Brilliant Nonsense

The scientific process advances through mistakes, which, therefore, makes them essential to progress. Charles Darwin, William Thomson (Lord Kelvin), Linus Pauling, Fred Hoyle, and Albert Einstein were incredible scientists and made brilliant contributions to their fields, but they also made their share of mistakes. Darwin's theory of natural selection shouldn't have worked; Lord Kelvin made a ridiculous error in his calculation of the Earth's age; Pauling hastily constructed an erroneous model of DNA; Hoyle dismissed the idea of the universe's origin through what was ironically called the "Big Bang"; and Einstein made incorrect speculations about the forces that keep the universe in balance. Brilliant Follies is a revealing examination of the psychology of five fascinating scientists who, despite their mistakes, expanded our knowledge of life on Earth and the evolution of the planet and the universe.