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The main purpose of this page is to list some variety of books that may be suitable for general reading. Some are books I know and like, some have been recommended to me by others. Some are listed "by reputation". Some have been listed for one or another of my courses. The general scope of the page is "science". That will be interpreted loosely so as to include a wide range of books, especially when other people contribute to the list. The target audience is broad. A key target audience is "young science students". Books suitable for general reading by other scientists and by non-scientist friends and relatives are all welcomed. Contributions welcomed. Please provide a brief description, along the lines of what is given here. Contributions should be signed: at least a name.
This page is primarily for books for "general" reading, not for textbooks per se. Basic textbooks are listed on course pages, and some online textbooks are listed as Internet resources, e.g., for Chemistry (including biochemistry), Biology, or Microbiology.
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Author index. Here is a listing of all books, listed by each author, alphabetically (by the author whose name is in bold). Each item here links to the year where details for the book are found.
Pamela G Ronald & Raoul W Adamchak, Tomorrow's Table - Organic farming, genetics, and the future of food. 2008. New January 19, 2009.
Susan Allport, The Queen of Fats - Why Omega-3s were removed from the western diet and what we can do to replace them. 2006.
John C Avise, The Hope, Hype, and Reality of Genetic Engineering: Remarkable stories from agriculture, industry, medicine, and the environment. 2004.
E C Minkoff & P J Baker, Biology Today - An Issues Approach. 2001 -- 2nd edition. 2004 -- 3rd edition.
Michael Bellomo, The Stem Cell Divide: The facts, the fiction, and the fear driving the greatest scientific, political, and religious debate of our time. 2006.
Paul Berg & Maxine Singer, George Beadle - An uncommon farmer; subtitled "The emergence of genetics in the 20th century". 2003.
Jeremy Bernstein, Plutonium: A history of the world's most dangerous element. 2007. New November 3, 2008.
J D Watson (with A Berry), DNA - The Secret of Life. 2003.
J Michael Bishop, How to win the Nobel prize - An unexpected life in science. 2003.
Jeff Hawkins (with Sandra Blakeslee), On Intelligence. 2004.
Michael Blastland & Andrew Dilnot, The Tiger That Isn't: Seeing Through a World of Numbers. 2008. New November 24, 2008.
Thomas D Brock, Robert Koch - A Life in Medicine and Bacteriology. 1988.
Nina V Fedoroff & Nancy Marie Brown, Mendel in the Kitchen - A scientist's view of genetically modified foods. 2004.
Bill Bryson, A Short History of Nearly Everything. 2003. New January 3, 2009.
J Buckingham, Chasing the Molecule. 2004.
Nina Burleigh, The Stranger and the Statesman - James Smithson, John Quincy Adams, and the Making of America's Greatest Museum: The Smithsonian. 2003.
Penny Le Couteur & Jay Burreson, Napoleon's Buttons - How 17 molecules changed history. 2003. New September 25, 2008.
Fritjof Capra, The Science of Leonardo. 2007. New May 20, 2008.
Elof Axel Carlson, Mendel's Legacy - The Origin of Classical Genetics. 2004.
D Charles, Lords of the harvest - Biotech, big money, and the future of food. 2001.
Lisa Seachrist Chiu, When a Gene Makes You Smell Like a Fish ... and Other Tales about the Genes in Your Body. 2006.
D P Clark & L D Russell, Molecular Biology made simple and fun. 2000 -- 2nd edition. 2005 -- 3rd edition.
Cathy Cobb & Monty L Fetterolf, The Joy of Chemistry - The Amazing Science of Familiar Things. 2005.
Dorothy H Crawford, Deadly Companions - How microbes shaped our history. 2007. New March 11, 2009.
Francis Crick, Life Itself - Its origin and nature. 1981.
Francis Crick, What Mad Pursuit: A personal view of scientific discovery. 1988.
Larry Gonick & Craig Criddle, The Cartoon Guide to Chemistry. 2005.
Alan Cromer, Uncommon Sense: The heretical nature of science. 1993.
Michael Faraday (ed. William Crookes), The chemical history of a candle: a course of lectures delivered before a juvenile audience at the Royal Institution; Lecture on platinum. 1861, 1894, etc. New July 21, 2008.
Michael Blastland & Andrew Dilnot, The Tiger That Isn't: Seeing Through a World of Numbers. 2008. New November 24, 2008.
T Eisner, For Love of Insects. 2003.
Thomas Eisner, Maria Eisner & Melody Siegler, Secret Weapons: Defenses of Insects, Spiders, Scorpions, and Other Many-Legged Creatures. 2005.
Thomas Eisner, Maria Eisner & Melody Siegler, Secret Weapons: Defenses of Insects, Spiders, Scorpions, and Other Many-Legged Creatures. 2005.
J Emsley, Nature's Building Blocks: An A-Z of the Elements. 2001.
Michael Faraday (ed. William Crookes), The chemical history of a candle: a course of lectures delivered before a juvenile audience at the Royal Institution; Lecture on platinum. 1861, 1894, etc. New July 21, 2008.
Nina V Fedoroff & Nancy Marie Brown, Mendel in the Kitchen - A scientist's view of genetically modified foods. 2004.
Cathy Cobb & Monty L Fetterolf, The Joy of Chemistry - The Amazing Science of Familiar Things. 2005.
Peter Forbes, The Gecko's Foot - Bio-inspiration: Engineering new materials from nature. 2005.
Michael S Gazzaniga, HUMAN - The science behind what makes us unique. 2008. New April 20, 2009.
Marc W Kirschner & John C Gerhart, The Plausibility of Life: Resolving Darwin's Dilemma. 2005.
H Gest, Microbes - An invisible universe. 2003.
J Gleick, Isaac Newton. 2003.
Larry Gonick & Craig Criddle, The Cartoon Guide to Chemistry. 2005.
Larry Gonick & Mark Wheelis, The Cartoon Guide to Genetics. 1991.
David Goodstein, Out of Gas: The End of the Age of Oil. 2004.
Peter R Grant & Rosemary Grant, How and Why Species Multiply - The Radiation of Darwin's Finches. 2008.
Peter R Grant & Rosemary Grant, How and Why Species Multiply - The Radiation of Darwin's Finches. 2008.
Jerome Groopman, How Doctors Think. 2007. New December 4, 2008.
Lenny Guarente, Ageless Quest - One scientist's search for genes that prolong youth. 2003.
Stephen S Hall, Merchants of Immortality - Chasing the dream of human life extension. 2003.
J Hamilton, Faraday: The Life. 2003.
F M Harold, The Way of the Cell - Molecules, Organisms and the Order of Life. 2001.
Jeff Hawkins (with Sandra Blakeslee), On Intelligence. 2004.
Robert M Hazen, Genesis: The scientific quest for life's origin. 2005.
Ian Wilmut & Roger Highfield, After Dolly: The Uses and Misuses of Human Cloning. 2006.
David A Hopwood, Streptomyces in Nature and Medicine -- The antibiotic makers. 2007. New June 12, 2008.
George Johnson, The Ten Most Beautiful Experiments. 2008. New February 17, 2009.
Robert Jungk, Brighter than a Thousand Suns: A personal history of the atomic scientists. 1956.
Marc W Kirschner & John C Gerhart, The Plausibility of Life: Resolving Darwin's Dilemma. 2005.
Mark Kurlansky, Salt - A World History. 2002.
Nick Lane, Power, Sex, Suicide: Mitochondria and the Meaning of Life. 2005.
Edward J Larson, Evolution: The Remarkable History of a Scientific Theory. 2004.
Penny Le Couteur & Jay Burreson, Napoleon's Buttons - How 17 molecules changed history. 2003. New September 25, 2008.
Armand Marie Leroi, Mutants - On Genetic Variety and the Human Body. 2003.
Sinclair Lewis, Arrowsmith. 1925. New February 10, 2009.
A Linklater, Measuring America -- How an untamed wilderness shaped the United States and fulfilled the promise of democracy. 2002.
Linda Stone & Paul F Lurquin, A Genetic and Cultural Odyssey - The Life and Work of L Luca Cavalli-Sforza. 2005.
Brenda Maddox, Rosalind Franklin - The dark lady of DNA. 2002.
Harold McGee, On Food and Cooking - The Science and Lore of the Kitchen. 2004.
A J Menezes, P C van Oorschot & S A Vanstone, Handbook of Applied Cryptography. 1996.
Camille Minichino, The oxygen murder. 2006. (One of the "Periodic Table Mysteries".)
E C Minkoff & P J Baker, Biology Today - An Issues Approach. 2001 -- 2nd edition. 2004 -- 3rd edition.
L Mlodinow, Feynman's Rainbow - A Search for Beauty in Physics and in Life. 2003.
Harold J Morowitz, The Thermodynamics of Pizza. 1991.
Marion Nestle, Safe Food - Bacteria, Biotechnology, and Bioterrorism. 2003.
Reviel Netz & William Noel, The Archimedes Codex: How a Medieval Prayer Book Is Revealing the True Genius of Antiquity's Greatest Scientist. 2007. New August 3, 2008.
Reviel Netz & William Noel, The Archimedes Codex: How a Medieval Prayer Book Is Revealing the True Genius of Antiquity's Greatest Scientist. 2007. New August 3, 2008.
Claire Nouvian, The Deep - The Extraordinary Creatures of the Abyss. 2007. New June 18, 2008.
P A Offit, The Cutter Incident: How America's First Polio Vaccine Led to the Growing Vaccine Crisis. 2005.
H Petroski, The Pencil. 1990.
J Prebble & B Weber, Wandering in the Gardens of the Mind - Peter Mitchell and the making of Glynn. 2003.
Richard Preston, The Wild Trees - A Story of Passion and Daring. 2007.
Mark Ratner & Daniel Ratner, Nanotechnology - A gentle introduction to the next big idea. 2003.
Mark Ratner & Daniel Ratner, Nanotechnology - A gentle introduction to the next big idea. 2003.
Richard Reeves, A Force of Nature - The Frontier Genius of Ernest Rutherford. 2008. New April 2, 2008.
Paul Roberts, The End of Oil: On the Edge of a Perilous New World. 2004.
Pamela G Ronald & Raoul W Adamchak, Tomorrow's Table - Organic farming, genetics, and the future of food. 2008. New January 19, 2009.
D P Clark & L D Russell, Molecular Biology made simple and fun. 2000 -- 2nd edition. 2005 -- 3rd edition.
Oliver Sacks, Musicophilia: Tales of music and the brain. 2007.
Oliver Sacks, Uncle Tungsten - Memories of a chemical boyhood. 2001.
Eric R Scerri, The Periodic Table. 2007.
Christopher Thomas Scott, Stem Cell Now - From the Experiment That Shook the World to the New Politics of Life. 2006.
John R Searle, Mind - A Brief Introduction. 2004.
B Selinger, Chemistry in the Marketplace. 5/e, 2000.
Ron Shepard, Amateur Physics for the Amateur Pool Player. 1997.
Neil Shubin, Your Inner Fish - A journey into the 3.5-billion-year history of the human body. 2008. New April 22, 2008.
Thomas Eisner, Maria Eisner & Melody Siegler, Secret Weapons: Defenses of Insects, Spiders, Scorpions, and Other Many-Legged Creatures. 2005.
Paul Berg & Maxine Singer, George Beadle - An uncommon farmer; subtitled "The emergence of genetics in the 20th century". 2003.
Linda Stone & Paul F Lurquin, A Genetic and Cultural Odyssey - The Life and Work of L Luca Cavalli-Sforza. 2005.
