Advertisements

If this were an actual emergency

PHYSICS FOR FUTURE PRESIDENTS:
The Science Behind the Headlines
By Richard A. Muller
354 pp. W. W. Norton $ 26.95

Reviewed by Ruth Douillette

I grew up during the Cold War years. To my young mind, every plane that flew overhead might have been carrying an atomic bomb. There could have been radioactive fallout on the snow I was warned not to eat. Neighbors had a mound on their lawn; beneath it was a bomb shelter. Frightening air-raid test alerts interrupted Saturday morning cartoons: “If this had been an actual emergency . . .”

It wasn’t until I read Richard Muller’s Physics for Future Presidents that I actually understood what that hype was all about, that in fact, I was safer then—and now—from nuclear danger than I realized.

The book, organized by topics—terrorism, energy, nukes, space, and global warming—is at once reassuring and alarming. Reassuring to know that some of the things I’ve long feared are not likely to happen, or, if they do, they won’t be nearly as bad as imagined . . . but alarming to learn about things not previously considered. Ignorance is, indeed, bliss.

Muller, a professor of physics at the University of California at Berkeley, teaches a course for non-science students called “Physics For Future Presidents,” thus the book’s title. Simple analogies make complex topics easy to understand; charts and graphs make the data visual. There is very little math in the text, but for those who say, “Show me the numbers,” mathematical formulas are included in the notes at the end of the book.

He covers “only the most essential facts and ideas, the key concepts that will help a president make better decisions.” If his frequent reference to future presidents is a little annoying, it’s easily forgiven. In a clear, even-handed presentation, Muller handles current and contentious material with confidence, humor even, despite the grim subject. He gives the facts; he leaves the conclusions—mostly—to readers. There is room for disagreement on how best to proceed in most situations; occasionally he shares his own opinion, but usually lets the data speak for itself. You’d need to make the decision if you became president. Often there is no right or wrong decision, just different choices with different consequences. In any case he forces readers to think, to rearrange preconceived notions, and to understand that there are tougher decisions to be made than media sound bites lead us to believe.

How frightened should you be of a dirty bomb, and why? How might terrorists strike next and why? What exactly is necessary to make a viable nuclear bomb? Who has the capability? How dangerous are nuclear reactors? How efficient? What is actually the most efficient form of energy? The cleanest? What’s the problem with spy satellites? What should we fear more: nuclear attacks or biological attacks? What is the best way to dispose of nuclear waste? This is a mere scratch in the surface of what Muller brings to light.

What book on leadership and the future these days without some mention of global warming? Muller includes the expected chapter, saying it is “perhaps the most difficult issue to face a future president.” Playing off the quote “The trouble with most folks isn’t so much their ignorance; it’s knowing so much that ain’t so,” he cautions that even those well-read on the topic have “probably accumulated a great deal of misinformation” and may confuse the “authentic with the apocryphal.”

Muller sites examples of “cherry picking” of data, media hype—including incorrect truths in Al Gore’s film—and exaggerations that, when discovered, tempt people to dismiss the validity of global warming altogether—dangerous “false logic” he says, stressing that global warming is a serious threat.

In addition to clarifying the science behind global warming, Muller gives solid reasons and suggested solutions. On his list of “non-solutions”—for the present anyway—are: hydrogen for fuel, solar power, electric cars, fusion, recycling, and . . . Kyoto. Arguments on the tip of your tongue? Remember the quote: “ . . . it’s knowing so much that ain’t so,” and read the book before you speak.

Don’t judge the book by its title. I’m certainly never going to be president. Only forty-four men have ruled the United Stated in the past 233 years, counting the newest to be sworn in this month. If future presidents were really Muller’s intended readers, he’d sell very few copies of this book. I mentally retitled the book Physics For Smart Voters For Future Presidents; it was written for all who want to learn more about the scientific rhetoric, reasoning, and rationale that our leaders, present and future, will use to decide important issues.

I’d like to think that Obama—with his appointment of physicist and Nobel laureate Steven Chu as energy secretary and Harvard physicist John Holdren as White House science advisor—would be getting the latest and best information. Certainly his choice of currently practicing physicists bodes well for putting science back in the information stream for decision-making. That said, I’d be happy to know that he has a copy of Muller’s book on the nightstand beside the phone that could ring at 3:00 a.m.

---

Ruth Douillette retired after 35 years as a middle school teacher, and now freelances as a writer and photographer. Her essays have been published in the Christian Science Monitor, Cup of Comfort, Chicken Soup for the Soul, and Under Our Skin, an anthology about breast cancer. Her photography has been featured in flashquake’s gallery of art. Ruth is a member of the Internet Writing Workshop, where she’s an administrator for the Practice group. For a sample of her writing and photography, visit Upstream and Down~.

Copyright © 2008 by Internet Review of Books
Webdesign by Jasper van der Meer webdesignstudio | XHTML