Best Sci-Tech Books 2006: Science's Big Picture
From our prehistoric past to the promise and perils of our future, the top science titles of 2006 offer plenty to ponder
By Gregg Sapp -- Library Journal, 3/1/2007
The state of science is a moving target, and its ever-shifting horizons can best be gleaned by the contents of scientific journals. However, the bigger picture of the scientific enterprise, which also encompasses its past, its future, and its overarching philosophies, can often be better represented through the more reflective pace of popular science writing.
Of the 34 books selected as the best of 2006, three—Amir Aczel's The Artist and the Mathematician, Steven Johnson's The Ghost Map, and Chet Raymo's Walking Zero—draw both sobering and inspiring lessons for today from science's long history. And what's in store for the future of science? As Elizabeth Kolbert's Field Notes from a Catastrophe and Tim Flannery's The Weather Makers compellingly detail, global warming remains one of our most pressing concerns. At the same time, new theories in the physical and natural sciences, explored respectively by Charles Seife's Decoding the Universe and John Whitfield's In the Beat of a Heart, have great potential.
| See our web exclusive list of winners of science book prizes below. |
Astronomy
Primack, Joel & Nancy Ellen Abrams. The View from the Center of the Universe. Riverhead: Putnam. 400p. ISBN 978-1-59448-914-3. $26.95.
The combined talents of Primack, an astrophysicist, and Abrams, a philosopher and humanist, make for a thoughtful perspective on what's out there in the vastness of space and where we fit in it all. (LJ 2/1/06)
Biography
Peterson, Dale. Jane Goodall: The Woman Who Redefined Man. Houghton. 752p. photogs. bibliog. index. ISBN 978-0-395-85405-1. $35.
A born naturalist, a courageous field researcher, and a committed feminist and animal rights activist, Goodall had a uniquely inspirational and influential career. Peterson, her colleague, was provided broad access to material for this epic biography. (LJ 10/1/06)
Biology
Whitfield, John. In the Beat of a Heart: Life, Energy, and the Unity of Nature. Joseph Henry: National Academy. 280p. illus. index. ISBN 978-0-309-09681-2. $27.95.
A new theory propounding that living things evolve to use energy most efficiently has the potential to explain the distribution and interconnectivity of species. Whitfield shows how these ideas are gaining momentum as a possible unifying theory of biology. (LJ 9/1/06)
Evolution
Carroll, Sean B. The Making of the Fittest: DNA and the Ultimate Forensic Record of Evolution. Norton. 288p. illus. ISBN 978-0-393-06163-5. $25.95.
While evolution by natural selection is just a “theory,” as critics claim, overwhelming scientific evidence supports its reliability. Carroll shows how the evidence contained in DNA is beyond dispute. (LJ 10/1/06)
Mithen, Steven. The Singing Neanderthals: The Origins of Music, Language, Mind and Body. Harvard Univ. 373p. bibliog. index. ISBN 978-0-674-02192-1. $25.95.
Music conveys the full spectrum of human emotions, and as such it has evolved as one of the most powerful forms of human communication. Mithen regards the intrinsic desire to make and listen to music as part of our genetic heritage.
Wade, Nicholas. Before the Dawn: Recovering the Lost History of Our Ancestors. Penguin Pr: Penguin Group (USA). 312p. illus. index. ISBN 978-1-59420-079-3. $24.95.
The ancestral homo sapiens of 50,000 years ago developed features that define modern humans, such as language, agriculture, and, unfortunately, violence. New York Times science writer Wade presents a multifaceted view of our distant past. (LJ 4/15/06)
History of Science
Finkbeiner, Ann. The Jasons: The Secret History of Science's Postwar Elite. Viking. 303p. index. ISBN 978-0-670-03489-5. $27.95.
Since World War II, a cadre of elite scientists, called the “Jasons” (after the mythological Jason and the Argonauts), have advised U.S. government leaders on topics from war technologies to global climatology. Science writer Finkbeiner gives us an inside look. (LJ 4/1/06)
Johnson, Steven. The Ghost Map.Riverhead: Putnam. 320p. illus. bibliog. index. ISBN 978-1-59448-925-9. $26.95.
