This book is amazing! It corrects things you thought you KNEW but were wrong...Things you don't really even think about, Like why the sky is blue. Philip Plait does it in a humorous way. I LOVE PHILIP PLAIT! I listen to The Skeptics Guide to the Universe and get excited when the rogues interview him! YAY!

I am amazed by all these five star reviews.

I admit the subject matter is very interesting and so I picked up the book. I was,however, astounded by the verboseness of the exaplanations. Maybe the book is meant for readers with little or no background in science, I do not know.

Take for example, the chapter on tides. A simple explanation would be that the centrifugal force acting on the far side of the earth causes tides on that side, whereas moon's gravity tugging at earth produces the same effect on the near side. Instead, the author goes on a tangent, introducing extraneous topics like negative gravity and weightlessness.

Two stars for the briiliant idea behind the book, but nothing else.

Not recommended.

PERSPECTIVE: physician with an interest in astronomy



It's interesting to look at the American educational system to see exactly how much basic astronomy and space science is not taught, or at least, not taught well. Asking the average person to explain why we have tides or why the sky is blue is bound to elicit answers that vary from the slightly off to the ridiculous. One could argue that having a grasp on these most basic of "why's" isn't needed for our daily lives to proceed - the truth is, its embarrassing how much many people not only don't know, but also don't care, about how our planet and our solar system really work... and then easily believe frankly inane "ideas" such as how Venus split off from Jupiter 3,000 years ago, or that the Apollo moon landings were a hoax.



Like Sagan and Gould before him, Phil Plait has the amazing gift of being able to easily explain potentially confusing scientific concepts with such simplicity and wit that anyone, regardless of their level of education, can understand them. His writing is easy and conversational, and this book is a joy to read. He enhances some points with a modest number of clear illustrations. Furthermore, he is very forthright about where he himself has been wrong in the past, and is more than eager to explain why - an important trait notably missing from the non-scientists whose work he discusses.



Topics covered include misconceptions concerning the earth itself (balancing eggs on the equinox), the solar system (tides, seasons, moon phases), and the galaxy (star observations, meteorites, planetary alignments), as well as non-scientific errors, both deliberate and sincere (moon landing hoax, astrology, creationism), and common astronomical fallacies in movies.



FINAL WORD: A HIGH five of five stars. Necessary for everyone (and I mean everyone) to read, and doubly so for educators from early grade school to post-graduate level.

PERSPECTIVE: physician with an interest in astronomy

It's interesting to look at the American educational system to see exactly how much basic astronomy and space science is not taught, or at least, not taught well. Asking the average person to explain why we have tides or why the sky is blue is bound to elicit answers that vary from the slightly off to the ridiculous. One could argue that having a grasp on these most basic of "why's" isn't needed for our daily lives to proceed - the truth is, its embarrassing how much many people not only don't know, but also don't care, about how our planet and our solar system really work... and then easily believe frankly inane "ideas" such as how Venus split off from Jupiter 3,000 years ago, or that the Apollo moon landings were a hoax.

Like Sagan and Gould before him, Phil Plait has the amazing gift of being able to easily explain potentially confusing scientific concepts with such simplicity and wit that anyone, regardless of their level of education, can understand them. His writing is easy and conversational, and this book is a joy to read. He enhances some points with a modest number of clear illustrations. Furthermore, he is very forthright about where he himself has been wrong in the past, and is more than eager to explain why - an important trait notably missing from the non-scientists whose work he discusses.

Topics covered include misconceptions concerning the earth itself (balancing eggs on the equinox), the solar system (tides, seasons, moon phases), and the galaxy (star observations, meteorites, planetary alignments), as well as non-scientific errors, both deliberate and sincere (moon landing hoax, astrology, creationism), and common astronomical fallacies in movies.

FINAL WORD: A HIGH five of five stars. Necessary for everyone (and I mean everyone) to read, and doubly so for educators from early grade school to post-graduate level.

I bought this book for my 14 year-old nephew. I wanted to preview it for my 9 year-old daughter. In flipping through I did find one expletive on page 103 (opening sentence to chapter 11), but the story is funny, so I will just black it out. I think some of the chapters would lose my daughter in comprehension. I'll wait a couple of years for her copy.
Here is an except from the final paragraph of chapter 8: "Finally, in this section we'll travel back in time and space to where it all began, the Big Bang. Something about contemplating the beginning of everything twists our already tangled minds, and descriptions of the Big Bang usually confuse the issue more than unravel it. The irony of the Big Bang, I suppose, is that it is even odder than our oddest theories could possibly suppose."

