A miscellany of 101 short histories from the annals of weird science, it’s culled from the columns Mark wrote for the Guardian newspaper’s now-extinct Life section between about 2003 and 2005.

From the Aquatic Ape Hypothesis to Zero Point Energy via the Hieronymous Device and Erototoxin, Mark distills complex, often mind-boggling ideas and stories into concise, pithy and entertaining tinctures that can safley be taken at up to six times a day. We recommend use in the toilet, at bedtime or on short journeys (though not while cycling or operating heavy machinery).

Disinformation have done a great publishing job. The cover, as you can see above, is fantastic, and the end papers and section divides come in a wild radioactive green – as one friend puts it, the international colour of weird science. The book is a handy CD-size and satisfyingly thick at 236pp, and should fit snugly into the lab coat, or look great in a padded cell.

This clutch of stories will inspire, confuse, enthrall, appall and entertain the mad scientist in everybody’s lives.