Dancing Naked in the Mind Field

Author Kary Mullis attended the same high school as this reviewer, and knew some of the same people, but, unlike most of our school-mates, went on to win the Nobel prize in chemistry. In this delightful book, he explains for the layman's benefit such matters as the polymerase chain reaction, for which he won the Nobel, talks about his early exposure to chemistry (blowing things up), his conversations with the king and queen of Sweden, his experiences with LSD, and a possible abduction by aliens.It is all beautifully written, sparkling with manic humor, highly personal, and yet with a profoundly serious dark edge. Dr. Mullis is deeply concerned about the evolution of science in our time. He is skeptical of much current dogma and doesn't hesitate to shoot any cows no matter how sacred. He has some sharp words for environmentalists, for microbiologists, even nutritionists. He doesn't buy a lot of popular ideas which are supposed to be scientific. He doesn't buy into global warming. He doesn't necessarily believe that the HIV virus is the cause of AIDS. He even wonders if there might be something valid in astrology. Well, has anyone proved otherwise?This is a thoroughly entertaining book. I just read it for the second time, and while I still laughed my head off, I found it more disturbing on the second reading. Author Mullis raises some important questions. In an age that prides itself on being scientific, it is just possible that dogma has begun to replace experiment in the scientific method. Dancing Naked will definitely challenge your thinking, and it is fun to read. I recommend it highly. Reviewed by Louis N. Gruber.

most neg. reviews seem to complain about the lack of scientific detail or that mullis doesn't adequately back up his observations, opinions, assertions, etc. or that his writing style is not polished enough to warrant reading. why??this book is NOT represented as a biography, text, or treatise. it is a look into the life and thoughts of an extraordinary person and i would rather read his own words as he writes them than some editor's attempt to cram them into an 'accepted style'. you don't have to agree with him. you don't have to like him. but at least think about the things he has to say. do your own research to determine if you share is views. and for those of you who don't feel he deserved the nobel prize because of other things he has done or things he believes....while your opinions are valid, as everyone's are, you don't get to make that decision. so instead of cutting the guy down and panning the book....go write your own! *I* am.this is a great book to motivate you to think for yourself and educate yourself.

I first heard of Kary Mullis in 1994, when I read his Chemistry Nobel Prize acceptance speech in Angewandte Chemie, my favorite Chemistry journal. I was then still employed as a researcher with the company that gave us better living through chemistry. I ended up reading the multi-thousand word account of his speech three times, without pause. It was simply brilliant, yet hardly had a word of science in it! Instead, it focused on what it means to be alive and human. I read "Dancing Naked in The Mind Field" in two sittings when it arrived at my door a few weeks ago. It has much science in it, and a whole lot more of other things. It also deals with the excitement and challenges of living and being human. All of it is worth reading, re-reading, digesting, and learning. A more compact course in critical thinking does not exist. Nor a more humorous one. Dr. Mullis is one of those extremely rare human beings that truly can be classified as a genius. He is equally at home at the forefront of DNA research as he is on his surfboard, at a nightclub, or studying up on planetary motion and its relation to the diversity in human personalities. There is nothing too preposterous for him to rigorously investigate and often attempt, while there appear to be very few commonly accepted "truths" in which he cannot find some fundamental fallacy. These include "truths" handed to us from the dogmatic kingdom of post WWII science. His many anecdotes -- from his curious adventures as a boy to his often hilarious encounters as a world famous scientist -- leave the reader fluctuating between uncontrollable fits of laughter and a deeply serious concern for our over-regulated and blatantly unethical world. Reading Dr. Mullis' not quite humble autobiography left this reader entertained, amazed, embittered but, most of all, inspired. It is essential reading for anyone whose IQ is higher than the hottest shade temperature ever recorded in the USA, in degrees Fahrenheit. Oh, by the way, how did you spend your 10,000th day?

I first heard of Kary Mullis in 1994, when I read his Chemistry Nobel Prize acceptance speech in Angewandte Chemie, my favorite Chemistry journal. I was then still employed as a researcher with the company that gave us better living through chemistry. I ended up reading the multi-thousand word account of his speech three times, without pause. It was simply brilliant, yet hardly had a word of science in it! Instead, it talked about what it means to be alive and human. I have read "Dancing Naked in The Mind Fields" in two sittings since its arrival at my door earlier this week. It does have science in it, but a whole lot more of other things. It also deals with living and being human. All of it is worth reading, re-reading, digesting, and learning. A more compact course in critical thinking does not exist. Nor a more humorous one. Nor a more honest one. Dr. Mullis is one of those extremely rare human beings that truly can be classified as a genius. He is equally at home at the forefront of DNA research as he is on his surfboard, at a nightclub, or studying up on planetary motion and its relation to the diversity in human personalities. There is nothing too preposterous for him to rigorously investigate (and often attempt) and learn something valuable from, just as there are very few "truths" that we all accept in which he cannot find some fundamental fallacy. These include "truths" presented to us by the dogmatic kingdom of post WWII science. His anecdotes along these two divergent yet symmetrical paths -- from his curious adventures as a boy to his often hilarious (and, sadly for society, illegal) encounters as a world famous scientist -- leave the reader fluctuating between uncontrollable fits of laughter and a deeply serious concern for our over-regulated and blatantly unethical, dollar-chasing post-modern world. The book's only flaw? A few very minor and silly typos/oversights. For example, at one point, Dr. Mullis claims to be 22 years old in 1968 and born in 1944. On second thought, he may have put these teasers in on purpose, to prove that nobody is perfect... Reading this book left this reader entertained, amazed, embittered but, most of all, inspired. It is essential reading for anyone whose IQ is higher than the hottest shade temperature ever recorded in the USA, in degrees Fahrenheit. Oh, by the way, how did you spend your 10,000th day?

What's wrong with entertainment with a lil science thrown in for good measure. Gosh! You'd think this guy won a Nobel prize or something. He's an out-of-the-box thinker with ideas that may be hard for some of us to phantom. Does that make them pathetic/inflated? He talks about his adventures albeit some (most?) are misadventures. Does that make him egotistical/self serving? It is an autobiography, isn't it?What I found from reading *Dancing Naked* is an UNDERSTANDING of some scientific stuff and the delightful realization that people are just, well, people-with some faults and some promising *worth-whileness* all rolled into one person. Few of us live our lives to the fullest. Kary Mullis apparently does. I'd slap high fives with him any day!