Oh my!land sakes the flag moves! What does it all mean? Maybe the moon really does have an atmosphere, but we didnt find out for sure until we actually landed got out put up the flag and low and behold, a breeze made the flag flap! Does this mean that we didnt go to the moon? No what it means is that sometimes just because we have a theory about something regardless of what it is, does not mean that our theory was right to begin with. Sometimes our professionals leading the charge dont want to admit that they were wrong about something, so they just leave us to believe the original theory even if their theory turns out to be wrong. As far as the moonhoax promoters go, put up or shut up. There's an obscure piece of moon jumping footage that is hard to find, but it is out there that is from the apollo 11 moon landing. When Neil Armstrong goes to get back in the lem, he stands flat footed on the lem pad grabs the ladder with both hands, bends his knees and jumps straight up and lands on the 3rd step which is about 4 1/2 feet above the lem pad. The greatest recorded vertical jumps in the last century were only 42 an 44 inches. get out your messuring tapes right now and do a standing vertical leap and see how high you get. Now after you do that put a back pack on that weighs about 75 pounds. Now put 25 pound ankle weights on, 1 for each ankle. now your ready to try and duplicate Neil Armstrongs "1 giant leap" if you or maybe the great "AIR JORDAN" cant get as high as Neil did, "54" inches, then maybe its time to accept the fact that "YES "we did go to the moon, now GET OVER IT! OH while you still have the back pack and leg weights on, try and duplicate John Youngs "JUMP SALUTE" just the way he did it, with only just slightly bending the knees. He got about 18 or so inches off the lunar surface. If you cant duplicate these jumps or cant find a basketball player or a high jumper to get anywhere close to Neil Armstrongs "54 inch" vertical jump, thens its time to close the books on the moon hoax theory, because we did indeed go to the moon, but they found out that the moon was already occupied and the astronauts were not well received. This is why we've never gone back to the moon and thats what all the cover up is really all about. Yes there is life out there and our closest neighbors are not light years away, but are right up there on the moon not wanting any part of our violent behavior to influence their world in any way. So we were told to get off the moon and dont came back. WARD FRAZIER U.S. ARMY PROJECT M.A.R.S MINDCONTROL SURVIVOR 1984-1986 GREENSBURG INDIANA.

I bought this book expecting to read the usual stuff about why some people think that the moon landing was a hoax and how astrology doesnt really work (as explained on the cover). But i was suprised to learn about so many things that I actually thought really did exist in the world of astronomy. I really did think that the water spun in a different direction in australia, and that the sky was blue because thats what a lot of oxygen looks like and many other things that turned out not to be true. Many times i thought "oh what! that isnt real!?"

There is also a nice section that takes delivers a blow to the creationists and their wacko claims.

I highly reccomend this book to anyone curious about astronomy and anyone that wishes to learn about all the ailment of bad astronomy that you never knew you suffered from.

I bought this book expecting to read the usual stuff about why some people think that the moon landing was a hoax and how astrology doesnt really work (as explained on the cover). But i was suprised to learn about so many things that I actually thought really did exist in the world of astronomy. I really did think that the water spun in a different direction in australia, and that the sky was blue because thats what a lot of oxygen looks like and many other things that turned out not to be true. Many times i thought "oh what! that isnt real!?"

There is also a nice section that takes delivers a blow to the creationists and their wacko claims.

I highly reccomend this book to anyone curious about astronomy and anyone that wishes to learn about all the ailment of bad astronomy that you never knew you suffered from.

The average American knows more about what Julia Roberts eats for breakfast than what the Coriolis effect is, and Dr. Plait thinks that should change. I think this book should be mandatory reading for anyone remotely interested in astronomy and/or science fiction. His website is just as informative.

As long as Plait limits himself to topics he actually understands this book has some use. He clearly doesn't understand astrology so his attempts to debunk it in terms of Astronomy are laughable. Astrology gave birth to Astronomy not the other way around. So he should be a little more respectful. Instead he basically ignores the fact that Astrology actually does work, and has worked for countless millenia, for people the world over! Of course Newtonian Astronomy tells him it can't work, so this of course must be so. Wrong! Astrology and Astronomy deal in two completely different ways of understanding the heavenly bodies, so a modern Astronomer is the least qualified to explain Astrology in any way shape or form.

