Science and Inquiry discussion

Memoirs of an Addicted Brain: A Neuroscientist Examines his Former Life on Drugs

It's by a neuroscientist who became interested in the effects of drugs on the brain after being a drug user since the age of 15. An article and podcast interview can be found here: http://www.cbc.ca/books/2011/10/a-a-n...

Thanks for posting that Ibis3!

Has anyone read Unscientific America: How Scientific Illiteracy Threatens our Future? It sounds interesting, but I'd like to get some more opinions on it.

I've not read it, but the concept is something that echos with me and I've been concerned about for many years.

It's got mixed reviews on GR, but it's so short it might be worth reading regardless.

Same mixed on Amazon, but mostly favorable....

Betsy wrote: "Has anyone read Unscientific America: How Scientific Illiteracy Threatens our Future? It sounds interesting, but I'd like to give some more opinions on it."

I was not impressed with it. Honestly, I don't think you'll find anything in this book that you don't already know. There are no good solutions offered for the problems presented and he doesn't even delve into "How Scientific Illiteracy Threatens our Future." There is no reason for that to be in the title, since the book offers no more than 2 or 3 sentences on the subject. As someone who works in informal science education, I was really hoping for more.

Essentially, here is the story: There is a rift between scientists and the public. (duh) This is because a. False dichotomy between religion and science b. sensationalist, dramatic media coverage isn't interested in long tedious research that often doesn't lead to an immediately relevant insight. c. scientists don't know how or don't have the desire to talk to people and are criticized if they do (example given, Carl Sagan). His solution? Scientists should be rewarded for talking to the media and we should teach scientists to communicate better, especially for the sensationalist media. Personally, I thought this was dumb, since I know many scientists who communicate perfectly well. I think the problem is that scientists don't want to talk to the media because their research or their words end up getting stretched and exaggerated.

Also, I question whether this should be the role of scientists or if science museums, magazines, blogs, websites and educators should be responsible for translating scientific publications to the masses. Also, it would probably help if everyone could have access to scientific documents without having to pay ridiculous amounts of money for every article they want to read.

Anyway, sorry for the rant. Hope this helps.

Tippy wrote: "Hope this helps."

It does, thanks. That's just the kind of insight I was looking for.

Tippy wrote: "Betsy wrote: "Has anyone read Unscientific America: How Scientific Illiteracy Threatens our Future? It sounds interesting, but I'd like to give some more opinions on it."

I was not..."

A useful summary Tippy. The observations sound familiar but a shame the book did not offer anything more. There have been some interesting comments on science and public discourse in (Australian) newspaper articles recently. One article (by a sociologist) suggests that science gets taken beyond it's mandate, in areas of government policy for example. A related observation (by a historian) is that science is too easily given the benefit of the doubt, as religion once was, giving it a false reputation of infallibility. Sorry to be off topic somewhat.

I think it might be a useful discussion; maybe we should start a new topic somewhere. Does anyone know of any other books on the subject? Why is America scientifically illiterate and what can be done about it? Is it just America? Does the rest of the developed world suffer the same myopia? Is it even true?

There are a few books on the subject:
Fool Me Twice: Fighting the Assault on Science in America looks like the best one, by far. It was published just last month.

Thanks, David, I've added that to one of my TBR lists.

Very useful, Tippy.

ETA: Fool Me Twice looks very interesting.

Interesting article about a book in progress re ongoing research on genes that in some situations (i.e. environments) seem to result in emotional disorders but in other environments have positive emotional results:

http://www.wired.com/wiredscience/201...

I've been skimming an advance galley of FRANKENSTEIN'S CAT: Cuddling Up to Biotech's Brave New Beasts -- it's quite interesting! Due for release on 3/12/13. It's all about animal biotech, from frivoulous projects to conservation uses to agricultural applications.

http://www.amazon.com/Frankensteins-C...

New book by Elizabeth Kolbert, who wrote The Sixth Extinction: An Unnatural History. The new one -- Under a White Sky: The Nature of the Future -- just came out and it looks interesting.

Just published last month, Count Down: How Our Modern World Is Threatening Sperm Counts, Altering Male and Female Reproductive Development, and Imperiling the Future of the Human Race looks interesting. Here is a NYT review: https://www.nytimes.com/2021/03/05/bo...

Just published today, The Code Breaker: Jennifer Doudna, Gene Editing, and the Future of the Human Race also looks good. Isaacson is a well known biographer of pathbreakers, and this should give us a little different viewpoint than Doudna's book, A Crack in Creation: Gene Editing and the Unthinkable Power to Control Evolution. Also, here is a current interview with Isaacson on the Geekwire podcast: https://www.geekwire.com/2021/code-br...

