The Ten Most Beautiful Experiments (Abridged) Audiobook

" A few of these chapters are great. The experiment is clearly described and there are just enough personal details to keep things interesting without overwhelming the science. But I found many of these experiments to be unclear and/or overly focused on unimportant personal details. A recommended read for the interesting experiments, but could have been better. "

" The back story of famous experiments, complete with illustrations from the scientists. "

" A fun, quick read, but not really written very well. I should have possibly given it a lower rating, but the experiments are well chosen and fun. The drawings/diagrams and explanations are somewhat tedious and ultimately not that informative, the historical background is randomly anecdotal (not germane) and sometimes irritatingly speculative. In the final experiment, the author includes information about his own attempt to recreate the Millikan oil drop experiment (mass and charge of the electron.) The digression is somewhat interesting (I would love to visit that store in New Mexico that sells all of the old Manhattan Project equipment,) but it is inconsistent with the rest of the book and therefore confusing. "

" From Galileo to Millikan, Johnson does a lovely job of summarizing some of the greatest minds of science. A quick read that even the less science-minded individual will find pleasurable. "

" Eh, just OK. I enjoy history of science and I feel I might understand some basic concepts a little bit better now, but I expected to gain much more insight from the book. "

" Fun, quick read through some of the most insightful discoveries of science. Cormac McCarthy helped proof it! "

" Easy and fun - makes obvious the tumult and excitement that is very real in the history of science but what journalists have the hardest time getting across. A great teaching tool I suppose. "

" Experiments by famous scientists when they experienced the "ah-ha" of understanding. Much of the science is too densely written for my understanding, but there were enough side stories of families, friends and the times to hold my interest. "

" Great images: Galileo singing as he invented physics, dissected frog legs hopping when lightning stuck etc. Made me appreciate the genius of early scientists. "

" Terrific book. Will make you nostalgic for science again. "

" Thoroughly enjoyed the science history lesson. "

" Some of the later apparatuses could have used better descriptions with the visuals to help get the idea across. Other than that the book was a fun, quick read. "

" Quite enjoyable if not terribly compelling. Much about the personalities and too little about the methods. Wish the audiobook had not been abridged. "

" I like that it is accessible and a quick read. "

" I loved it, but then I am a scientist. So happy to see that Michelson-Morley made the cut! "

" Very interesting and informative. Each of these scientists is well known and most of the experiments are familiar, but this book brings out many details that helped me better understand just how brilliant these people were given the level of scientific knowledge at their respective time periods. "

" Very short vignettes of important discoveries in early science and the history behind the science. Written for the non-scientist, it is easy to read and a great piece of history. "

" Very easy read. I would have liked more detail. "

" Terrific book. Will make you nostalgic for science again. "

" A pretty good popular science book; the author defines "beautiful" as elegant and/or displaying an admirably original train of scientific thought. Even thought I don't know a whole lot about science I was surprised by how few of the experiments he chose I'd heard of. "