I Wonder Why The Sky Is Blue

"An examination of the phenomena and scientific principles behind why the sky appears blue"--Provided by publisher.

Delightful and intriguing, 'Why the Sky is Blue' shows how the attempt to answer this age-old and deceptively simple question only enhances the magic of the blue sky we see above us.

Answers scientific questions inspired by the outdoors, including "why does it smell so fresh after it rains?", "why do dandelions turn white and fluffy?", and "what's that white line in the sky?"

At times, we find ourselves unexpectedly immersed in a mood that lacks any clear object or identifiable cause. These uncanny moments tend to be hastily dismissed as inconsequential, left without explanation. Maria Balaska examines two such cases: wonder and anxiety – what it means to prepare for them, what life may look like after experiencing them, and what insights we can take from those experiences. For Kierkegaard anxiety is a door to freedom, for Heidegger wonder is a distress that opens us to the truth of Being, and for Wittgenstein wonder and anxiety are deeply connected to the ethical. Drawing on themes from these thinkers and bringing them into dialogue, Balaska argues that in our encounters with nothing we encounter the very potential of our existence. Most importantly, we confront what is most inconspicuous and fundamental about the human condition and what makes it possible to encounter anything at all: our distinct capacity for making sense of things.