or
Sign in to turn on 1-Click ordering.
 
 
Express Checkout with PayPhrase
What's this? | Create PayPhrase
Sorry!
X
More Buying Choices
116 used & new from $0.01
Have one to sell? Sell yours here
 
   
The Best American Science and Nature Writing 2004 (The Best American Series)
 
See larger image 
Share your own customer images
Publisher: learn how customers can search inside this book.
Tell the Publisher!
I’d like to read this book on Kindle

Don’t have a Kindle? Get your Kindle here.
 
  

The Best American Science and Nature Writing 2004 (The Best American Series) (Paperback)

~ (Editor), Tim Folger (Editor)
4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
List Price: $14.00
Price: $11.20 & eligible for FREE Super Saver Shipping on orders over $25. Details
You Save: $2.80 (20%)
o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o
In Stock.
Ships from and sold by Amazon.com. Gift-wrap available.

Only 3 left in stock--order soon (more on the way).

Want it delivered Tuesday, November 10? Choose One-Day Shipping at checkout. Details
33 new from $2.58 83 used from $0.01

Formats

Amazon Price New from Used from
  Library Binding, September 30, 2004 $25.80 $25.80 --
  Paperback, October 13, 2004 $11.20 $2.58 $0.01

Frequently Bought Together

The Best American Science and Nature Writing 2004 (The Best American Series) + The Best American Science and Nature Writing 2007 + The Best American Science and Nature Writing 2006 (The Best American Series)
Price For All Three: $33.60

Show availability and shipping details

  • This item: The Best American Science and Nature Writing 2004 (The Best American Series) by Steven Pinker

    In Stock.
    Ships from and sold by Amazon.com.
    Eligible for FREE Super Saver Shipping on orders over $25. Details

  • The Best American Science and Nature Writing 2007 by Richard Preston

    In Stock.
    Ships from and sold by Amazon.com.
    Eligible for FREE Super Saver Shipping on orders over $25. Details

  • The Best American Science and Nature Writing 2006 (The Best American Series) by Tim Folger

    In Stock.
    Ships from and sold by Amazon.com.
    Eligible for FREE Super Saver Shipping on orders over $25. Details

Customers Who Bought This Item Also Bought

The Best American Science & Nature Writing 2005 (Best American)

The Best American Science & Nature Writing 2005 (Best American)

by Tim Folger
4.1 out of 5 stars (9)  $11.90
The Best American Science and Nature Writing 2006 (The Best American Series)

The Best American Science and Nature Writing 2006 (The Best American Series)

by Tim Folger
5.0 out of 5 stars (7)  $11.20
The Best American Science and Nature Writing 2003 (The Best American Series)

The Best American Science and Nature Writing 2003 (The Best American Series)

by Tim Folger
4.2 out of 5 stars (9)  $13.00
The Best American Science and Nature Writing 2002 (The Best American Series)

The Best American Science and Nature Writing 2002 (The Best American Series)

by Natalie Angier
4.4 out of 5 stars (8)  $11.05
The Best American Science & Nature Writing 2001 (The Best American Series)

The Best American Science & Nature Writing 2001 (The Best American Series)

by Burkhard Bilger
4.8 out of 5 stars (4)  $17.95
› Explore similar items

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Science buffs will find a smorgasbord of lively pieces in this anthology selected by renowned Harvard psychologist Pinker (The Blank Slate; etc.). Many readers will jump straight to Ron Rosenbaum's "Sex Week at Yale," an entertaining exposé of how academics can give their audience a headache when they yammer on about sex. Even the most science-wary readers will enjoy Peggy Orenstein's "Where Have All the Lisas Gone?" about trends in naming babies. Bird lovers (and cat haters) will laugh out loud at the Letters to the Bird Brain collected in Michael O'Connor's "Bird Watcher's General Store." And ailurophiles will be stunned by Robert Sapolsky's report ("Bugs in the Brain") on how the pathogen that causes toxoplasmosis alters its carriers' (rodents) brains so they no longer fear their number one predator (cats). Medical buffs will look for Atul Gawande's extended profile of the amazing Francis Moore, a pioneer in treatment of burns, nuclear medicine, hormone replacement therapies and organ transplants. Both Pinker's choice of subjects (linguistics, psychology) as well as sources (The American Conservative, The Cape Codder) range happily beyond the usual suspects; everyone will find something they haven't already read. The collection is recommended for intellectually omnivorous readers in this and all other universes.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.