The 1854 cholera epidemic in London was a devastating mystery that was solved by Dr. John Snow, whose map of the plague's progress, combined with epidemiological detective work, changed how officials manage urban health. (web review, LJ 9/19/06)
Raymo, Chet. Walking Zero: Discovering Cosmic Space and Time Along the Prime Meridian. Walker. 194p. index. ISBN 978-0-8027-1494-7. $22.95.
The prime meridian in Greenwich, England, divides not only longitude but, metaphorically, the history of science as well. Science writer Raymo contemplates its significance as he traverses its length. (LJ 4/1/06)
Mathematics
Aczel, Amir. The Artist and the Mathematician. Thunder's Mouth: Avalon. c.272p. bibliog. index. ISBN 978-1-56025-931-2. $23.95.
Imagine if Hemingway, Faulkner, and Fitzgerald had all published under a common pseudonym. This is the amazing legacy of a group of eccentric but brilliant French mathematicians in the 1930s who invented Nicolas Bourbaki to pen their work. (LJ 10/1/06)
Stewart, Ian. Letters to a Young Mathematician. Basic Bks: Perseus. 210p. ISBN 978-0-465-08231-5. $22.95.
These letters, written to a fictitious mathematical prodigy named “Meg,” impart insight into the field and offer sound advice, such as “Keep your mind open, but not so open as your brains fall out.” (LJ 4/15/06)
Medicine & Health Sciences
Chase, Victor. Shattered Nerves: How Science Is Solving Modern Medicine's Most Perplexing Problems. Johns Hopkins. 296p. ISBN 978-0-8018-8514-3. $27.50.
Technological implants have the potential to cure some of the most intractable neurological disorders. While addressing the technology, science journalist Chase focuses on the physicians and their patients. (LJ 11/1/06)
Firlik, Katrina. Another Day in the Frontal Lobe: A Brain Surgeon Exposes Life on the Inside. Random. 288p. ISBN 978-1-4000-6320-8. $24.95.
Firlik's story as one of approximately five percent of brain surgeons who are female would be compelling enough, but her thoughts about the future of neurosurgery, including the prospect of “brain lifts,” make this book even more fascinating. (LJ 5/1/06)
Meteorology
Flannery, Tim. The Weather Makers: How Man Is Changing the Climate and What It Means for Life on Earth. Atlantic Monthly. 384p. illus. index. ISBN 978-0-87113-935-1. $24.
According to Flannery, the year 2050 is likely to be a watershed period. By then, we must have reduced carbon emissions by 70 percent, or global warming and its attendant catastrophes will be inevitable. (LJ 11/15/05)
Kolbert, Elizabeth. Field Notes from a Catastrophe: Man, Nature, and Climate Change. Bloomsbury, dist. by Holtzbrinck. 192p. index. ISBN 978-1-59691-125-3. $22.95.
Expanding on her award-winning New Yorker series, Kolbert brings the threat of global warming close to home by examining its impacts today, but she also highlights actions taken by innovative governments to deal with the problem. (web review, LJ 3/21/06)
van Heerden, Ivor & Mike Bryan. The Storm. Viking. 308p. index. ISBN 978-0-670-03781-0. $25.95.
For over a decade, Louisiana State University scientist van Heerden warned New Orleans officials that the city was at grave risk of a catastrophic hurricane. His account of Katrina is scientifically and historically significant and, more important, relevant to future planning.
Natural History
Marent, Thomas with Ben Morgan.Rainforest. DK. 360p. photogs. index. ISBN 978-0-7566-1940-4. $40.
Swiss photographer Marent captures striking images from rainforests and their ecosystems from five continents. An accompanying CD of rainforest sounds makes this a celebration of biodiversity. (LJ 10/1/06)
Sterling, Eleanor Jane & others. Vietnam: A Natural History. Yale Univ. c.448p. illus. bibliog. index. ISBN 978-0-300-10608-4. $40.
This travelog and natural history covers the flora, fauna, and biogeography of this fragile yet fertile country, as well as the social and political factors that affect its sustainability. (LJ 6/15/06)
Tudge, Colin. The Tree: A Natural History of What Trees Are, How They Live, and Why They Matter. Crown. 464p. illus. bibliog. index. ISBN 978-1-4000-5036-9. $27.95.
