Bad Astronomy (eBook)

PHILIP PLAIT, Ph.D., works in the physics and astronomy department at Sonoma State University in California. He maintains the Web site badastronomy.com and writes monthly articles on astronomy for the German newspaper Die Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung. His work has appeared in the Encyclopedia Britannica Yearbook of Science and the Future and Astronomy magazine. He also writes a monthly column for astronomy.com.

Introduction.

PART I: Bad Astronomy Begins at Home.

1. The Yolk's on You: Egg Balancing and the Equinox.

2. Flushed with Embarrassment: The Coriolis Effect and YourBathroom.

3. Idiom's Delight: Bad Astronomy in Everyday Language.

PART II: From the Earth to the Moon.

4. Blue Skies Smiling at Me: Why the Sky Is Blue.

5. A Dash of Seasons: Why Summer Turns to Fall.

6. Phase the Nation: The Moon's Changing Face.

7. The Gravity of the Situation: The Moon and the Tides.

8. The Moon Hits Your Eye Like a Big Pizza Pie: The Big MoonIllusion.

PART III: Skies at Night Are Big and Bright.

9. Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star: Why Stars Appear toTwinkle.

10. Star Light, Star White: Stars of Many Colors.

11. Well, Well: The Difficulty of Daylight Star Sighting.

12. The Brightest Star: Polaris-Just Another Face in theCrowd.

13. Shadows in the Sky: Eclipses and Sun-Watching.

14. The Disaster that Wasn't: The Great Planetary Alignment of2000.

15. Meteors, Meteoroids, and Meteorites, Oh My!: The Impact ofMeteors and Asteroids.

16. When the Universe Throws You a Curve: Misunderstanding theBeginning of It All.

PART IV: Artificial Intelligence.

17. Appalled at Apollo: Uncovering the Moon-Landing Hoax.

18. Worlds in Derision: Velikovsky vs. Modern Science.

19. In the Beginning: Creationism and Astronomy.

20. Misidentified Flying Objects: UFOs and Illusions of the Mindand Eye.

21. Mars Is in the Seventh House, But Venus Has Left the Building:Why Astrology Doesn't Work.

PARTV: Beam Me Up.

22. Hubble Trouble: Hubble Space Telescope Misconceptions.

23. Star Hustlers: Star Naming for Dummies.

24. Bad Astronomy Goes Hollywood: The Top-Ten Examples of BadAstronomy in Major Motion Pictures.

Recommended Reading.

Acknowledgments.

Index.

Inspired by his popular web site, www. badastronomy.com, this firstbook by Plait (astronomy, Sonoma State Univ.) debunks popular mythsand misconceptions relating to astronomy and promotes science as ameans of explaining our mysterious heavens. The work describes 24common astronomical fallacies, including the beliefs that theCoriolis effect determines the direction that water drains in abathtub and that planetary alignments can cause disaster on Earth.The author sharply and convincingly dismisses astrology,creationism, and UFO sightings and explains the principles behindbasic general concepts (the Big Bang, why the sky is blue, etc.).Though some may find him strident, Plait succeeds brilliantlybecause his clear and understandable explanations are convincingand honest. This first volume in Wiley's "Bad Science" series isrecommended for all libraries, especially astronomy and folklorecollections. ?Jeffrey Beall, Univ. of Colorado Lib., Denver(Library Journal, March 15, 2002)

"...everything's beautifully explained. He gives the neatestexplanation of tides I've ever seen...for that alone, this bookshould be in every school library on the planet." (New Scientist, 4May 2002)

"...the book might be a better student introduction than manymore sober tomes..." (Times Higher Education Supplement, 7June 2002)

"Bad Astronomy is a book which is both timely andwelcome. I would recommend it without hesitation, and I have nodoubt that it will be widely read..." (The Observatory,October 2002)

For skeptics, always fans of science: The first two books in aseries devoted to "bad science," Bad Astronomy by PhilipPlait and Bad Medicine (Wiley, $15.95) by ChristopherWanjek, may warm even a Scrooge's heart. In short chapters, Plaittackles misperceptions about why the moon looks larger on thehorizon and why stars twinkle before moving on, dismantlingconspiracy kooks who doubt the moon landing and offering a top 10list of bad science moments in movie history. Wanjek, a sciencewriter who has also written jokes for The Tonight Show andSaturday Night Live, takes an edgy and funny tack indebunking myths such as humans using only 10% of their brains, theutility of "anti-bacterial" toys and the safety of "natural" herbalremedies, ones often loaded with powerful chemicals. (USATODAY, December 3, 2002)

"...a good read...Plait's book is readable, entertaining, notexclusively for astronomers, and often very funny..." (Astronomy& Space, June 2003)

"...a great book to dip into..." (Popular Astronomy,January 2004)