Reto Schneider

The Mad Science Book

The idea of a Frankenstein style mad scientist is a myth isn't it? Well, certainly most scientists I've come across are not like that. But reading Reto Schneider's book, The Mad Science Book: 100 Amazing Expreiments from the History of Science, showed that there might be some truth behind the myth.

The book tells of the experiments from which Mary Shelley got her ideas, such as making the head of an executed man grimace by applying an electric voltage. Even in the twentieth century there's the story of the soviet scientist who attached the living head of one dog to the body of another dog. But the book has much more than these grisly type of experiments. In fact there are more from the psychological sciences, such as that of Stanley Milgram showing that ordinary people were apparently willing to subject others to huge electric shocks - if told to do so by someone in authority. (It's interesting that those in authority now ban such experiments).

There is a website for the book at www.madsciencebook.com, where you can see film clips showing some of the experiments. The book is not particularly suitable for younger readers, who may be upset by some of the grislier stories, and there are also quite a few experiments mentioned which are related to sex. However, it is written in a humorous way and I think that most people will find it a fun book to read. It might also help to explain why scientists have acquired a generally undeserved reputation.

Amazon.co.uk info

Hardcover 287 pages
ISBN: 1847244947
Salesrank: 400012
Weight:1.28 lbs

Published: 2008 Quercus Publishing Plc

Amazon price £11.89

Marketplace:New from £5.00:Used from £0.01

Buy from Amazon.co.uk

Product Description
You don't have to be an eccentric obsessive to be a scientist, but it helps In The Mad Science Book, Reto Schneider tells the extraordinary tales of 100 of the more unusual experiments conducted across seven centuries of science. From the attempts of the 14th-century Dominican monk Theodoric von Freiberg to discover the cause of the rainbow, to the efforts of the 20th-century psychologist Harry Harlow to be the perfect mother to a family of reluctant rhesus monkeys, these are stories that are often bizarre, sometimes mind-boggling occasionally stomach-churning but always diverting, informative and enlightening. Among the myriad delights on display in this cabinet of scientific curiosities are the renowned doctor from Padua who sat in a pair of scales for 30 years, recording the minutest changes in his weight; the sheep, the duck and the rooster who became the world's first air passengers; the disgusting Dr Stubbins Ffirth, who swallowed other people's vomit in an attempt to prove that yellow fever cannot be transmitted from one person to another; the hapless soldier Alexis St Martin, left with a hole in his stomach after an accident with a musket; and the ever-optimistic Charles-Edouard Brown-Sequard, who injected himself with essence of guinea pigs' testicles as an anti-ageing remedy. There is trivia here in abundance, but also quirky, but genuinely influential, science, notably Merrill Flood's and Melvin Dresher's experiments with choices of outcomes, which have been widely influential as game theory. A fizzing cocktail of fascinating science and rich entertainment, The Mad Science Book tells the extraordinary stories of some truly, madly, geeky people. It should be top of every self-respecting science buff's Christmas 2008 wishlist.

Product Description

You don't have to be an eccentric obsessive to be a scientist, but it helps In The Mad Science Book, Reto Schneider tells the extraordinary tales of 100 of the more unusual experiments conducted across seven centuries of science. From the attempts of the 14th-century Dominican monk Theodoric von Freiberg to discover the cause of the rainbow, to the efforts of the 20th-century psychologist Harry Harlow to be the perfect mother to a family of reluctant rhesus monkeys, these are stories that are often bizarre, sometimes mind-boggling occasionally stomach-churning but always diverting, informative and enlightening. Among the myriad delights on display in this cabinet of scientific curiosities are the renowned doctor from Padua who sat in a pair of scales for 30 years, recording the minutest changes in his weight; the sheep, the duck and the rooster who became the world's first air passengers; the disgusting Dr Stubbins Ffirth, who swallowed other people's vomit in an attempt to prove that yellow fever cannot be transmitted from one person to another; the hapless soldier Alexis St Martin, left with a hole in his stomach after an accident with a musket; and the ever-optimistic Charles-Edouard Brown-Sequard, who injected himself with essence of guinea pigs' testicles as an anti-ageing remedy. There is trivia here in abundance, but also quirky, but genuinely influential, science, notably Merrill Flood's and Melvin Dresher's experiments with choices of outcomes, which have been widely influential as game theory. A fizzing cocktail of fascinating science and rich entertainment, The Mad Science Book tells the extraordinary stories of some truly, madly, geeky people. It should be top of every self-respecting science buff's Christmas 2008 wishlist.

entertaining book ****
This book is very entertaining and resumes the experiment in an understandable way which I really like. It tell the experiments and has good informative Black and white Pictures.

entertaining book ****

This book is very entertaining and resumes the experiment in an understandable way which I really like. It tell the experiments and has good informative Black and white Pictures.

Humans in Pursuit of Knowledge *****
Although this book's title seems a bit whacky, that is certainly not the case for the efforts put in by the various individuals who have performed the many experiments described. In this immensely entertaining book, the author describes 111 (serious) scientific experiments that have taken place between 1304 and 2003 - although almost 80% have taken place after the turn of the twentieth century. While a few of these experiments are in the physical sciences, most of them are in the fields of physiology, medicine and psychology. Indeed the experiments that I found to be the oddest or most unusual are those in psychology. In most cases, the experiments have been published either in specialized journals or, in some cases, in prestigious journals such as Science. The descriptions of the experiments vary in length from about half a page to about eight pages. The writing style is clear, friendly, often tongue-in-cheek, broadly accessible and quite engaging. With this book, Reto U. Schneider has done for science what Erik Durschmied, Michael Farquhar and others have done for history. This is a book that can be enjoyed by absolutely anyone, but science buffs who read it will be in for a treat.