Doron Swade, The Cogwheel Brain - Charles Babbage and the Quest to Build the First Computer. 2000. [Also published, in the US, under the title The difference engine - Charles Babbage and the Quest to Build the First Computer, 2001.]
Charles Tanford, Ben Franklin Stilled the Waves: An informal history of pouring oil on water with reflections on the ups and downs of scientific life in general. 1989.
John Timbrell, The Poison Paradox - Chemicals as friends and foes. 2005.
UNESCO, 700 Science Experiments for Everyone. 1964.
A J Menezes, P C van Oorschot & S A Vanstone, Handbook of Applied Cryptography. 1996.
A J Menezes, P C van Oorschot & S A Vanstone, Handbook of Applied Cryptography. 1996.
J D Watson (with A Berry), DNA - The Secret of Life. 2003.
J Prebble & B Weber, Wandering in the Gardens of the Mind - Peter Mitchell and the making of Glynn. 2003.
Jonathan Weiner, The Beak of the Finch: A story of evolution in our time. 1994.
Larry Gonick & Mark Wheelis, The Cartoon Guide to Genetics. 1991.
Ian Wilmut & Roger Highfield, After Dolly: The Uses and Misuses of Human Cloning. 2006.
P Yam, The Pathological Protein: Mad cow, chronic wasting, and other deadly prion diseases. 2003.
Daniel Yergin, The Prize: The Epic Quest for Oil, Money & Power. 1990.
Ahmed Zewail, Voyage through Time - Walks of Life to the Nobel Prize. 2002.
Carl Zimmer, Microcosm - E coli and the new science of life. 2008. New August 24, 2008.
New November 24, 2008. Michael Blastland & Andrew Dilnot, The Tiger That Isn't: Seeing Through a World of Numbers. Profile Books Ltd, 2008. ISBN 978-1846681110. This is a short book that focuses on the ways in which statistics can be abused (either deliberately or not) by the media. Each chapter treats a different type of error, such as the belief that clusters of a random event have an underlying reason, the use of seemingly-large numbers that are meaningless without a proper sense of scale, and the incorrect connection between correlation and causation. Although the underlying messages are founded in mathematics, there is no mathematical detail given (although references are provided for further reading). The book is light and easy to read, and contains humorous and topical examples both from science and everyday life. I would recommend it to scientists and non-scientists alike. (From UK physicist Greg Pearce.)
New April 20, 2009. Michael S Gazzaniga, HUMAN - The science behind what makes us unique. HarperCollins, 2008. ISBN 978-0-06-089288-3. Humans are very much like other animals in many ways; sometimes it seems that all of our more human traits are found, to some degree or other, in other animals. Yet we are not chimps or dolphins; we are unique. In this lively book, Gazzaniga explores why. He looks at brain structure, and focuses on the greater specialization of the two brain halves, compared to other animals. This means our brain approaches being twice as big as it seems, and allows for local regions to be more specialized. He then explores many aspects of human behavior, and tries to describe what is different in humans -- and why. He emphasizes the greater complexity of human social behavior. He often presents and compares multiple ideas, thus giving the reader a good feel for the state of the field, including its controversies and uncertainties. Importantly, the book is well written, a pleasure to read. I'm not a big fan of brain books, but I enjoyed this one.
Peter R Grant & Rosemary Grant, How and Why Species Multiply - The Radiation of Darwin's Finches. Princeton Univ Press, 2008. See Weiner, The Beak of the Finch for some general background on Darwin's finches. This new book by the Grants is an updated version of the story, from the researchers themselves. I have not read this book.
New February 17, 2009. George Johnson, The Ten Most Beautiful Experiments. Knopf, 2008. ISBN 978-1-4000-4101-5. Ten vignettes, substantially independent, each describing one fascinating scientific experiment. There is some discussion of the context, of why the experiment is historically interesting. But the main focus is on why each experiment is "beautiful". The experimenters range from Galileo and Harvey to Pavlov and Millikan. Be sure to read the author's Prologue, so you know the groundrules. A low-key book, with some nice insight into how scientists think.
New April 2, 2008. Richard Reeves, A Force of Nature - The Frontier Genius of Ernest Rutherford. Norton, 2008; part of the "Great Discoveries" series. ISBN 978-0-393-05750-8. Beginning chemistry students know Rutherford for his discovery of the atomic nucleus. The experimental work that showed the nucleus is so elegant that we can describe the key ideas of it to beginning students. Yet by the time Rutherford did this work, he had already won a Nobel prize -- for his work on the nature of radioactive decay. Author Richard Reeves is best known for his books on American politics; I did not know that he had a degree in Engineering. In this brief book -- about 180 pages -- Reeves presents a mini-biography of Rutherford. Reeves participated in a reconstruction of Rutherford's famous experiment demonstrating the nucleus, and he clearly has substantial understanding of the science and its importance. The book gives an overview of Rutherford's science and the scientific era it helped define, and a picture of Rutherford the man. It is an accessible well-written book, a good read for young students, and perhaps an enjoyable overview for the more experienced scientist.
Rutherford was awarded the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 1908 "for his investigations into the disintegration of the elements, and the chemistry of radioactive substances". See the Nobel site: http://nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/chemistry/laureates/1908/.
New January 19, 2009. Pamela G Ronald & Raoul W Adamchak, Tomorrow's Table - Organic farming, genetics, and the future of food. Oxford, 2008. ISBN 978-0-19-530175-5. A little book on the role of genetic engineering -- "GM" (genetic modification) as it is often called -- in organic farming. It is written by a plant geneticist who does GM and an organic farmer -- who are wife/husband. The organic farming movement has typically objected to GM, but the authors here suggest they should be more open to considering it. They suggest that GM is a good tool to achieve the underlying objectives of organic farming. This is a short and sometimes rambling book. It does not really answer questions, but its purpose is more to raise questions, to get people to look anew at the issues of what GM is and what its role might be. Importantly, it emphasizes that each individual use of GM should be considered on its own merit. I certainly encourage those who might be skeptical of GM to try this book -- not to change your mind, but simply as an opener to further discussion. I have listed this book for BITN - Biotechnology in the News: Agricultural biotechnology (GM foods) and Gene therapy.
New April 22, 2008. Neil Shubin, Your Inner Fish - A journey into the 3.5-billion-year history of the human body. Pantheon, 2008. ISBN 978-0-375-42447-2. Neil Shubin attracted attention in 2006 when he published two papers on fossils of Tiktaalik, a fish with "hands". The "hands" were fish fins with a bony structure reminiscent of that of a human limb -- just the kind of animal predicted to be an intermediate in the evolution of land vertebrates. Further, he discovered Tiktaalik fossils in a geological structure that was of just the right age and physical environment predicted for this kind of intermediate between fish and land vertebrates. Not only was Tiktaalik an important "missing link", but it was found by making a prediction of when and where this fossil should appear. In this short delightful book, Shubin tells the story of Tiktaalik, and then goes on to tell more stories about how features of modern humans developed in various "more primitive" organisms -- not only fish, but even back to jellyfish and to bacteria. He discusses issues of body design, including the origin of teeth and skull. And he discusses the development of sensory systems -- smell, sight, and hearing. Sight is in some ways the most fascinating, since it is so easily traced back to almost the beginning of life, in bacteria. Throughout the book, Shubin emphasizes the unity of biology. He shows how all life is related, and how we can trace that relatedness by looking not only at fossils of old organisms, but also at the details of how modern organisms develop. The book is engaging, with good sound glimpses into our history. Little background is needed to enjoy and appreciate most of this book; suitable for the laymen and for young students. Review, by M A Bell, American Scientist 96:257, 5/08: http://www.americanscientist.org/bookshelf/pub/variations-on-a-theme.
New August 24, 2008. Carl Zimmer, Microcosm - E coli and the new science of life. Pantheon, 2008. ISBN 978-0-375-42430-4. There is little doubt that we know more about the bacterium Escherichia coli than about any other organism. E. coli is an interesting organism in its own right -- a normal inhabitant of the human gut, and yet also a serious pathogen. Beyond that, E. coli is one of the most important model organisms for biologists. As Jacques Monod put it, "What is true for E coli is true for the elephant." Science journalist Carl Zimmer uses the story of E coli to explore ideas of broad importance in biology. The book is aimed at a general audience, and does a good job of explaining why one studies simple model organisms, and then uses what is learned there to guide study of other organisms. A well-written and enjoyable book, a fine overview of some of the central ideas in modern biology.
New November 3, 2008. Jeremy Bernstein, Plutonium: A history of the world's most dangerous element. Joseph Henry (National Academies Press), 2007. ISBN 978-0-309-10296-4. The book can be purchased online, pdf file or print: http://books.nap.edu/catalog.php?record_id=11734; the page also has more information about the book. The author begins this history with the discovery of x-rays and radioactivity just before 1900, and traces the discoveries (and people who made them) which eventually led to the creation of plutonium in 1940. The book ends with the explosion of the two atomic bombs in Japan. However, there is no real mention of plutonium until half-way through, and the mid-twentieth century seemed a strange place to finish. There was no mention at all of nuclear power, and very little discussion of any of the present-day problems of plutonium security, storage or disposal. Surely these are as much part of the history of plutonium as its creation? I'd recommend this book as a brief history of atomic physics in the early twentieth century, or to give a glimpse of one or two of the unusual properties of plutonium, but I couldn't help but feel the story was historically incomplete and the science vague. (From UK physicist Greg Pearce. There is a full review of the book at http://www.americanscientist.org/bookshelf/pub/2007/3/the-stuff-of-bombs. This review, "The Stuff of Bombs", is by F N von Hippel, and was published in American Scientist 95:266, 5/07.)
New May 20, 2008. Fritjof Capra, The Science of Leonardo. Doubleday, 2007. ISBN 978-0-385-51390-6. Capra's thesis is that Leonardo da Vinci (1452-1519) was a true scientist, in the modern sense: he observed, experimented, and interpreted the natural world. He used prior writings (authority) as a base to build on, not to be blindly accepted. Capra discusses how Leonardo approached art scientifically, and then how he extended his approach to other things he studied. About half of the book is a general biography, and thus a view of 15th-16th century Italy. The second half analyzes Leonardo's work on a wide range of topics. The weak point of the story is that Leonardo never published any of his scientific work, and thus had no influence on the historical development of science. It is an interesting analysis to read how he approached things, though sometimes Capra's interpretations seem stretched. Regardless, the book is worthwhile for its view of the times and its insights into Leonardo's work and the nature of science.
New March 11, 2009. Dorothy H Crawford, Deadly Companions - How microbes shaped our history. Oxford, 2007. ISBN 978-0-19-280719-9. Microbes were here long before we were. We ignore most of them, and have good working relationships with some. However, a few cause disease, and diseases come and go. Each human disease that is caused by a "bug" once "came" -- often by jumping from some other animal host. In this short book, Crawford discusses some of these bad relationships we have with microbes. She starts with a very recent event: the rise and fall of SARS, where we know a lot about how the disease arose and spread. Our response to it was swift -- and rather successful. Of course, that swift response, based on good understanding, was quite different from our responses through the ages. (That is not to imply that we understand it completely, or that it is "solved".) She then tells stories of smallpox and plague -- and many more. She talks of how human activities affect our interaction with microbes. Dense populations and jet travel are just two human cultural aspects that affect the spread of microbes. Crawford's style is matter-of-fact. There is little emotion or hype -- just the stories as best she can. There is no simple answer. We just have to live with the microbes, and try to understand what they do. With luck, we keep them at bay. A sobering book. Review, by B J Wilkinson, Microbe 3:543, 11/08. Microbe, the news magazine of the American Society for Microbiology, is free online; this item is at http://www.asm.org/microbe/index.asp?bid=61353. I have listed this book for BITN: Emerging diseases.
