A Short History of Nearly Everything
- Downloads：7894
- Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
- Create Date：2021-07-24 05:51:40
- Update Date：2025-09-06
- Status：finish
- Author：Bill Bryson
- ISBN：076790818X
- Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle
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Summary
In Bryson's biggest book， he confronts his greatest challenge: to understand—and， if possible， answer—the oldest， biggest questions we have posed about the universe and ourselves。 Taking as territory everything from the Big Bang to the rise of civilization， Bryson seeks to understand how we got from there being nothing at all to there being us。 To that end， he has attached himself to a host of the world’s most advanced （and often obsessed） archaeologists， anthropologists， and mathematicians， travelling to their offices， laboratories， and field camps。 He has read （or tried to read） their books， pestered them with questions， apprenticed himself to their powerful minds。 A Short History of Nearly Everything is the record of this quest， and it is a sometimes profound， sometimes funny， and always supremely clear and entertaining adventure in the realms of human knowledge， as only Bill Bryson can render it。 Science has never been more involving or entertaining。
Reviews
Panu
，
Listened to as an audiobook。I have read books/literature about the same topic beforehand。 Therefore， much of the information I was familiar with。 However， there was new details and stories to be heard。The style of Bill Bryson is easily approachable。 I think this book serves as a good starting point， if one is not familiar with the history of the universe。
Cam
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So far this is the only book I keep wanting to read over and over again。 I have read it three times now， and the pleasure I get from reading this book has not started to diminish yet。 Absolutely fascinating！
Selena
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Brilliant from beginning to end！
Tu Ha
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Sách chứa nhiều thông tin và kiến thức。 Tuy nhiên， lời văn dịch không được trơn tru lắm khiến mình đọc cảm thấy khá lủng củng và rời rạc。
Anne
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（Added to this list on 7/21/21） Bill Bryson is one of my favorite nonfiction authors。 I also enjoy his audiobooks when he narrates them。 I re-listened to this book with my family and enjoyed it just as much the second time around。 It is impossible to not learn something new and to scratch your head at how people discovered things like the the periodic table。 A lot of my friends have told me this is their favorite book。 I wouldn't go that far， but it is certainly a high contender for good nonfict （Added to this list on 7/21/21） Bill Bryson is one of my favorite nonfiction authors。 I also enjoy his audiobooks when he narrates them。 I re-listened to this book with my family and enjoyed it just as much the second time around。 It is impossible to not learn something new and to scratch your head at how people discovered things like the the periodic table。 A lot of my friends have told me this is their favorite book。 I wouldn't go that far， but it is certainly a high contender for good nonfiction。 。。。more
Sayali Deshmukh
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An entertaining account of history！
Manjunath MC
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Wonderfully crafted introduction to nearly everything from the big bang。。。
Ken
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Bill Bryson's thorough summation of life， the universe， and everything。 An informative easy-reading science book containing an overview of things every curious reader should be aware of。 Bryson brings the ideas that form our understanding of the universe: time， space， matter， energy， life itself， to life， so to speak。 A great read for the non-scientist who wants to understand the history of science， exploring what we know and how we know it。 Bill Bryson's thorough summation of life， the universe， and everything。 An informative easy-reading science book containing an overview of things every curious reader should be aware of。 Bryson brings the ideas that form our understanding of the universe: time， space， matter， energy， life itself， to life， so to speak。 A great read for the non-scientist who wants to understand the history of science， exploring what we know and how we know it。 。。。more
Madhangi
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This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 If only had I had this book as my science textbook at school， I would have now been a professional fossil collector， demystifying the mystery of life in the only habitable planet as far as we know。 This book made me to make up my mind to consider science as a mystery story and scientists as detectives who deduce the unsolvable mysteries， which can sometimes seem as misleading and guesswork but we never know。 The final chapter makes me feel bad when Bryson quotes that if the universe decided to c If only had I had this book as my science textbook at school， I would have now been a professional fossil collector， demystifying the mystery of life in the only habitable planet as far as we know。 This book made me to make up my mind to consider science as a mystery story and scientists as detectives who deduce the unsolvable mysteries， which can sometimes seem as misleading and guesswork but we never know。 The final chapter makes me feel bad when Bryson quotes that if the universe decided to create an organism which is the best of its creation， giving it the responsibility to take care of other organisms in this lonely universe， the job should not be given to us， humans。 We have destroyed so many creations， but fortunately or unfortunately， the above job has been assigned to us and its in our hands to protect fellow beings in this lonely and the only fecund planet（as far we know）。 。。。more
