Far Out: 101 Strange Tales from Science's Outer Edge

This is a great little book. The stories of the crazy "scientific" ideas that have cropped up over the years are hilarious, but realizing that a large number of people bought into these ideas is even more hilarious. Some of these stories are cliff-hangers though. The author hints that some of these apparently crazy ideas may have some validity and may be developed some day. What one can get out of this book is twofold. (1) People will LIE and will hang on to that LIE for as long as possible and (2) people have an unreal capacity for fooling themselves. Have fun!

This little book is a gem that is loaded with fun to read snippets that are humorous and sometimes quite thought provoking. It is tiny so it very portable for reading while waiting. Great fun.

For two years, Mark Pilkington wrote the "Far Out" column for the "Guardian's" science section. These columns have now been collected and annotated in this beautifully printed little book. Illustrations, diagrams, and photographs enhance the text. Anyone who loves scientific inquiry will enjoy roaming through some really crackpot ideas. Some of the geniuses here belong in the pseudo-scientific or even on the fraudulent fringes of science. But, every once in awhile we learn about an idea from a "real" scientist. For example, Nikola Tesla, who pioneered the use of AC electricity, also claimed to have invented a death ray. (The passage reminded me of the wonderful movie The Prestige and Tesla's teleportation machine created on order of a London magician.) Each short entry tackles a single report: electronic voice phenomena, The Cerebrophone, the memory of water, Skinner's Box, plant sentience, the Aether, pets predicting earthquakes, etc. Many entries belong in the margins of history, but you'll wonder how many might yet change our future. I was really sorry when I finished this book, but by Googling I learned that Mark Pilkington is the "Fortean" behind the "Strange Attractor Journal" . He also runs the Strange Attractor Press. His writings, thank goodness, are still available online. The "New Scientist" concluded that this book "is not a record of failure, though, more a celebration of science's dreamers." These are dreams that enchanted me, and I'm sure they will enchant you as well. Robert C. Ross

OK, so I'm not exactly unbiased on this one because I loved the articles that author Mark Pilkington wrote for The Guardian newspaper in England and spent about three years convincing him to compile them in book form. But that said, the book is so much better than reading the articles in the paper because now they're expanded, illustrated and best of all ordered in a hilarious and informative way. You also have to check out the incredible design. The neon green second color used in the book is a beautiful thing! Oh, and it's under 10 bucks!