51: The Mad Science Book: 100 Amazing Experiments from the History of Science, Reto U. Schneider

A hella fun collection of Annals of Improbable Research worthy science, with some more common fare tossed in. Lots of sociology and psychology. Some icky medicine.

Stanley Milgram comes up three times, with the shocks, Small World, and the lost envelopes. He did some very interesting things. I'd like to read a good biography. (If someone is actually reading this, and that someone knows of one: leave a comment.)

Two of my favourite papers as examples:

Barbara Rolls' "Water Incorporated into a Food but not Served with a Food Decreases Energy Intake in Lean Women", American Journal of Clinical Nutrition 70, pp. 448-455: in short, soup is more filling than its non-water-ingredients + water. Bizarre.

Benjamin Libet's "Time of Conscious Intention to Act in Relation to Onset of Cerebral Activity (Readiness-Potential). The Unconscious Initiation of a Freely Voluntary Act", Brain 106 (Pt 3), pp. 623-642: the brain seems to start initiating movements before we have consciously decided to make those movements. Free will is such a sham.