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Title: The Best American Science and Nature Writing 2003 by Richard Dawkins ISBN: 0-618-17892-9 Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Co Pub. Date: 10 October, 2003 Format: Paperback Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $13.00 |
Average Customer Rating: 4 (7 reviews)
Rating: 5
Summary: Light from Andromeda?
Comment: Opening an essay collection is rather like breaking the Christmas pinata - there's bound to be something to please everyone. If you hope to discover whether "royal" blood trickles in your veins, skip right to Steve Olson's account of tracing his ancestors and the surprises he reveals about all of us. For a more practical, if more disturbing, application of gene research, sit in the Sequenom waiting room with David Duncan while he ponders the results of a DNA test. He's not hoping for claimant-to-the-throne status. He wants to know whether some quirk in his genetic makeup might indicate heart problems. If you wish to enjoy the life extended age might grant you, you may wish to peruse one of several articles on the environment and the changes it's undergoing. Residents of coastal cities or islands may consider moving to higher ground after Ian Frazier's revelations about retreating glaciers and their watery residue.
"Science and Nature Writing" allows many subject options. Dawkins has chosen well and in a timely fashion for this anthology. It would be redundant to assess the writing styles - all of these pieces are compelling, informative and presented in a highly readable style. The subjects may have a scientific or technical foundation, but the information offered isn't buried in arcane terminology. For some of the articles, the style is designed to catch your attention over the destination of your tax dollars. Is the response to the 11 September World Trade Centre attacks rational? Is money being diverted to programs that might find better use and offer better security elsewhere? Clark Chapman and Alan Harris address the first part of the question, while Steven Weinberg in one article and Charles Mann in another look at the second part.
With twenty-nine essays to consider, it quickly becomes clear what treasures of information this book contains. Since it isn't indexed [which would likely double the size of both book and cost] browsing its pages is almost mandatory. Alternatively, of course, you may simply start with Natalie Angier's paean to grandmothers and read until Edward O. Wilson's examination of the "economic development for people" versus "protect the environment first" debate. No-one is better able to summarise the points and offer pointers to satisfy both. Between those two fine writers, you will meet astronomers, cosmologists, biblical analysis and enjoy the interesting experience of seeing Oliver Sacks from within and without. Outside those limits is a reminder that light from the Andromeda Galaxy we see tonight started its journey when hominid species were first walking upright. Is there a connection?
No matter what your interests, politics, level of science education, or even eating habits, there will be rewards for you within these pages. This series has been beneficial and informative to anyone wishing to learn something new about the world around them. Wade in from the shallow end or plunge into the deeper challenges here. You will gain rewards. [stephen a. haines - Ottawa, Canada]
Rating: 3
Summary: Hoping for the Best
Comment: Early in the forward, renown autthor/scientist Richard Dawkins writes " In a single glimpse of Andromeda, then, your eyes capture light that encompasses a span of 150,000 years, which is roughly equal to the length of time that humans have walked the earth. What holy book, what myth, can match the grandeur of that reality? In the face of such sublimity, why would any of us want to cling ot the old tales...the ones with the answers but not many questions?
That phrase captures what is best and least about this book. The grandeur of science opening up an infinite series of new questions on the one hand, and on the other, being challenged by the mundane world of people who would prefer to read "self-help" and "new age" books, a phenomena that scientists cannot fathom.
In the best sense, there are articles about science and scientists that stretch you mind by light years. "Ice Memory", tells of studies of cores of Greenland ice showing that earth has undergone dramatic changes in temperature in decades which dwarf the current exterpolations of global warming.
But the least of the book are the essays on science fighting entrenched interests or wayward passions. Some writers seem to miss the point or are fighting straw dogs. The problems of "recovered memories" in not really abused childern and lack of historical basis for the Bible are not so new to me. As Dawkins is an important writer on evolution, he probably has to deal with the conflicts between the science and peoples attitudes and beliefs more often than I do.
But I enjoyed almost every essay, learning that a sperm whale's head acts as a punching bag, and that new telescopes have returned the amatuer to an important role in astronomy. I even enjoyed some of the science vs politics stuff such as Gary Taubes exploration of the idea that poorly researched nutritional guidance from the government may have even triggered the fat epidemic.
There is food for thought in this smorgasbord, even if it is not a feast. As another reviewer said, the level of the science is at the more popular end of science reading -- but it is there. A good book to nibble at on many short commutes.
Rating: 4
Summary: solid collection
Comment: There's little I can add to the reviews that the other reviewers haven't already said, and said well. I'll just chime in with my opinion: it's a solid collection of essays and I'd recommend it.
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Title: The Best American Science Writing 2003 by Oliver Sacks ISBN: 0060936517 Publisher: Ecco Pub. Date: 02 September, 2003 List Price(USD): $13.95 |
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Title: The Best American Essays 2003 by Anne Fadiman ISBN: 0618341617 Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Co Pub. Date: 10 October, 2003 List Price(USD): $13.00 |
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Title: The Best American Science and Nature Writing 2002 (The Best American (TM)) by Natalie Angier ISBN: 0618134786 Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Co Pub. Date: 15 October, 2002 List Price(USD): $13.00 |
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Title: The Best American Travel Writing 2003 by Ian Frazier ISBN: 0618118829 Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Co Pub. Date: 10 October, 2003 List Price(USD): $13.00 |
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Title: The Best American Short Stories 2003 by Walter Mosley ISBN: 0618197338 Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Co Pub. Date: 10 October, 2003 List Price(USD): $13.00 |
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