Star-Craving Mad

Star-Craving Mad: Tales from a Traveling Astronomerby Fred WatsonAllen & Unwin, 2013Armed with dry wit and a dash of whimsy, Australian astronomer Watson makes difficult scientific concepts such as dark energy, the Higgs boson, and the surprisingly hazy distinction between giant planets and small stars seem simple.
dry wit: ニコリともせずに言うウイット［機知｛きち｝］
hazy: かすんだ、もやのかかった、はっきりしない、漠然とした、はっきりしなくて、よくわからなくて

Whether telling tales of pseudoscientific alien encounters at conferences, journeying to ancient observatories in Peru or relating his views on what differentiates astronomy from all other scientific fields-since there is no marketable end-product, there is little scope for corruption, he writes-Watson entertains and enlightens.
pseudoscientific: 誤って、科学的であると考えられている理論と方法に基づく

He deftly twists and turns between astronomy history and cutting-edge research, ultimately transforming a book about space science and physics into a rarity: light reading packed with valuable information.
deftly: 巧みに、器用に
twist: よる、より合わせる、(より合わせて)(…を)作る、(…を)より合わせて(…に)する、(…を)編んで(…を)作る、(…を)巻きつける、からませる、(…を)ねじる、曲げる、ねじってはずす
cutting-edge: 最前線、先頭
pack with: 〈場所に〉〔人を〕詰め込む、〔ものを〕〈かばんなどに〉詰める

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