New December 4, 2008. Jerome Groopman, How Doctors Think. Houghton Mifflin, 2007. ISBN 978-0-618-61003-7. The stated audience for the book is patients; the goal is to help them not only to understand the doc, but also to guide them in asking questions to prod the doctor to think more broadly about a case -- to keep the doc honest. Groopman himself is an MD. He describes and discusses examples of how doctors simplify -- and over-simplify; he then analyzes the thought processes that can lead to incorrect diagnosis. A major problem is the temptation to make things black and white, and not consider all the issues, especially when some findings don't quite fit and initial treatments are not effective. Although the focus is medical, the thought issues are quite general. It is well written, and certainly appropriate for high school age. Recommenced -- for doctors, patients, and young scientists!
New June 12, 2008. David A Hopwood, Streptomyces in Nature and Medicine -- The antibiotic makers. Oxford Univ Press, 2007. ISBN 978-0-19-515066-7. Streptomyces is a genus of bacteria perhaps most famous for making antibiotics; it is also responsible for the odor of fresh dirt. Streptomyces is part of a larger group of bacteria, called the actinomycetes, broadly characterized by making branching filaments, rather like fungi do. The actinomycetes include important pathogens, such as the Mycobacterium species that cause tuberculosis and leprosy. David Hopwood, long at the John Innes Centre (Norwich, UK) pioneered the field of Streptomyces genetics. Hopwood is noted for his generous spirit; his emphasis has been on extending the knowledge, and he generously collaborated with all who wanted to build the Streptomyces story. This book weaves several stories. It includes the history of both Streptomyces and the broader actinomycetes; as part of that, it includes much about the history of antibiotics. It discusses the development of Streptomyces genetics, from the earliest steps, just finding that something happened, through to the modern work in which recombinant DNA technologies are used to make novel antibiotics. The book is largely in Hopwood's usual relaxed style, but ends up covering a huge amount of biology. The book is a must for anyone whose career crossed David Hopwood's, or who encountered Streptomyces. But anyone who has wondered about that distinctive odor of fresh dirt, or about where the next generation of antibiotics is going to come from, should give this book a try. It's a pleasant book, which tells much. It even tells much about microbiology and molecular biology methodology; Hopwood takes time to describe many of the methods in some detail -- and if you feel overwhelmed by some of this, just skip it. Overall, I quite enjoyed this book, and recommend it. It may be something of a niche book, but I think the appeal really should be much broader than the title might suggest. Review, by P A Hoskisson, Microbe 3:151, 3/08. Microbe, the news magazine of the American Society for Microbiology, is free online; this item is at http://www.asm.org/microbe/index.asp?bid=56769.
New August 3, 2008. Reviel Netz & William Noel, The Archimedes Codex: How a Medieval Prayer Book Is Revealing the True Genius of Antiquity's Greatest Scientist. Da Capo Press, 2007. ISBN 978-0-306-81580-5. (Also published in the UK, with alternative subtitles, including "Revealing the Blueprint for Modern Science" and "Revealing The Secrets Of The World's Greatest Palimpsest".) In 1998 a copy of an ancient book resurfaced. The book was by Archimedes, from the 3rd century BC; it included some texts otherwise unknown to modern scholars. The book had been copied onto parchment in the 10th century. The pages of that copy were scraped and rewritten with a prayer book in the 13th century -- creating what is known as a palimpsest. It is that copy, called Codex C, which re-emerged. This book tells all those stories -- and how modern scholars are uncovering the underlying Archimedes text from the prayer book, and what it contains. The authors are a scholar of ancient Greek texts and a museum manuscript curator. Somewhat oddly, the book seems to consist of a collection of chapters each written by one of the authors. It works. The common single word used to describe this book is "fascinating". I agree. It is fascinating at multiple levels -- a delightful read. The web site contains information about the project, as well as the book: http://www.archimedespalimpsest.org/. Wikipedia has a good introduction to the project: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Archimedes_Palimpsest.
New June 18, 2008. Claire Nouvian, The Deep - The Extraordinary Creatures of the Abyss. Univ Chicago Press, 2007. ISBN 978-0-226-59566-5. The bulk of this book is photographs -- over 200 of them. They are photos of life in the deep oceans -- organisms substantially unknown to man until recent decades. Each chapter begins with a short essay by a scientist in the field, to introduce the realm of the next group of photos. The author is a film director, and her motivation is conservation. Regardless, this is a book of art! Some information about the book and its author, and some samples of the photography, are at: http://www.thedeepbook.org/. Thanks to Borislav in Zagreb for recommending this book.
Richard Preston, The Wild Trees - A Story of Passion and Daring. Random House, 2007. ISBN 978-1-4000-6489-2. This is more an adventure book than a science book. However, the subject of the adventure is the mighty redwood tree. Many of us Californians have admired redwood trees from their base, accepting the stiff neck that comes with trying to figure out where the top is. Perhaps we have walked or even driven through one, or counted the steps it takes to walk from one side to the other of a redwood cross section on exhibit in the forestry building at UC Berkeley. But the story here is about the tops of the redwood trees: how one gets there, and what it is like up there. Indeed the story is told largely as an adventure, only partially as a scientific endeavor, an introduction to canopy science. A good adventure story, and a limited but useful introduction to what is "up there".
Oliver Sacks, Musicophilia: Tales of music and the brain. Knopf, 2007. ISBN 978-1-4000-4081-0. The formula is familiar. Neurologist Oliver Sacks tells about people who have experiences that are different -- in this case experiences about music, either as listener or performer. Some of the experiences are in people we would generally consider normal, and some are clearly experiences of pathology; the dividing line is not always clear. Sacks explains some of the experiences in terms of brain anatomy, but that is really secondary. The main reason for reading Sacks is to read about people -- and about music. As always, he is a superb story teller. Highest recommendation. Review, by Norman M. Weinberger, American Scientist 96:518, 11/08; online at http://www.americanscientist.org/bookshelf/pub/musical-maladies. Also see Sacks, Uncle Tungsten - Memories of a chemical boyhood.
Eric R Scerri, The Periodic Table. Oxford University Press, 2007. Scerri presents a rare view of the period during which the periodic law was under development. It is perhaps not so unusual for someone to be unequivocal as to whom credit rightly belongs (Mendeleev, not Lothar Meyer or a host of lesser knowns), but his account authoritatively covers the back-and-forth of the discussions and arguments. Of interest also is his discussion of the inadequacy of quantum mechanical accounting for periodicity, an explication of semiperiodicity, and a quick review of nucleosynthesis, subjects not familiar to many chemists. [From Bob Holloway, Chemistry, Schreiner Univ, Kerrville TX. 3/08.]
Susan Allport, The Queen of Fats - Why Omega-3s were removed from the western diet and what we can do to replace them. Univ Calif, 2006. ISBN 0-520-24282-3. Omega-3 (ω-3) fatty acids are much in the news, and this is their story. Allport describes the history of our understanding of various types of fatty acids and their roles in living systems. It is a complex and often confusing story, because of methodological problems and small -- but perhaps important -- effects. The author is a journalist, not a scientist, and her weak science background often shows. Overall, I enjoyed this short and readable book as history and have used it as a starting point to learn more about the ω-3 story; however, I would be cautious about simply accepting her scientific case.
Michael Bellomo, The Stem Cell Divide: The facts, the fiction, and the fear driving the greatest scientific, political, and religious debate of our time. Amacom, 2006. ISBN 978-0-8144-0881-0. A short overview of the stem cell issues. The emphasis is on the broad picture, both in terms of the biology and the social perspective. The book is new enough to deal with the California Stem Cell Initiative and the fall of Hwang. This may be a good place to start for some people looking to get a sense of the stem cell landscape. Also see Scott, 2006 for more, especially on the biology. I have listed this book for BITN - Biotechnology in the News: Cloning and stem cells.
Lisa Seachrist Chiu, When a Gene Makes You Smell Like a Fish ... and Other Tales about the Genes in Your Body. Oxford, 2006. ISBN 0-19-516994-8. This book contains a series of about 30 vignettes, each discussing a human gene. Each story starts with some discussion of the effect of the gene, but then goes on to discuss how the gene works. Each can be read independently, but the book is organized more or less by complexity. The book is for the lay reader, and includes a nice appendix on the basics of genetics. The writing style is quite breezy -- perhaps even a bit silly at times. Overall, enjoyable light reading -- and if you finish, you will have learned quite a bit about both simple and complex issues of how our genes affect us.
This book is somewhat similar in scope to Leroi, Mutants - On Genetic Variety and the Human Body, 2003. Chiu is probably the lighter reading, but both are intended for the general audience. They do discuss fairly distinct sets of genes. If you enjoy one, I suggest you try the other.
Camille Minichino, The oxygen murder, 2006. A recent book in the series of Periodic Table Mysteries. Minichino is a San Francisco area physicist (Lawrence Livermore National Lab) -- who also writes mystery novels. Her book The hydrogen murder was published in 1997, followed by The helium murder in 1998. And we might now expect ??? Some of these are set in the San Francisco area. See her web site, http://www.minichino.com, for more information. (Recommendation? No, I haven't seen them. But I thought it was a fun story worth passing on. A teacher on the Chemed-L list said that she enjoyed the books, and shared them with her classes.) This series is also listed on my page of Internet resources: Introductory Chemistry.
Christopher Thomas Scott, Stem Cell Now - From the Experiment That Shook the World to the New Politics of Life. Pi Press, 2006. ISBN 0-13-173798-8. A stem cell primer, for the general audience. It starts with basic biology, and describes the types of stem cells. It then describes some of the types of work being done with stem cells, and finally the moral and political debate. Scott is obviously an advocate of stem cell work, but strives for balanced presentation of controversies. The best part of the book, for many, will be the basic biology in the first chapters. Also see Bellomo, 2006; this may be a less technical introduction to stem cells. I have listed this book for BITN - Biotechnology in the News: Cloning and stem cells.
Ian Wilmut & Roger Highfield, After Dolly: The Uses and Misuses of Human Cloning. Norton, 2006. ISBN 0-393-06066-7. Ian Wilmut was the head of the team that cloned Dolly the sheep. Here Wilmut teams with a science journalist to tell two interwoven stories. One is the story of how Dolly came to be, and the other is Wilmut's views of the social issues he has encountered -- and those that are in front of us, especially with regard to human cloning. The story of Dolly is superb -- told by a person who was at the center of it. Wilmut includes the historical background on which the Dolly work built. I found Wilmut's discussion of the social issues somewhat less interesting. He raises good questions, but tends to provide the simple pat answers one might expect from a scientist who is pioneering in the field. That's fine, but it does not add much. Certainly one should not go away simply accepting Wilmut's answers -- or those of any single individual. Perhaps his views will stimulate serious thought on the matter by some. Fortunately (for me), the bulk of the book was on the Dolly story and its background. The level is suitable for general reading. I have listed this book for BITN - Biotechnology in the News: Cloning and stem cells.
D P Clark & L D Russell, Molecular Biology made simple and fun. Cache River Press, 3/e, 2005. ISBN 1-889899-07-0. See entry for second edition, below.
