Unleash your inner scientist: A formula forsuccess11 December 2014

This is the cover of a new book by Chad Orzel,associate professor of physics and chair of theDepartment of Physics and Astronomy at Union College.Credit: Chad Orzel

For his first two books, Chad Orzel turned toEmmy, his trusty German shepherd mix, to helpexplain complex scientific issues.

The results, How to Teach Physics to Your Dogand How to Teach Relativity to Your Dog, provedto be a clever and popular way to dissect thosedifficult subjects.

Emmy is on the sidelines for Orzel's latest book,Eureka: Discovering Your Inner Scientist (BasicBooks), but the same breezy style that made itspredecessors an easy read remains intact.

The book, out Tuesday, Dec. 9, aims to makescience less mysterious and intimidating byshowing that many of the things non-scientists dofor fun and relaxation use the same mentalprocesses scientists employ when making majordiscoveries.

"This is an idea I've had kicking around for a longtime, which largely comes out of a conversationkiller," said Orzel, associate professor of physicsand chair of the Department of Physics andAstronomy.

"When I tell people I'm a physicist, one of the mostcommon responses is 'Wow, you must be reallysmart. I could never do that.' "

Orzel said his expertise in physics may give him anedge in weighty matters such as math, but thereare tasks that non-scientists master better than he.

"I'm a mediocre carpenter," he said. " I can buildstuff out of wood if I have to, but somebody who'sactually good at it will look at a problem andinstantly see an elegant solution. There's a mentalaspect to carpentry that I can't really handle, butnobody goes around saying 'You're a carpenter?You must be really smart.''

Orzel tries to convince readers there's a lot morescience in their everyday lives than they realize.

"If you look closely at a lot of ordinary activities,including ones popular with people who say theycould never handle science, you find the sameprocess at work: you look at what you're trying toaccomplish, think about a way to get it done, testyour theory and tell other people what works. It'swhat you do when you work a crossword puzzle,

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watch a mystery show on TV or play a game ofbasketball."

Book reviews have been solid.

"This fun, diverse, and accessible look at howscience works will convert even the biggest sciencephobe," wrote Publishers Weekly. And the LibraryJournal stated, "Similar to Richard Rhodes or DavaSobel, Orzel makes complicated scientificnarratives accessible to lay readers."

Orzel admits this book was more challenging towrite than the first two. Physics was closest to hisresearch area, and Relativity tapped into hisphysics background. The latest book covers moreground, including a wealth of historical research insciences beyond physics.

"I've benefitted enormously from Union's library,and the help of a lot of other people from facultycolleagues to other science writers to friends fromthe Internet," Orzel said.

He hopes the book will inspire readers to use theirinner scientists in a more conscious way to informtheir decision making.

"The scientific process is the most powerful tool wehave for understanding and improving the world welive in, and it's something everybody can use tomake things better for us all," he said.

As for Emmy? Orzel said the 12-year-old mutt isfine taking a break from books. She's more upsetthat Orzel's two young children steal attention thedog feels is rightfully hers.

"She does appreciate the way they drop food onthe floor, though," Orzel said.

Provided by Union CollegeAPA citation: Unleash your inner scientist: A formula for success (2014, December 11) retrieved 24August 2018 from https://phys.org/news/2014-12-unleash-scientist-formula-success.html

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