Tudge's encyclopedic survey of trees studies their biology and ecology in a way that stimulates appreciation for the largest sequoia and the most meager sapling. It also reminds us that trees are essential to our survival. (LJ 9/1/06)
Neurology
Kandel, Eric R. In Search of Memory: The Emergence of a New Science of Mind. Norton. 510p. illus. index. ISBN 978-0-393-05863-5. $29.95.
Nobel prize winner Kandel's career encompasses the rapid and remarkable growth of the cognitive neurosciences, and his experiences, not to mention his landmark contributions, lend perspective to the field as well as set its agenda for the future. (LJ 3/15/06)
Paleontology
Ward, Peter D. Out of Thin Air: Dinosaurs, Birds, and Earth's Ancient Atmosphere. Joseph Henry: National Academy. 282p. illus. index. ISBN 978-0-309-10061-8. $27.95.
Birds are distant but direct relatives of dinosaurs. Paleontologist Ward theorizes that by studying the adaptability of modern birds, we can understand why dinosaurs survived for 65 million years. (LJ 9/1/06)
Philosophy of Science
Hauser, Marc D. Moral Minds: How Nature Designed Our Universal Sense of Right and Wrong. Ecco: HarperCollins. 489p. ISBN 978-0-06-078070-8. $27.95.
Is morality a biological imperative for human beings? Hauser cites new research in the far-flung fields of psychology, linguistics, and evolutionary biology in arguing that we have an intrinsic ethical sensibility.
Physical Sciences
Seife, Charles. Decoding the Universe.Viking. 296p. bibliog. index. ISBN 978-0-670-03441-3. $24.95.
Envisioning information as a physical reality may seem counterintuitive, but this concept has enormous analytical applications. Seife shows how doing scientific research is, in a sense, cryptology of the natural world. (LJ 3/1/06)
Smolin, Lee. The Trouble with Physics: The Rise of String Theory, the Fall of a Science, and What Comes Next. Houghton. 392p. ISBN 978-0-618-55105-7. $26.
“String” theory has become a foundation of modern astrophysics. But is it right? Smolin, a lapsed string theorist, believes that its gaps are significant, its propositions are untestable, and that an entirely new theory is needed. (LJ 8/06)
Psychology
Harris, Judith Rich. No Two Alike: Human Nature and Individuality. Norton. 322p. index. ISBN 978-0-393-05948-9. $26.95.
Citing the remarkable experiences of conjoined identical twins with two very different personalities, Harris argues that the existing theories of personality are inadequate and proposes her theory about why no two people can ever be the same. (LJ 2/1/06)
Science & Religion
Collins, Francis. The Language of God: A Scientist Presents Evidence for Belief. Free Pr: S.& S. 293p. illus. index. ISBN 978-0-7432-8639-8. $26.
The head of the Human Genome Project writes about his conviction that belief in God and a scientific view of the natural world are not only compatible but complement each other in essential ways. (LJ 7/06)
Dawkins, Richard. The God Delusion.Houghton. 416p. ISBN 978-0-618-68000-9. $27.
To be what molecular biologist Dawkins calls a “bright” is to be a humanist skeptic with an objective scientific view of the world. Such a philosophy, he contends, makes belief in a god unnecessary, even harmful. (LJ 11/15/06)
Dennett, Daniel C. Breaking the Spell: Religion as a Natural Phenomenon.Viking. 464p. ISBN 978-0-670-03472-7. $25.95.
A leading philosopher of science examines whether the inductive principles of science can be applied to religious beliefs, and, if so, what are the social and cultural implications of a scientific faith. (LJ 1/06)
Science—General Topics
Henshaw, John M. Does Measurement Add Up?: How Numbers Reveal and Conceal the Truth. Johns Hopkins. 228p. index. ISBN 978-0-8018-8375-0. $26.95.
In almost every facet of life, from global temperatures to average IQ scores, the world is increasingly measurable. But, the author wonders, are those measurements accurate and are some things unmeasurable?
Space Sciences
Burrows, William E. The Survival Imperative: Using Space To Protect the Earth. Forge: Tor. c.320p. index. ISBN 978-0-7653-1114-6. $24.95.