Cathy Cobb & Monty L Fetterolf, The Joy of Chemistry - The Amazing Science of Familiar Things. Prometheus, 2005. ISBN 1-59102-231-2. This is intended for general reading by non-scientists. The basic approach is to present a simple demonstration, using common household materials; the reader can do the demo, or just read the quite thorough description. The demo then serves as a starting point for discussing some aspect of chemistry. Over the course of the 23 demos and subsequent discussions, much of a basic intro chem course is presented. So far, so good. What bothers me is the substantial number of basic factual errors (such as saying that C-14 decays to C-12). The book clearly suffers from lack of careful reviewing (as well as from a bizarre system of chapter numbering). Arguably, most of the errors won't bother the general reader much, and the "big ideas" are generally ok. If a student reads this book before taking chem, it might stimulate interest, but it might also cause confusion. Overall, I cautiously recommend the book for armchair reading. It is a good idea, but I hope the publishers will take more care with the next edition.
Thomas Eisner, Maria Eisner & Melody Siegler, Secret Weapons: Defenses of Insects, Spiders, Scorpions, and Other Many-Legged Creatures. Belknap (Harvard University Press), 2005. ISBN 0-674-01882-6. I haven't read this one yet, but based on the related Eisner book (2003) and the review below, it is undoubtedly worth listing. Review, by May Berenbaum, Science 311:178, 1/13/06: http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/summary/311/5758/178.
Peter Forbes, The Gecko's Foot - Bio-inspiration: Engineering new materials from nature. Norton, 2005. (Title of UK edition: The Gecko's Foot - Bio-inspiration: Engineered from nature). ISBN 978-0-393-06223-6. The lotus leaf is easily rinsed clean; the gecko can climb a glass wall. Why? And, can we make use of the principles that Nature has used to achieve these remarkable accomplishments? Those are just two of the topics in this delightful book -- one of which is reflected in its title. The theme is bio-inspiration (sometimes called biomimetics), in which we look to Nature for an idea about how to do something. The hook-and-loop fastener, popularly known by the tradename Velcro, is an example of old, but the field has now taken on an identity that reflects a more focused effort to discover and exploit what Nature has already learned. Forbes emphasizes work at the "nano" level, where recent advances in instrumentation, such as the scanning electron microscope (SEM), helped us unlock Nature's secrets. Commercial importance? Well, products based on the self-cleaning lotus leaf and the sticky gecko foot are on the market. They are not yet big successes; perhaps that will take time, or perhaps there is less here of commercial importance than we would like to believe. In any case, the book is delightful biology, delightfully presented. It is suited for the scientific novice, but even biologists are likely to find it rewarding. This book served as the stimulus to start a new section for Biotechnology in the News (BITN) on Bio-inspiration (biomimetics). It is also listed as further reading for Intro Chem Ch 15, re intermolecular forces, and for Organic/Biochem Ch 15, re spider silk.
Larry Gonick & Craig Criddle, The Cartoon Guide to Chemistry. Harper, 2005. ISBN 0-06-093677-0. Another book of Gonick cartoons. As before, he teams with a specialist in the field at hand to write a book that is both fun and educationally sound. Suitable for those with or without a chem background. Review, by Jake Yeston, Science 308:795, 5/6/05: http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/summary/308/5723/795. Also see Gonick's Genetics book.
Robert M Hazen, Genesis: The scientific quest for life's origin. Joseph Henry (National Academies Press), 2005. ISBN 0-309-09432-1. The book can be purchased online, pdf file or print: http://www.nap.edu/catalog.php?record_id=10753; the page also has more information about the book. A superb book. The story of how life first arose must inevitably be a chemistry story -- perhaps a geochemistry story. Here, geologist Bob Hazen discusses a wide range of ideas on how life began. At the outset he gives the bottom line: we don't know. But there are many ideas, and some data. In fact, this is a fairly new but quite active field of scientific research, with serious work starting only in the second half of the twentieth century. Hazen discusses the ideas, presents what is known and what is not known for each. There is considerable emphasis on the role of surface chemistry -- reactions occurring on mineral surfaces; this important perspective reflects his background as a mineralogist, and is an area that biologists tend to overlook. (The "RNA world" is a great idea, but the key steps must be before that.) The book is calm, with no particular agenda -- other than to inform us of the current status of the field. And yet it is a compelling read. For one thing, his conclusions are correct: the answer is not known. His well-written calm presentation of contentious work is a welcome respite from the hype that often accompanies origin-of-life discussions. Further, Hazen conveys a sense of the field as a whole as well as the individual topics. The book is suitable for interested readers with little technical background, as well as for young science students. Also see Crick, Life Itself, 1981 for an earlier view. The contrast between these two books is a testament to the active pace of work in this field.
Marc W Kirschner & John C Gerhart, The Plausibility of Life: Resolving Darwin's Dilemma. Yale University Press, 2005. ISBN 0-300-10865-6; paper: ISBN: 0300-11977-1 (978-0300-11977-0). The theme of this book is a new way to look at evolutionary developments. We broadly think of evolution requiring a source of variation, followed by natural selection. Most commonly we emphasize the role of random genetic mutations as the source of variation. Kirschner & Gerhart suggest that one key source of variation is the flexibility of the organism, due to variations in regulation. This phenotypic variation may allow an organism to explore a new evolutionary space, and the result may then be stabilized by subsequent mutations. The idea builds on recent understanding of the key role of regulatory genes, such as the Hox family, and of body compartmentation. I found the book enjoyable as they reviewed the background material leading to their idea, and argued the plausibility of their idea. They make a good case that such phenotypic variation should be relevant to evolution; they do not suggest it is the entire story. Time will tell how important their idea is; for now, the important point is that it should stimulate discussion. The book is described as being both for biologists and the general reader; however, I think one needs a good general appreciation of biology to work through it. Review, by Brian Charlesworth, Science 310:1619, 12/9/05: http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/summary/310/5754/1619. The book builds on some ideas in a "perspective" article by the same authors: M Kirschner & J Gerhart, Evolvability. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 95:8420-7, 7/98. This article is free online: http://www.pnas.org/content/95/15/8420.full. (Author Gerhart was one of my professors in grad school, and indeed that was relevant in me choosing to read this book. I was also struck by seeing multiple reviews all suggesting the book was controversial.)
Nick Lane, Power, Sex, Suicide: Mitochondria and the Meaning of Life. Oxford, 2005. ISBN 0-19-280481-2; paper: 0199-20564-7 (978-0199-20564-6). Strange book, but worth reading for those interested in the evolution of mitochondria. Lane (who seems to be a scientist turned science writer) discusses several aspects of mitochondria, including their origin, their relationship to the nucleus, their role in the origin of sex, and their roles in apoptosis, disease and aging. He is a good story teller, yet the level of science is inconsistent. Lane intended the book for the general audience, but I think a reader without some general knowledge of mitochondria would find the book quite difficult. Lane sometimes discusses the development of ideas, with arguments for and against alternatives. But at other times he does not, and at times he seems to be pushing his own agenda, without it being clear that he is basically speculating. So the story can be fascinating, with some fascinating new ideas worth thinking about, but there is a real danger of coming away with an unclear picture of what is really known. The title of the book begs the question: is the book itself written better than the title? Regrettably, no. Lane seems to have an obsession with clever phrases. Many are silly hype that demean the scientific content of the book, and some are mysterious. However, overall, this book tells a good and provocative story -- actually a number of them. For one interested in the topic, this outweighs the stylistic problems. Review, by David G Nicholls, Science 311:1869, 3/31/06: http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/summary/311/5769/1869. Review, by Franklin M Harold, Microbe 1:251, 5/06. The news magazine Microbe is free online; this item is at http://www.asm.org/microbe/index.asp?bid=42350 -- scroll down to the second review. There is also a review in Nature: J F Allen, Nature 437:1235, 10/27/05. I think it is a fair brief summary that all these reviewers recommend the book, while cautioning against some of its excesses.
P A Offit, The Cutter Incident: How America's First Polio Vaccine Led to the Growing Vaccine Crisis. Yale Univ Press, 2005. ISBN 0-300-10864-8. I was a youngster at the time of the first polio vaccine -- and of the Cutter incident -- and remember at least some of the atmosphere of that time. However, I certainly did not have any appreciation of how early we all were in the story of developing safe vaccines, with good government oversight. Offit tells the story of the background of the Salk polio vaccine, the details of how it was made and tested, and the aftermath -- including the lawsuits. The lawsuits are an important part of the story, because they affected the legal issue of manufacturer liability -- even when the company was not necessarily "at fault". As Offit discusses in the latter part of the book, this effect has had a major impact on the vaccine industry, quite possibly to the detriment of human health. The book should be of interest to scientist and non-scientist alike. There is enough science in it to keep the biologist in, but the big stories are general, and quite accessible to the lay reader. It is also important because of the implications for current discussions of vaccine (or drug) safety. The book is short (a bit under 200 pages), but seems rather thorough in covering so much ground. Occasionally, Offit intrudes with his own unjustified opinions, but for the most part, the book just presents the story. As a little bonus for those in my area, this is in part a "local" story: Cutter was a Berkeley company, and the lawyer who brought the case against Cutter was San Francisco's colorful Melvin Belli. Review, by Olen Kew, Science 310:975, 11/11/05: http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/summary/310/5750/975. Review, by Walter R Dowdle, Microbe 1:442, 9/06. The news magazine Microbe is free online; this item is at http://www.asm.org/microbe/index.asp?bid=44775.
Linda Stone & Paul F Lurquin, A Genetic and Cultural Odyssey - The Life and Work of L Luca Cavalli-Sforza. Columbia Univ Press, 2005. ISBN 0-231-13396-0. . Luigi Luca Cavalli-Sforza (Luca Cavalli -- the book discusses the variations of his name at length!) is a geneticist, whose work has ranged from bacteria to humans. He is one of the founders of bacterial genetics; he discovered HfrC in E. coli, the first Hfr strain, which is named after him. Most of his career has been with human genetics, trying to understand the origins and genetic diversity of modern humans. Cavalli -- still active at Stanford -- is an interesting person, and he has done interesting and important work in a variety of areas. This short and readable book is a good introduction to both the person and the work.
John Timbrell, The Poison Paradox - Chemicals as friends and foes. Oxford, 2005. ISBN 978-0-19-280495-2. The general theme of this book is that chemicals may be good or bad depending on the dose -- as famously enunciated by Paracelsus in the 16th century. The book is a reaction to the hype sometimes encountered when a chemical is shown to have a bad effect. Much of the book is a discussion of the effects -- good and bad -- of specific chemicals, both natural and synthetic. Some of the book discusses the general issues of how to evaluate chemicals -- and the issues of public perception. The author is a journalist, who is clearly struggling with understanding the scientific details. Overall, the book probably does a good job of laying out the big issues, though one certainly need not agree with all of the author's conclusions. And the stories of the individual chemicals are often fun reading.
John C Avise, The Hope, Hype, and Reality of Genetic Engineering: Remarkable stories from agriculture, industry, medicine, and the environment. Oxford University Press, 2004. ISBN 0-19-516950-6. Avise's approach here makes this a wonderful introduction to the issues involved in judging the merits of genetic engineering projects. Rather than discussing "genetic engineering" as a generality, he discusses specific projects -- a few dozen of them. The scope includes modification of microbes, plants, and animals -- with a final chapter on humans. For each project, he briefly outlines the purpose (the proposed benefit), the experience so far, and the problems, both perceived and encountered. Then, for each project, he suggests an evaluation somewhere along a scale from boondoggle to boon (which he displays pictorially on a little "boonmeter" at the end of each essay). By looking at each project separately, with its own pros and cons, one begins to get a good sense of things that are good ideas and things that are not -- and perhaps even of some general themes that come up repeatedly. Review, by Serge Vinogradov, ASM News 71:492, 10/05. The news magazine ASM News, now called Microbe, is free online; this item is at http://www.asm.org/microbe/index.asp?bid=38141; scroll down to the review for this book.
