Bill Bryson wrote this book because he was dissatisfied with his scientific knowledge—that was, not much at all. He writes that science was a distant, unexplained subject at school. Textbooks and teachers alike did not ignite the passion for knowledge in him, mainly because they never delved in the whys, hows, and whens.
Contents
Bryson describes graphically and in layperson's terms the size of the universe and that of atoms and subatomic particles. He then explores the history of geology and biology and traces life from its first appearance to today's modern humans, placing emphasis on the development of the modern Homo sapiens. Furthermore, he discusses the possibility of the Earth being struck by a meteorite and reflects on human capabilities of spotting a meteor before it impacts the Earth, and the extensive damage that such an event would cause. He also describes some of the most recent destructive disasters of volcanic origin in the history of our planet, including Krakatoa and Yellowstone National Park. A large part of the book is devoted to relating humorous stories about the scientists behind the research and discoveries and their sometimes eccentric behaviours. Bryson also speaks about modern scientific views on human effects on the Earth's climate and livelihood of other species, and the magnitude of natural disasters such as earthquakes, volcanoes, tsunamis, hurricanes, and the mass extinctions caused by some of these events. An illustrated edition of the book was released in November 2005. A few editions in audiobook form are also available, including an abridged version read by the author, and at least three unabridged versions.
Corrections
There have been several changes to scientific knowledge, primarily due to new discoveries and updated classifications, since the book's initial release. To date, the book has not been updated to incorporate these changes; several facts given in the book are therefore out-of-date. The book gives Pluto status of a planet; as of 2006, Pluto is classified as a dwarf planet. Bryson writes that "he Higgs Boson may or may not actually exist; it was invented simply as a way of endowing particles with mass"; the existence of the boson was confirmed in 2012. The book characterizes the expansion of the universe is going to stop; the universe's expansion has since been found to be speeding up. The book refers to non-coding DNA as "junk DNA", that is, useless, having no function; as of 2006, it has been found that non-coding DNA affects how genes are translated into physical traits.