As far as the Apollo hoax is concerned he again follows the politically correct route. Insisting that the Apollo Hoax crowd is wrong! Plait relies upon the standard NASA "proofs" to "prove" Apollo was real, instead of looking at the facts of the case objectively. Regardless of Plait's and NASA's assurances to the contrary, the fact that today NASA doesn't even know how to do a moon mission is a strong indication that something was seriously wrong with Apollo at the very least. How is this possible, if Apollo actually solved all the monumental technological and scientific problems blocking manned lunar missions over thirty years ago? The post Apollo space program is basically limited to missions operating at the relative level of Project Gemini. Why? Apollo should have been the stepping stone to more advanced lunar missions at the very least! It was not, and if Apollo was genuine, there's no valid explanation for NASA's current incompetence in manned lunar missions! In fact Apollo should have made manned lunar missions easier to do today, not more difficult! The fact that NASA has "dumbed downed" the post Apollo space program rather than build upon its alleged Apollo achievements proves more than any other "proof" to the contrary, that Apollo was a massive hoax!

As long as Plait limits himself to topics he actually understands this book has some use. He clearly doesn't understand astrology so his attempts to debunk it in terms of Astronomy are laughable. Astrology gave birth to Astronomy not the other way around. So he should be a little more respectful. Instead he basically ignores the fact that Astrology actually does work, and has worked for countless millenia, for people the world over! Of course Newtonian Astronomy tells him it can't work, so this of course must be so. Wrong! Astrology and Astronomy deal in two completely different ways of understanding the heavenly bodies, so a modern Astronomer is the least qualified to explain Astrology in any way shape or form.

As far as the Apollo hoax is concerned he again follows the politically correct route. Insisting that the Apollo Hoax crowd is wrong! Plait relies upon the standard NASA "proofs" to "prove" Apollo was real, instead of looking at the facts of the case objectively. Regardless of Plait's and NASA's assurances to the contrary, the fact that today NASA doesn't even know how to do a moon mission is a strong indication that something was seriously wrong with Apollo at the very least. How is this possible, if Apollo actually solved all the monumental technological and scientific problems blocking manned lunar missions over thirty years ago? The post Apollo space program is basically limited to missions operating at the relative level of Project Gemini. Why? Apollo should have been the stepping stone to more advanced lunar missions at the very least! It was not, and if Apollo was genuine, there's no valid explanation for NASA's current incompetence in manned lunar missions! In fact Apollo should have made manned lunar missions easier to do today, not more difficult! The fact that NASA has "dumbed downed" the post Apollo space program rather than build upon its alleged Apollo achievements proves more than any other "proof" to the contrary, that Apollo was a massive hoax!

I have to say the book isn't too bad. Mr Plait seems like a genuinely likeable guy, he definitely knows his stuff, plus I've learnt a lot of things from this book. My criticisms definitely don't lie in the accuracy of the factual content of the book.

(Of small importance since I'm from Australia)I have to say that this book is definitely more relevant for people in North America? He deals with egg-balancing at the equinox (something I'd never heard of)and also always refers to the Northern Hemishere in his explanations.

However my main issue is that I don't like is his style of writing. I understand that he is trying to make the book accessible for everyone...and while I think he explains the topics of interest very well...his style seems childish and his 'wit' feels forced, (especially at the end of each chapter) is definitely un-funny...and is at times *groan* inducing. Again...maybe this is more to American taste.

Another thing I would have liked to have seen more of is more debunking of the Apollo/Moon hoax...for example...a huge (but pathetic) argument of moon-hoax supporters is the fact that the flag moves...I would have liked to at least seen that covered (I do realise he covers that in his website).

My edition also had a lot of spelling errors.

Great overview of common misconceptions and deliberate hoaxes in the feild of astronomy. Doesn't require any prior knowledge of astronomy and reads well to both lay and amateur astronomers alike. Great place to start to learn about our astronomical surroundings and the why's of the sky. Everything from why the moon shows the same face all the time to why the sky is blue and how we really did go to the moon. Well written and a great sense of humor. Dr. Phil Plait does an excellent job.

I have not read "Bad Astronomy" yet, however, I did skim through the book. It is certainly uniquue in its content, very, informative and written to appeal to a broad readership. I ordered another copy for a friend who is a science teacher.

Specific instances of incorrect astronomical knowledge amongst regular people aren't really much to be concerned about. But just like in all other sciences, the general public displays a pattern of inaccurate belief in all sorts of misinformation, dogma, and unsupported speculations. Philip Plait is one of those rational-thinking scientists who is concerned about improving the public's scientific knowledge for practical reasons, not unlike Carl Sagan, and this book is overflowing with rebuttals against incorrect popular theories in astronomy. Plait debunks a few theories that don't really deserve that much effort unless you're writing an entertaining book, such as astrology and the crackpot theories of Immanuel Velikovsky. Plait also tends to nitpick sometimes, getting a bit huffy over news reports about the Hubble telescope taking "photographs" when it actually transmits digital images. But otherwise, this book is an entertaining exercise in tackling dogma, with brutal and hilarious denunciations of the Apollo Hoax conspiracy theory and the repeated errors of Hollywood sci-fi flicks, among other misperceptions. (Plait commends The Simpsons for its efforts in accurate astronomy, and my title for this review is a line from its sister show Futurama, which really takes both real science and fantasy science to outrageous lengths.) Although I consider myself a learned and rational thinker on these matters, even I was surprised by some of Plait's real answers in this book, especially when it comes to how the moon affects the tides and whether or not water really goes down the drain in the opposite direction if you're down under. [~doomsdayer520~]

