Overview

"""A fitting biography of one of the most brilliant, acerbic, and under-appreciated astrophysicists of the twentieth century. John Johnson has delved deeply into a rich and eventful life, and produced a rollicking account of how Fritz Zwicky split his time between picking fights with his colleagues and discovering amazing things about our universe.""-Sean Carroll, author of The Big Picture Fritz Zwicky was one of the most inventive and iconoclastic scientists of his time. He predicted the existence of neutron stars, and his research pointed the way toward the discovery of pulsars and black holes. He was the first to conceive of the existence of dark matter, the first to make a detailed catalog of thousands of galaxies, and the first to correctly suggest that cosmic rays originate from supernovas. Not content to confine his discoveries to the heavens, Zwicky contributed to the United States war against Japan with inventions in jet propulsion that enabled aircraft to launch from carriers in the Pacific. After the war, he was the first Western scientist to interview Wernher von Braun, the Nazi engineer who developed the V-2 rocket. Later he became an outspoken advocate for space exploration, but also tangled with almost every leading scientist of the time, from Edwin Hubble and Richard Feynman to J. Robert Oppenheimer and Subrahmanyan Chandrasekhar. In Zwicky, John Johnson, Jr., brings this tempestuous maverick to life. Zwicky not only made groundbreaking contributions to science and engineering; he rose to fame as one of the most imaginative science popularizers of his day. Yet he became a pariah in the scientific community, denouncing his enemies, real and imagined, as ""spherical bastards"" and ""horses' asses."" Largely forgotten today, Zwicky deserves rediscovery for introducing some of the most destructive forces in the universe, and as a reminder that genius obeys no rules and has no friends."

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Interesting to read and provides an insight into a rich, complicated character and his engagement with the world he was part of.--Chris North BBC Sky at Night (11/01/2019) [An] excellent biography of Zwicky.--Jeff Foust Space Review (09/30/2019) [An] engaging biography...Reveals a life that is far deeper and more nuanced than the caricature...A sympathetic reassessment of his overall legacy.--Wall Street Journal (09/13/2019) [A] spirited biography...Johnson's book is rich enough to inspire interesting meditations on research, idiosyncrasy--and reputation.--Nature (09/03/2019) A well-rounded biography of the brilliant, contrarian scientist...Stands as an evenhanded examination of a pugnacious and imaginative genius, and it should spark new interest in Zwicky.--Publishers Weekly (07/09/2019) This book is absolutely marvelous--I really could not put it down.--James Gunn, Princeton University A detailed and insightful biography. The story certainly captures both the way in which Zwicky liked to see himself and the way in which some leading physicists responded to him. Others, however, took offense and did their best to ignore the astronomer, both during his lifetime and afterwards--one of the reasons why he is largely forgotten today.-- (12/01/2019) A lively new biography...Johnson has written a book that explains the astronomical facts simply and clearly without using technical jargon. But the emphasis is on the human characters, not on the science.-- (01/16/2020) Of all the science biographies that came out in 2019, this one, about the legendary scientist Fritz Zwicky, was far and away my favorite...[A] gem of a book...If you enjoy biographies of scientists, particularly underappreciated ones, you'll want to pick this one up for sure.--Ethan Siegel Forbes (11/29/2019) A lively new biography...Johnson has written a book that explains the astronomical facts simply and clearly without using technical jargon. But the emphasis is on the human characters, not on the science. -- (01/16/2020) This is a fitting biography of one of the most brilliant, acerbic, and under-appreciated astrophysicists of the twentieth century. John Johnson has delved deeply into a rich and eventful life, and produced a rollicking account of how Fritz Zwicky split his time between picking fights with his colleagues and discovering amazing things about our universe.--Sean Carroll, author of The Big Picture: On the Origins of Life, Meaning, and the Universe Itself Zwicky is everything a good science history book should be. With an eccentric and brilliant scientist at its heart, this book illuminates the very human nature at the center of all the best scientific discoveries.--Deborah Blum, Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and author of The Poisoner's Handbook: Murder and the Birth of Forensic Medicine in Jazz Age New York

[An] excellent biography of Zwicky.--Jeff Foust Space Review (09/30/2019) This book is absolutely marvelous--I really could not put it down.--James Gunn, Princeton University [An] engaging biography...Reveals a life that is far deeper and more nuanced than the caricature...A sympathetic reassessment of his overall legacy.--Wall Street Journal (09/13/2019) [A] spirited biography...Johnson's book is rich enough to inspire interesting meditations on research, idiosyncrasy--and reputation.--Nature (09/03/2019) Interesting to read and provides an insight into a rich, complicated character and his engagement with the world he was part of.--Chris North BBC Sky at Night (11/01/2019) A well-rounded biography of the brilliant, contrarian scientist...Stands as an evenhanded examination of a pugnacious and imaginative genius, and it should spark new interest in Zwicky.--Publishers Weekly (07/09/2019) Of all the science biographies that came out in 2019, this one, about the legendary scientist Fritz Zwicky, was far and away my favorite...[A] gem of a book...If you enjoy biographies of scientists, particularly underappreciated ones, you'll want to pick this one up for sure.--Ethan Siegel Forbes (11/29/2019) A lively new biography...Johnson has written a book that explains the astronomical facts simply and clearly without using technical jargon. But the emphasis is on the human characters, not on the science.-- (01/16/2020) A detailed and insightful biography. The story certainly captures both the way in which Zwicky liked to see himself and the way in which some leading physicists responded to him. Others, however, took offense and did their best to ignore the astronomer, both during his lifetime and afterwards--one of the reasons why he is largely forgotten today.-- (12/01/2019) Well researched...An enjoyable read.--Helge Kragh Physics Today (02/01/2020) Zwicky is everything a good science history book should be. With an eccentric and brilliant scientist at its heart, this book illuminates the very human nature at the center of all the best scientific discoveries.--Deborah Blum, Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and author of The Poisoner's Handbook: Murder and the Birth of Forensic Medicine in Jazz Age New York This is a fitting biography of one of the most brilliant, acerbic, and under-appreciated astrophysicists of the twentieth century. John Johnson has delved deeply into a rich and eventful life, and produced a rollicking account of how Fritz Zwicky split his time between picking fights with his colleagues and discovering amazing things about our universe.--Sean Carroll, author of The Big Picture: On the Origins of Life, Meaning, and the Universe Itself