J Buckingham, Chasing the Molecule. Sutton, 2004. ISBN 0-7509-3345-3. A book of chemistry history -- from the "atom" of Dalton to an understanding of how atoms come together into molecules. The task of sorting out molecules includes understanding atomic weights -- the two issues are intertwined. Organic chemistry is born, and indeed it is the special properties of carbon atoms that provide much of the insight. The mysterious vital force -- something unique about the chemistry of organisms -- is put to rest, though not without difficulty. Those with an interest in this early chemistry history should enjoy the stories. I must say that I found the book rather disorganized, so it is hard to come away with any coherent picture of what happened; it ends up being mostly a collection of stories. Too much time is spent dealing with the personal lives of the players, and with their concerns about establishing priorities. This would be a more successful and interesting book if it simply told the big story. Nevertheless, many will find it an enjoyable book. For a more positive view of this book, see a review by P J T Morris for the Chemical Heritage Foundation: http://www.chemheritage.org/pubs/ch-v24n4-articles/rev_buckingham.html.
Elof Axel Carlson, Mendel's Legacy - The Origin of Classical Genetics. Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory Press, 2004. ISBN 0-87969-675-3. An interesting book of history. It deals largely with the story of genetics from about 1900-1950, roughly from the rediscovery of Mendel to the time of Watson & Crick's DNA structure, which perhaps symbolizes the beginning of the era of molecular biology. The author's career as a geneticist immediately followed this period, and he knew many of the players of classical genetics; this is almost an insider's tale. Carlson traces the development of many key ideas, and offers useful glimpses of the personalities. Each chapter concludes with a reference list that would be a gold mine for those wishing to delve further into the history. The book is probably best suited for those who already have some sense of the field, but it is indeed a good read for those who would like an enhanced historical perspective of a major era in modern biology. Also see Berg's book, below; the two books complement each other very well.
Nina V Fedoroff & Nancy Marie Brown, Mendel in the Kitchen - A scientist's view of genetically modified foods. Joseph Henry (National Academies Press), 2004. The book can be purchased online, pdf file or print: http://www.nap.edu/catalog.php?record_id=11000; the page also has more information about the book. Fedoroff is a scientist who has worked on GM (biotechnology) foods, so brings some authority and knowledge -- and of course bias -- to the table. One strength of the book is the extensive discussion of conventional plant breeding, including its risks. This is interesting history, and also serves to put modern GM technologies in proper historical perspective. Another strength is that Fedoroff takes the time to analyze several particular cases in some detail, including good analyses of arguments made against specific developments. (Occasionally, I think she spends too much time on some topics -- a minor problem.) A must read if you want to understand the development of GM plants. In controversial areas, no one book can be trusted to provide a complete view, but this one should be one important part of understanding the GM story. I have listed this book for BITN - Biotechnology in the News: Agricultural biotechnology (GM foods) and Gene therapy.
David Goodstein, Out of Gas: The End of the Age of Oil, 2004. Author Goodstein, Provost [and physicist] at Cal Tech, writes a wonderfully readable book projecting the energy future. Sort of an undergraduate text. [Submitted by Bob Holloway, Chemistry, Schreiner Univ, Kerrville TX. 3/05.]
Jeff Hawkins (with Sandra Blakeslee), On Intelligence. Times Books, 2004. ISBN 0-8050-7456-2. From the cover: "How a new understanding of the brain will lead to the creation of truly intelligent machines." Hawkins is a computer scientist, the inventor of the Palm Pilot. He also has a long-standing interest in the brain -- and in intelligent machines. Here he presents his ideas on how the brain works -- along with some predictions to test his novel ideas. The book, written in collaboration with a science journalist, is intended for a general audience. It is written with the zeal of an evangelist -- frankly, somewhat annoying at times. However, the book should be judged by how the ideas stimulate further discussion and work in the still murky field of understanding the biological basis of intelligence. (Hawkins started the Redwood Neuroscience Institute, on the San Francisco peninsula, to promote such work.) For more about the book, see its web site: http://www.OnIntelligence.org.
Edward J Larson, Evolution: The Remarkable History of a Scientific Theory, 2004. One of the best of many books on the subject. [Submitted by Bob Holloway, Chemistry, Schreiner Univ, Kerrville TX. 3/05.]
Harold McGee, On Food and Cooking - The Science and Lore of the Kitchen. 2/e, Scribner, 2004. ISBN 0-684-80001-2. A new edition of a book that has become a classic. If you are curious about the scientific issues behind food and cooking, check this book. Its 800 pages make it a major project to read straight through, but a fine index allows you to look things up as they arise. You will probably find yourself exploring nearby topics -- and then who knows what. A great book for browsing! Review, by Joe Schwarcz, Science 307:1048, 2/18/05: http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/summary/307/5712/1048.
E C Minkoff & P J Baker, Biology Today - An Issues Approach. Garland, 3/e, 2004. ISBN 978-0815341574. See entry for second edition, below.
Paul Roberts, The End of Oil: On the Edge of a Perilous New World, 2004. Somewhat hysterical, but full of good information. [Submitted by Bob Holloway, Chemistry, Schreiner Univ, Kerrville TX. 3/05.]
John R Searle, Mind - A Brief Introduction. Oxford, 2004. ISBN 0-19-515733-8. This is a philosophy book, not really a science book. But the philosophical topic of the mind is close to the neurobiological topic of the brain. Searle discusses diverse views of the mind, over many centuries, and tries to develop some modern views consistent with the emerging neurobiology. The writing style is lively, and the book is intended for the general audience. I found it quite engaging. Searle is a professor here at Berkeley, so the book is also of local interest.
Paul Berg & Maxine Singer, George Beadle - An uncommon farmer; subtitled "The emergence of genetics in the 20th century". Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory Press, 2003. ISBN 0-87969-688-5. George Beadle received the Nobel Prize for enunciating the principle of one gene-one protein. His career bridged the eras of classical and molecular genetics. This book, by two eminent molecular biologists, captures not only the essence of the science, but the flavor of that era of science. After the bulk of his career as an active scientist, Beadle became an administrator (Chairman of Biology at Caltech, then President of the University of Chicago), so he dealt with issues of the development of science post WWII -- and with the issues of the McCarthy era. The book is not too technical, and should largely be accessible to those interested in the era, but less concerned with scientific details. Yet it should also appeal to those who know the science well, because of its insights into the man and the times. Review, by James F Crow, Science 302:394, 10/17/03: http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/summary/302/5644/394. Also see Carlson's book, above; the two books complement each other very well.
J Michael Bishop, How to win the Nobel prize - An unexpected life in science. Harvard Univ Press, 2003. ISBN 0-674-00880-4. Bishop is a local story -- long time scientist at UC San Francisco, now Chancellor there. Bishop's work on cellular genes that become cancer genes earned the Nobel Prize for him and his UCSF colleague Harold Varmus. (And a few days after the Nobel announcement he was at Candlestick Park for the World Series game that did not happen.) The book is based on a series of lectures, and has the informal breezy style of talks for a general audience. It is more generally about the nature of science, and about baseball, music and the human Michael Bishop, than about cancer in particular. One chapter does indeed give a good, not-too-technical introduction to the nature of cancer -- and his own contributions. The final chapter is about the future of science, and its role in society. All-in-all, a fairly light but interesting read. Review, by Sydney Brenner, Science 301:1483, 9/12/03: http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/summary/301/5639/1483a. I have listed this book for BITN: Cancer.
New January 3, 2009. Bill Bryson, A Short History of Nearly Everything. Broadway, 2003. ISBN 0-7679-0817-1. Bryson set himself an impossible task here; it is not a surprise that he does not entirely succeed. What is remarkable is that he succeeds as much as he does. Bryson, a non-scientist, set himself the task of learning about nature; here he tries to convey what he learned. He tries not only to discuss what we understand about nature, but to give some sense of how we learned it -- some sense of the context and controversy of the discoveries. The scope is indeed "nearly everything" -- from cosmology to biology, and everything in between. Bryson writes well, and generally explains well. He does not get it all right -- partly because of inevitable simplifications, but also partly because at times I think he does not understand it yet. But he shares his voyage of discovery with us -- with enthusiasm and sincerity. That is what matters most. This is a book to get you excited about a wide range of science; it is not the final word. It is a good read for young students; the length may be intimidating, but the secret is to just read a bit at a time. Those with a scientific background may find his broad synthesis intriguing and enjoyable.
Nina Burleigh, The Stranger and the Statesman - James Smithson, John Quincy Adams, and the Making of America's Greatest Museum: The Smithsonian. HarperCollins, 2003. ISBN 0-06-000241-7. I think I enjoyed this book -- but I am not quite sure why. I'm not even quite sure what it is about, and even making your way through the entire extended subtitle only hints at the content. It is probably common knowledge among Americans that our great Smithsonian Institution was founded based on the proceeds left to the US in the will of an obscure Englishman. And I think the big problem with this book is that one approaches it expecting to learn much more about Smithson. Apparently, little is known about him. So the author spends much time on the general tone of the times -- and much is frankly irrelevant. Fortunately, Burleigh is a good writer, so the book is always enjoyable to read, even if the content is not as expected. Now, we do learn a few interesting things about Smithson, who indeed was something of a scientist himself. The more interesting part of the book, perhaps, is the discussion of what happened on this side. Political intrigue and mean-spirited partisan debate -- and Congressional indifference to science -- are not new!
T Eisner, For Love of Insects. Harvard Univ Press, 2003. ISBN 0-674-01181-3. Eisner is a chemical ecologist who studies insects -- in the loose sense of the word, including other CCT (creepy, crawly things) such as spiders and millipedes. So this is a book about the roles of chemical signals in the lives of insects -- as defensive agents and as attractants, say for mating. Eisner is a good story teller -- and scientist. He talks of the behavior of the insects, and how chemical aspects of the behavior were elucidated. He describes generally the scientific processes, from original observations through structural studies and experimental tests, but one rarely gets bogged down in detail; the insects are the central players at all times. Each of the ten fairly long chapters has a theme, of a type of signal, but each chapter consists of a series of short vignettes which can be read more or less independently. Generously illustrated, both with photos and drawings. If you are fascinated by insects, you'll love this book. If you feel otherwise about the little bugs, give Eisner a try; I wouldn't be surprised if he converts you. Review, by Ian T Baldwin, Science 303:958, 2/13/04: http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/summary/303/5660/958. Review, by Scott Hoffman Black, BioScience 56:623, 7/06: http://www.bioone.org/perlserv/?request=get-document&doi=10.1641%2F0006-3568%282006%2956%5B623%3AEFE%5D2.0.CO%3B2. Also see Eisner's 2005 book.
H Gest, Microbes - An invisible universe. ASM Press, 2003. ISBN 1-55581-264-3. This nice little book was originally written for a college course to introduce microbiology to nonscientists. It succeeds; I recommend it highly. It has a reasonable dose of history, but most importantly describes the range of microbes and their many roles. It is certainly not a "DNA book"; it provides an important perspective on microbes as organisms. I have listed this book for BITN - Biotechnology in the News.
