Newton's Apple and Other Myths about Science

<p><b>A <i>Guardian</i> Favourite Reads--as Chosen by Scientists Selection</b> <p/><b>Tackles some of science's most enduring misconceptions.<br>--<i>Discover</i></b> <p/>A falling apple inspired Isaac Newton's insight into the law of gravity--or did it really? <p/>Among the many myths debunked in this refreshingly irreverent book are the idea that alchemy was a superstitious pursuit that Darwin put off publishing his theory of evolution for fear of public reprisal and that Gregor Mendel was ahead of his time as a pioneer of genetics. More recent myths about particle physics and Einstein's theory of relativity are discredited too and a number of dubious generalizations like the notion that science and religion are antithetical or that science can neatly be distinguished from pseudoscience go under the microscope of history. <p/><i>Newton's Apple and Other Myths about Science</i> brushes away popular fictions and refutes the widespread belief that science advances when individual geniuses experience Eureka! moments and suddenly grasp what those around them could never imagine. <p/>Delightful...thought-provoking...Every reader should find something to surprise them.<br>--Jim Endersby <i>Science</i> <p/>Better than just countering the myths the book explains when they arose and why they stuck.<br>--<i>The Guardian</i></p>