Science journalist Burrows proposes that space-based technologies may provide our best protection against threats from afar, such as asteroid impacts, and from within, such as climatological catastrophes. (LJ 8/06)
Technology
Forbes, Peter. The Gecko's Foot: Bio-Inspiration—Engineering New Materials from Nature. Norton. 272p. illus. index. ISBN 978-0-393-06223-6. $24.95.
Nature is its own engineer, and human engineers have much to learn from studying how evolution has created living solutions to technological problems. Forbes shows how these natural innovations occur at the nanoscale. (LJ 3/15/06)
Petroski, Henry. Success Through Failure: The Paradox of Design.Princeton Univ. 235p. illus. index. ISBN 978-0-691-12225-0. $22.95.
The “poet laureate of engineers” explores how design failure can be a learning experience and sometimes the best catalyst toward improvement. (LJ 3/15/06)
Zoology
Chu, Miyoko. Songbird Journeys. Walker. 312p. illus. bibliog. index. ISBN 978-0-8027-1468-8. $23.
The seasonal migration of songbirds has equally inspired poets and scientists. Here, ornithologist Chu pays equal homage to avian beauty and biology. (LJ 2/15/06)
Padel, Ruth. Tigers in Red Weather. Walker. 448p. maps. bibliog. index. ISBN 978-0-8027-1544-9. $26.95.
Owing to many factors, the number of tigers living wild is diminishing nearly to the point of extinction. Because Padel is pessimistic about their chances unless drastic measures are taken, this book offers perhaps a last glimpse of these magnificent animals. (LJ 7/06)
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And the 2006 Winners Are... By D. Yvonne Jones Another year has passed, and another fascinating crop of science book prizes have been handed out. Intended primarily to honor science books targeted to general readers, these awards make useful collection development and readers’ advisory tools for public and academic libraries. Each awarding organization differs in the award year date and publication date of the honored title, thus, some awards are listed here as 2006 releases while others are 2005 or 2007; most of the books were published in 2005 or before. Readers familiar with this article from previous years might even notice that some book awards are only given every other year. [For previous winners, see Jones’s “And the Winners Are...,” LJ 3/1/05, p. 46–47; LJ 3/1/06, p. 46–47—Ed.] AMERICAN ASSOCIATION FOR THE HISTORY OF MEDICINE 2006 William H. Welch Medal: Lerner, Barron. Breast Cancer Wars: Hope, Fear, and the Pursuit of a Cure in Twentieth Century America. Oxford Univ. 2003. 414p. illus. index. ISBN 978-0-19-516106-9. pap. $19.95. Originally published in 2001, Lerner’s book offers a well-researched but disturbing overview of the “war against breast cancer” in the United States. Demonstrating the social and political influences on medical treatment and scientific research, this is an intriguing, if depressing, look at the reality of medical treatment decisions and the necessity for patients to be as fully informed as possible. (LJ 5/15/01) AVENTIS PRIZES FOR SCIENCE BOOKS 2006 General Prize Winner: Bodanis, David. Electric Universe: The Shocking True Story of Electricity. Crown. 2005. 320p. index. ISBN 978-1-4000-4550-1. $24. From light bulbs to neurotransmitters, Bodanis’s delightful exposition reveals how completely our world has changed as a result of our evolving understanding of electricity. (LJ 12/04) HISTORY OF SCIENCE SOCIETY AWARDS2006 Pfizer Award: Burkhardt, Richard W., Jr. Patterns of Behavior: Konrad Lorenz, Niko Tinbergen, and the Founding of Ethology. Univ of. Chicago. 2005. 648p. illus. ISBN 978-0-226-08089-5. $80; pap. ISBN 978-0-226-08090-1. $29. The awarding of the 1973 Nobel prize to animal behaviorists Konrad Lorenz, Nikolaas Tinbergen, and Karl Von Frisch marked the recognition of the study of animal behavior as a full-fledged science. Burkhardt’s lengthy history of ethology not only offers an excellent overview of how a scientific discipline was formed but also provides an intimate picture of these two giants of research and their relationship. 2006 Suzanne J. Levinson Prize: Herbert, Sandra. Charles Darwin, Geologist. Cornell Univ. 2005. 