Science Friction - by Michael Shermer (Paperback)

About the Book

In each of these 14 essays, the author, a psychologist and science historian, explores the very personal barriers and biases that plague and propel science, especially when scientists push against the unknown.

Book Synopsis

"Michael Shermer has given a lot of things a lot of thought. If your perceptions have ever rubbed you the wrong way, you'll find Science Friction fascinating." --Bill Nye, The Science Guy

A scientist pretends to be a psychic for a day--and fools everyone. An athlete discovers that good-luck rituals and getting into "the zone" may, or may not, improve his performance. A son explores the possiblities of alternative and experimental medicine for his cancer-ravaged mother. And a skeptic realizes that it is time to turn the skeptical lens onto science itself.
In each of the fourteen essays in Science Friction, bestselling author Michael Shermer explores the very personal barriers and biases that plague and propel science, especially when scientists push against the unknown. What do we know and what do we not know? How does science respond to controversy, attack, and uncertainty? When does theory become accepted fact? As always, Shermer delivers a thought-provoking, fascinating, and entertaining view of life in the scientific age.

"Meaty accounts [and] entertaining discussion . . . well worth having." --The Washington Post Book World

"[Shermer's] main obsession is the truth . . . Amateur skeptics will learn from his matter-of-fact dismissals of astrology and creationism." --Psychology Today

"Extremely entertaining." --Science News

Review Quotes

"A seeker who has found the best answers he can find in skepticism and a purely rational approach to life."

About the Author

Michael Shermer is the author of The Believing Brain, Why People Believe Weird Things, The Science of Good and Evil, The Mind Of The Market, Why Darwin Matters, Science Friction, How We Believe and other books on the evolution of human beliefs and behavior. He is the founding publisher of Skeptic magazine, the editor of Skeptic.com, a monthly columnist for Scientific American, and an adjunct professor at Claremont Graduate University. He lives in Southern California.