The Best American Science and Nature Writing 2011

Book excerpt: The New York Times–bestselling author of Packing for Mars presents fascinating essays by Jonathan Lethem, Jaron Lanier, Malcom Gladwell and others. Good science writing, as Mary Roach explains in her introduction, is a cure for ignorance and fallacy. But great science writing adds honey—in the form of engaging characters, stories, and wit—to make the medicine go down. This anthology reveals the essential humanity in our endless quest for knowledge and understanding. From a study of avian mating habits with unintended political implications to a sober exploration of the panic surrounding artificial intelligence, The Best Science and Nature Writing 2011 offers food for thought in a variety of flavors. The Best Science and Nature Writing 2011 includes entries by Deborah Blum, Burkhard Bilger, Ian Frazier, David H. Freedman, Atul Gawande, Stephen Hawking, Christopher Ketcham, Jill Sisson Quinn, Oliver Sachs, and others.