The Best American Science and Nature Writing 2014

by Deborah Blum (Editor), Elizabeth Kolbert (Contribution by), Edward O. Wilson (Contribution by), Rebecca Solnit (Contribution by), Barbara Kingsolver (Contribution by)

Overview

“A stimulating compendium” on topics from antibiotics to animals, featuring Rebecca Solnit, E.O. Wilson, Nicholas Carr, Elizabeth Kolbert, and many more (Kirkus Reviews).
 
“A consistently strong series . . . Making connections between seemingly unrelated topics can help expand thinking, as seen in the effects of automated navigation on both airplane pilot error and Inuit hunting accidents that Nicholas Carr explores in ‘The Great Forgetting.’ Sarah Stewart Johnson makes a similar connection between the loss of a 1912 Antarctic expedition and the explosion of the space shuttle Challenger in ‘O-Rings.’ . . . Essays like Virginia Hughes’s ‘23 and You’ investigates the effects of availability of individual genetic information on human interactions, while pieces like Maryn McKenna’s ‘Imagining the Post-Antibiotics Future’ and Kate Sheppard’s ‘Under Water’ remind us of unpleasant futures which we have in large part created ourselves. But Barbara Kingsolver’s ‘Where it Begins,’ a lyrical musing on connectedness, or Wilson’s optimistic, bug-loving ‘The Rebirth of Gorongosa,’ reveal that among the strange, shocking, or depressing, there is still unadulterated joy to be found.” —Publishers Weekly
 
“Undeniably exquisite . . . meditations that reveal not only how science actually happens but also who or what propels its immutable humanity.” —Maria Popova, Brain Pickings
 
Contributors include: Katherine Bagley • Nicholas Carr • David Dobbs • Pippa Goldschmidt • Amy Harmon • Robin Marantz Henig • Virginia Hughes • Ferris Jabr • Sarah Stewart Johnson • Barbara J. King • Barbara Kingsolver • Maggie Koerth-Baker • Elizabeth Kolbert • Joshua Lang • Maryn McKenna • Seth Mnookin • Justin Nobel • Fred Pearce • Corey S. Powell • Roy Scranton • Kate Sheppard • Bill Sherwonit • Rebecca Solnit • David Treuer • E.O. Wilson • Carl Zimmer

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780544003392
Publisher:	Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
Publication date:	02/10/2021
Series:	Best American Science and Nature Writing Series
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	348
Sales rank:	597,648
File size:	3 MB

About the Author

TIM FOLGER is a contributing editor at Discover and writes about science for several magazines. He lives in New Mexico.

Table of Contents

Foreword Tim Folger xi

Introduction Deborah Blum xv

Mixed Up Katherine Bagley. 1

The Great Forgetting Nicholas Carr. 8

The Social Life of Genes David Dobbs. 19

What Our Telescopes Couldn't See Pippa Goldschmidt. 35

A Race to Save the Orange by Altering Its DNA Amy Harmon. 38

A Life-or-Death Situation Robin Marantz Henig. 53

23 and You Virginia Hughes. 72

Why the Brain Prefers Paper Ferris Jabr. 98

O-Rings Sarah Stewart Johnson. 107

When Animals Mourn Barbara J. King. 115

Where It Begins Barbara Kingsolver. 125

Danger! This Mission to Mars Could Bore You to Death! Maggie Koerth-Baker. 131

The Lost World Elizabeth Kolbert. 135

Awakening Joshua Lang. 167

Imagining the Post-Antibiotics Future Maryn McKenna. 188

The Return of Measles Seth Mnookin. 199

Ants Go Marching Justin Nobel. 202

TV as Birth Control Fred Pearce. 213

The Madness of the Planets Corey S. Powell. 222

Learning How to Die in the Anthropocene Roy Scranton. 231

Under Water Kate Sheppard. 238

Twelve Ways of Viewing Alaska's Wild, White Sheep Bill Sherwonit. 251

The Separating Sickness Rebecca Solnit. 266

Trapline David Treuer. 277

The Rebirth of Gorongosa E. O. Wilson. 291

Bringing Them Back to Life Carl Zimmer. 296

Contributors' Notes 309

Other Notable Science and Nature Writing of 2013 315

Editorial Reviews

★ 10/01/2014
These 27 essays include thought-provoking and socially relevant science journalism as well as more introspective work. Editor Blum (Helen Firstbrook Franklin Professor of Journalism, Univ. of Wisconsin; The Poisoner's Handbook), a Pulitzer Prize-winning science journalist, has selected pieces with an eye toward the full range of the physical sciences and medicine, though genetics and climate change are a common theme. Most of the entries are actually interdisciplinary, linking multiple fields or looking at the philosophical or social implication of technology. Along with representing stalwarts of mainstream journalism and popular science, such as the New York Times and Scientific American, a handful of publications make their first appearance in the series, including the online source Matter. Series editor Folger recommends nearly 60 additional readings in an appendix. While almost all of the selections are currently available online, having a portable hard copy ensures continued access (though in a few cases the original illustrations and graphics would have enhanced this volume). VERDICT This carefully curated collection deserves a place on the shelves of libraries serving the scientifically curious public and fans of long-form, intellectual journalism.—Wade M. Lee, Univ. of Toledo Lib.

Library Journal

09/22/2014
This thought provoking, perspective shifting edition of a consistently strong series draws from well-known publications like Scientific American and The Atlantic, but Blum (The Poisoner's Handbook) has also reached out to newer online publications like Matter and Nautilus, bringing the best from those venues to a new audience. Making connections between seemingly unrelated topics can help expand thinking, as seen in the effects of automated navigation on both airplane pilot error and Inuit hunting accidents that Nicholas Carr explores in "The Great Forgetting." Sarah Stewart Johnson makes a similar connection between the loss of a 1912 Antarctic expedition and the explosion of the space shuttle Challenger in "O-Rings." Blum features "stories of choices and of consequences," highlighting the Anthropocene-era world's rapid changes in response to human behavior. Essays like Virginia Hughes's "23 and You" investigates the effects of availability of individual genetic information on human interactions, while pieces like Maryn McKenna's "Imagining the Post-Antibiotics Future" and Kate Sheppard's "Under Water" remind us of unpleasant futures which we have in large part created ourselves. But Barbara Kingsolver's "Where it Begins," a lyrical musing on connectedness, or Wilson's optimistic, bug-loving "The Rebirth of Gorongosa," reveal that among the strange, shocking, or depressing, there is still unadulterated joy to be found. (Oct.)

Publishers Weekly