THE SECRET ANARCHY OF SCIENCE: FREE RADICALS - Softcover

BROOKS, MICHAEL

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1846684064 ISBN 13: 9781846684067

Publisher: Profile Books, 2012

Synopsis

For more than a century, science has cultivated a sober public image for itself. But as bestselling author Michael Brooks explains, the truth is very different: many of our most successful scientists have more in common with libertines than librarians.

This thrilling exploration of some of the greatest breakthroughs in science reveals the extreme lengths some scientists go to in order to make their theories public. Fraud, suppressing evidence and unethical or reckless PR games are sometimes necessary to bring the best and most brilliant discoveries to the world's attention. Inspiration can come from the most unorthodox of places, and Brooks introduces us to Nobel laureates who get their ideas through drugs, dreams and hallucinations. Science is a highly competitive and ruthless discipline, and only its most determined and passionate practitioners make headlines - and history. To succeed, knowledge must be pursued by any means: in science, anything goes.

'Brooks is an exemplary science writer' William Leith, Daily Telegraph

About this title

About the Author

Michael Brooks is the author of the bestselling non-fiction title 13 Things That Don't Make Sense [9781861976475]. He holds a PhD in quantum physics, is a consultant at New Scientist and writes a weekly column for the New Statesman.

Edition details

• Publisher: Profile Books
• Publication date: 2012
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 1846684064
• ISBN 13: 9781846684067
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 320