Strange Brains and Genius

Never has the term mad scientist been more fascinatingly explored than in internationally recognized popular science author Clifford Pickover’s richly researched wild ride through the bizarre lives of eccentric geniuses.

A few highlights:

• The Pigeon Man from Manhattan: Legendary inventor Nikola Tesla had abnormally long thumbs, a peculiar love of pigeons, and a horror of women’s pearls.
• The Worm Man from Devonshire: Forefather of modern electric-circuit design Oliver Heaviside furnished his home with granite blocks and sometimes consumed only milk for days (as did Nikola Tesla and Thomas Edison).
• The Rabbit-Eater from Lichfield: Renowned scholar Samuel Johnson had so many tics and quirks that some mistook him for an idiot. In fact, his behavior matches modern definitions of obsessive-compulsive disorder and Tourette’s syndrome.

Pickover also addresses many provocative topics: the link between genius and madness, the role the brain plays in alien abduction and religious experiences, UFOs, cryonics — even the whereabouts of Einstein’s brain!