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Publisher's Summary

Sunday Times best-selling author of A Short History of Nearly Everything, Bill Bryson, teams up with The Science Museum to celebrate the ideas and inventions of the incurably curious. 

Across this five-episode series, Bill Bryson, with the help of The Science Museum's curators, takes us object-by-object through some of the museum's lesser known inventions and discoveries - and the human stories behind them. 

Discover how a teenage inventor, a pig's head, a lump of plywood and a famous British record label made medical history or how some inventions simply happen by accident. This 'museum for your ears' looks at how experimentation, competition, hard work and a desire to change our lives for the better have contributed to the progress of mankind. 

This is an Audible Original Podcast. Free for members. You can download all 5 episodes to your Library now.
©2017 Audible, Ltd. (P)2017 Audible, Ltd.

What the critics say

"Quirky, humorous and mercifully free of jargon." (Financial Times)

"The excitement of the Science Museum's curators is infectious as they share their expertise, bringing the ideas and inventions of the incurably curious to life." (The Guardian)

"Perfect for a weekend train journey." (Buzzfeed)

What listeners say about Bill Bryson's Appliance of Science

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

Bits and pieces from the London Museum of Science

one of the things that is always fascinated me of a big museums is what don't we get to see, and what stories don't we get to hear about. this behind-the-scenes look at curators favourite items makes me want to go back.

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  • Emily Lewis
  • 2019-03-02

Great narration

Interesting stories but would be better with pictures. Sometimes it is hard to imagine what is being described. But the storyteller keeps your interest.

5 people found this helpful

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  • Ben
  • 2019-02-05

Almost great

Very informative, engaging. But ruined by abysmal editing. This “audio tour” touches on unique history on pop medical solutions.

3 people found this helpful

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  • David
  • 2019-11-04

Fascinating, compelling and informative.

I love the sciences and to have access to such a well produced audiobook has made me very greatful for all the work that is involved.

2 people found this helpful

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  • R. MCRACKAN
  • 2018-07-02

Mixed bag

Fascinating facts with unexpectedly dull presentation. Which pains me to say because I love Bryson.

7 people found this helpful

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  • Amazon Customer
  • 2020-04-20

A frustrating listening experience

The files within this book do not play in order. After every chapter I was returned to the beginning of that chapter or the beginning of the book altogether. Also, each chapter seems to end rather abruptly.

1 person found this helpful

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  • Robinb
  • 2019-10-29

More, More MORE!!

Love Bill Bryson and really love this podcast format. Informative and engaging. Please give us more!

1 person found this helpful

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  • STACEY
  • 2018-12-09

Interesting

I liked this and found it interesting and entertaining. I liked Bill as narrator. Great listen.

1 person found this helpful

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  • Lisa Noyes
  • 2020-05-01

This should be called “The History of British Science and Engineering.”

This should be called “The History of British Science and Engineering.” It was entirely historical with nothing recent, and that was not clear from the name or description.

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  • Elizabeth P. Fowler
  • 2020-04-29

Tour of obscure scientific objects

This book is nicely written and narrated by Bill Bryson, with guest appearances by various curators at London's Science Museum. However, it is nearly impossible to follow this without images, so one comes away without any clear idea of how each object actually works.

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  • Gabriela
  • 2020-04-28

Very interesting

It was very instructive and left me wanting to know about more objects from this museum.