Sarah
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Entertaining， well written， and informative。 A good read！
Abhidev H M
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It's really nice but for some reason took me a while to complete。 It's really nice but for some reason took me a while to complete。 。。。more
Heidi Eastman Turner
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Surprised by how much we still don't know Surprised by how much we still don't know 。。。more
Kim
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A lot of information that would some times feel overwhelming。
Talia
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A fantastic overview of the history of scientific exploration。 Openly honest about the foibles and fallacies of science and scientists as well as the incredible achievements and advances made。 I have found myself pondering the incredible depth of information we expect students to grapple with in high school now compared with what even the great minds of a century ago were expected to know and understand。 It has also been interesting to see the controversy and indefinite nature of some of our 'co A fantastic overview of the history of scientific exploration。 Openly honest about the foibles and fallacies of science and scientists as well as the incredible achievements and advances made。 I have found myself pondering the incredible depth of information we expect students to grapple with in high school now compared with what even the great minds of a century ago were expected to know and understand。 It has also been interesting to see the controversy and indefinite nature of some of our 'common' knowledge。 We have such an interesting and vast world to explore 😁。 。。。more
Richard Styner
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Like A Brief History of Time you'll actually finish on the first try！ Like A Brief History of Time you'll actually finish on the first try！ 。。。more
Bunny
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Turns out "everything" is entirely too much for one book。 Despite that， Bryson does an excellent job of covering a truly massive swath of information in an accessible and interesting way。 Turns out "everything" is entirely too much for one book。 Despite that， Bryson does an excellent job of covering a truly massive swath of information in an accessible and interesting way。 。。。more
David DeRienzo
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Wow。 For a kid raised in an educational bubble， this was an eye opener。 Such a fascinating， comprehensive look at so many different disciplines and areas of life。
Leandro
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While possessing some maybe unnecessary and definitely uninteresting stories （mainly biographies with information virtually no one would be interested in） which are definitely not connected with "everything"; most part of the book is connected to "everything" and is very interesting and informative。 It is definitely a must-read for anyone with at least a slight interest in some basic topics like physics， chemistry， geology， and DEFINITELY history。 While possessing some maybe unnecessary and definitely uninteresting stories （mainly biographies with information virtually no one would be interested in） which are definitely not connected with "everything"; most part of the book is connected to "everything" and is very interesting and informative。 It is definitely a must-read for anyone with at least a slight interest in some basic topics like physics， chemistry， geology， and DEFINITELY history。 。。。more
Jimmy Rosier
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I know I rated this only 2 stars， but this was a good book。 It was just a bit too technical and anecdotal。 The basic cycle is bring up funny/interesting story and explain how a scientific breakthrough came out of it。 Wash， rinse， repeat。
Nayla
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Listened to this on audible， and it took a little over 18 hours， over several days。 Let me start this by saying that this is not a book you listen to and multitask easily， on many occasions I had to rewind a bit when I got lost。 Although this is a work of non-fiction， I enjoyed the way it was written， smooth sailing and to the point， with some short， witty detours。 At first， I felt the responsibility of remembering all the information， names of scienctiest， and dates， so I felt upset at myself f Listened to this on audible， and it took a little over 18 hours， over several days。 Let me start this by saying that this is not a book you listen to and multitask easily， on many occasions I had to rewind a bit when I got lost。 Although this is a work of non-fiction， I enjoyed the way it was written， smooth sailing and to the point， with some short， witty detours。 At first， I felt the responsibility of remembering all the information， names of scienctiest， and dates， so I felt upset at myself for not being able to whenever a new tidbit was introduced。 