J Gleick, Isaac Newton. 2003. A fascinating story of Newton's life, including not only his contributions to science and his place within the scientific world of his time, but also the other major aspects to his life -- such as, perhaps surprisingly, his work on alchemy. It is certainly worth reading, but it's worth considering that the book is rather pro-Newton -- other biographies (such as those of Robert Hooke) portray him in a less positive light. This book is written for the general audience and can be understood and enjoyed without knowledge of Newtonian physics or calculus. Review, by Patricia Fara, Science 301:920, 8/15/03: http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/summary/301/5635/920. [Submitted by Greg Pearce, Dept of Physics, Univ Bath, UK. 3/05.]
Lenny Guarente, Ageless Quest - One scientist's search for genes that prolong youth. Cold Spring Harbor Lab Press, 2003. ISBN 0-87969-652-4. Guarente is a biologist at MIT. In this short book, he talks about finding a gene that extends the life of simple yeast -- and of worms. The question, then, is whether it is relevant to aging in higher organisms, including humans. He discusses evidence that it may be, though conclusive evidence is not yet available. This story is a good testimonial to the importance of basic research -- how studying simple model systems leads to insights that guide work in more complex systems. It is also a good story of how scientists develop and pursue leads -- some of which work out and some of which do not; that is how science works. It is an optimistic book -- perhaps too optimistic, since the gap between what has been shown and what is needed is still quite large. Enjoy the story, and Guarante's enthusiasm. But be careful to distinguish what turns out to work from the exciting discussions of what might be. Review, by Daniel Promislow, Science 299:1319, 2/28/03: http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/summary/299/5611/1319. I have listed this book for BITN: Aging.
Stephen S Hall, Merchants of Immortality - Chasing the dream of human life extension. Houghton Mifflin, 2003. ISBN 0-618-09524-1. This is a book by a journalist, not a scientist. It tells the story -- or is it stories? -- of developments in the related fields of aging (especially the hype about telomerase), cloning and stem cells. Much of it focuses on Michael West and a couple of his companies -- including the Bay Area company Geron, a pioneer in aging work. The book has little scientific depth, but the science is rather good so far as it goes. The subject matter of the book has been major grist for news over recent years, and the social issues remain unresolved. In fact, the scientific issues largely remain unresolved. Hall takes the story into 2001 and even 2002. I think this book can be a good introduction to cloning and stem cells, with a little science and a good sense of the public debate. I have listed this book for BITN - Biotechnology in the News: Cloning and stem cells and for BITN: Aging.
J Hamilton, Faraday: The Life. 2003. An interesting account of the life of Michael Faraday, including his scientific discoveries (and the controversies surrounding them) but also much background on his life prior to the work that brought him fame. The book describes particularly well Faraday's place within the scientific world of the nineteenth century, but I found the descriptions of Faraday's experiments somewhat hard to follow. While the point that he was highly organised, logical and meticulous is made very clearly, there was not a correspondingly clear and logical explanation of how his discoveries were motivated and linked together. Nevertheless, the book paints a vivid picture of the scientific scene in London in the early nineteenth century, and gives a good overall description of Faraday's personality and qualities as a scientist. [Submitted by Greg Pearce, Dept of Physics, Univ Bath, UK. 3/05.]
New September 25, 2008. Penny Le Couteur & Jay Burreson, Napoleon's Buttons - How 17 molecules changed history. Tarcher/Putnam, 2003. ISBN 1-58542-220-7. A delightful book -- an interesting combination of history and chemistry. Each of the 17 chapters focuses on a particular chemical or group of related chemicals. Those topics include spices, sugars and related compounds, phenols, a range of drugs -- and more. It presents a brief story of the importance of the chemical(s) in human society, often pointing to major historical events it might have affected. And then it discusses the chemistry, with some emphasis on how very similar chemicals may behave quite differently. The title of the book derives from the story that Napoleon's army may have suffered when the tin buttons of their uniforms changed to a non-metallic powdery form in the cold. (Oddly, this story is then mentioned only briefly -- in the introduction.) There is some continuity of story through the book, but the chapters are substantially independent; it is fine to jump around, reading about individual topics that catch your eye. The book requires little or no chemical background. However, chemists -- and chem students -- will find the juxtaposition of chem and history to be informative. This book is somewhat similar in approach to Kurlansky, Salt - A World History. Kurlansky focuses on a single chemical, whereas Le Couteur & Burreson briefly survey many chemicals and types of chemicals. Kurlansky has a much higher ratio of history to chemistry.
Armand Marie Leroi, Mutants - On Genetic Variety and the Human Body. Viking, 2003. The broad topic of this book is human development - and how it is determined genetically. Each chapter starts with some unusual (but "natural") human, and then discusses the genetic basis of the unusual feature. Since the unusual features have often been long recognized (many involve visible deformities), but the understanding is recent, there is also a historical bent to the book, showing how our understanding has developed. The author is a developmental biologist, but the book is intended for the general audience. The chapters are substantially independent, so one can skip around if it gets a bit slow. Overall, a fascinating look at how we become what we are. Review, by Monique Martineau, Science 303:1774, 3/19/04: http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/summary/303/5665/1774.
This book is somewhat similar in scope to Chiu, When a Gene Makes You Smell Like a Fish ... and Other Tales about the Genes in Your Body, 2006. Chiu is probably the lighter reading, but both are intended for the general audience. They do discuss fairly distinct sets of genes. If you enjoy one, I suggest you try the other.
L Mlodinow, Feynman's Rainbow - A Search for Beauty in Physics and in Life. Warner, 2003. ISBN 0-446-53045-X (paperback also available). A young physicist is unsure how to approach his future. Fortunately, his new job is down the hall from two of the giants of his field, Richard Feynman and Murray Gell-Mann. Here, Mlodinow tells of his interactions with these two very different scientists, especially the former. Over time, he discovers what is really important -- to him -- in life. Mlodinow's doubts are undoubtedly common among young scientists, and I think many would benefit from reading this book -- whether they agree with the author's conclusions or not. The book is about physicists, and yes, there is a little physics in the book. Worry not; that certainly is not a barrier to any young scientist reading this delightful and insightful little book (less than 200 pages). Laymen seeking a glimpse of what makes a scientist tick may also find the book of interest. (Recommended to me by a chem student.)
Marion Nestle, Safe Food - Bacteria, Biotechnology, and Bioterrorism. Univ Calif, 2003. ISBN 0-520-23292-5. This is a fine book about an important topic. The broad theme is food safety, and Nestle's key point is to show the complex issues involved. These extend from whatever scientific facts are known, to the social and political systems that deal with these facts -- plus all the myths and biases that are around. The book has two major sections, one dealing with foodborne illnesses and one with biotechnology. (The book was written in the shadow of "9-11", and has a brief discussion of bioterrorism in the final chapter.) Throughout, Nestle looks at the facts, at how things are changing (from the archaic laws of yesteryear to the emerging global market for food products, as well as biotech), and at how decisions on food safety are made. The book is well organized, with extensive cross referencing, and extremely well written. Nestle writes not only with clarity, but with some sense of humor, able to poke a little fun at all parties. ["Under the current system, a sandwich made with bread, ham, cheese, lettuce, and tomato raises regulatory issues of terrifying complexity." (p 57) And she forgot the mayo!] Nestle states that her goal is to present a balanced picture, but also to not shy away from presenting her own views. She holds to that well. Indeed, I found myself disagreeing with her at times, but then realizing that I was disagreeing on some of her preferred answers. The presentation of the issues and how we as a society should better approach them is excellent; if we were better able to follow her general recommendations the more specific answers would work out reasonably. I suppose there are grounds for pessimism that this will happen; the polarized nature of public debate on controversial issues is not restricted to food safety! Overall, highest recommendation. [In the interest of full disclosure, author Nestle was a colleague of mine in graduate school. Further, I spent nearly two decades working in the biotech industry, and perhaps even played a bit part in the development of "GM" plants. I should also add that Nestle has appeared on the local program Forum (KQED-FM) on numerous occasions.]
J Prebble & B Weber, Wandering in the Gardens of the Mind - Peter Mitchell and the making of Glynn. Oxford, 2003. ISBN 0-19-514266-7. Peter Mitchell is the biochemist who developed the chemiosmotic model, which proposed that the energy from the mitochondrial electron transport chain is used to form a proton gradient, which then drives ATP formation. He received the 1978 Nobel Prize in Chemistry for this work. Mitchell is also known as a maverick scientist, who found academia too constraining -- and therefore organized his own research institute. This book has three themes: a biography of Mitchell, the development of the chemiosmotic model, and the story of Glynn, a small private research institute. It succeeds admirably in its portrait of Mitchell. There are many scientific styles and personalities; the book reveals much about Mitchell the scientist, for better and worse. One of the intriguing points of the story is Mitchell's reliance on theory over data. The old quip, "If the data doesn't fit the theory, throw out the data" is so appropriate here -- for a good reason: the field of energy transduction in oxidative phosphorylation was an experimental nightmare, with much contradictory data. Those generally familiar with the chemiosmotic model should find the historical development interesting. Those not familiar with it may or may not figure it out from this book, but that does not really detract from the book's value in presenting the Mitchell and Glynn stories. As to the Glynn story, it is an unusual one in modern science, not likely to be repeated. Perhaps it should be! The book at least documents the Glynn story. Alone, that probably is not of great interest to most. The main value of this book is for learning about a remarkable and complex scientist, and the ups and downs of a revolutionary idea in biochemistry. It should be essential reading for those interested in the chemiosmosis story; beyond that, it is accessible and useful to a wide range of scientists, though the non-biologists may browse some of the more technical parts and simply appreciate a fascinating story of how science works.
Mark Ratner & Daniel Ratner, Nanotechnology - A gentle introduction to the next big idea. Prentice Hall, 2003. ISBN 0-13-101400-5. An overview of an emerging field. It is intended to give the layman a feel for the field, both for its underlying ideas and what it may achieve. The authors have expertise in the scientific, engineering, and business aspects of the field, and they try to distill the highlights. Superficial, but a useful introduction. It is a quick read -- intended to be read on a flight across the country, they say.
J D Watson (with A Berry), DNA - The Secret of Life. Knopf, 2003. Watson has played a major role in the DNA story, most famously as co-discoverer of the DNA double helical structure and as the first head of the US Human Genome Project. Here he discusses the history and future of the human genome project. He is a fine writer -- clear, and provocative enough to be fun. This book is for the general public. The science in it is good, and well-explained, with helpful artwork. The history is broadly good. And it is Watson's style to tell you what he thinks about controversial issues; agree or disagree, he makes for lively reading. For two -- very different -- reviews: Lindee, Science 300:432, 4/18/03; Singer, Nature 422:809, 4/24/03. Lindee concludes that "[Watson's] latest promotional brochure is not worth anyone's time." Singer says that the public and even scientists "can learn a great deal from the book, and enjoy doing so." I recommend it -- without endorsing all of his opinions. (The Science review: http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/summary/300/5618/432.) I have listed this book for BITN - Biotechnology in the News: DNA and the genome.
P Yam, The Pathological Protein: Mad cow, chronic wasting, and other deadly prion diseases. Copernicus, 2003. ISBN 0-387-95508-9. An excellent overview of the prion story, for the general audience, from a science journalist. This book presents the range of prion diseases, in animals and humans, and the relationships between them. It develops our current understanding of what prions are and how they work, with a good consideration of uncertainties in the story. A good place to start, if you want to know what prions are about; probably a good overview for many scientists, as it brings together a lot of information into one fairly short and very readable book. I have listed this book for BITN: Prions.