I absolutely love this book. It offers lots of interesting information about space and astronomy. I particularly liked the chapters on meteors, UFOs, the moon landing, and the big bang theory. They grabbed my attention the most and I always wanted to read more rather than choking myself by reading the book. The books is fun to read and you do not need to have a background in the subject to enjoy it. This is the kind of book that I will read many times. This books is also great reference. After reading this book I realized that my high school teachers were teaching me bad science. I would reccomend this book to everyone - it's a must read. :)

A science book that is fun to read? The world must be ending!

+++++

Answer true or false to these ten statements:

1) The sky is blue because it reflects the blue color of the oceans.
2) The seasons are caused by the Earth's tilt.
3) The Moon's phases are due to the shadow of the Earth falling on the Moon.
4) The bright glow of a meteor is not caused by friction as it passes through the Earth's atmosphere.
5) There are no stars seen in Apollo Moon-landing pictures thus proving that these landings were staged.
6) The Hubble Space Telescope is bigger than all Earth-based telescopes.
7) Stars in the night sky do have color.
8) The Moon is bigger near the horizon than when it's overhead.
9) In the southern hemisphere, winters are much warmer than those in the northern hemisphere.
10) X-rays are emitted from the eclipsed sun but these X-rays do not damage your eyes if you look at the eclipsed sun.

If you answered true to any one of statements 1,3,5,6,8,9 or false to any one of statements 2,4,7,10, then you can use the help of this book to clear up your misconceptions!

This book, by Dr. Phillip Plait (creator of the bad astronomy internet site), corrects 24 common misconceptions of astronomical science. This book divides these misconceptions into five parts. All science is fully explained so the reader does not have to have extensive scientific knowledge. As well, there are diagrams and black-and-white photographs to aid the scientific discussions. Finally, there are recommended books and recommended internet sites for those who want to know more.

Part one explains three misconceptions that occur in the home. The second part deals with five misconceptions about the Earth and Moon. Part three unravels eight misconceptions regarding things in the night sky (such as stars, planets, and meteors). The fourth part is concerned with five bad explanations of various events (such as the Moon-landings and UFOs). Lastly, part five is a special section covering three astronomy topics (such as bad astronomy in the movies).

For those who have a science background (such as myself), don't feel tempted to skip a section because you feel you know the correct answer to a misconception. This is because each chapter contains much important detail. For me, I found that for those sections where I felt I knew the correct scientific answer, I still learned a lot because other interesting information was presented to enhance the discussion.

Finally, I did find an error in the UFO section. This section implies that no amateur astronomers have seen UFOs. Actually, the majority of amateur astronomers have not seen them but a small minority have seen them.

In conclusion, we are bombarded by bad science every day. In order to turn bad science into good science, you have to start reading good science books. This book is a good place to start!!

+++++

Finally, I found out why stars appear to twinkle while planets do not. As with most things in our universe, the reason was simple, logical, and yes...scientific. That also describes the tone of Phil Plait's book. It is a must read for anyone interested in learning how our world works and in defending oneself against disinformation.

I once saw a Harvard-produced video titled "Our Private Universe", which documented how tenaciously we cling to our incorrect beliefs. As one of the people in the documentary stated in defending his absurd understanding of how vision works, "My ideas make sense to me!" Dr. Plait's book will help nearly everyone move from their private universe of misconceptions learned by rote to the actual universe of scientific discovery and scrutiny.

In a time when clear thinking may save us all from real catastrophe, Bad Astronomy paves the way for anyone interested enough to invest a little time.

The book is a fun read, filled with wit and humor. I promise you will enjoy it.

...despite the fact that the author is an extremely poor poker player who never bluffs (successfully).

But nonetheless this is a good book. On second thought, I feel like the whole thing about his poker skills is not really relevant to the quality of the book. In fact I am sorry I brought it up. Really. Very sorry. So ignore that part. Just focus on the book, not the poker thing. Block it out of your mind, please.

He's not too good at black jack either. There I go again with the irrelevance...God, I gotta control myself.

I agree with most of the earlier reviewers: the author has a sense of humor. More, he has a sense of disgust at those who don't know what he does.