480p. illus. ISBN 978-0-8014-4348-0. $39.95. This debut prize “for a book in the history of the life sciences and natural history” went to Herbert’s exhaustive scholarly slant on Darwin’s geological interests and influences, an area frequently overlooked by researchers. (LJ 6/1/05) 2006 Watson Davis and Helen Miles Davis Prize: Henig, Robin Marantz. Pandora’s Baby: How the First Test Tube Babies Sparked the Reproductive Revolution. Houghton. 2004. 336p. ISBN 978-0-618-22415-9. $25. An LJ Best Book in 2004 and a 2005 winner of the prestigious 2005 “Science in Society” Journalism Award, Henig’s history of in vitro fertilization (IVF) in the United States engages the reader immediately with the very personal story of Doris and John Del-Zio and their quest in 1973 for an IVF baby. Their failed attempts and the lawsuits that resulted raised never-before-asked ethical questions about the newly emerging science of reproductive biology. (LJ 1/04) JOINT POLICY BOARD FOR MATHEMATICS COMMUNICATIONS AWARD2007 Winner: Strogatz, Steven H. Sync: The Emerging Science of Spontaneous Order. Hyperion. 2003. 352p. illus. index. ISBN 978-0-7868-6844-5. $24.95. Cornell professor Strogatz gives us a wonderfully readable book about the fundamental usefulness of mathematics in explaining the phenomenon of synchronicity in nature, from simultaneously firefly flashing to “synchronized swimming” sperm. Not only is this a fascinating exposition of a relatively unknown area of mathematics, but it is also a very personal narrative of Strogatz’s research journey, including such unexpected personalities as actor Alan Alda (who apparently has a research interest in the synchronicity of fads). LOS ANGELES TIMES BOOK PRIZE FOR SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY 2005 Winner: Preston, Diana. Before the Fallout: From Marie Curie to Hiroshima. Walker. 2005. 416p. illus. bibliog. index. ISBN 978-0-8027-1445-9. $27. Preston traces in compelling detail the roughly 50 years of scientific research covering Marie Curie’s discovery of radium in 1898 to the atomic bombs dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki in 1945. (LJ 3/1/05) NATIONAL ACADEMIES COMMUNICATION AWARDS 2006 Book Winner: Mann, Charles. 1491: New Revelations of the Americas Before Columbus. Knopf. 2005.480p. photogs. maps. bibliog. index. ISBN 978-1-4000-4006-3.$30. This thoroughly researched but readable blend of archaeology, anthropology, and ecology point out that much, if not most, of what we were taught about the Americas and its native peoples before Columbus arrived was completely false. (LJ 8/05) PHI BETA KAPPA AWARD IN SCIENCE2006 Winner: Ruddiman, William F. Plows, Plagues, and Petroleum: How Humans Took Control of Climate. Princeton Univ. 2005. 272p. ISBN 978-0-691-12164-2. $24.95 Retired environmental sciences professo Ruddiman gives us a calm, intelligent, and relatively brief presentation of how humans have impacted climate for over 8000 years. Accessible to general readers and of current interest. SOCIETY FOR THE HISTORY OF TECHNOLOGY2006 Sally Hacker Prize: Hayes, Brian. Infrastructure: A Field Guide to the Industrial Landscape. Norton. 2005. 512p. photogs. index. ISBN 978-0-393-05997-7. $49.95. This fabulous celebration of “the world we have made for ourselves” is what popular science writing should be! It’s all here: roads, water towers, manhole covers, barns, and telephone poles, vividly captured in the author’s color photographs. As Hayes puts it, “It’s all around you; you might as well get to know what it’s called and what it does.” Great, great book; buy it now, if you don’t already have it in your collection. 2006 Sidney Edelstein Prize: Cogdell, Christine. Eugenic Design: Streamlining America in the 1930s. Univ. of Pennsylvania. 2004. 352p. illus. index. ISBN 978-0-8122-3824-2. $42.50. This prize is awarded for an outstanding scholarly work, and Cogdell provides a very clear and intriguing exposition of the links between industrial design and the eugenics movement of the 1930s. D. Yvonne Jones is currently Reference Librarian, Science Liaison, and Assistant Professor at Rollins College, Winter Park, FL. She holds a Ph.D. in nutritional epidemiology from Cornell University and an MLS from Rutgers |
