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CRAZY -<br> WEIRD AND WONDERFUL TALES FROM NATURE AND SCIENCE<br> Tardigrades can take the pressure<br> Magic bullets from the desert<br> Asparagine and old lace<br> Peptides shielding our skin<br> Health warning: your body may be unstable<br> All together now<br> So where is most of the universe?<br> Cell jet printers<br> A frizzled inhairitance<br> How to eat without a stomach<br> Astronomy helps spotting whalesharks<br> Talk to your protein<br> Ancient protein survives in our eyes<br> <br> SEXY -<br> OFFIAL: PEOPLE ARE THE WEIRDEST CREATURES ON THIS PLANET: SORRY, PLATYPUS<br> Read my lips<br> A matter of taste<br> Let your love glow<br> Jacobson's molecules<br> The science of the Simpsons<br> Elusive treasures<br> Eggs and sperms and rock n' roll<br> A Cuban success story<br> Cupid chemistry<br> <br> COOL -<br> WELL, HUMANS MAY BE WEIRD, BUT THEY DID DEVELOP SOME COOL TECHNOLOGY<br> Crystallographic antibodies<br> Dip-pen lithography<br> Traffic-light proteins<br> A cool receptor<br> Biotronics: a collision of continents<br> The one-atom quantum computer<br> Twist and twirl<br> Multi-purpose DNA<br> Diatoms<br> Nature's warning signs<br> All on one chip<br> Platinum stories<br> Nanowires plugged into nerve cells<br> Aptamer sensors<br> Hairy ball theorem untangles chemical problem

"This is a rich source of entertainment to the reader who dips in and cherry picks topics.... There are many cool science stories here for you to enjoy." (<i>Education in Chemistry</i>, May 2009) <p>"A huge set of short essays on obscure and interesting scientific topics … .[A valuable] resource for livening up lectures by professors who are trying to get undergraduates excited about science." (<i>The Quarterly Review of Biology</i>, March 2009)</p> <p>"His choice in organizing the book into three parts titled 'Crazy Creatures,' 'Sexy Science,' and 'Cool Technology' demonstrates his desire to reveal how science is cultural activity that provides exciting and relevant change to the world." (<i>CHOICE</i>, January 2009)</p> <p>"This selection from Michael Gross' work of the past fifteen years is a welcome and refreshing treat … .An excellent tool for introducing students to the many facets of science." (<i>ChemBioChem</i>, November 2008)</p>

Michael Gross, born in 1963, began studing chemical engineering in Karlsruhe, but moved to chemistry at the univeristies of Marburg and Regensburg. After his Ph.D. in physical biochemistry he worked seven years at the Oxford Centre for Molecular Science in the field of protein folding, including studies of Alzheimers and Parkinsons diseases. Since 1993 he started with science journalism and wrote many popular science books (Life on the Edge, Travels to the Nanoworld, Light and Life, Astrobiology), some of them in German and English language. He is now writer in science at the Birkbeck College, London, and a regular contributor to several prestigeous journals and magazins like Chemistry World, Current Biology, Chemistry and Industry, The Independent, Nature, New Scientist, Spektrum der Wissenschaft, Suddeutsche Zeitung and many more.

 

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