Forces of nature

By Professor Brian Cox

"Forces of Nature" by Brian Cox is a captivating and informative read that delves into the inner workings of the natural world. The book covers a wide range of topics that are not directly linked to climate change but can be extrapolated to better understand it.

An interesting concept that Prof. Cox presents to the reader is the idea that the shape of a snowflake is intrinsically related to the concept of time. This means that to understand the unique shapes of the snowflakes we need to shift our viewpont from the usual 3-dimensions to a 4-dimensional one.

Snowflakes form in different ways depending on the temperature and the humidity of the environment. The “idyllic” snowflake is formed in humid environments which are at a temperature of -10 and -20 degrees Celsius.

The shape of the snowflake is directly related to how the water molecules are interacting with each other( for example what happens when they bump into each other). This interaction is altered depending on the humidity condition. The formation of a snowflake does not occur in a single environmental condition but rather the snowflake passes through multiple regions in a cloud. Every snowflake is unique, as each one experiences a unique path through the clouds, whereby “the details of this path is written into the snowflake’s structure”.

Prof. Cox relates this concept to evolutionary biology where he uses the manatee as an example. We can trace back the manatee's history, to its land dwelling days, and compare that to how it has evolved to today. This gives us a more holisitic understanding of the state of the species today.

We can draw lessons from this concept and impose it on the topic of climate change. We shouldn't look at clmiate change from a single perspective (scientifically for example) but we should analyse the topic from a holistic sense. I would say that some of the key factors that need to be understood, for a more intuitive understanding of climate change, include: science, politics, economics and history. I’ve expanded on this topic in a previous post (link here) where I detail the reasons why I think each of these factors are integral to climate change. Also check out my IG post on this for an infographic!

Overall Cox's writing is engaging and accessible, making the book a great choice for anyone interested in a broad overview of the world around us. The book is well-researched and provides a wealth of thought-provoking information.