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IT IS easy to be cynical about this kind of book. What next: the science of Oprah Winfrey? That said, science fiction is a sugar-coated pill whose power to engage and communicate some of the wonder of science is often wilfully ignored by the scientists themselves. Paul Parsons demonstrates this to effect. Yes, he has written a fun book for Dalek-obsessed fans of the double-hearted Time Lord. And in running the gamut from time travel to quantum teleportation, from nanotechnology to immortality, from hydrogen sulphide to five-hearted hagfish, it is more effective than a dozen earnest and worthy schemes to promote the public understanding of science.…