True, that can be entertaining. However, it some ways, it strikes me as a bit too smark alecky (Is that how you spell that?)

I too have fancied myself as an amateur astronomer for years. Some of the "trivia" in the book is okay, like the different between meteorite and meteoroid. Some is a little more incidental. That's where some gets a tad offensive: I've been critical of social scientists who act like they know something us peons without multiple letters after our name don't know. Plait comes across that way at times. "You idiots. You should know what I do!" True, some of that any non-idiot SHOULD know, so that makes up for the bulk of the sarcasm.

Then there's the moon hoax. In fact, that was my favorite section. Some questions of those who challenge the veracity of Apollo 11 and following--there are a few. I know one, for example--can, if you stretch, seem almost reasonable. Plait did a good job of answering them.

And his Hollywood section was particularly amusing. I could discount the filmmakers who show their spacecraft swooshing through the vacuum of space as naive or ill informed. But they should know a little before much of what they show. (That, in fact, is one of the reason I've always recommended Kubrick's "2001 : A Space Odyssey." When there was no medium, like air, to convey a sound in space, the film was, appropriately, silent!)

Overall it was a worthwhile book. I would recommend it to, say, persons interested in astronomy, space, or even science fiction. And I've already bookmarked Plait's bad astronomy web page. (Thanks Phil.) But to its weaknesses I've referred. Just don't let those discourage you from the book.

Albert Einstein is quoted as having said, "If we knew what we were doing, it wouldn't be research."

Of course, Albert Einstein is also purported to have won the Nobel Prize for his Theory of Relativity.

This is just one myth dispelled by "Bad Astronomy", by Phil Plait, a highly entertaining, thought-provoking, extraordinarily readable anthology of misconceptions about the oldest world's oldest science, Astronomy.

From reasons an egg will stand on end (if patiently balanced) even if it's not the Vernal Equinox to the phases of the moon, all is explained in the simplest of terms. One of the best is an explanation of how, during a wedding reception, Plait was able to relate the revolution of the moon around the earth to his daughter, as she stood on his feet while he danced with her (he was the earth, she was the moon) - after reading this, I demonstrated to my daughter, and (though she kept falling off from laughing) she understood as well as I. Further discussions of the moon and tides include diagrams which are simple and sensible - and eminently useful for teaching anyone who wants to learn.

Another misconception is the idea of seeing stars during the day, using as an example a child's prank of using "the tube" - down which another child (no doubt a prior victim) will pour water, dousing the unsuspecting child. Yet it is true that stars are sometimes visible as the sun sets, and that the moon and Venus are both visible in the blue sky. But can you sit at the bottom of a well at noon and see stars? Nope! Simple discussions of real experiments are presented, as well as the "findings" of a good friend of Plait's who insists it is possible. Plait is chagrined this man stands by this theory, yet as he is willing to accept, with the advent of research, perhaps someone will prove this concept true at some later date. It's doubtful, though!

The confusion Aristotle created with his theories of the geo-centric universe is also discussed; Aristotle's teachings are referenced without specifics, mentioned more because he refused to accept the facts of retrograde motion, disbelieving his own eyes. In truth, it is something of an anomaly to me: I cannot actually see it because my eyes work independently (results of bad surgery when I was pre-pubescent); I cannot focus nor can I judge distance. I have learned what retrograde motion is in scientific terms, and I accept it, but - and this is a failing many people have - I cannot actually see it, therefore, it is difficult for me to believe it strictly "on faith". Plait as usual employs simple examples to explain the concept, and while I still can't "see" the results, his explanation became the eye of the storm in my mind.

It's the type of book that stimulates my curiosity, something rare to me these days, as the world tumbles by, and I feel bombarded by more information than I could possibly use: information which, as proven in this text, is often incomplete - or completely wrong. Yet here I find myself alternately amused and fascinated by Plait's use of laymen's terms to discuss photons of light, gravity, seasons, and time. And yet, as I am inspired to learn more about the ever-changing science of astronomy, I recall the tales my mother told me, the same stories I pass on to my child, and I see the beauty of the errors taught to me. Romantic, yes, fun, and sometimes lessons are to be learned in the ancient (and erroneous) legends passed on through the ages; just as we learn and grow, even having the facts as they are presented by Plait, it's still nice to hear the version that sparks the imagination in so many fantastic ways.

By the way, in 1921, Einstein *did* win the Nobel Prize for his research on quantum theory - a mathematical form not Einstein's own, but first adapted by Max Planck.

Einstein was a wiseguy, though, well before his time. I'd be willing to bet the quote is accurate!

I taught astronomy, so I found this pretty basic, but it does debunk some of the hoaxes about astronomy. If you have not studied astronomy but are a curious person, the book will help you understand some concepts about which there is much misunderstanding.