Well researched...An enjoyable read.--Helge Kragh Physics Today (02/01/2020) A detailed and insightful biography. The story certainly captures both the way in which Zwicky liked to see himself and the way in which some leading physicists responded to him. Others, however, took offense and did their best to ignore the astronomer, both during his lifetime and afterwards--one of the reasons why he is largely forgotten today.-- (12/01/2019) A lively new biography...Johnson has written a book that explains the astronomical facts simply and clearly without using technical jargon. But the emphasis is on the human characters, not on the science.-- (01/16/2020) Of all the science biographies that came out in 2019, this one, about the legendary scientist Fritz Zwicky, was far and away my favorite...[A] gem of a book...If you enjoy biographies of scientists, particularly underappreciated ones, you'll want to pick this one up for sure.--Ethan Siegel Forbes (11/29/2019) [An] engaging biography...Reveals a life that is far deeper and more nuanced than the caricature...A sympathetic reassessment of his overall legacy.--Wall Street Journal (09/13/2019) [An] excellent biography of Zwicky.--Jeff Foust Space Review (09/30/2019) [A] spirited biography...Johnson's book is rich enough to inspire interesting meditations on research, idiosyncrasy--and reputation.--Nature (09/03/2019) A well-rounded biography of the brilliant, contrarian scientist...Stands as an evenhanded examination of a pugnacious and imaginative genius, and it should spark new interest in Zwicky.--Publishers Weekly (07/09/2019) Interesting to read and provides an insight into a rich, complicated character and his engagement with the world he was part of.--Chris North BBC Sky at Night (11/01/2019) This book is absolutely marvelous--I really could not put it down.--James Gunn, Princeton University This is a fitting biography of one of the most brilliant, acerbic, and under-appreciated astrophysicists of the twentieth century. John Johnson has delved deeply into a rich and eventful life, and produced a rollicking account of how Fritz Zwicky split his time between picking fights with his colleagues and discovering amazing things about our universe.--Sean Carroll, author of The Big Picture: On the Origins of Life, Meaning, and the Universe Itself Zwicky is everything a good science history book should be. With an eccentric and brilliant scientist at its heart, this book illuminates the very human nature at the center of all the best scientific discoveries.--Deborah Blum, Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and author of The Poisoner's Handbook: Murder and the Birth of Forensic Medicine in Jazz Age New York

Well researched...An enjoyable read.--Helge Kragh Physics Today (02/01/2020) A detailed and insightful biography. The story certainly captures both the way in which Zwicky liked to see himself and the way in which some leading physicists responded to him. Others, however, took offense and did their best to ignore the astronomer, both during his lifetime and afterwards--one of the reasons why he is largely forgotten today.-- (12/01/2019) A lively new biography...Johnson has written a book that explains the astronomical facts simply and clearly without using technical jargon. But the emphasis is on the human characters, not on the science.-- (01/16/2020) Of all the science biographies that came out in 2019, this one, about the legendary scientist Fritz Zwicky, was far and away my favorite...[A] gem of a book...If you enjoy biographies of scientists, particularly underappreciated ones, you'll want to pick this one up for sure.--Ethan Siegel Forbes (11/29/2019) [An] engaging biography...Reveals a life that is far deeper and more nuanced than the caricature...A sympathetic reassessment of his overall legacy.--Wall Street Journal (09/13/2019) [An] excellent biography of Zwicky.--Jeff Foust Space Review (09/30/2019) [A] spirited biography...Johnson's book is rich enough to inspire interesting meditations on research, idiosyncrasy--and reputation.--Nature (09/03/2019) A well-rounded biography of the brilliant, contrarian scientist...Stands as an evenhanded examination of a pugnacious and imaginative genius, and it should spark new interest in Zwicky.--Publishers Weekly (07/09/2019) Interesting to read and provides an insight into a rich, complicated character and his engagement with the world he was part of.--Chris North BBC Sky at Night (11/01/2019) This book is absolutely marvelous--I really could not put it down.--James Gunn, Princeton University Zwicky is everything a good science history book should be. With an eccentric and brilliant scientist at its heart, this book illuminates the very human nature at the center of all the best scientific discoveries.--Deborah Blum, Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and author of The Poisoner's Handbook: Murder and the Birth of Forensic Medicine in Jazz Age New York This is a fitting biography of one of the most brilliant, acerbic, and under-appreciated astrophysicists of the twentieth century. John Johnson has delved deeply into a rich and eventful life, and produced a rollicking account of how Fritz Zwicky split his time between picking fights with his colleagues and discovering amazing things about our universe.--Sean Carroll, author of The Big Picture: On the Origins of Life, Meaning, and the Universe Itself

Author Information

John Johnson Jr. spent twenty-two years at the Los Angeles Times, where he was a member of two teams that were awarded Pulitzer Prizes. He was responsible for covering space and physics for the newspaper and contributed to its reputation as a preeminent source of science reporting. He has written three science books for children and shared an IRE Medal from Investigative Reporters and Editors Inc.

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