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Literary Review
BOOKWATCH
Karl who?
ANITA JOSHUA
Great Mythconceptions, Dr. Karl Kruszelnicki, HarperCollins India, Rs. 250.
In India, any mention of Dr. Karl Kruszelnicki will inevitably bring up the question “Karl Who?” as his homepage on Australian Broadcasting Corporation’s website is titled. Best known as “Dr. Karl”, he is one of Australi
a’s most prominent commentators on science across the media spectrum; writing columns in leading newspapers and anchoring science programmes on both radio and television Down Under.
He’s probably the best teacher for all those who have an early aversion to science; packaging it with humour and asides galore. Take for instance, a random collection of his writings that HarperCollins has just brought to India.
Titled Great Mythconceptions, the first myth that the book seeks to dispel is that toilet seats are the dirtiest of surfaces in any home. Well, though Dr. Karl admits that he doesn’t plan to have his next snack in the toilet, he quotes evidence to show that the toilet seat has the lowest bacterial count out of 15 household locations including the kitchen sink which tops the list!
But, he has some bad news also; particularly for all those “poor performers” in school who hope that, Einstein-like, their best is yet to come. Well, Dr. Karl shows how the myth that Albert Einstein failed school took root and signs off by saying that school children cannot use this “mythconception” any longer and had better pull up their socks.
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