As an amateur astronomer, I took great pleasure reading Philip Plait's "Bad Astronomy". The book handles the debunking of common myths with hysterical humor. I could not put the book down. Each chapter was entertaining.

Finally we have a text that not only puts the Coriolis Effect where it belongs but explains basic astronomy principles in lay terms. It is better than reading an astronomy textbook. Where else could you read about why skies are blue and why the earth has seasons than in this humorous tome.

Plait gets a little more serious as he talks about the more delicate subjects of the Apollo "hoax", Velikovsky, UFOs, and Astrology. This was appropriate since many people believe in these unscientific hypotheses. He approaches these subjects in a nonoffensive, objective and scientific manner.

Being a movie fan, I particularly enjoyed the chapter entitled: "Bad Astronomy Goes Hollywood." Here Plait unveils all of the Bad Astronomy we see every day in science fiction movies. In his list of Top 10 offenses, the Star Wars series is guilty of no less than 8 of them. That does not make Star Wars any less enjoyable, but it is fun to know the difference between science and Hollywood.

I give this book 5 stars. I think it would be entertaining for anyone with any interest in astronomy regardless of how much or how little they know about the subject matter.

Okay, so I know Phil Plait and he's for real. Phil is becoming the Carl Sagan of this generation. The book debunks all the non-sense that gets associated with astronomy, much of it through science fiction. How many times have you heard "They came from another Galaxy"? That makes as much sense as "Today I ate a mountain range." Just getting from one star to another boggles the imagination. Thank goodness there are people like Phil Plait around to keep the truth out front where we can appreciate it, and the real wonder - nature itself. It doesn't get any better than this.

This book is as entertaining and readable as the website of the same name. Highly recommended to all those who are interested in astronomy - and the lapses in critical thinking that many people (even some scientists) are prone to.

I have been a visitor to Phil's website for several years and anxiously awaited his book. It covers many of the same topics - debunking misconceptions - and in the same way... like having a knowledgeable friend sitting in the room with you discussing astronomy.

But, more important than my liking it was my college art student son's reaction. He saw the book sitting on the coffee table, picked it up and began reading. After about half an hour, he put it down and remarked, "Hey, that's really cool!"

(High school and college science teachers: This would be a great resource for you and your students. It addresses astronomy, but the thought processes are universally applicable.)

"Movies show space travel all the time, but they show it incorrectly, and so it doesn't surprise me that the majority of the viewing public has the wrong impression about how it really works.... The news media's job is to report the facts clearly, with as much accuracy as possible. Unfortunately, this isn't always the case.... I remember vividly watching the TODAY show on NBC in 1994. The Space Shuttle was in orbit, and was doing an experiment.... Anchor Matt Lauer was reporting on this experiment ... admitted he didn't understand what he had just said. Think about that for a moment: three of America's most famous journalists saying tacitly that it's okay to be ignorant about science. It isn't okay. In fact it's dangerous to be ignorant about science. Our lives and our livelihoods depend on it." (pp. 2-4)
After that promising start, Plait's next hundred pages drop to a level appropriate to junior high school in any country in which teaching is still legal, or first-year university in North America. The information dispensed is trivial, but readable and useful - to the degree that one finds it useful to know that sinks and toilets do NOT drain clockwise in one hemisphere and counter-clockwise in the other, and that anything that can be done with an egg on the vernal equinox, including balancing it on one end, can be accomplished just as easily any other day of the year. Persons whose knowledge of reality is more than minimal are urged to skip (or skim) the first thirteen chapters, and jump directly to "The Disaster That Wasn't," Plait's definitive debunking of the nonexistent "Jupiter Effect," that had cranks, humbugs and sincere fantasizers claiming that a planetary alignment could cause the destruction of planet earth. From that point on, this is a really good book.
For example, (p. 153): "People believe weird things. There are people who believe the earth is 6,000 yers old. Some people believe that others can talk to the dead, that a horoscope can accurately guide your day, and that aliens are abducting as many as 800,000 people a year. I believe weird things, too. I believe that a star can collapse, disappearing from the universe altogether.... So what's the difference? Why do I think it's wrong to believe that the earth is young when I believe things I've never seen? It's because I have evidence for my beliefs. I can point to well-documented, rational, reproducible observations and experiments that bolster my confidence in my conclusions."
And on page 154: "Odds are that you believe NASA sent men to the moon. So why devote a whole chapter to the minority that doesn't? There are several reasons. The most important is to simply provide a rational and reasoned voice when such a voice is hard to find." That may not seem like much of a reason to anyone unfamiliar with Immanuel Velikovsky. But scholars' refusal to dignify Velikovsky's mushroom fantasies with rebuttals (until they did) led people to wonder if perhaps they could not be rebutted. I have never met anyone who thinks the moon landing was a hoax. But the theory has been raised, and without a Plait to demolish it, it could conceivably start to be taken seriously. That now seems less likely than it did before.
In his otherwise excellent chapter on Velikovsky, Plait states (p. 182), "The Hebrew calendar, still going strong after 5,800 years...." The idea that the Hebrew calendar, which indeed dates Creation about 5,800 years ago, existed any earlier than the oldest biblical writings, is as "utterly and obviously wrong" as the nonsense Plait is rebutting. Fortunately, that one credulous paragraph does not weaken the chapter's effectiveness.
After berating Hollywood's bad astronomy for placing profits and ratings ahead of accuracy (Gene Roddenberry's desire to have the Enterprise move silently through the vacuum of space, instead of "whooshing" as it would do in an atmosphere, was vetoed by the network), Plait writes (p. 257), "Do I really hate Hollywood movies? ARMAGEDDON notwithstanding, no I don't. I like science fiction. I still see every sci-fi movie that comes out.... If movies spark an interest in science in some kid somewhere that's wonderful. Even a bad movie might make a kid stop and look at a science book in a library, or want to read about lasers, or asteroids, or the real possibility of alien life. Who knows where that might lead?"
No argument from me.
So why not a perfect five-star rating? For the book's primary market, twelve-to-twenty-year-olds and all adults who have never seen the inside of a university, it deserves exactly that. But overall, the excessive trivia content reduces the book's value - slightly.

