Errores Geniales Que Cambiaron El Mundo (2013) - Plot & Excerpts
There was a lot in this book that I didn't understand, my mind is not wired as scientifically as others might be, but I enjoyed the process the author took me through -- that of seeing how mistakes can actually lead to better understanding. In his "coda" to the book he states "the blunders of genius are often indeed the portals of discovery." That kind of sums up the book to me. He leaves the door open, as do all good scientists I believe, for the future, when more observations and "facts" as we are able to find them out, can change what we now hold sacred in the world of observable truth. I like this concept, that our journey of discovery is never at an end, and we can continue to understand ourselves and the world around us. I picked up this book after finishing one by Bill Bryson and this is certainly a let down compared to that. The writer tries to be breezy but ends up being tedious. You have to roll your eyes at some sentences. ("Maybe we shouldn't be too surprised, given the rather questionable record of Pliny the Elder: Many of his scientific claims turned out to be false!") The writer also has a propensity for (irrelevant) tangents and a penchant for stating the obvious ("Even in terms of the properties that are easiest to discern, organisms on Earth differ in size, shape, habitat, food, and capabilities.")The book has problems with content as well as style. For instance, Darwin's "blunder" was that his theory of natural selection was not compatible with the prevailing theory of how hereditary traits were passed down (which Darwin had misgivings about anyway). Given that Darwin's theory was right and the other wrong, this hardly feels like a mistake.Rather than describing mistakes that led to breakthroughs (as the book purports to do), this just feels like nitpicking. Obviously scientists make mistakes; that is the nature of experimentation. I'm not sure what the point here is in pointing them out.
What do You think about Errores Geniales Que Cambiaron El Mundo (2013)?
Thank you Stephen Colbert for having Mario on in order your show! Enjoyed this immensely.
—RileyKeys
3.5, rounded up cause I'm feeling nice. some very good points on human fallibility.
—izolde
Ditched this one. I found the writing style dense without being interesting.
—lano18
Can get too nerdy at times but all in all great read!
—bookgrl16
Tons of information imparted in a very boring manner.
—Shuggapple
