The Sun Shines Bright

The Sun Shines Bright
© 1981 Isaac Asimov
250 pages

It's been a while since I've treated myself to a little Asimov. I've purposely held back on my Asimov reading given how much of it is science fiction and I don't want my posts labeled "science fiction" to surpass those labeled "History". It's a trivial thing, admittedly, but it doesn't seem proper for my history reading to be taken over by any other kind -- except for philosophy or science. This book is a compilation of scientific essays penned on a variety of topics and categorized into the following sets: "The Sun", "The Stars", "The Planets", "The Moon", "The Elements", "The Cell", "The Scientists", and finally "The People". His essays range from the discovery of uranium, the idea of cloning, and neutrinos to the scientific method. He begins each essay rather informally, working his way to the subject of his essays within a few paragraphs. Some topics interested me more than others: his essays on the viability of altruistic behaviors, or comments on the various secret weapons of history interested me more than neutrinos. This was enjoyable over all, although given the date in which the essays were generally published -- the late 1970s -- I imagine some of the information is dated.