Naturally Dangerous [Hardcover]

He then states that organic food is more likely to harbor bacteria (8 times, although we don't have any details where that number came from) and that there are no reports of deaths due to pesticide residues so that it is obviously better to eat non-organic. Hello? Why are people dropping like flies from cancer? Pesticide residues is certainly a great place to look for answers, but here its dispensed with in a couple of pages.

Next he goes on about the dangers of contaminated alfalfa sprouts, which is peripheral to the whole arguement since they are not necessarily organic.

And finally, we get to hear an explanation of how naturally occurring carcinogens are more dangerous than synthetic pesticides or herbicides.

In another part of the book he states that factory raised chickens are far more likely to carry salmonella than free range. That seems like something of a contradiction to me.

This fellow may be a chemist, but what we are hearing are opinions. You can believe his if you want, but I'm not convinced.

On the up side, I did learn that a healthy person passes wind 14 times a day, at a volume between 25 and 100 millileters on each occasion, so I'll give him 2 stars.

Collman covers the underlying science, in a non-technical and understanding manner, behind the chemistry involved in our everyday lives. You'll find this book valuable time and time again.

"Nothing is completely safe or risk free", as we are constantly required to balance "one risk against another". So says Dr. James Collman of Stanford's Department of Chemistry in the preface of his recently published book, "Naturally Dangerous". Filled with interesting, scientific and historic anecdotes which will appeal to the curious reader, it's larger purpose is to explain in lay terms, the essence of the more important scientific controversies which have impacted public policy in recent decades. There is great risk in nature, but scientific understanding and the introduction of commercial applications of science have insulated us from many of these naturally occurring risks, allowing for a near doubling of life expectancy over the past century. But this desirable end has come at a cost. As Dr. Collman posits, "there is no free lunch". We constantly deal with tradeoffs between risk reduction and the creation of new risks, which our interventions spawn. It is only through meaningful understanding of the pertinent scientific concepts that we as a society can begin to make rational judgments. The problem is that we live in a sea of scientific illiteracy both on the part of the electorate as well as within our political leadership. Often trained in the law, many woefully lack necessary technical insight. Such a state paves the way for purposeful obfuscation of the scientific reality, creating an environment favorable for the promotion of public phobias for partisan political ends. By providing us with 224 pages of easy to read basic science, Dr. Collman does his part to push these debates in a logical direction.

Duncan Mason, MD