The Life of Science discussion

Welcome to this new group (well, it won't be new forever). I hope that you will enjoy the discussions and the polls here and I am waiting for any suggestions regarding new discussion topics, the improvement of the group page's structure or anything you think will be useful.
My name is Ethan and I believe that science holds the key to a lot of our problems. For me, a turning point was the reading of "The Selfish Gene" (well, I was, and still am, quite young). It was the moment I started to grasp what science was really like, its complexity, the fact that it can answer deep questions about human nature. I was amazed at finding something so different than what I was learning about in school textbooks and thus I started to explore what science is about, not the facts I had had to memorise for years. And my "appetite for wonder" has never abated.
What about you?

I also came into the scientific mindset after reading a Dawkins book, but for me it was "The God Delusion." Before I even finished the book, I had to go out and buy copies of "The Selfish Gene" and "Unweaving the Rainbow." Also, I dug up my mom's copy of "Pale Blue Dot", and bought a few other Sagan books. Also, I have a few Neil DeGrasse Tyson books on my shelf that are just dying to be read. Right now however, I am caught up in reading fiction, but I soon hope to start a new non-fiction book regarding science. I have always been interested in science, but I just recently realized the limits, or lack of them. I hope to share my love of science and wonder with others in the future, and maybe even become a scientist. (I thought about becoming a physician, but after I realized it's more business and politics than actual treatment and science, I have put that desire in the back of my brain.) I hope we can have some interesting conversations in this group, and am proud to be a member.

I couldn't have put it any better. You are welcome into this group (which, admittedly, doesn't have too many members, but hey, it quality not quantity). My first Dawkins book was also "The God Delusion", which I found to be refreshing and courageous, the sort of work that one remembers when one wakes up and needs a bit of a philosophical kick to get out of bed. And yes, I too followed up with most of Richard's other books, though I still have an unread and very alluring copy of "The Extended Phenotype" on my shelf. I haven't read anything by Neil DeGrasse Tyson yet. I am currently struggling (in the best sense) with "Nature via Nurture" by Matt Ridley, which seems to live up to the standards set by his "Genome".
I share your views about being a physician, but I think that one could always swim against the current and change something for better. I do not know whether I'll become a physician but what I know I'll do is genetics research. There's something about this domain which has always fascinated me. Well, I have a few ideas about what that is but the reply is getting way to long.
What fiction books are you reading? Would you recommend any of them to me? Should we start reading a science book and then talk about it, maybe write a review, what do you think?

Well currently I am reading Herman Melville's entire catalog. I finished Moby-Dick right after the New Year, and I am now enthralled in his shorter fiction (Billy-Budd, Bartleby, Benito Cereno). I would recommend his works, certainly, but they take extreme concentration and attention to understand fully. They are very rich and dense in content. And yes, I believe reading a science book together would be very nice. The next science book I was hoping to read was "The Demon-Haunted World" by Sagan. Thoughts?

I know, I know. It's a terribly late reply. Anyway, I would love to reread "The Demon-Haunted World" as it is the kind of book that settles most kinds of arguments against science. Now, the problem is, I'm quite a slow reader, as I have crammed my studying for some exams and I have the absolutely wild little habit of taking part in biology contests. But, I'll do my best. Your exhaustive reading of Melville reminds me of a similar thing I did with Orhan Pamuk's work. Worth every page. Except for "The New Life", which was worth every other page.

I have one Pamuk book in my collection, "Snow", and I am hoping to acquire "My Name is Red" soon. I am also quite a slow reader and caught up in school. My scholastic bowl team just got 4th place in the state of Virginia, so that is pretty cool. And I hope to start "The Demon-Haunted World" soon, and I will let you know when I begin.

I am so excited about The Life of Science group. I just find out about it! I am scientist myself and science is my passion. I love all the mentioned authors, they are all great scientists, people and awesome writers. I love science so much that I tried to write about it personally. In collaboration with another writer and illustrator we wrote a very simple, but educative picture book on early astronomy for kids called 'Why is the moon following me?'. If you have some time check it out. If not, read Michio Kaku, he is really mind empowering!

Hi,I'm PETER
I'm new to this group and I just thought I would introduce myself
I love physics and science in general but the stuff that fascinating to me the most is quantum physics
I like reading Brian Greene and Michio Kaku book because they are very entertaining interesting.
I like to have science discussion with other people to learn new things so if you want to talk,just send me a message

Hello all, I have been looking for a group that reflects my broader reading interests than "just" litterature - at any given time I am usually reading several science books as well as fiction, poetry, etc. My main interests are cognitive science, astrophysics, philosophy, physics, social science (especially feminist and queer theory and disability studies), mathematics, and computer science, but I also read in linguistics, economics, biological sciences, architecture, health sciences and probably other domains I have missed! I am myself a scientist - my training was in physics and astrophysics, but my career has taken me into many other areas. Today I work at the intersection between health, natural and social science and the arts as well. I will likely talk about what I am reading at any one time, although sporadically because I lead a busy life!