This book is very well written and very entertaining. I was mistaught about the Coriolis effect and how water drains differently in the northern and southern hemispheres in elementary school and did not have this corrected until recently. The author's explanation of the tides is the very best that I have read (except for one thing: Hey Phil, how come there is only one high tide and one low tide per day along the Gulf Coast?). The chapter on astronomy in the movies was a lot of fun to read. This book is popular science at its very best.

Misconceptions creep into the science of astronomy perhaps more than any other science. Surveys have found that even college graduates carry persistent misconceptions or even wildly incorrect ideas about the phases of the moon or the cause of the seasons.

For the past several years, astronomer Phil Plait has been battling these misconceptions, as well as the flood of just plain bad astronomy (hence the name). Plait's web site has built a loyal following, and I have been a frequent visitor there almost since its inception. For people like me, the book "Bad Astronomy" is a logical extension of the web site. For newcomers, it will be a welcome addition to your libraries.

In addition to chapters on lunar phases and the cause of the seasons, Plait adds a detailed (and fairly technical) account of tides, the coriolis effect (as applied to toilet bowl water rotation), why the sky is blue, the moon size illusion, and many, many others.

Digging a little deeper into the "current issues" genre, Plait also tackles Velikovsky, UFOs, creationism and astrology. His writing is very clear and should be accessible to anybody interested in science and the battle against pseudoscientific nonsense.

Regular visitors to the web site will be familiar with Plait's crusade against those who persist in believing that the Apollo moon landings were faked. Plait's site led the charge against this nonsense, and he includes a treatment of the topic in his book as well.

Bad Astronomy is lightly illustrated with a mix of schematic drawings (to illustrate for example, tides or the moon size illusion) and black and white photographs. Some of the chapters could certainly have benefitted from more lavish illustrations, and perhaps even some color plates (the chapter on the Apollo "hoax," for example, needed some additional photos to help dispel the most common objections). However, the format of the book (paperback) and the expense (between $11 and $14) dictated the conservative approach, I'm sure.

The chapters are well balanced in size. With a topic per chapter, and 24 chapters totalling 257 pages, you won't find an indepth treatment of any of these topics, but enough to surely whet your appetite. He also provides recommendations for additional reading, both book and WWW, in an appendix.

In the larger context of "defense of science" writings, Plait joins other such notables as Carl Sagan, Martin Gardner, Robert Park, Stephen Jay Gould, and Michael Shermer. Plait's contribution is a welcome one, and he is poised to take his place as a defender against bad science.

This is such a fun book. You can pick any chapter at random and learn a ton about good science. There are numerous topics: Why the Sky is Blue, Velikovsky, UFOs, Planetary Alignment, you name it. If it is popular astronomy, it is covered here.

The text doesn't require prior knowledge or a scientific background. Plait educates as well as debunks. Even if you normally resist science, you will find this book entertaining and educational.

Highly recommended!

I had the pleasure of chatting with the author both before and after a talk he presented in Sarasota, FL. He's an engaging speaker... he does NOT speak down to his audience, and his writing style is similar.

