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When Science Goes Wrong | 
| Author: Simon Levay
Publisher: Plume
Category: Book
List Price: $15.00
Buy Used: $0.69
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Avg. Customer Rating:  6 reviews
Sales Rank: 175085
Media: Paperback
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 304
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.5
Dimensions (in): 7.8 x 5.3 x 0.8
ISBN: 0452289327
Dewey Decimal Number: 500
EAN: 9780452289321
ASIN: 0452289327
Publication Date: March 25, 2008
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Product Description
Brilliant scientific successes have helped shape our world, and are always celebrated. However, for every victory, there are no doubt numerous little-known blunders. Neuroscientist Simon LeVay brings together a collection of fascinating, yet shocking, stories of failure from recent scientific history in When Science Goes Wrong. From the fields of forensics and microbiology to nuclear physics and meteorology, in When Science Goes Wrong LeVay shares twelve true essays illustrating a variety of ways in which the scientific process can go awry. Failures, disasters and other negative outcomes of science can result not only from bad luck, but from causes including failure to follow appropriate procedures and heed warnings, ethical breaches, quick pressure to obtain results, and even fraud. Often, as LeVay notes, the greatest opportunity for notable mishaps occurs when science serves human ends. LeVay shares these examples: To counteract the onslaught of Parkinson's disease, a patient undergoes cutting-edge brain surgery using fetal transplants, and is later found to have hair and cartilage growing inside his brain. In 1999, NASA's Mars Climate Orbiter spacecraft is lost due to an error in calculation, only months after the agency adopts a policy of "Faster, Better, Cheaper." Britain's Bracknell weather forecasting team predicts two possible outcomes for a potentially violent system, but is pressured into releasing a 'milder' forecast. The BBC's top weatherman reports there is "no hurricane", while later the storm hits, devastating southeast England. Ignoring signals of an imminent eruption, scientists decide to lead a party to hike into the crater of a dormant volcano in Columbia, causing injury and death. When Science Goes Wrong provides a compelling glimpse into human ambition in scientific pursuit.
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| Customer Reviews: Read 1 more reviews...
 An overblown magazine article July 8, 2008
0 out of 2 found this review helpful
Mostly, I'd echo Mr. Giltinan's comments. The book is a disappointment, more full of anecdotal stories of everyday failures than the more the more interesting analysis of WHY these failures occur and how they reflect on the nature of scientific inquiry (and, as Mr. Giltinan point's out, many of the events reported have more to do with technical application problems than actual "pure" science.)
Moreover, many of these stories are fairly well-known. It feels more like the kind of book you'd find engaging as an adolescent, learning about these events for the first time, than as an adult reader looking for some thoughts on the nature of scientific error.
My growing reading list from "The Daily Show" May 8, 2008
1 out of 2 found this review helpful
It seems like the majority of books I am reading these days are authors who are on "The Daily Show". I really enjoyed this book. I usually read fiction but these vignettes are so surreal that it is hard to believe they actually happened.
 Science and Human Failings May 8, 2008
4 out of 6 found this review helpful
This is a fascinating book. The author describes twelve instances, one per chapter, where scientists' work has resulted in some form of disaster. The scientific fields in which such incidents are presented include medical/biological disciplines, earth sciences, nuclear sciences, space science and psychology. In many of these cases the author shows how a little knowledge can be a dangerous thing. It is clear from this book that the many scientific advances that we hear about regularly are peppered by a few serious fiascoes -often involving human error. The only way that I can envisage improving this book (or a sequel) is to include a few simple sketches or diagrams in the chapters where detailed descriptions of physical items are presented; this would greatly help the reader to better visualize that particular item and thus possibly better understand the nature of the disaster. The writing style is clear, friendly, accessible, authoritative and quite engaging. This book can be enjoyed by anyone, but science buffs as well as those who are particularly interested in the potential shortcomings of the science/human interface may appreciate it the most.
A good book to read May 4, 2008
1 out of 2 found this review helpful
It's a type of book that keep you saying "That really happen". A good buy.
Outstanding read April 16, 2008
7 out of 8 found this review helpful
A most enjoyable book. I read other books of this author and have always been
fascinated by his literary style, but in this book the author outdid
himself. Because the stories told in this book lend themselves to mix personal
and scientific aspects, they read like a thriller, but a highly informative
one. The chapters span a wide range of topics relating to science, engineering
and technology, so that there is something for everybody. However, despite the
variety of subjects covered, there is a clear unifying theme: scientists, and
people with highly technical occupations, are as human as everybody else. They
make mistakes, are moved by noble and less noble motives, and have careers to
worry about. In each chapter the author effortlessy switches between the
description of technical issues and the emotions and conflicts of the people
around that issue. It is this mixture that makes the book so enjoyable and
accessible to everyone. Technical details are never presented as dry facts, but
always firmly attached to some key event in the story, and personal details are
always offered to provide a natural context for the more technical aspects. One
aspect of this book which I really appreciated is that it got me interested in
things which, at first look, seemed not terribly exciting, like Mary Tudor's
study of stuttering in orphans, which took place in pre World War 2 Iowa. As the
story in question and the characters became more developed I could see the
orphanage and Mary Tudor in my mind, and started asking myself questions on
ethics and motives which trascended the specific topic. I highly recommend this
book to anyone with an inquisitive mind. The author has an impeccable reputation
for his thourough research, and he clearly conducted an impressive series of
interviews in developing the material for this book. Combined with his mastery
of the English language this led to an excellent product, which makes for a very
satisfying read.
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