I then changed my mindset and decided to just listen and enjoy。 I enjoyed all the chapters， even the ones on topics I don't usually enjoy in this kind of detail （space for example）。 My favorite chapter was when DNA was introduced and how the field was developed， probably because of my own past， recent and future interest in the topic， and because I felt happy I still remembered some of the names mentioned。 It was also interesting learning about past pandemics， as this is relevant in 2021。 The book was published in 2003， I hope there's a second part that follows up to recent times。I gave this 4 stars instead of 5， because I would have apprciated an accompanying pdf text with a timeline， and the names of scientists/philosophers for future reference。 I had looked up many as I was listening， but that would have helped follow the text as well。 I do have the hard copy of the book， and I think a timeline there would have been nice as well。 。。。more
Naida
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Možda najzanimljivija knjiga ikad。
Jeremy Zapalac
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It's tough to give this book a fair rating because I zoned out a good chunk of it。 I think the biggest problem was my own misinterpretation of the title—for some reason I thought it would be a summary of human history， when it reality it goes back even further and mainly covers the history of the earth and the evolution of our knowledge about that history。 That subject just wasn't as interesting to me， so I had a hard time staying invested throughout an eighteen hour audiobook。 I did enjoy Bryso It's tough to give this book a fair rating because I zoned out a good chunk of it。 I think the biggest problem was my own misinterpretation of the title—for some reason I thought it would be a summary of human history， when it reality it goes back even further and mainly covers the history of the earth and the evolution of our knowledge about that history。 That subject just wasn't as interesting to me， so I had a hard time staying invested throughout an eighteen hour audiobook。 I did enjoy Bryson's dry humor and the entertaining way he presents things， so I may try a shorter book from him on a more enticing subject。 。。。more
Emily Weiner
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I finished it！！！ It's really hard for me to rate this book。 I learned a lot。 It filled me with a sense of wonder about the size of the universe from the far reaches of the cosmos to the size of the microscopic world。 It was simultaneously inspiring and depressing finding how much we don't know and will never know about our world。 It was humbling to realize what a tiny speck all of human existence is in the timeline of the universe。 And， frankly， a bummer to realize how easily and quickly our ent I finished it！！！ It's really hard for me to rate this book。 I learned a lot。 It filled me with a sense of wonder about the size of the universe from the far reaches of the cosmos to the size of the microscopic world。 It was simultaneously inspiring and depressing finding how much we don't know and will never know about our world。 It was humbling to realize what a tiny speck all of human existence is in the timeline of the universe。 And， frankly， a bummer to realize how easily and quickly our entire existence will be wiped out at some point， hopefully not too soon， from one of the many apocalyptic events that we're on the precipice of。 I learned a lot about geology， the atmosphere， biology， astronomy， and so on。 At first I enjoyed how the book explained how measurements and discoveries were made centuries ago， but then it got bogged down in the backstories of the researchers。 There were soooooo many details about all the old white guys that discovered everything （spoiler they're all European， American， or Australian）。 The universe and world are uncovered as infinitely vast but it also felt like half the world didn't exist， apparently no one in Asia， Africa， or South America ever discovered anything unless someone from Europe popped over to find it。 Overall， I'm glad to have learned more about all of existence， but it was a struggle to finish the book。 If you decide to embark on the long process of reading it， buy the book and avoid the overdue notices from the library。 So， 3。5 stars？ 。。。more
yue
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pues me he quedado con que los científicos son así a grandes rasgos una panda de snobs， clasistas y que raramente se toman en serio incluso entre ellos， nada que no me imaginase en verdad。 si resumes este libro es un 70% cotilleos de la comunidad científica y luego el resto actual knowledge （pero me parece bien porque me gusta ver a gente pasarlo mal）。 🥴
Peter