From Booklist

On the publishing heels of its rival anthology, The Best American Science Writing, 2004 [BKL S 15 04], comes this selection of two dozen articles giving general readers both a range of subject matter, from zoology to astrophysics, and of authorial voices, from expository to satirical. Guest editor Pinker, the prominent neuroscience researcher and author (How the Mind Works, 1997), has made some idiosyncratic choices, such as an advice feature for birdwatchers taken from The Cape Codder, unrenowned as a science periodical. What is the relation to science, one must wonder, of two articles plucked from the New York Times, one concerning fads in naming babies; another, the politics of grammar? Whatever their connection to hard science, such offbeat pieces balance out the more serious-minded declamations of philosopher Daniel Dennett (disputing the late Stephen Jay Gould on genetic determinism) or cosmologist Max Tegmark (describing postulations of many, infinite, or higher-dimensional universes). All of Pinker's picks carry a cogent main idea eloquently expressed, testifying to the healthy condition of contemporary popular science writing. Gilbert Taylor
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.
See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

  • Paperback: 240 pages
  • Publisher: Mariner Books (October 14, 2004)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 0618246983
  • ISBN-13: 978-0618246984
  • Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.5 x 0.8 inches
  • Shipping Weight: 8.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
  • Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
  • Amazon.com Sales Rank: #621,384 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

    •  Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?

More About the Author

Steven Pinker
Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

› Visit Amazon's Steven Pinker Page

What Do Customers Ultimately Buy After Viewing This Item?

The Best American Science and Nature Writing 2004 (The Best American Series)
60% buy the item featured on this page:
The Best American Science and Nature Writing 2004 (The Best American Series) 4.3 out of 5 stars (10)
$11.20
The Best American Science and Nature Writing 2007
12% buy
The Best American Science and Nature Writing 2007 4.5 out of 5 stars (6)
$11.20
The Best American Science and Nature Writing 2006 (The Best American Series)
11% buy
The Best American Science and Nature Writing 2006 (The Best American Series) 5.0 out of 5 stars (7)
$11.20
The Best American Science and Nature Writing 2009
9% buy
The Best American Science and Nature Writing 2009
$10.08
Explore similar items

Tags Customers Associate with This Product

 (What's this?)
Click on a tag to find related items, discussions, and people.
 
(2)
(1)
(1)
See all 4 tags...

Your tags: Add your first tag
 
See most popular tags

Sell a Digital Version of This Book in the Kindle Store

If you are a publisher or author and hold the digital rights to a book, you can sell a digital version of it in our Kindle Store. Learn more
 

Customer Reviews

10 Reviews
5 star:
 (7)
4 star:
 (1)
3 star:    (0)
2 star:
 (2)
1 star:    (0)
 
 
 
 
 
Average Customer Review
4.3 out of 5 stars (10 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
Share your thoughts with other customers:
Most Helpful Customer Reviews

 
6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent science writing, May 28, 2005
This is an enjoyable as well as very informative collection of essays on science and nature. The book contains a couple of dozen articles on different topics, too many to go into here, so I will limit my comments to discussing just a few of them. But if you're considering purchasing the book, you could look at the table of contents and some of the articles themselves to get a better idea of what topics the articles cover before buying.

I hadn't read a book of nature writing like this in several years (I pride myself on reading the more technical literature usually), but time constraints impelled me to take a look, and I was glad I did, as you will find some excellent articles and science writing here. But be aware that this is not the same as reading, say, the articles in Scientific American, let alone the more technical literature. They aren't at the same level of rigor or scientific depth and detail. If you have the sort of fortitude necessary to stick with S.A. for year after year, you probably don't need books like this. But for the average reader, this collection of essays, and the overall series, is an enjoyable and readable way to keeps tabs on some of the important developments going on in science.

The essays vary a bit in level of difficulty and in the topics covered, and the subjects range from scientific ethics to modern cosmology. One is even a brief (and somewhat racy) bio of Watson, the co-discoverer of DNA, who basically admits that getting laid is his top priority when he isn't thinking about science. :-) It also discusses his often strained relationships with his peers; for example, in his biography he once remarked that he had never seen Crick in a modest mood. His acerbic wit and tongue therefore didn't exactly endear him to his fellow scientists, and after he got passed over for promotion at Harvard, he left for Cold Spring Harbor, and the rest, as they say, is history.

Most of the essays, however, aren't such intimate portrayals of famous or controversial scientists, but they're still worth reading :-). For example, the amazing career of the driven and intrepid Dr. Francis Moore, who pioneered burn therapy and surgery and many other treatments, and often bucked the traditional medical establishment and medical wisdom to create his advances, should be an inspiration to any young physician. The essay on cosmology and parallel universe theory discusses some of the mind-boggling discoveries and speculations being made about our universe there. And the essay by Robert Sapolsky on Toxoplasma gondii, a protozoan organism that for some reason infects the brains of more Europeans than Americans, but usually doesn't cause any problems, was interesting too, in its amazingly specific effects on its other hosts (it can live in rats and cats also, but can only reproduce in cats). For those of you who don't know Sapolski, he is one of the most entertaining science writers I've encountered recently, besides being a noted neuroscientist.

