What we’re about
This is a popular-science book club where we meet monthly to discuss a non-fiction science book. We normally meet via Zoom at 7PM Eastern on the last Wednesday of the month. Members aren't obliged to attend every meeting; you can choose to read only those books that appeal to you.
Some books we've already read include:
- "Rabid: A Cultural History of the World's Most Diabolical Virus", by Bill Wasik and Monica Murphy.
Mary Roach's "Packing For Mars: The Curious Science of Life in the Void"
"A Universe From Nothing: Why There Is Something Rather than Nothing", by Lawrence M. Krauss.
Deborah Blum's "The Poisoner's Handbook"
Sam Kean's "The Disappearing Spoon"
You can view a complete historical list of the books we've read in the club.
You can also join our low-activity Facebook group at https://www.facebook.com/groups/621255141548238/.
Upcoming events (4+)
See all- *Extra* Movie Discussion: Down to the Earth's CoreLink visible for attendees
(Note that this extra movie discussion is on a Wed instead of the usual Sunday)
This documentary takes us on a non-fictional journey to the center of the Earth, as well as back in time through layers of Earth accumulated from its past. Although the film is 10 years old, it’s still relevant -- and the best one I’ve found on this topic.
Join us as we plunge into the bowels of the Earth. After digging below the surface, a fossilized forest is found inside a coal mine, and vast caverns are explored. Around 550 meters inside the Earth’s crust, and back in time, a thin layer of extraterrestrial iridium appears that came from the asteroid that killed the dinosaurs. And at 600 meters down there’s rust from the Great Oxidation Event more than 2 billion years ago.
Deeper explorations through rocks studded with precious gemstones take us to the mantle, which provides the driving force for plate tectonics. Next, the outer core. The spiraling of its molten metal creates Earth’s electromagnet. Finally, the inner core. At 6,400 kilometers down, we reach the absolute center of the Earth. Here, the temperature is considered to be as hot as the surface of the Sun.
(For more recent news about the inner core, I’ve added optional reading in the “Comments” section below.)
The full movie is at
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OD1pD0iozwI&list=PLDQWFZPqXPRA3pRvFBrcM6i8Ie_MhgWQ9&index=5
and is an hour and a half long. Please watch it before the meeting. - Movie Discussion: Ancient Builders of the AmazonLink visible for attendees
Recent stunning discoveries are exploding the myth of the Amazon as a primeval wilderness, revealing traces of ancient civilizations that flourished there for centuries.
Dense settlements indicate populations in the millions, supported by sophisticated agricultural systems, while huge geometric earthworks and roadways bear witness to complex religious ideas and social networks. The evidence is now clear that, far from being an untouched wilderness, the Amazon has been shaped by human hands for millennia.
The full movie is at
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dY82nZTxXQ4
and is 54 minutes long. Please watch it before the meeting.