T. rex and the Crater of Doom

T. rex and the Crater of Doom is a book about science unlike any other I've read. Instead of trying to inform the reader about our current understanding of things, it tells the story about how we got there. In other words, it's not just about science, it's about how science is done. Specifically, it tells the story of how puny humans with short lives were able to figure out that all the dinosaurs were murdered by a massive space rock.

This story is told by Walter Alvarez, one of the geologists who first tried to investigate the strange layer at the K-T boundary, which lies right above where the dinosaurs disappear. Walter noticed that there was something odd about the boundary, and decided he would try to get to the bottom of it. As a result, he finds evidence which might go disprove one of the most basic ideas in geology at the time: the idea that all geologic changes happen gradually.

Although the story is gripping, the real reason I love this book is that it explains how science is actually done, not in the abstract, but with an actual real-world example. Anyone who has ever been doubtful of the claims that geologists or paleontologists make about the past needs to read this book. Anyone who thinks that these areas of science are somehow "lesser" than physics or [insert your favorite field here] needs to read this book. And, of course, anyone wondering how we could have possibly found out about this catastrophic event needs to read this book. T. rex and the Crater of Doom is an experience that everyone should have.