The Best American Science and Nature Writing 2012

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By Dan Ariely & Tim Folger &

Publisher Description

“Top-notch science writing covering everything from the 1,000 species in the human gut to efforts to reverse-evolve a chicken into a dinosaur.” —Kirkus Reviews

With contributions from bestselling and award-winning writers including Jerome Groopman and Elizabeth Kolbert, this volume delves into such topics as the 2008 “Black Friday” stampede at a Long Island Walmart; an annual humans-vs.-AI competition; octopus intelligence; lab-grown meat; marauder ants; the brains of teenagers; and the Neanderthal genome. Lively and accessible, this is “a showcase for clean, plain-English science and nature writing and a treat for readers” (Kirkus Reviews).

“This strong collection invites awe, begets wonder, and stimulates contemplation.” —Publishers Weekly

“There is so much we don’t know, which leads us to make so many irrational decisions that we need scientists and science writers to share their inquiries and discoveries in welcoming and lucid prose. Stellar examples of just this sort of cogent and compelling writing sustains this invaluable and exciting series.” —Booklist

Contributors include: Brendan Buhler · Virginia Hughes • Jerome Groopman • Carl Zimmer • Thomas Hayden • Michael Behar • Bijal P. Trivedi • Sy Montgomery • Mark W. Moffett • Deborah Blum • Elizabeth Kolbert • Michael Roberts • Thomas Goetz • Jason Daley • David Dobbs • David Eagleman • John Seabrook • David Kirby • Robert Kunzig • Michael Specter • Mark McClusky • Rivka Galchen • Joshua Davis • Brian Christian

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8 Reviews

3.5

Stephanie K

Created 11 months ago

abbeyx3

Created over 2 years ago

Birdinglauren

Created over 6 years ago

sarah.sattin

Created over 10 years ago

“I actually didn't read one essay - the one about quantum computing - just couldn't make it through. But these collections are always great and a joy to read.”

Yasmine

Created over 11 years ago

About Dan Ariely

Dan Ariely, author of The Upside of Irrationality and Predictably Irrational, is the James B. Duke Professor of Psychology and Behavioral Economics at Duke University.TIM FOLGER is a contributing editor at Discover and writes about science for several magazines.