Science (all of it) in Three Big Questions

Philip Ball & Bernardo P. Carvalho

What’s science really about?
Having all the answers?
Memorising a whole load of information?
Discovering stuff in order to solve specific problems?

Philip Ball, the author of this book, believes that science is something altogether different, and that a good scientist is not necessarily someone who has all the answers, but someone who knows how to ask the right questions, moving between different fields and being curious, just for the sake of it.

An editor of Nature magazine for over twenty years, Philip Ball presents us with three simple questions with which to become “scientifically literate”, or to put it another way: capable of thinking productively about most of the science taught in schools, and also the science we encounter in everyday life. Asking these three questions – which open out, connect and prompt us to form new ones – means taking your first steps on the adventure that we call a search for knowledge.

So, let’s get to it: ask away!

Philip Ball is a British science writer. For over twenty years he has been an editor of the journal Nature, for which he continues to write regularly. He is a regular contributor to Prospect magazine and a columnist for Chemistry World, Nature Materials, and BBC Future. Ball holds a degree in chemistry from Oxford and a doctorate in physics from Bristol University.

 

WHITE RAVENS SELECTION 2025

“The range and number of non-fiction books for young readers is impressive and is growing each year. They explore topics from the most diverse scientific fields. But what exactly is science? That is the question posed by Philip Ball, a chemist, physicist, author of popular science books, and long-time editor of the journal »Nature«. In clear, humorous language, he engagingly explains what scientists do and how exciting their work can be. It becomes clear that science is not simply the accumulation of facts, but first and foremost a continuous process of questioning and doubting in order to understand the world. Three fictional figures – a physicist, a chemist, and a biologist – describe vividly the kinds of fundamental and everyday questions they grapple with in their work. The colourful, picture-book-style illustrations by Bernardo P. Carvalho have a wonderful narrative quality and give the book a playful lightness. (Age: 10+)” – International Youth Library’s children’s literature experts