Humans in Pursuit of Knowledge *****

Although this book's title seems a bit whacky, that is certainly not the case for the efforts put in by the various individuals who have performed the many experiments described. In this immensely entertaining book, the author describes 111 (serious) scientific experiments that have taken place between 1304 and 2003 - although almost 80% have taken place after the turn of the twentieth century. While a few of these experiments are in the physical sciences, most of them are in the fields of physiology, medicine and psychology. Indeed the experiments that I found to be the oddest or most unusual are those in psychology. In most cases, the experiments have been published either in specialized journals or, in some cases, in prestigious journals such as Science. The descriptions of the experiments vary in length from about half a page to about eight pages. The writing style is clear, friendly, often tongue-in-cheek, broadly accessible and quite engaging. With this book, Reto U. Schneider has done for science what Erik Durschmied, Michael Farquhar and others have done for history. This is a book that can be enjoyed by absolutely anyone, but science buffs who read it will be in for a treat.

A cut above your standard trivia book ****
In some shops that sell books but aren't quite bookshops you can't move for trivia books, most of which contain about ten percent interesting information, the remaining ninety percent being recycled, boring, and to be found in just about every other book of its type with seemingly just the order of words moved around. Thankfully, not so this book. Despite the title and the exuberant cover art, this book is far more interesting than most other books of the type - the type being short passages of information that you can read one, two or several in one sitting. It treats the reader as an intelligent person, which is something most authors of this genre don't, and yet it's likely to be of just as much interest to someone who doesn't know much about psychology and science as those who do. As someone who knows a lot about physical sciences, but little about psychology, I found the mix of subjects very interesting. Must say that some of the "mad scientists" described may not have been mad, but there is a certain single-mindedness about a lot of them. I wouldn't particularly like to have met several of them because they seem incredibly uncaring and self-obsessed. There's a fair few gruesome experiments described in here too, and whilst teenagers can handle it, I wouldn't let anyone younger than that - or anyone who is particularly sensitive about cruelty to animals - read it because there are some quite disturbing descriptions and pictures in the early part of the book. I don't believe that's a reason to shield anyone from science, but it's something that you might want to be aware of.

A cut above your standard trivia book ****

In some shops that sell books but aren't quite bookshops you can't move for trivia books, most of which contain about ten percent interesting information, the remaining ninety percent being recycled, boring, and to be found in just about every other book of its type with seemingly just the order of words moved around. Thankfully, not so this book.

Despite the title and the exuberant cover art, this book is far more interesting than most other books of the type - the type being short passages of information that you can read one, two or several in one sitting. It treats the reader as an intelligent person, which is something most authors of this genre don't, and yet it's likely to be of just as much interest to someone who doesn't know much about psychology and science as those who do.

As someone who knows a lot about physical sciences, but little about psychology, I found the mix of subjects very interesting. Must say that some of the "mad scientists" described may not have been mad, but there is a certain single-mindedness about a lot of them. I wouldn't particularly like to have met several of them because they seem incredibly uncaring and self-obsessed.

There's a fair few gruesome experiments described in here too, and whilst teenagers can handle it, I wouldn't let anyone younger than that - or anyone who is particularly sensitive about cruelty to animals - read it because there are some quite disturbing descriptions and pictures in the early part of the book. I don't believe that's a reason to shield anyone from science, but it's something that you might want to be aware of.

Mad scientists or maybe not so mad!! ****
This is a super book for the enquiring mind and the person who likes to smile at some of the so-called wonders of science. Very easy to read in short story format, this book provides a great talking point. I bought this as a gift for a physicist colleague and we have a good laugh at some of the contents. An amusing buy that will give some insight into the development of practical modern science and some of the hilarious wrong-turns along the way.

Mad scientists or maybe not so mad!! ****

This is a super book for the enquiring mind and the person who likes to smile at some of the so-called wonders of science. Very easy to read in short story format, this book provides a great talking point. I bought this as a gift for a physicist colleague and we have a good laugh at some of the contents. An amusing buy that will give some insight into the development of practical modern science and some of the hilarious wrong-turns along the way.

An excellent account of the best psychology experiments - but not much natural science ***
I really enjoyed reading this book. It is very entertaining and well-written. It includes so many famous psychology experiments, such as Little Albert, Milgram's electric shocks, Harlow's monkeys and Pavlov's dogs. It also includes some less well known psychology experiments. The problem is that with its title I was expecting a lot more on biology, chemistry and physics experiments (I am already familiar with most of the best-known psychology experiments). Unfortunately there were not as many of these as I wanted. If the book were called "Mad Science and Psychology" I would have given it five stars.

An excellent account of the best psychology experiments - but not much natural science ***

I really enjoyed reading this book. It is very entertaining and well-written. It includes so many famous psychology experiments, such as Little Albert, Milgram's electric shocks, Harlow's monkeys and Pavlov's dogs. It also includes some less well known psychology experiments. The problem is that with its title I was expecting a lot more on biology, chemistry and physics experiments (I am already familiar with most of the best-known psychology experiments). Unfortunately there were not as many of these as I wanted. If the book were called "Mad Science and Psychology" I would have given it five stars.