.

Inevitably, as Maddox admits, "many important fields are not touched" by this survey, such as the origin of the solar system and the driving mechanism of plate tectonics, which is fundamental to the formation of the Earth's crust and probably plays a significant role in other planets as well. But there is also the unexpected element to science which is part of its attraction and is virtually impossible to predict.

Finally, Maddox aims and succeeds in showing that the "lode of discovery is far from worked out'. For anyone with an enquiring mind, this is an eminently readable, informed, and researched assessment of some of the future directions of science, backed up with notes and sources for further reading. It might be one man's view but few are better equipped than Maddox, who trained as a physicist and has been a professional science journalist and writer in Britain for most of his 40-year career.

Review

Paul Raeburn The New York Times Book Review [Maddox] was more than an observer of the scientific enterprise -- he helped shape it. Maddox makes a persuasive case that science has far to go.

Michael Pakenham The Baltimore Sun Maddox has a craftsman's mastery for making histories of science succinct, authoritative, and delightfully readable.

Cral Zimmer Nature [Maddox] has done an excellent job of showing just how many surprises we may have in store.

Jim Holt The New Yorker Standing on the shoulders of the scientific giants whose work he has published, Maddox peers into the future and tries to describe the shape of advances to come.

Edition details

• Publisher: The Free Press
• Publication date: 1998
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 068482292X
• ISBN 13: 9780684822921
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 434