Present at the Future: From Evolution to Nanotechnology, Candid and Controversial Conversations on Science and Nature

Present at the Future: From Evolution to Nanotechnology, Candid and Controversial Conversations on Science and Nature

Veteran NPR ® science correspondent and award-winning radio and TV journalist Ira Flatow's enthusiasm for all things science has made him a beloved on-air journalist. For more than thirty-five years, Flatow has interviewed the top scientists and researchers on many NPR and PBS programs, including his popular Science Friday ® spot on Talk of the Nation . In Present at the Future , he shares the groundbreaking revelations from those conversations, including the latest on nanotechnology, space travel, global warming, alternative energies, stem cell research, and using the universe as a super–super computer. Flatow also further explores his favorite topic of the science of everyday life with explanations on why the shower curtain sticks to you, the real story of why airplanes fly, and much more. From dark matter and the human consciousness to the surprising number of scientists who believe in a Creator, Present at the Future reveals the mysteries of science, nature, and technology that shape our lives. Host of the NPR program Science Friday, Flatow converts his interviews into this survey of contemporary currents in science. Each article bears traces of its broadcast origin, featuring one or several individuals and Flatow's reportage of what they say, backed by Flatow's contextual explanation of great questions within his interviewee's area of expertise. The brain, the cosmos, nanotechnology, and stem-cell research are some hot topics, and Flatow ably draws out scientists' differing viewpoints, as with a duel pitting string theorist Brian Greene against string critic Lee Smolin (The Trouble with Physics, 2006). Global warming's front-page status is represented, but was Flatow's best "get" on this subject a San Francisco minister rather than a real scientist? Better balanced is his treatment of energy, which covers advantages and disadvantages of coal, nuclear, solar, wind, and biofuel sources. Totaling about 30 topics, Flatow's collection also exhibits an eclectic bent, such as the explanation for why shower heads pull shower curtains inward. Cultivating the curiosity essential to finding science interesting, Flatow produces a varied introduction to the topic. Taylor, Gilbert Veteran NPR ® science correspondent and award-winning radio and TV journalist Ira Flatow's enthusiasm for all things science has made him a beloved on-air journalist. For more than thirty-five years, Flatow has interviewed the top scientists and researchers on many NPR and PBS programs, including his popular Science Friday ® spot on Talk of the Nation . In Present at the Future , he shares the groundbreaking revelations from those conversations, including the latest on nanotechnology, space travel, global warming, alternative energies, stem cell research, and using the universe as a super–super computer. Flatow also further explores his favorite topic of the science of everyday life with explanations on why the shower curtain sticks to you, the real story of why airplanes fly, and much more. From dark matter and the human consciousness to the surprising number of scientists who believe in a Creator, Present at the Future reveals the mysteries of science, nature, and technology that shape our lives. Ira Flatow is the host and executive producer of Talk of the Nation: Science Friday ® . He is the author of Rainbows, Curve Balls , and They All Laughed . He lives in Connecticut. Present at the Future From Evolution to Nanotechnology, Candid and Controversial Conversations on Science and Nature By Ira Flatow HarperCollins Publishers, Inc. Copyright ©2007 Ira Flatow All right reserved. ISBN: 9780060732646 Chapter One The Mind's Window A Fox enters the storeroom of a theater. Rummaging through the contents, he is frightened by a face glaring down on him. But looking at it closely he discovers it is only a mask, of the kind worn by actors. "You look very fine," says the Fox. "It is a pity you haven't any brains." —Aesop's Fables Is it possible to understand our minds? To understand what consciousness is all about? What happens in our brains when we learn or remember? What goes on when we "enjoy" or feel "depressed?" Understanding the complex biochemistry that turns electrical and chemical energy into thoughts, memories, and feelings is one of the greatest challenges of science. Neuroscience has become "the neurosciences" as genetics, physics and engineering, pharmaceuticals, psychology and psychiatry, and computer science have gotten into the act and contributed to what we know. But the brain is so complex that neuroscientists have a long way to go before we can understand completely how the brain works. We know that people have been fascinated with the brain for at least 6,000 years. About 4,000 BC, an anonymous writer put down the very first observations of how the brain works, anticipating The Wonderful Wizard of Oz by noting that eating poppies induced feelings of euphoria and well-being. It seems that peo