Overall, a fine collection of essays drawn from diverse magazines and sources by some of the top science and nature writers today.
Comment Comment | Permalink | Was this review helpful to you? Yes No (Report this)



 
6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Showcases writing on diverse scientific topics, November 9, 2004
By Midwest Book Review (Oregon, WI USA) - See all my reviews
If it's literary nonfiction essays you seek, look no further than the 2004 edition of Best American Science And Nature Writing as it showcases the finest nonfiction writing on diverse scientific topics published in 2004, from the psychology of suicide terrorism and the war on obesity to the diversity of DNA and medical pioneering efforts. A diverse collection which ranges through all scientific disciplines to provide only the best.

Comment Comment | Permalink | Was this review helpful to you? Yes No (Report this)



 
5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
2.0 out of 5 stars Way too much fluff, January 4, 2005
By Michel Avery (Pennsylvania) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   
I am not a scientist, but in past years I've enjoyed the stretch of reading the "best" series. I have counted on really good, meaty articles that offered up some of the most interesting and stimulating thinking about science and nature to be brought within the reach of readers like me.

Not so this year. The majority of the articles in this anthology are simply entertainment. A superficial personality piece about James Watson. An article about trends in baby names. Etc. This is waiting room material--good for passing time, but not for learning or provoking thought.

Normally, I only bother to write reviews when a book is so wonderful I want to encourage others to read it. But this one was such a letdown, I wanted to take the trouble to warn others away. I don't know if the editors just made bad selections this year, or if the material they included really WAS the best of 2004. If the latter, it's a scary thought!
Comment Comment | Permalink | Was this review helpful to you? Yes No (Report this)


Share your thoughts with other customers: Create your own review
 
 
 
Most Recent Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars Best American Science 2004
Another wonderful edition to the series. Pinker in his introduction says the best science articles "delight by instructing" and goes on to explain the lessons of each of the... Read more
Published 11 months ago by Stephen Balbach

4.0 out of 5 stars Good for the wide angle lens reader
I was originally introduced to this book because I was told to read "caring for your introvert", which is a hiliariously bitter essay by a self-professed introvert. Read more
Published on March 15, 2006 by CJ

2.0 out of 5 stars The Best Science and Nature Writing 2004
Save your money. These authors have better to offer, as does the science collective as a whole. Look elsewhere for insightful musings.
Published on August 17, 2005 by James Cameron

5.0 out of 5 stars Eclectic, informative and . . . fun??
It must have been a capricious sprite that convinced Series Editor Tim Folger to select Steven Pinker to choose the essays in this collection. Read more
Published on July 23, 2005 by Stephen A. Haines

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent writing and varied subjects make this a stand-out
There are a lot of fine essays in this wide ranging collection, but my favorite is a piece from "Scientific American" by neuroscientist Robert Sapolsky, "Bugs in the Brain. Read more
Published on January 24, 2005 by Lynn Harnett

5.0 out of 5 stars Kissing a Polar Bear
This issue of the yearly publication, The Best Science & Nature Writing of 2004 is as good as watching IMax with surround sound and getting all the popcorn you can eat, delivered... Read more
Published on January 10, 2005 by The Spinozanator

5.0 out of 5 stars A Peek is sometimes better than a Good Look
The average science reader can not keep abreast of a dozen fields of science to any great depth. Skimming the best of this year's science and nature writing is often the only way... Read more
Published on December 8, 2004 by J. head

Only search this product's reviews


Customer Discussions

This product's forum
Discussion Replies Latest Post
No discussions yet

Ask questions, Share opinions, Gain insight
Start a new discussion
Topic:
First post:
Prompts for sign-in
 


Active discussions in related forums
Search Customer Discussions
Search all Amazon discussions
   

So You'd Like to...

Create a guide

Product Information from the Amapedia Community

Beta (What's this?)

Look for Similar Items by Category

Look for Similar Items by Subject

Search Books by subject:








i.e., each book must be in subject 1 AND subject 2 AND ...
 

Feedback

If you need help or have a question for Customer Service, contact us.
 Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?
Is there any other feedback you would like to provide?

Your comments can help make our site better for everyone.


Your Recent History

 (What's this?)

After viewing product detail pages or search results, look here to find an easy way to navigate back to pages you are interested in.