The Science of Things

Reception

Track listing

Allusions

• In an interview, Gavin Rossdale revealed that the song "Letting the Cables Sleep" was written for a friend who had contracted HIV. This song appeared in a season six episode of ER entitled "Such Sweet Sorrow", which featured the final appearances of George Clooney and Julianna Margulies.
• The second season of Charmed contained two songs from the album. In the episode "Awakened", the single "The Chemicals Between Us" plays in the background at P3 while "Letting the Cables Sleep" is heard at the end of the episode "Astral Monkey" where a distraught Piper cries over the loss of her doctor.
• Apocalyptica has remixed the song "Letting the Cables Sleep".
• "Spacetravel" features backing vocals by Rossdale's former wife, Gwen Stefani.
• The song "Dead Meat" is referenced in the No Doubt song "Ex-Girlfriend".
• In the 1938 novella Anthem by Ayn Rand, the protagonist and narrator states that his favorite subject in school is "The Science of Things," the title of this album.

  Personnel

• Gavin Rossdale – lead vocals, rhythm guitar
• Nigel Pulsford – lead guitar, backing vocals
• Dave Parsons – bass
• Robin Goodridge – drums

• Sacha Puttnam – piano and string arrangements on "Letting the Cables Sleep", strings on "English Fire" and "40 Miles From the Sun"
• Claire Ashby – violin on "Letting the Cables Sleep"
• Alison Dodds – violin on "Letting the Cables Sleep"
• David Lasserson – viola on "Letting the Cables Sleep"
• Rosie Wetters – cello and string arrangements on "Letting the Cables Sleep"
• Gwen Stefani – vocals on "Spacetravel"
• Claudia Fontayne – backing vocals on "Jesus Online"
• Winston – barks on "Altered States"

• Gavin Rossdale – design
• Clive Langer – production, mixing, additional engineering on "The Chemicals Between Us" and "Letting the Cables Sleep"
• Alan Winstanley – production, mixing, additional engineering on "The Chemicals Between Us" and "Letting the Cables Sleep"
• Tom Elmhirst – engineering and mixing on "The Chemicals Between Us" and "Letting the Cables Sleep", protools and additional recording
• David Holman – mixing on "Warm Machine", "Jesus Online" and "Prizefighter"
• Paul Palmer – mixing on "Warm Machine", "Jesus Online" and "Prizefighter"
• Aidan Love – programming
• Jony Rockstar – programming
• Robert Vosgien – mastering
• Kim Holt – cover photo
• Chris Cuffaro – photography
• Peter Black – photography
• C.B. Smith – photography
• Kevin Westerberg – photography

  Charts and certifications

Certifications