Peter J. Bentley (1) (1972–)

Ever wondered how adhesives and dyes work? How diesel and petrol engines work? Why do we get swellings, broken bones, blisters and a myriad of other questions?

The Undercover Scientist by Peter Bentley attempts to address the underlying science behind everyday workings through a day in the life of an extremely unlucky individual. The problems described are extremely varied, but the underlying science is sound and well cited. Unfortunately, the level of science is fairly varied, ranging from interesting explanations of lightning to mundane gravity. I appreciate that it is targeted at the non scientist, but the decision to force the events into a fictional day mean that there is little order to the grouping of the problems. There is an index, but I am hardly going to use this as a reference - the contents is useless since each chapter title is not particularly informative as to the matters discussed.

A fairly short and mildly entertaining read, but not challenging or interesting enough to recommend.… (más)

I really enjoy quirky science texts, which is probably why Goodreads recommended this one to me. Using a storyteller's perspective, Dr. Bentley finds a way to share some interesting science by going through the worst possible day in an average person's life.

Each chapter tells part of Average's life, then something goes horribly wrong, then we get the scientific explanation of why that thing went wrong. Topics range from slipping on the soap, to why water heated in the microwave might unexpectedly explode, to the science of a rainy day; Bentley presents some fascinating science using a conversational style that will keep anyone interested.

Also included in the back is an abridged bibliography for anyone interested in reading further. To keep the list from getting too long in the book, Bentley hosts the full list on his website. He also makes himself available to correction on any of his science in the acknowledgements, which is a nice touch.… (más)