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What Einstein Told His Barber
Cover of What Einstein Told His Barber
What Einstein Told His Barber
More Scientific Answers to Everyday Questions
Borrow Borrow
What makes ice cubes cloudy? How do shark attacks make airplanes safer? Can a person traveling in a car at the speed of sound still hear the radio? Moreover, would they want to...?
Do you often find yourself pondering life's little conundrums? Have you ever wondered why the ocean is blue? Or why birds don't get electrocuted when perching on high-voltage power lines? Robert L. Wolke, professor emeritus of chemistry at the University of Pittsburgh and acclaimed author of What Einstein Didn't Know, understands the need to...well, understand. Now he provides more amusing explanations of such everyday phenomena as gravity (If you're in a falling elevator, will jumping at the last instant save your life?) and acoustics (Why does a whip make such a loud cracking noise?), along with amazing facts, belly-up-to-the-bar bets, and mind-blowing reality bites all with his trademark wit and wisdom.
If you shoot a bullet into the air, can it kill somebody when it comes down?
You can find out about all this and more in an astonishing compendium of the proverbial mind-boggling mysteries of the physical world we inhabit.
Arranged in a question-and-answer format and grouped by subject for browsing ease, WHAT EINSTEIN TOLD HIS BARBER is for anyone who ever pondered such things as why colors fade in sunlight, what happens to the rubber from worn-out tires, what makes red-hot objects glow red, and other scientific curiosities. Perfect for fans of Newton's Apple, Jeopardy!, and The Discovery Channel, WHAT EINSTEIN TOLD HIS BARBER also includes a glossary of important scientific buzz words and a comprehensive index. —>
What makes ice cubes cloudy? How do shark attacks make airplanes safer? Can a person traveling in a car at the speed of sound still hear the radio? Moreover, would they want to...?
Do you often find yourself pondering life's little conundrums? Have you ever wondered why the ocean is blue? Or why birds don't get electrocuted when perching on high-voltage power lines? Robert L. Wolke, professor emeritus of chemistry at the University of Pittsburgh and acclaimed author of What Einstein Didn't Know, understands the need to...well, understand. Now he provides more amusing explanations of such everyday phenomena as gravity (If you're in a falling elevator, will jumping at the last instant save your life?) and acoustics (Why does a whip make such a loud cracking noise?), along with amazing facts, belly-up-to-the-bar bets, and mind-blowing reality bites all with his trademark wit and wisdom.
If you shoot a bullet into the air, can it kill somebody when it comes down?
You can find out about all this and more in an astonishing compendium of the proverbial mind-boggling mysteries of the physical world we inhabit.
Arranged in a question-and-answer format and grouped by subject for browsing ease, WHAT EINSTEIN TOLD HIS BARBER is for anyone who ever pondered such things as why colors fade in sunlight, what happens to the rubber from worn-out tires, what makes red-hot objects glow red, and other scientific curiosities. Perfect for fans of Newton's Apple, Jeopardy!, and The Discovery Channel, WHAT EINSTEIN TOLD HIS BARBER also includes a glossary of important scientific buzz words and a comprehensive index. —>
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Excerpts-
  • From the book Movin' and Shakin'

    Everything is moving.

    You may be sitting quietly in your armchair, but you are far from motionless. I don't mean merely that your heart is beating, your blood is coursing through your veins and you are panting at the prospect of learning so many fascinating things from this book. In short, I don't mean simply that you are physically and mentally alive.

    I mean that while you are sitting there so peacefully, Earth beneath your feet is spinning you around at about 1,000 miles per hour (1,600 kilometers per hour). (The exact speed depends on where you live; see p. 119). Mother Earth is simultaneously hauling you around the sun at 66,600 miles per hour (107,000 kilometers per hour). Not to mention the fact that the solar system and all the stars and galaxies in the universe are racing madly away from one another in all directions at incredible speeds.

    Okay, you knew all that. Except maybe for the exact speeds. But we're still not done.

    You are made of molecules. (Yes, even you.) And all your molecules are vibrating and jiggling around to beat the band, assuming that your body temperature is somewhere above absolute zero (see p. 82). In motion also are many of the atoms of which your molecules are made, and the electrons of which the atoms are made, and the electrons, atoms and molecules of everything else in the universe. They were all set into motion about 12 billion years ago (see p. 175) and have been quivering ever since.

