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Annoying
Book

Annoying

The Science of What Bugs Us

Joe Palca and Flora Lichtman
Wiley, 2011
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Editorial Rating

8

Qualities

  • Innovative

Recommendation

Why are you annoyed? Perhaps the person sitting next to you at the movies is snapping his gum, a driver on the expressway is hogging the passing lane or the lady in the supermarket line smells like a perfume factory. The list of pet peeves is endless. Science journalists Joe Palca and Flora Lichtman charmingly cover common annoyances and the degree to which science explains them. Although they draw on serious academic research throughout, the authors never take themselves too seriously. The result is a clever, revealing and thoroughly entertaining look at why certain sounds, tastes, smells and behaviors drive you up the wall. Will the book enable you to tolerate that buzzing fly or the endless wait at the post office? Maybe not, but getAbstract believes that you’re bound to look at the world around you a little differently – and probably with a dose of good-natured resignation.

Summary

To Each His Own

Defining annoyances in general terms is virtually impossible. Alarm clocks and traffic jams bother some people. A lemon-scented room freshener that some find invigorating may offend others. Everyone has a list of pet peeves, but some assortment of things bugs most folks to a lesser or greater degree. For example, most people find forced exposure to one half of a cellphone call vexing. Why? In addition to the distraction of the chatter, researchers believe listeners feel frustrated by a lack of information as they try to make sense of what they are hearing. Not knowing when the conversation will end is an aggravating component.

In some instances, people find a particular pleasure in things that are not just annoying, but even unpleasant and painful. Take hot chili peppers, for instance. Although they can cause serious burning and a numb feeling in the mouth and throat – depending on their amount of capsaicin, the chemical that makes chilies so spicy – people have been eating hot chili peppers for thousands of years. Many diners enjoy the burning sensation, even as their faces turn red and their eyes water in pain. In his diary, Christopher Columbus noted...

About the Authors

Joe Palca is a science correspondent for National Public Radio, where Flora Lichtman is the multimedia editor for Science Friday.

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