Why Things Are, Volume II

... Because Joel Achenbach, the intrepid syndicated columnist for The Washington Post, did not rest after answering the great questions of the day in Why Things Are. Here comes Volume II -- a book that provides not only astonishing facts about the worlds of science, politics, history, art, love and sex, but also the Big Picture as well. You'll be stunned, amazed, and hey, even smarter when you read the answers to these timeless questions:
-- Why does time speed up as we get older?
-- Why is Citizen Kane considered the best film of all time?
-- Why do horrible songs like "The Candy Man" and "Kung Fu Fighting" get stuck in your head, until finally you want to throw yourself off a bridge (over troubled water)?
-- Why is it better to slice a sandwich diagonally, rather than straight across?
-- Why is love so difficult?
-- Why are politicians always getting into sex scandals?
-- Why doesn't a black hole somewhere get so big and powerful that it eventually goes sklurrp! and sucks the entire galaxy, including planet earth, into its dreadful maw?

Joel Achenbach, the intrepid syndicated columnist for The Washington Post, did not rest after answering the great questions of the day in Why Things Are. Here comes Volume II -- a book that provides not only astonishing facts about the worlds of science, politics, history, art, love and sex, but also the Big Picture as well. You'll be stunned, amazed, and hey, even smarter when you read the answers to these timeless questions:<br>-- Why does time speed up as we get older?<br>-- Why is Citizen Kane considered the best film of all time?<br>-- Why do horrible songs like "The Candy Man" and "Kung Fu Fighting" get stuck in your head, until finally you want to throw yourself off a bridge (over troubled water)?<br>-- Why is it better to slice a sandwich diagonally, rather than straight across?<br>-- Why is love so difficult?<br>-- Why are politicians always getting into sex scandals?<br>-- Why doesn't a black hole somewhere get so big and powerful that it eventually g