    So what is motion? In this chapter we'll see how everything from horses to speeding automobiles, sound waves, bullets, airplanes and orbiting satellites move from one place to another.

    Horsing Around on the Highway

    Why do they drive on the left in some countries and on the right in others?

    It goes back to the fact that most humans are right-handed.

    Long before we had modern weapons such as guns and automobiles, people had to do battle using swords and horses. Now if you are right-handed, you wear your sword on the left, so that you can draw it out rapidly with your right hand. But with that long, dangling scabbard encumbering your left side, the only way you can mount a horse is by throwing your free right leg over him. And unless you are in a Mel Brooks movie and want to wind up sitting backward on your steed, that means that the horse's head has to be pointing to your left. To this day we still train horses to be saddled and mounted from their left sides.

    Now that you are mounted, you will want to stay on the left side as you start down the road, because anyone coming toward you will be on your right, and if that someone turns out to be an enemy, you can whip out your sword with your right hand and be in position to run the scoundrel through. Thus, prudent horsemen have always ridden on the left side of the road.

    This left-side convention was also honored by horse-drawn carriages in order to avoid annoying collisions with horsemen. When horseless carriages made their appearance, some countries continued the habit, especially during the overlap period when both kinds of carriages were competing for road space.

    So why do people drive on the right in the U.S. and many other countries?

    When swords went the way of bows and arrows, the need for defending one's right flank disappeared and traffic rules were suddenly up for grabs. Younger or less tradition-bound countries migrated to the right, apparently because the right-handed majority feels more comfortable hugging the right side of the road. It quickly occurred to left-handed people that it was unhealthy to argue with them.

    Some countries that I've been in must have large...
About the Author-
  • Robert L. Wolke is professor emeritus of chemistry at the University of Pittsburgh and researcher in both chemistry and physics. As an educator and lecturer, he enjoys a national reputation for his ability to make science understandable and enjoyable. He is the author of What Einstein Didn't Know: Scientific Answers to Everyday Questions; Impact: Science on Society; and Chemistry Explained, as well as dozens of scientific research papers. His bi-weekly column, "Food 101," in which he answers scientific questions about food, appears in The Washington Post. He lives in Pittsburgh.
Reviews-
  • Publisher's Weekly

    April 4, 2005
    Wolke ("What Einstein Told His Cook") again brings hard science and corny humor to bear on the most basic of human needs: food. Whether defining the chemical makeup of the artificial flavor in chocolate or exploring the vagaries of scallop farming, Wolke plunges into the science of gastronomy with é lan. Using questions gathered from readers of his "Washington Post" column, he covers the gamut from why tea turns cloudy in the refrigerator (cooling precipitates tiny particles of tannins) to what "mechanically separated beef" is (meat that's been "forced at high pressure through a kind of sieve"). Each question serves as a springboard to a rigorous analysis of food and its preparation and to humorous and bitter ruminations on the U.S. Food and Drug Administration regulation; explorations of the folk history of food cultivation; and expansive descriptions of various world cuisines. Interspersed throughout are mouth-watering recipes written by Wolke's wife, restaurant critic and culinary journalist Marlene Parrish. While at times Wolke's desire to entertain gets the best of him -his overreliance on goofy puns, for example, is tiring -the overall effect of this work is like any great family meal: the savory delights of consuming fine food outweigh whatever irritations come with uninvited guests. 20 illus. "Agent, Ethan Ellenberg. (Apr.)" .

  • Publisher's Weekly

    Starred review from April 30, 2012
    Chemistry professor emeritus and award-winning food columnist Wolke offers a reference guide to the science of food, everything from the truth about raw sugar and cream of tartar to how microwaves and “instant-read” thermometers actually function, explaining it all in a clear, accessible, and fun fashion. Sean Runnette turns in a subtle, winning performance in this audio edition, capturing the spirit of the text—his reading both informs and entertains—and delivering friendly, clear, and steady narration. Additionally, Runnette is restrained and wry—and vaguely reminiscent of Niles Crane from TV’s Frasier—nailing the book’s many moments of humor. This delightful audiobook—which includes a PDF with more than 30 recipes from the author’s wife, Marlene Parrish—is a must for foodies and science fans. A W.W. Norton paperback.

