Zapped

‘A fascinating and entertaining book for anyone curious about the seen and unseen world of electromagnetism.’

* BBC Sky at Night *

‘A rip-roaring ride along the electromagnetic highway. Inspiring and insightful.’

-- Colin Stuart, author of The Big Questions in Science

‘The narrative is briskly conversational: we’re on the porch, shooting the breeze with a knowledgeable neighbour. Mr. Berman’s avowed goal in writing this book, he says, was “to open a window onto the enormous universe of omnipresent energies”. Once that window is thrown open, it is hard to look at the world the same way.’

* Wall Street Journal *

‘Nimbly busts common myths… Erudite but never stuffy, Berman writes with enthusiasm and clarity, making this an informative and digestible read for the science-curious.’

* Booklist *

‘Captivating…fear not the long-winded scientific discourse: Berman zings through historical and scientific adventures.’

* American Scholar *

‘[Berman is] an unfailingly congenial explainer, always ready with the kinds of fascinating facts his readers might have missed in school.’

* Christian Science Monitor *

‘An enthusiastic account… deftly separates fact from myths about cell-phones, brain scans, and other sources of radiation.’

* Kirkus *

‘Astronomy writer Berman runs through a fascinating history of the rainbow’s invisible bands in this breezy, accessible read... In the style of a favorite professor, Berman injects bits of odd humor and captivating tangents into this complex but familiar topic.’

* Publishers Weekly *

‘Like any good pop science book, along the way Zapped offers an endless series of tidbits, from how GPS works to how a software glitch led to the worst incident of radiation poisoning from a medical device (the notorious Therac-25).’

* New Republic *

‘[Berman] excels at making complex concepts accessible for lay readers…this is a great option for those curious about history, theories, and function of everyday things.’

* Library Journal *

‘Explaining light using anecdotal history and colloquial explication, Zapped makes entertaining sense out of what could be dry maths and physics.’

* Shelf Awareness