This is NOT too technical a work for the layperson. Plait is a 'regular guy' who just happens to have a PhD in Astronomy. (Well, he worked at it long and hard, to be sure, but neither his writing nor his public image convey any sort of 'uppity,' I'm-better-than-you attitude that SOME in academia suffer from.)

That being said, the book was entertaining to read and I certainly learned a few things while reading it.

Whether you've just recently developed an interest in astronomy, been an amateur or armchair observer for decades, or you've seen the Fox TV show claiming the moon landing was faked --then please, pick up a copy of this book!

I'm looking forward to seeing what else Dr. Plait has in store!

This book should be a compulsory read for anyone even remotely interested in astronomy. Sort of a "set the record straight" book, done with knowledge and wit. Fun, enjoyable and easily understandable even for amateur-amateur-would-be-amateur- astronomers like me.
And me and my big mouth were caught too : I was a firm believer of the Coriolis effect in the sink until a few days ago...
Thanks Mr. Plait

This book is a must read for everyone interested in the world around us. Unfortunately, the science education in schools today is low and you have people with Master Degrees believing in creationism, astrology, you name it. This should be required reading for every educated person. It is one thing that my aunt from the village believes some of these things, but when educated people living in megalopolises believe them, I think we need more books like Dr. Plait's. One of my favorite aspects of the book was Dr. Plaits's examination of the moon hoax from the political perspective. Basically, even if you ignore all the data and assume this WAS a hoax, would the Soviet scientists let it go like that? That would have been the biggest blow they could summon against western imperialism. Excellent, excellent, excellent. If you can read, read this book. And read it twice. And then read it again. Or you can buy a book on Feng Shui and rearrange your house so that the cosmic hypervibrations resonate with the upper gudaline of your karmic spot for a quantum healing via a mind meld with a shape shifting Illuminati alien reptile
predicting an astral voyage to Shirley McLane's 35,000 year old ex cousin's sister in law who can do voodoo via Byzantine coffee grounds while chanting to stop the pain of the tomatoes that you cut for your salad 3200 years while runaway planets were raining hydrocarbonic carbohydrates.

It takes a great skill to be able to write about complex scientific principles and make them seem fun and understandable to the average reader. Philip Plait has done this remarkably well. I'm sure there are one or two misconceptions that you may currently hold that will be corrected by this book. I know this was definitely the case for me. I recommend this book to anyone who has even a passing interest in astronomy.

This is an excellent book, written in a clear, witty and educative fashion. It doesn't preach or patronise and it manages to definitively sink some of the ignorance and hoaxes
that create "Bad" astronomy. The author, Phil Plait, is the creator of the Bad Astronomy website, where he covers some of the material found in the book. He manages to remain calm and reasonable in dealings with some of the net's less rational individuals, and this approach serves well in his book.
I would recommend this book to anyone interested in astronomy, critical thinking or science in general.

Plait has put together a must-read book for anybody interested in astronomy or anybody tired of seeing fiction put forth as fact. He has accomplished two important things with this book. First, he has corrected some of the most common everyday mistakes. This alone would make the book worth reading. But he also goes beyond that to tackle the pseudoscientists and others who claim astrology is real, the moon landing was a hoax, and similar nonsense. Alas, most people who believe in astrology will probably never pick up his book -- but they SHOULD. And anybody who ever thought "maybe this is real" should read it from cover to cover.

Philip Plait, whose professional credits in Astronomy include work on a camera for the Hubble Space Telescope, has turned his passion and his pet peeves into an irresistible book.

Plait, who runs the web site BadAstronomy.com, writes in a lighthearted, conversational tone that won't put off those with science or math phobias, yet with enough clarity and precision that technically savvy folks won't find any reason to gripe. He takes on a double-dozen popular misconceptions about the universe we live in, from the cause of the seasons to the Apollo lunar hoax conspiracy theorists.

With this sharp volume, Phil Plait steps into the oversize shoes of another astronomer who became a top-notch popularizer. I think Dr. Sagan would have enjoyed this book.

The book is most impressive. I never travel anywhere without it by my side. Philip Plait is indeed the Master...

This book sets the record straight. I never realized all the misconceptions about astronomy. In these pages, you'll learn the real truth behind the hoaxes, and the range of subjects is broad. From tides, to stars, to eclipses, this book is a fun and witty read for anyone who loves science, or even astronomy.

This book is a must-have for anyone even remotely interested in astronomy. Or, even if you don't like astronomy, but you use terms like "light-years apart" or "dark side of the moon," you'll find the right answers all here. The author has a lucid, humorous writing style that entertains as it teaches. Popular science at its best!