  • Publisher's Weekly

    March 7, 2005
    Wolke (What Einstein Told His Cook
    ) again brings hard science and corny humor to bear on the most basic of human needs: food. Whether defining the chemical makeup of the artificial flavor in chocolate or exploring the vagaries of scallop farming, Wolke plunges into the science of gastronomy with élan. Using questions gathered from readers of his Washington Post
    column, he covers the gamut from why tea turns cloudy in the refrigerator (cooling precipitates tiny particles of tannins) to what "mechanically separated beef" is (meat that's been "forced at high pressure through a kind of sieve"). Each question serves as a springboard to a rigorous analysis of food and its preparation and to humorous and bitter ruminations on the U.S. Food and Drug Administration regulation; explorations of the folk history of food cultivation; and expansive descriptions of various world cuisines. Interspersed throughout are mouth-watering recipes written by Wolke's wife, restaurant critic and culinary journalist Marlene Parrish. While at times Wolke's desire to entertain gets the best of him—his overreliance on goofy puns, for example, is tiring—the overall effect of this work is like any great family meal: the savory delights of consuming fine food outweigh whatever irritations come with uninvited guests. 20 illus. Agent, Ethan Ellenberg.

  • Publisher's Weekly

    April 4, 2005
    Wolke (What Einstein Told His Cook ) again brings hard science and corny humor to bear on the most basic of human needs: food. Whether defining the chemical makeup of the artificial flavor in chocolate or exploring the vagaries of scallop farming, Wolke plunges into the science of gastronomy with lan. Using questions gathered from readers of his Washington Post column, he covers the gamut from why tea turns cloudy in the refrigerator (cooling precipitates tiny particles of tannins) to what "mechanically separated beef" is (meat that's been "forced at high pressure through a kind of sieve"). Each question serves as a springboard to a rigorous analysis of food and its preparation and to humorous and bitter ruminations on the U.S. Food and Drug Administration regulation; explorations of the folk history of food cultivation; and expansive descriptions of various world cuisines. Interspersed throughout are mouth-watering recipes written by Wolke's wife, restaurant critic and culinary journalist Marlene Parrish. While at times Wolke's desire to entertain gets the best of him--his overreliance on goofy puns, for example, is tiring--the overall effect of this work is like any great family meal: the savory delights of consuming fine food outweigh whatever irritations come with uninvited guests. 20 illus. Agent, Ethan Ellenberg.

  • Publisher's Weekly

    May 6, 2002
    Wolke, longtime professor of chemistry and author of the Washington Post
    column Food 101, turns his hand to a Cecil Adams–style compendium of questions and answers on food chemistry. Is there really a difference between supermarket and sea salt? How is sugar made? Should cooks avoid aluminum pans? Interspersed throughout Wolke's accessible and humorous answers to these and other mysteries are recipes demonstrating scientific principles. There is gravy that avoids lumps and grease; Portuguese Poached Meringue that demonstrates cream of tartar at work; and juicy Salt-Seared Burgers. Wolke is good at demystifying advertisers' half-truths, showing, for example, that sea salt is not necessarily better than regular salt for those watching sodium intake. While the book isn't encyclopedic, Wolke's topics run the gamut: one chapter tackles "Those Mysterious Microwaves"; elsewhere readers learn about the burning of alcohol and are privy to a rant on the U.S. measuring system. Sometimes the tone is hokey ("The green color is Mother Nature's Mr. Yuk sticker, warning us of poison") and parenthetical "Techspeak" explanations may seem condescending to those who remember high school science. However, Wolke tells it like it is. What does clarifying butter do, chemically? Answer: "gets rid of everything but that delicious, artery-clogging, highly saturated butterfat." With its zest for the truth, this book will help cooks learn how to make more intelligent choices.

  • The San Diego Tribune "Wolke is a glib and entertaining writer....This is the book for anyone who claims to be overwhelmed by the science of everyday things....It's a fun read."
  • Baton Rouge Advocate "Fascinating....Will provide hours of fun and knowledge for kids of any age (and we mean up to 90) and offer helpful tips and satisfy the curiosity of the average householder."
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More Scientific Answers to Everyday Questions
Robert Wolke
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