Grunt: The Curious Science of Humans at War by Mary Roach

(hb; 2016: nonfiction)

From the inside flap:

“Grunt tackles the science behind some of a soldier’s most challenging adversaries─panic, exhaustion, heat, noise─and introduces us to the scientists who seek to conquer them. Mary Roach dodges hostile fire with the US Marine corps Paintball Team as part of a study on hearing loss and survivability in combat. She visits the fashion design studio of US Army Natick Labes and learns why a zipper is  a problem for a sniper. She visits a repurposed movie studio where ampoutee actors help prepare Marine Corps medics for the shock and gore of combat wounds. At Camp Lemonnier, Djibouti, in east Africa, we learn how diarrhea can be a threat to national security. The author samples caffeinated meat, sniffs an archival sample of a World War II stink bomb, and stays up all night with the crew tending the missiles on the nuclear submarine USS Tennessee. She answers questions not found in any other book on the military: Why is DARPA interested in ducks? How is a wedding gown like a bomb suit? Why are shrimp more dangerous to sailors than sharks? Take a tour of duty with Roach, and you’ll never see our nation’s defenders in the same way again.”

Review

Roach’s Grunt, like her other books, is an entertaining, informative and often witty read, one that may change the way you view human nature, as well as the science behind government-funded experiments, and how scientists and military personnel apply the results of those experiments. Favorite chapters: “Old Chum”; “That Sinking Feeling” and “Up and Under.” This is an excellent nonfiction book, one worth owning.

Astrophysics for People in a Hurry by Neil deGrasse Tyson

(hb; 2017: science, nonfiction)

From the inside flap

"What is the nature of space and time? How do we fit within the universe? How does the universe fit within us? There’s no better guide through these mind-expanding questions than acclaimed astrophysicist and best-selling author Neil deGrasse Tyson.

"But today, few of us have time to contemplate the cosmos. So Tyson brings the universe down to Earth succinctly and clearly, with sparkling wit, in tasty chapters consumable anytime and anywhere in your busy day.

"While you wait for your morning coffee to brew, for the bus, the train, or a plane to arrive, Astrophysics for People in a Hurry will reveal just what you need to be fluent and ready for the next cosmic headlines: from the Big Bang to black holes, from quarks to quantum mechanics, and from the search for planets to the search for life in the universe."

Review

Astrophysics is an excellent, wonder-minded scientific work that boils down its subject matter in a way that it is easily understood by those of us who are not scientists, those of who have little practical understanding regarding neutrons, stars, planets and other components of the universe. Tyson, through humor, relatable visual examples and everyday, non-science geek language, gives a sometimes mind-blowing overview of how we may have begun, and how our world, as we currently view it, may end (not necessarily a bad thing) ─ unlike some things and institutions, worthwhile scientists understand that expanding one’s knowledge, even as the universe expands around us, is a worthwhile and necessary pursuit.

That said, Astophysics is not a rush-through read. It is worth taking one’s time, a chapter or a few a day, to allow the scientific and often practical implications to fully take root in one’s awareness.

Most books I read are one-time events ─ I rarely re-read books. This is one of the few exceptions to my once-read rule, a book that I hope to pick up again in the near-ish future, to catch what I may have missed the first time around. For this and other reasons, Astrophysics is worth owning.

Grunt: The Curious Science of Humans at War by Mary Roach

(hb: 2016: nonfiction/science)

From the inside flap:

"Grunt tackles the science behind some of a soldier's most challenging adversaries—panic, exhaustion, heat, noise—and introduces us to the scientists who seek to conquer them. Mary Roach dodges hostile fire with the U.S. Marine Corps Paintball Team as part of a study on hearing loss and survivability in combat. She visits the fashion design studio of U.S. Army Natick Labs and learns why a zipper is a problem for a sniper. She visits a repurposed movie studio where amputee actors help prepare Marine Corps medics for the shock and gore of combat wounds. At Camp Lemmonier, Djibouti, in east Africa, we learn how diarrhea can be a threat to national security. Roach samples caffeinated meat, sniffs an archival sample of a World War II stink bomb, and stays up all night with the crew tending the missiles on the nuclear submarine USS Tennessee. She answers questions not found in any other book on the military: Why is DARPA interested in ducks? How is a wedding gown like a bomb suit? Why are shrimp more dangerous to sailors than sharks? Take a tour of duty with Roach, and you’ll never see our nation’s defenders in the same way again."


Review:

In Grunt, Roach explores the scientific and non-combative side of military life. Like her other books, this is fun, informative and wry, a read that bridges the gap between those readers seriously interested (or otherwise invested) in the book's subjects and those who are mildly curious about said subjects -- or merely reading it because Roach wrote it. This is worth checking out from the library for the mildly curious and worth owning for those who are fascinated by the subjects at hand.