Mark Kurlansky, Salt - A World History. Walker, 2002. ISBN 0-8027-1373-4. Salt. Sodium chloride. A staple of the chem lab. But this book is not about salt as a chemical; rather, it is about salt in our culture. Salt has long been valued for its ability to preserve food; now, its major use (in the US) is in deicing roads. Salt was so valuable that people were paid in salt; the word "salary" reflects that connection. Kurlansky discusses the history of salt -- the history of the world, with an emphasis on the role of salt. You will learn how salt is made, how it is used (recipes abound -- many you will not want to try), and how salt has played a role in world affairs. Light reading; quite enjoyable. This book is somewhat similar in approach to Le Couteur & Burreson, Napoleon's Buttons - How 17 molecules changed history. Kurlansky focuses on a single chemical, whereas Le Couteur & Burreson briefly survey many chemicals and types of chemicals. Kurlansky has a much higher ratio of history to chemistry.
A Linklater, Measuring America -- How an untamed wilderness shaped the United States and fulfilled the promise of democracy. Walker, 2002. ISBN 0-8027-1396-3. A book about why the US should have but did not adopt the metric system from the start. A book about the history of measurements, and of units. A book about surveying -- and about Thomas Jefferson. A book that is surprisingly much more interesting than the short title might suggest, in part because it is well written and in part because it brings together a range of seemingly unrelated topics in an unusual but fascinating way (as the subtitle may hint). [Listed in Intro Chem (X11) Ch 3 handout.]
Brenda Maddox, Rosalind Franklin - The dark lady of DNA. Harper/Collins, 2002. One of the dark parts of the DNA story is the lack of recognition of the role of Rosalind Franklin, who made the very fine X-ray pictures that Watson & Crick used as part of developing the double-helix structure. This lack of recognition was magnified by Watson's poor treatment of Franklin, especially in his earlier book, The Double Helix. Brenda Maddox's new biography has received wide praise as being fair and accurate; she had access to many materials that were previously unavailable. This is a biography, not a science book -- though you will certainly get a good sense of how the DNA story was developed. Highly recommended, but don't expect to come away declaring winners and losers; it's not that simple, but it is a good story, and it certainly enhances our understanding of an important scientist. (One part of the controversy, to some, is why Franklin did not share in the Nobel prize for the DNA work. It is a sufficient answer to that question that she died a few years before the DNA Nobel, 1962; posthumous Nobels are not allowed. Note that this point does not address the merits of her contributions, but does address one question which often comes to the forefront.) Review, by Anne Fausto-Sterling, Science 298:1177, 11/8/02: http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/summary/298/5596/1177. I have listed this book for BITN - Biotechnology in the News: DNA and the genome.
Ahmed Zewail, Voyage through Time - Walks of Life to the Nobel Prize. American University of Cairo Press, 2002. ISBN 977-424-677-2. An autobiographical book from the Nobel-winning chemist. Zewail developed the field of femtochemistry, which allows direct observation of the transition states in chemical reactions. Zewail tells of his background, of his big transition from Egypt to America, of his work -- at a level quite accessible to the general reader, and finally of his visions for improving the world. The book is well organized and well written. It continually bubbles with Zewail's optimism -- whether he reminds us of it or not. That optimism is important to both his personal story and his scientific achievement. Clearly, Zewail wants this book to be read by young potential scientists from the developing world, but his story is so good, it should be read by young potential scientists, period. Zewail was a post-doc at UC Berkeley before taking his current position at Caltech, so this is a local story here. Highly recommended.
D Charles, Lords of the harvest - Biotech, big money, and the future of food. Perseus, 2001. ISBN 0-7382-0291-6. (Paperback: ISBN 0-7382-0773-X.) A journalist tells the story of "GMOs" -- the application of biotechnology to agriculture. The book is intended for the general audience, and avoids scientific detail while presenting all the basic logic. The book is widely regarded as being a fair presentation of a range of views on the subject. I enjoyed reading it. I have listed this book for BITN - Biotechnology in the News: Agricultural biotechnology (GM foods) and Gene therapy.
J Emsley, Nature's Building Blocks: An A-Z of the Elements. Oxford, 2001. Reviewed in Nature 414:20, 11/1/01. The review describes the book as "a layman's field guide to the periodic table". It contains a chapter about each element, with useful and fun information. John Emsley is a science writer at Cambridge University. Another good book by him is The Elements, 3/e, Clarendon Press, 1998. ISBN 0-198-55818-X for the paperback edition. This book is primarily a data book, with a main two page entry for each element, showing chemical data, physical data, biological data, nuclear data, electron shell data, crystal data, and geological data. The appendices include more historical information and summary tables. Useful and fun.
F M Harold, The Way of the Cell - Molecules, Organisms and the Order of Life. Oxford, 2001. ISBN 0-19-513512-1. A popular account of cells -- the fundamental unit of life. If you are relatively new to biology, Harold's book can be a good overview of living systems at all levels. If you are familiar with much of the biology, this book is a delightful attempt to integrate and find the "big ideas". I have listed this book for BITN - Biotechnology in the News.
E C Minkoff & P J Baker, Biology Today - An Issues Approach. Garland, 2/e, 2001. ISBN 0-8153-2760-9. This is a college level biology textbook, but one that is organized largely around topics of current interest, rather than by the traditional biology subtopics. The book has been used at UCB for a non-majors biology course. I have listed this book for BITN - Biotechnology in the News. Third edition, 2004. Briefly noted above.
Oliver Sacks, Uncle Tungsten - Memories of a chemical boyhood. Knopf, 2001. Neuroscientist Oliver Sacks, already well established as a gifted writer for the general audience, here recounts his childhood -- and a good deal of chemical history. The book is delightfully written and the chem is at about the right level for intro chem students. Highly recommended. [Listed in Intro Chem (X11) Ch 1 handout]. Review, by L P Kadanoff, Science 295:448, 1/18/02: http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/summary/295/5554/448. Also see Sacks, Musicophilia: Tales of music and the brain.
D P Clark & L D Russell, Molecular Biology made simple and fun. Cache River Press, 2/e, 2000. ISBN 1889899046. I highly recommend this book as a general introduction to molecular biology. It is intended for both a general audience and a wide range of science students. It presents the basics of molecular biology in a way that is readable and fun, yet scientifically quite sound. I have listed this book for both X107 - Molecular Biology and BITN - Biotechnology in the News. Third edition, 2005. Briefly noted above.
B Selinger, Chemistry in the Marketplace. 5/e, Harcourt, 2000. ISBN 1865082554. The chemistry of things you use. Sections include Chemistry in the laundry, Chemistry in the garden, Chemistry in the dining room, and many more. A fairly hefty but inexpensive paperback, with a good index, so good for looking up things. The author is from Australia, and many of the product names will be unfamiliar. But still, the basic information is there. May or may not be good for reading straight through, but certainly a nice reference. Older editions are probably fine for most purposes.
Doron Swade, The Cogwheel Brain - Charles Babbage and the Quest to Build the First Computer. Abacus, 2000. ISBN 0-349-11239-8. [Also published, in the US, under the title The difference engine - Charles Babbage and the Quest to Build the First Computer, 2001.] "The Cogwheel Brain" is the story of Charles Babbage and his attempts to design and build the first fully automatic calculating machines -- in effect, the earliest computers. The first parts of the book describe Babbage's life, his ingenious machines, and his attempts to build them. The author also tries to dispel many of the myths surrounding Babbage and his contemporaries, particularly in relation to why his engines never succeeded. The last few chapters are devoted to describing the author's involvement in a project to recreate an authentic replica of Babbage's Difference Engine No. 2 -- the only one of Babbage's engines ever made in full -- in the 1990s. This is done with a real sense of passion, and following the modern-day ups and downs of trying to recreate Babbage's work makes compelling reading. It was slightly disappointing to find that the book lacked any major attempt to describe the technical background to Babbage's designs. Swade was able to simplify and comment on some areas in detail, but this was not consistent throughout; it was a little unsatisfying to finish the book without even a general idea how his machines would have operated. Overall, though, the book was enjoyable and should interest anyone curious to know exactly what Babbage achieved and why he was not more successful. [Submitted by Greg Pearce, Dept of Physics, Univ Bath, UK. 6/05.]
Within this multi-year section, the books are in order by publication year, most recent first. Within a year, they are alphabetical by first author.
Ron Shepard, Amateur Physics for the Amateur Pool Player. 3/e, 1997. Even if you don't play pool very much, this document provides much insight into the physics of rotating spheres. It requires at least a first year university course in physics to fully understand. The book is available online. For example, Bill Howe, of Portland State University, has posted it at: http://web.cecs.pdx.edu/~howe/poolphysics.pdf. [Submitted by Nick, a high school student in Ontario.]
A J Menezes, P C van Oorschot & S A Vanstone, Handbook of Applied Cryptography. CRC Press, 1996. ISBN 0-8493-8523-7. Topics include digital signatures, public keys, etc. Featured in the NetWatch column in Science, 288:1927, 6/16/00. Online at the authors' site: http://www.cacr.math.uwaterloo.ca/hac/.
Jonathan Weiner, The Beak of the Finch: A story of evolution in our time. Knopf, 1994. ISBN 0-679-40003-6. Darwin's finches, the diverse finches on the Galapagos Islands, are the stuff of legends. Actually, Darwin did much less with them than is commonly supposed -- but others have done much. At the forefront have been Princeton biologists Peter and Rosemary Grant, and their students. The Grants have studied the finches over many years, providing much detailed information about how evolution works. The bulk of this book is about the work of the Grants, and how it illustrates aspects of evolution over the time-scale of a few years. The book, a Pulitzer Prize winner, is well written and accessible to the general audience. A caution... The book has at times been hyped as being the last word on evolution. Of course, it is not, and the author would not claim that. It is one set of good stories illustrating some aspects of evolution. And it does not deal at all with the molecular basis of what is going on. Highly recommended. See Grant & Grant, How and Why Species Multiply for a more recent book on this same topic -- from the researchers themselves.
Alan Cromer, Uncommon Sense: The heretical nature of science. Oxford, 1993. ISBN 0-19-508213-3. This short book -- barely 200 pages -- is a history of science and an essay on the nature of scientific thinking. Cromer suggests that scientific thinking, guided by fact and reason to reach commonly accepted descriptions of the natural world, actually goes against more common forms of human thinking. Cromer traces the development of science from the ancient Greeks, and explains how the Greek culture made the development of scientific thinking possible. Cromer's writing makes this a good read; he enjoys being provocative, and often notes that some of his points are controversial. The book is at its best as an overview of the development of science and as an exposition of the nature of modern science. Its attempts to explain why something did or did not happen are thought-provoking, but not always convincing. Interestingly, three of the predictions that Cromer makes in his introductory chapter are already known to be wrong. That's fine, and I'm sure would not bother Cromer. But it does serve to remind us that our understanding is not always complete -- a good lesson about the nature of science. Cromer was a physicist -- turned science educator (he died in 2005). He was a key figure in the development of Project Seed for promoting science education; indeed he devotes the last chapter of the book to this topic -- and he makes a radical proposal for overhauling the US educational system. The success of the Seed approach attests that Cromer's understanding of how science is learned is sound, and thus attests to the quality of much of this book. All in all, this is a good -- and enjoyable and thought-provoking -- book for scientists and science students; just don't expect it all to be right.
