A Feast of Science

I like the premise of the book.  He's taking science issues that are part of everyday life and really breaking them down to be understood and properly digested...as opposed to some of the news media and 'science' gurus who take the same issues, extract the pieces that suit their purpose, and repackage them in a distorted way.  While I must admit that there were a few places where I disagreed with the author, I am willing to concede the possibility of placebo effect being a potential cause.  This is not a book for uber-alternative health people...though maybe it should be read by them.  I'm into alternative health, and learning multiple ways of approaching health, but try to do so with an open mind.  And then there were just some stories that fascinated me....like the McDonald's coffee....I had NO IDEA that was the true story.  None.

A series of information bytes: the author takes a myth or deception currently floating around (soap cures restless legs, latest miracle supplement cures cancer, etc.), and picks it apart from a reductionist scientific background. If more people would think this way, we'd see fewer rumors floating around online these days!

The thought behind this book is important—think through what you're reading before you believe it—but the organization is pretty random and there is no continuity. It felt a little like browsing through a blog or related sound bytes on the radio. The concepts and explanations are interesting, but so little time is spent on each that I'm not sure a real believer could ever be convinced of the wrongness of their favorite quackery.

As both a tea blogger and someone with physical disabilities, I am constantly bombarded with outlandish claims on how everything is either a miracle drug or is going to kill me gruesomely, with very little (or a gross misunderstanding of) science involved in these claims. It drives me more than a little crazy. This book brings the science to combat various claims (my favorite, of course, was the guy who was convinced fish genes were in tomatoes) that fear-monger. 

This book reads very easily, with a casual tone similar to a personal blog, my only complaint stems from that. If you are reading a (well constructed) blog they usually have a way of navigating the content, and sadly this book is very unorganized. I loved the tone and subject matter but the lack of consistent organization made my eye twitch. Even with that complaint I definitely recommend reading this book, if you are a person who thinks Dr Oz is a miracle worker or want to scream every time someone tells you tea will cure cancer, this book will either educate you or feel more than a little refreshing.

4 stars
Why didn't I know about Dr. Schwarcz before? I love the no nonsense approach to scientific or not so scientific claims from this fellow Canadian! This book offers very interesting tidbits on a variety of subjects, most of them health related, that all link back to chemistry.

The book wasn't organized into sections - it just jumped from one subject to the next, with each new piece prefaced by a title. I can't say I minded the format as each topic was quite interesting and well delivered. You can tell that this is not the author's first book. It is very well written and unlike other popular science books I've read lately, it inserts some humour without being awkward. It was very informative and confirmed I had the right ideas about food and unnecessary scares and concerns.