Gulp: Adventures on the Alimentary Canal, by Mary Roach

(hb; 2013: science/nonfiction)


From the inside flap:

"The alimentary canal is classic Mary Roach terrain: the questions explored in Gulp are as taboo, in their way, as the cadavers in Stiff and every bit as surreal as the universe of zero gravity explored in Packing for Mars.  Why is crunchy food so appealing?  Why is it hard to find words for flavors and smells?  Why doesn't the stomach digest itself?  How much can you eat before your stomach bursts?  Can constipation kill you?  Did it kill Elvis?  In Gulp we meet scientists tackle the questions no one else thinks of - or has the courage to ask.  We go on location to a pet-food taste-test lab, a fecal transplant, and into a live stomach to observe the fate of a meal.  With Roach at our side, we travel the world, meeting murderers and mad scientists, Eskimos and exorcists (who have occasionally administered holy water rectally), rabbits and terrorists - who, it turns out, for practical reasons do not conceal bombs in their digestive tracts.

"Like all of Mary Roach's books, Gulp is as much about human beings as it is about human bodies."


Review:

Fun, informative and quirky: Roach delves into the world of the human digestive tract and beyond, chronicling unexpected -- sometimes disconcerting -- results and the often unintentionally hilarious situations that come about. Roach is scientific, yet her writing is approachable for those outside the medical/scientific community. Also, her wit is chuckle-worthy.

This is a memorable and informative read - worth owning.

Packing For Mars: The Curious Science of Life in the Void, by Mary Roach

(hb; 2010: science/non-fiction)

From the inside flap:

"Space is a world devoid of the things we need to live and thrive: air, gravity, hot showers, fresh produce, privacy, beer. Space exploration is in some ways an exploration of what it means to be human. How much can a person give up? How much weirdness can they take? What happens to you when you can't walk for a year? Have sex? Smell flowers? What happens if you vomit in your helmet during a spacewalk? Is it possible for the human body to survive a bailout from space? To answer these questions, space agencies set up all manner of quizzical and startling bizarre space simulations. As Mary Roach discovers, it's possible to preview space without ever leaving Earth. From the Space Shuttle training toilet to a crash test of NASA's new space capsule (cadaver filling in for astronaut), Roach takes us on a surreally entertaining trip into the science of life in space and space on Earth."

Review:

Another entertaining, informative, laugh-out-loud funny, sometimes icky, and snarky read from Roach.

Own this, already.

Stiff: The Curious Lives of Human Cadavers, by Mary Roach

(pb; 2003: science/non-fiction)

From the back cover:

"Stiff is an oddly compelling, often hilarious exploration of the strange lives of our bodies postmortem. For two thousand years, cadavers -- some willing, some unwittingly -- have been involved in science's boldest strides and weirdest undertakings. In this fascinating account, Mary Roach visits the good deeds of cadavers over the centuries and tells the engrossing story of our bodies when we are no longer with them."

Review:

The above book blurb describes Stiff the way I would: it's (mostly) interesting and always informative, with some laugh-out loud (but respectful) quips. Like Bonk: The Curious Coupling of Science and Sex, it's a standout -- in a good way -- book.

My only quibble about Stiff is that certain chapters held no fascination for me, namely: "Dead Man Driving" (where Roach writes about car companies using corpses to measure the effect of car crashes on human bodies); "The Cadaver Who Joined the Army" (where Roach reveals U.S. military ballistics testing on corpses); and portions of "Holy Cadaver" (where Roach talks about historical medical and religious professionals who, among other things, have sought the physical location of man's fictional "soul"). Bear in mind this minor complaint is a reflection of my lack of interest in these subjects; Roach, in order to be thorough and reflect the interests of other readers, practically had to include these bits. (I only mention this personal quibble so certain readers who share my reading tastes may be forewarned.)

This is a memorable and informative read -- definitely worth owning.

Bonk: The Curious Coupling of Science and Sex, by Mary Roach

(hb; 2008: science/non-fiction)

From the inside flap:

"The study of sexual physiology -- what happens, and why, and how to make it happen better -- has been a paying career or a diverting sideline for scientists as far-ranging as Leonardo da Vinci and James Watson. The research has taken place beind the closed doors of laboratories, brothels, MRI centers, pig farms, sexy toy R&D labs, and Alfred Kinsey's attic.

"Mary Roach. . . devoted the past two years to stepping behind these doors. Can a person think herself to orgasm? Can a dead man get an erection? Is vaginal orgasm a myth? Why doesn't Viagra help women -- or, for that matter, pandas? In Bonk, Roach shows how and why sexual arousal and orgasm -- two of the most complex, delightful, and amazing scientific phenomena on earth -- can be so hard to achieve and what science is doing to slowly make the bedroom a more satisfying place."


Review:

Wry, informative, oh-so-quirky: Roach delves into the world of sexual research (less titillating than one might think), chronicling unexpected -- sometimes disconcerting -- results, social approbation (towards the researchers) over the centuries and decades, and the often unintentionally hilarious situations that come about. Roach is scientific, yet her writing is approachable for those outside the medical/scientific community.

Bonk is worth your time, this. Check it out.