This book really turned me off of anything authored by George Johnson. He spends a great deal of time at the beginning of the book discussing the difference between the technical writer and the scientist—explaining the role of the technical writer as a bridge between the scientist and the layman, though his explanation makes it sound like the technical writer sits above both of them. It’s as if the world would stop turning if all of the technical writers stopped doing their jobs. The rest of the book is presented as if the reader was stupid, and in some places his condescension makes him so opaque that you start wondering if the author even knows what he’s talking about.

However, this book does cover a number of interesting topics. I just think that there are other books that cover them better. Pick up a good book on cryptography (e.g. The Code Book by Simon Singh) and another one on quantum mechanics (e.g. Quantum Reality by Nick Herbert) and you’ll probably be set. Additionally, you’ll get the same amount of detailed coverage presented from this book from articles in monthly science magazines or on-line in short Wikipedia entries.

This book largely felt like a waste of time.