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"There are three stages in scientific discovery。 First， people deny that it is true， then they deny that it is important; finally the credit the wrong person。"This book is a fairly weighty tome （my own copy had some 574 pages of text and nearly 100 pages of notes） but the breadth of history that it covers is massive too， stretching from the first fraction of a second of the Universe’s existence after the Big Bang to present day discoveries。 Obviously there are a number of gaps （hence the "nearly "There are three stages in scientific discovery。 First， people deny that it is true， then they deny that it is important; finally the credit the wrong person。"This book is a fairly weighty tome （my own copy had some 574 pages of text and nearly 100 pages of notes） but the breadth of history that it covers is massive too， stretching from the first fraction of a second of the Universe’s existence after the Big Bang to present day discoveries。 Obviously there are a number of gaps （hence the "nearly" in the title）as well。The book’s strength lies in the fact that Bryson， himself， has no scientific background and has only recently became interested in the subject。 There are naturally a lot of facts and figures but with his energetic and quirky prose Bryson brings to life the rationale behind why the information was sought after in the first place and how scientists have honed their approaches and skills down the ages。 There are amusing anecdotes about some of history's best and lesser known scientists but in reality the book is about how little we actually know about our planet and even our own very creation despite our constant search for knowledge。 How most of what we think we know about our planet's history is actually based on supposition and best guesses。I learnt new information and was reminded of some things that I forgotten since my school-days but at times the prose also got rather bogged down in detail， there were a number of brackets on virtually every page giving the impression at least that the book could have been simplified even further。 This is a book that feeds the reader's wonderment but also the limitations to our knowledge。 This book is a reminder that our very existence as a species is a result of a series of myriad lucky breaks。 。。。more
Kotha
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Good for general knowledge about almost everything
Joel
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5 stars for being one of the most accessible and unpolemical science books that I've read。 5 stars for being one of the most accessible and unpolemical science books that I've read。 。。。more
Sajid
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Dense with knowledge。 Concisely brilliant。 And a mind burning scientific entertainer。If you have an unquenchable thirst for knowledge and science ， then read this。 Even if you don't have thirst，read this and a gravity towards knowledge and science will make you thirsty。 Thus after reading it，you would need water of knowledge everyday。 It's a dazzling quest， the intellectual odyssey of a lifetime， as this insatiably curious writer attempts to understand everything that has transpired from the Big Dense with knowledge。 Concisely brilliant。 And a mind burning scientific entertainer。If you have an unquenchable thirst for knowledge and science ， then read this。 Even if you don't have thirst，read this and a gravity towards knowledge and science will make you thirsty。 Thus after reading it，you would need water of knowledge everyday。 It's a dazzling quest， the intellectual odyssey of a lifetime， as this insatiably curious writer attempts to understand everything that has transpired from the Big Bang to the rise of civilization。 Or， as the author puts it， "…how we went from there being nothing at all to there being something， and then how a little of that something turned into us， and also what happened in between and since。" This is， in short， a tall order。First，this book is a short history and secondly short history of nearly everything。 If you ask how nearly？ I would reply nearly of nearly of nearly of almost everything we know。 And i think the writer Bill bryson smartly pulled off his hidden skill of storytelling through this big and densely informative book。 It gets entertaining as much as a nonfiction or scientific book could get。 Maybe more。 He nearly touched every branch of science out there and turned everything into fruitful nature。 But the problem begins when he tried several of hus chapters by explaining geography（though he himself just researched and tried to give us as much as he could understand）and beacuse of that the book suddenly becomes boring and unnecessary over hundred pages。 I am not saying here that geography is unnecessary， but mostly not the kind of a subject which could be well explained in a pop-science book like this。 Otherwise he could have spent those pages on many other interesting things。 It just lost its pace through midway when he touched geography;it is maybe because he wasn’t good enough to explain this subject。 To that end， Bill Bryson apprenticed himself to a host of the world's most profound scientific minds， living and dead。 His challenge is to take subjects like geology， chemistry， paleontology， astronomy， and particle physics and see if there isn't some way to render them comprehensible to people， like himself， made bored （or scared） stiff of science by school。 His interest is not simply to discover what we know but to find out how we know it。 How do we know what is in the center of the earth， thousands of miles beneath the surface？ How can we know the extent and the composition of the universe， or what a black hole is？ How can we know where the continents were 600 million years ago？ How did anyone ever figure these things out？ 。。。more
Doris
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I’ve never read a book with so many astronomical numbers， most of which I have no concept how vast it all is。 Bryson is extremely knowledgeable and I 100% respect that。 The book was just too much for me， though I’m proud to say， I finished it！
Michiel van Otegem
，