A Book I Probably Won't Be Finishing
Apr. 19th, 2013 11:15 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
redfiona99Evolving The Alien by Jack Cohen and Ian Stewart
I probably won't be finishing this book, which annoys me a great deal because I was looking forward to it. I mean, the biochemistry of Earth life, the possible biochemistry of alien life, other ways of electron transport, all that is like candy for me. And I quite liked "Science of Discworld". I couldn't wait to find out more. So I hunted the book down and started to read.
Before the end of the second chapter, the following is written:
"We are, however, going to use well-thought out examples from the SF literature - not the film and TV stuff, by and large, because most of that is written by empty heads for empty heads - ..." I'd say 'way to lose your audience,' except, obviously TV and film sci-fi fans aren't intelligent enough to read a book like this. I take it the sarcasm is obvious. I'm not a great fan of intellectual snobbery, and I've reached that particular stage of life where I'm able to say, 'that's Dr. Empty Head to you'.
There's also a whole paragraph complaining about Frank Herbert not doing research for Dune and of not being willing to put in the effort. Yes, that Frank Herbert, the one who spent 6 years researching Dune and whose notes are still being used 47 years later. Even if there are issues with the biology in Dune, you can't say Frank Herbert didn't put the effort in. There's a word for when you commit research failure in complaining about someone else's research failure.
That's not counting the physicist-bashing. Now, while I'm pleased that for once it's not us biologists getting in the neck, because my science is normally the one the gets criticised, I don't really appreciate picking on any branch of the sciences.
The worst of it is, I'm sure the science, when it eventually appears, will be sound but I just can't take the writing style and the smug authorial tone any longer.
I probably won't be finishing this book, which annoys me a great deal because I was looking forward to it. I mean, the biochemistry of Earth life, the possible biochemistry of alien life, other ways of electron transport, all that is like candy for me. And I quite liked "Science of Discworld". I couldn't wait to find out more. So I hunted the book down and started to read.
Before the end of the second chapter, the following is written:
"We are, however, going to use well-thought out examples from the SF literature - not the film and TV stuff, by and large, because most of that is written by empty heads for empty heads - ..." I'd say 'way to lose your audience,' except, obviously TV and film sci-fi fans aren't intelligent enough to read a book like this. I take it the sarcasm is obvious. I'm not a great fan of intellectual snobbery, and I've reached that particular stage of life where I'm able to say, 'that's Dr. Empty Head to you'.
There's also a whole paragraph complaining about Frank Herbert not doing research for Dune and of not being willing to put in the effort. Yes, that Frank Herbert, the one who spent 6 years researching Dune and whose notes are still being used 47 years later. Even if there are issues with the biology in Dune, you can't say Frank Herbert didn't put the effort in. There's a word for when you commit research failure in complaining about someone else's research failure.
That's not counting the physicist-bashing. Now, while I'm pleased that for once it's not us biologists getting in the neck, because my science is normally the one the gets criticised, I don't really appreciate picking on any branch of the sciences.
The worst of it is, I'm sure the science, when it eventually appears, will be sound but I just can't take the writing style and the smug authorial tone any longer.
