Discover the Science
                Behind The Simpsons

What's Science Ever Done for Us?


  A playful and entertaining look at the science behind the world's most popular animated series
from three-eyed fish to donut-shaped universes.


     What's Science Ever Done for Us? 
     What The Simpsons Can Teach Us About
     Physics, Robots, Life, and the Universe

          
                    By Paul Halpern

      


"A hugely entertaining celebration of the science behind the cartoon silliness."
                                            -The Guardian



"...a book that can be enjoyed by all ages."
                                            -Physics World



Learn the answers to these baffling questions and more:
  • Does Lisa possess the dreaded "Simpson gene?"
  • Are there really three-eyed fish near nuclear reactors?
  • Could radiation cause Mr. Burns to glow?
  • Does the Coriolis force affect household appliances?
  • Is Homer truly a man of many dimensions?
  • Could a fully conscious robot brother replace Bart?
  • What could a talking astrolabe tell us?
  • How hazardous is tomacco?
  • Is it really possible to create black holes in home supply stores?
  • How could Lisa create her own miniature universe as a science project?
  • Which prominent scientists have appeared on the show as guest stars?
  • If Springfield and the world were threatened with destruction would there be hope for the human race?
  • Could Bart and Milhouse stop time forever and create perpetual mayhem?


Chapter Titles:


PART ONE:  IT’S ALIVE
1. The Simpson Gene
2. You Say Tomato, I Say Tomacco
3. Blinky, The Three-Eyed Fish
4. Burns’s Radiant Glow  
5. We All Live in a Cell-Sized Submarine
6. Lisa’s Recipe for Life
7. Look Homer-ward Angel

PART TWO: MECHANICAL PLOTS
8. D’ohs Ex Machina
9. Perpetual Commotion
10. Dude, I’m an Android
11. Rules for Robots
12. Chaos in Cartoonland  
13. Fly in the Ointment

PART THREE:  NO TIME TO D’OHS
14. Clockstopping
15. A Toast to the Past
16. Frinking about the Future

PART FOUR:  SPRINGFIELD, THE UNIVERSE, AND BEYOND
17. Lisa’s Scoping Skills
18.  Diverting Rays
19. The Plunge Down Under  
20.  If Astrolabes Could Talk
21. Cometary Cowabunga
22. Homer’s Space Odyssey
23. Could This Really be the End?
24. Foolish Earthlings
25. Is the Universe a Donut?
26. The Third Dimension of Homer

INCONCLUSION:  THE JOURNEY CONTINUES

THE SIMPSONS MOVIE HANDY SCIENCE CHECKLIST


Available at:

Amazon.com

Amazon.ca

Amazon.co.uk

Barnes and Noble

Wiley



Paul Halpern:  Science Books and Articles

Science on the Simpsons Blog

Paul Halpern's Blog



This website has not been approved, licensed or sponsored by any person or entity involved in making The Simpsons, The Simpsons Movie or related products.


External Links:



The Simpsons Archive

Mathematics on the Simpsons

Physics World:  "Science and the Simpsons"

Guardian: "Eat My Lab Coat"

Seed:  "Meet the Geeks"

Scotsman:  "Simpsons a Scientific Revelation"

The Official Simpsons Television Page

The Official Simpsons Movie Page