Changes

|title=The Pluto Files: The Rise and Fall of America's Favourite Planet

|reviewer=Keith Dudhnath

|genre=Popular Science

|buy=Yes

|borrow=Yes

|pages=194

|publisher=W W Norton and Co

|date=February 2009

|isbn=978-0393065206

|sort=Pluto Files: The Rise and Fall of America's Favourite Planet

}}

As director of the Hayden Planetarium, Neil deGrasse Tyson grouped the celestial bodies by type, rather than listing them under the arbitrary heading of 'planets'. This put Mercury, Venus, Earth and Mars together in one group, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune together in another, and left poor little Pluto out in the cold. His aim was for people to gain a greater understanding, rather than just knowing the names. The result was widespread outrage amongst newspapers, schoolchildren and the public at large. It was a scientifically-sound position, and ultimately fuelled the International Astronomical Union to define what was and wasn't a planet. ''The Pluto Files'' is a fascinating, educational and hilarious journey from Pluto's discovery, through its rise in public consciousness (by way of Disney), to the controversy about its planetary status, its ultimate downgrading, and the public's response to it.

Science is also made fun in [[How To Fossilise Your Hamster by Mick O'Hare|How To Fossilise Your Hamster]] by [[:Category:Mick O'Hare|Mick O'Hare]]. For another great read about astronomy, check out [[The Georgian Star: How William and Caroline Herschel Revolutionized Our Understanding of the Cosmos by Michael D Lemonick|The Georgian Star]] by [[:Category:Michael D Lemonick|Michael D Lemonick]].

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