Science's Most Wanted: Outrageous Innovators, Deadly Disasters and Shocking Discoveries [Jul 05, 2002] Conner, Susan and Kitchen, Linda

 Weird scientific facts

 Trivia that will both amaze and appall

 Easy-to-read, market-tested format that appeals to young and old

Science and technology have had more than their share of the good, the bad, and the bogus. Alfred William Lawson, the designer of the first airliner, believed that two types of creatures lived within the brain— "Menorgs," which were the mental organizers responsible for all good things, and "Disorgs," which infect all cells with disorganization. Chonosuke Okamura collected and catalogued what he thought were tiny men and animals, all 1/100-inch long, which most geologists think are actually mineral grains. Peter Fong found that the expression "happy as a clam" had a scientific basis when he tested the effects of Prozac on fingernail clams. The dashing figure of dinosaur hunter Roy Chapman Andrews was the model upon which Indian Jones was based. Physician John Brinckley believed that consuming goat glands would restore youth and virility. In keeping with the format of the popular "Most Wanted" Series, this new volume comprises sixty top-ten lists. These include Worst Ideas by Great Scientists, Most Unlikely Inventors, Greatest Unsolved Mysteries, Most Ridiculous Attempts at Flight, Biggest Hoaxes, Most Suppressed Inventions, and Top UFO Sightings. Science’s Most Wanted shows how throughout history, mankind has tried, often wildly unsuccessfully, to come to grips with life’s biggest questions.

SUSAN CONNER is an award-winning science writer and editor. LINDA KITCHEN has degrees in biology and journalism. Both authors live in Cincinnati, Ohio.