Life's Edge: The Search for What It Means to Be Alive, a new book by Carl Zimmer, sounds really interesting.

Under a White Sky: The Nature of the Future by Elizabeth Kolbert, Pulitzer Prize winning author of The Sixth Extinction: An Unnatural History. It is apparently about potential solutions to climate change, especially human made solutions. Sounds pretty interesting.

Betsy wrote: "Under a White Sky: The Nature of the Future by Elizabeth Kolbert, Pulitzer Prize winning author of The Sixth Extinction: An Unnatural History. It is a..."
Actually I took up Bruno Lattours book, on climate reversal instead (b4 the pandemic) and well gave it up.
Sixth extinction has a huge 'cult following' in lack of a better term but I was think it might have been harder to browse through the thick of it. Have ya browsed the book yet Cathy? Give us yr insight - even on a different panel- I am well aware of might be quite hard to wrap up a book these days, but even an easy - 1st hand-assessment would help me out a lot
Note :I ain't afraid of hard scientific jargon /or proposals, I am simply afraid, she might have taken a differtn route on that one altogether

On 14Sep2021, Fuzz: When Nature Breaks the Law by Mary Roach will come out. I've preordered it since she's one of my favorite authors. I've read & own all her books. Her first book, Stiff: The Curious Lives of Human Cadavers, might be my favorite, but on another day I might pick Gulp: Adventures on the Alimentary Canal or Bonk: The Curious Coupling of Science and Sex. The books aren't super technical & her sense of humor makes them a lot of fun.

I'm looking forward to reading The Genome Odyssey: Medical Mysteries and the Incredible Quest to Solve Them by Euan Ashley. Anyone else read it?

Carrie wrote: "I'm looking forward to reading The Genome Odyssey: Medical Mysteries and the Incredible Quest to Solve Them by Euan Ashley. Anyone else read it?"

Yes, Carrie. I read that book. It is a truly excellent book! I highly recommend it to everyone who likes detective stories. Here is my review.

Most of these look interesting:

https://www.goodreads.com/blog/show/2...

Betsy wrote: "Most of these look interesting:

https://www.goodreads.com/blog/show/2..."

Thanks, Betsy. That is a very intriguing list of science books.!

I'm always interested in well written math books. This one looks interesting. Shape: The Hidden Geometry of Information, Biology, Strategy, Democracy, and Everything Else just came out this month. Here is the NYT review: https://www.nytimes.com/2021/05/18/bo...

That one sounds marvelous!

Yes I read Life’s Edge that you mentioned. It was really good and gave a variety of perspectives on defining life.

Another fairly new book that looks interesting: Ageless: The New Science of Getting Older Without Getting Old, was published late last year. Since I'm getting older and I am afraid I'm also getting old, this topic really interests me. Apparently this is more than just diet and lifestyle.

Just out in September 2021, The Genetic Lottery: Why DNA Matters for Social Equality looks interesting. It's about behavior genetics or how genetics affects personality and abilities. Apparently quite controversial. Here is a New Yorker article about the book and the author: https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/20...

Just out in January, The Insect Crisis: The Fall of the Tiny Empires That Run the World by Oliver Milman looks interesting. Apparently many insect species are in danger of extinction and that would be disastrous for us. The book was recommended by someone in a Facebook group on serious nonfiction books.

the insect one sounds very interesting

Just out this month, The Rise and Reign of the Mammals: A New History, from the Shadow of the Dinosaurs to Us, by Steve Brusatte. As a group, we read his book on dinosaurs a few years ago. This one looks interesting too.

Here is a Guardian review of the book: https://www.theguardian.com/science/2...

Betsy wrote: "Just out this month, The Rise and Reign of the Mammals: A New History, from the Shadow of the Dinosaurs to Us, by Steve Brusatte. As a group, we read his book on di..." Saw the review in Science News a while back and bought it immediately. About a third into it. Author is also a featured expert on the current Apple TV dinosaur series, which is excellent--with David Attenborough.

Just out this week, The Light Eaters: How the Unseen World of Plant Intelligence Offers a New Understanding of Life on Earth sounds really interesting. Apparently it's about the latest botanical research and the amazing things being discovered about plants.

Environomics: How the Green Economy is Transforming Your World. Just published in June. Looks interesting, although per some reviews it's a little short on sources.

Mapmatics: How We Navigate the World Through Numbers also sounds interesting. Published June 2024. About how math underpins cartography and vice versa.

The latest book by Carl Zimmer just came out a couple weeks ago. Air-Borne: The Hidden History of the Life We Breathe looks interesting.