Larry Gonick & Mark Wheelis, The Cartoon Guide to Genetics. Harper, 1991. ISBN 0-06-273099-1. Cartoonist Gonick teams with microbiologist Wheelis to provide a good -- and fun -- introduction to the main ideas of genetics. Suitable for those with or without a genetics background. Also see Gonick's Chemistry book.
Harold J Morowitz, The Thermodynamics of Pizza. Rutgers, 1991. Morowitz is a biophysicist (at Yale, at the time of this book). This is a collection based on essays originally written for the magazine Hospital Practice. The essays are short and wide ranging -- musings might be a good term for them. Some of the essays are about science, at least peripherally, but many are just the thoughts of one scientist, all too often on something that might have caught the nerves of any of us. Whether the topic is hot pizza or a comma that Robert Frost did not include or the cochlea of an elephant, this is a book that brings smiles. Good light reading, for any audience.
H Petroski, The Pencil. 1990. (paper: 1992; ISBN 0679734155.) The Intro Chem (X11) Ch 1 handout lists the following article, referring to this book:
H Petroski, Why 'The pencil'? American Scientist 88:114, 3/00. A delightful article on one major use of one form of carbon. The author is an engineer, and a regular columnist in American Scientist. In this article, he is promoting his book. The book uses the development of a common object to discuss the broad issues of product development, especially from an engineer's viewpoint. Should you read the book? Well, I suggest you read this article first. 400 pages on the history of the pencil is a bit much, but much of it is fun, good history, and a good sense of what engineering is all about. (Did you know that Henry David Thoreau played an important part in the fledgling American pencil industry?) Give the book a try, if you want, but plan to skip sections from time to time.
Daniel Yergin, The Prize: The Epic Quest for Oil, Money & Power, 1990. This Pulitzer Prize winner is the history of oil through the first Gulf War. Incredibly good. [Submitted by Bob Holloway, Chemistry, Schreiner Univ, Kerrville TX. 3/05.]
Within this multi-year section, the books are in order by publication year, most recent first. Within a year, they are alphabetical by first author.
Charles Tanford, Ben Franklin Stilled the Waves: An informal history of pouring oil on water with reflections on the ups and downs of scientific life in general. Duke Univ Press, 1989. What a delightful little book! The central scientific story -- announced in the subtitle -- is a simple one, one observed by many from ancient times onwards. Among those who observed it was the American statesman -- and scientist -- Benjamin Franklin, whose observations were published by the Royal Society. Tanford discusses this story, from early observations through explanation in terms of molecules and polarity -- and up through its relevance to the nature of the cell membrane. Along the way he tells us about some key scientists of the 18th-20th centuries and about the scientific environment they worked in. Tanford consistently conveys his enthusiasm for the subject matter, making the book a pleasure to read. This book is listed as further reading for Intro Chem Ch 15, re intermolecular forces. (The Franklin paper referred to is "Of the Stilling of Waves by means of Oil. Extracted from Sundry Letters between Benjamin Franklin, LL. D. F. R. S. William Brownrigg, M. D. F. R. S. and the Reverend Mr. Farish". Philosophical Transactions 64:445-460, 1774. For those with JStor access, it is available at http://www.jstor.org/sici?sici=0260-7085%281774%2964%3C445%3AOTSOWB%3E2.0.CO;2-B.)
Thomas D Brock, Robert Koch - A Life in Medicine and Bacteriology. Springer, 1988 (with later versions, including by ASM Press; apparently reprints of same book). This is the story of the first clear elucidation of the life cycle of a pathogenic bacterium (anthrax), of the discovery of the agent of the most important infectious disease of the time (tuberculosis), and of the discovery of the cholera agent. It is the story of the development of major techniques in bacteriology, such as photomicroscopy and plating. In short, it is the story of Robert Koch. Brock starts the book with a list of 17 of Koch's contributions, many as major as those noted above. Those interested in bacteria, especially as agents of disease, will enjoy this fascinating tale of the origins of modern medical microbiology. I have listed this book for BITN: Anthrax.
Francis Crick, What Mad Pursuit: A personal view of scientific discovery. Basic Books, 1988. Crick, probably best known to the general public as one half of the Watson-Crick duo, was one of the towering figures of the classic era of molecular biology. Like many of the leading figures of that era, he started as a physicist before turning to genes as the fundamental issue to be addressed. Crick was more a theoretician, and one of the things he does here is to discuss the important give and take between theory and experiment. This is a short book, breezy but not flashy. It is probably of most interest to those with some familiarity with Crick's role. Young scientists may also find it good to read the reflections of a great scientist. Also see Crick, Life Itself, 1981.
Francis Crick, Life Itself - Its origin and nature. Simon and Schuster, 1981. This book came up in a discussion (summer 2007). Despite the book's age, I decided to read it through. In this short book, Crick discusses the issues surrounding that great mystery of how life began. Most of the book describes the basics of life and of the early earth on which life may have arisen. Crick then outlines how we might envision life arising. He largely avoids the trap of promoting one view or another, but rather tries to present alternative views and the arguments for and against them. The book is written in Crick's usual casual, conversational style. The book suffers from a couple of problems. First, it is out of date in some ways. For example, Crick bemoans that we do not yet know a molecule that can serve as both catalyst and gene. Interestingly, understanding of such a molecule -- RNA -- was published the year after the book came out. This discovery of "ribozymes" greatly simplifies the problem of how life originated. As another example, his discussion of planets beyond our solar system is almost entirely speculative; now, a couple hundred are known, because of technical advances in detection during the last decade. The new information is in no way fatal to Crick's basic arguments. He presents ideas about life and how it may have started. His biggest conclusion is that we do not know, and the new advances do not change that basic story. The second problem is that his story line revolves around the idea of panspermia: that life began elsewhere, and was transported to earth (an idea apparently originally due to Svante Arrhenius). Frankly, I have never felt that this idea adds much to the discussion. However. it doesn't detract too much from the book, and he evaluates it as critically as he does all other ideas, making clear that there really is no evidence one way or the other. All in all, this short book is still a worthwhile read. It outlines major issues regarding the origin of life, and reaches no firm conclusions; for better or worse, that last point is still appropriate. Also see Crick, What Mad Pursuit, 1988 for more Crick. Also see Hazen, Genesis: The scientific quest for life's origin, 2005 for a more recent view of the origin-of-life field.
Within this multi-year section, the books are in order by publication year, most recent first. Within a year, they are alphabetical by first author.
UNESCO, 700 Science Experiments for Everyone. Compiled and published by UNESCO. 1964. (Various editions and translations, 1956-1964.) This wonderfully illustrated book is aimed at high school students. This is not a single author book, but it has been compiled by an organization with the help of teachers all around the world. If you are a visual learner, interested in doing simple experiments related to mechanics, electricity and magnetism, properties of light and sound, chemistry and last but not the least, in making models for our lungs, then this book is for you. Most of experiments are accompanied by a diagram that clarifies the experiment. Great for students making science projects. This book is also available online as a ZIP archive containing two PDF files: http://www.vidyaonline.net/arvindgupta/700un.zip. For the individual PDF files: http://vidyaonline.net/arvindgupta/700un1.pdf and http://vidyaonline.net/arvindgupta/700un2.pdf. [Submitted by M Farooq Wahab, Dept of Chemistry, Univ Karachi, Pakistan. 10/06.] I have listed the site that hosts this book as a general resource for education: Internet resources: Miscellaneous; Books section.
Robert Jungk, Brighter than a Thousand Suns: A personal history of the atomic scientists. Harcourt, 1956 (1958 English translation from the original German). ISBN 0-15-614150-7. A list of the central characters of this book reads like a who's who of physics in the 20th century: Oppenheimer, Bohr, Born, Einstein, Heisenberg, Fermi, Feynman and many more. This book attempts to give an insight into the lives of these scientists and the way in which their work influenced the course of world politics through the invention of atomic weapons. The book was written only ten years after the end of WWII, and as a result the author was able to interview many of the figures involved personally. However, this does present its problems: there is little information on the Soviet side of the story, and even that of the American and European contributions is unlikely to be complete. In addition, the fact that so many of the book's subjects were still alive at the time of writing has perhaps biased the author towards painting a somewhat rose-tinted view of all involved. Nevertheless, for anyone interested in learning more about the names behind so much of modern physics, this is an enjoyable read. The book is non-technical, and focuses on the lives and personalities of the atomic scientists rather than on the technical aspects of their work; no knowledge of physics is assumed. No detailed knowledge of history is needed either, but be prepared in the second half of the book for a rather detailed description of the politics of the start of the Cold War. (From a scientific point of view, the earlier parts are arguably more interesting/relevant.) [From Greg Pearce, Univ Erlangen, 12/06.]
New February 10, 2009. Sinclair Lewis, Arrowsmith. 1925. The novel Arrowsmith by Sinclair Lewis was written in 1925 and was awarded the Pulitzer Prize in 1926. It is the story of Martin Arrowsmith's life from the age of 14 through the time he practices medicine in a backwater country town to his becoming a prestigious researcher in New York City. It covers very modern topics: the lure of money vs. the attraction of pure research and, thus, is quite contemporary in its subject matter. Apparently Dr. Paul de Kruif (author of The Microbe Hunters) helped Lewis write some of the scientific aspects of the book. For those of you who balk at reading a 1920's novel, the book provides a fascinating window onto 1920's-era medical practice and microbiology. The parallels to modern medicine are extremely interesting, and it only goes to show that surroundings may change, but human beings do not. Martin Arrowsmith makes breakthroughs in bacteriophage research. This phage can destroy the plague bacteria and it provides a dramatic interlude in the novel. His mentor, Max Gottlieb, is the epitome of the 1920's professor and is a fascinating character in his own right. Interestingly enough, phage research is being investigated again as a possible treatment option for resistant bacteria. While some of the Caribbean Island interlude is fairly fantastic, one must somewhat ignore this to absorb the book's true message. In the end it proves the point that success always has a price. [Contributed by microbiologist Judy Dilworth. I wholeheartedly endorse her recommendation of this book. It is a fine novel, by an important American author (he won the Nobel Prize for literature in 1930). And it is a book very deserving of a place on a list of science books. There is a short item about the use of phage in medicine on my page of Internet resources: Biology - Miscellaneous in the section Microbiology: other. Phage therapy.]
New July 21, 2008. Michael Faraday, The chemical history of a candle: a course of lectures delivered before a juvenile audience at the Royal Institution. These lectures were given during the Christmas holidays of 1860-1. Also included is a Lecture on platinum, delivered to the Royal Institution, February 1861. The lectures were edited by William Crookes, and originally published in 1861. Numerous editions have been published since. The one I read was an 1894 book, published by Chatto & Windus, in the UCB library. Michael Faraday's public lectures are legendary, and this book will show you why. The topic is simple: how a candle burns -- and related issues. If only we could have been there! But just reading the lectures makes clear how he enraptured a youthful audience for six lectures on this one seemingly simple topic. Highly recommended, as chemistry and history. No particular background is required to read it. The book is also available online at various sites, including: http://quod.lib.umich.edu/cgi/t/text/text-idx?c=moa;idno=ALQ5362.0001.001 and http://www.gutenberg.org/files/14474/14474-8.txt. The first of those includes the illustrations, but can only be displayed one page at a time. The second allows you to download the entire book, as a simple text file, without pagination or figures.
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Last update: May 4, 2009