I am a streaky reader. Upon discovering a new interest I will read literally consecutively dozens of books about it until something else piques my interest. For the last few years its been biology. These are my ten favorite science books (well as of today). These are likely to change of course.

#10) The Hot Zone

The idea that something microscopic can bring down the mighty apex hunter homo sapien proves to me that the “survival of fittest” coined by Darwin must be true. It’s ironic that modern man’s biggest predator is something which has no brain, no computer nor infinite complexity. This book, which is based on true events, is about an Ebola (the worlds second most deadly disease) out break mere miles from Washington DC. The movie “Outbreak”was loosely based upon this book ( the movie sucks by the way).

#9) The Blind Watchmaker

Whereas I could have picked “Origin of the Species” in this spot I thought I would defer to my favorite science author Richard Dawkins. This book explains why the seemingly impossible are possible when applying the principles of evolution over vasts amounts of time. If more people read this, I am sure the world would be a less crazy place.

#8) The Bell Curve

This is one of those books I saw in the rack of “Read This” books at Borders and I went and sat in the corner and read the first four chapters before leaving. This book crosses the social taboo, associating intelligence with other physical qualities like background and ethnicity. Are we even allowed to talk about this? Reads like a textbook but worth it.

#7) Dragons of Eden

Simply stunning narrative of the brain and its power. What happens when a specific part of a victim’s brain is damaged by a bullet? How taste and smell are associated. Where, physically, are memories stored? Are memories “backed up”, stored in multiple locations? Sagan was perhaps science’s most gifted communicator and simply a marvelous writer. This book flows like water, one can breeze through it in just a few days.

#6) Guns Germs and Steel

I read once as a child that “stuff happens by other stuff rubbing together.” This book perhaps is more of a history book but it is pretty interesting story about the rise and falls of civilizations and how the roles disease and violence have influenced them. Give yourself a month to finish this beast, though you will feel good after!

#5) Intelligence in Nature

I don’t know why Jeremy Narby writes so few books because his ideas are just fantastic. I read this probably three times last year, my favorite example was something like this – paraphrase. “The Black Jay is one of the most intelligent animals known. It has been noted that while burying seeds in the ground for the upcoming winter a jay who originally buried a seed in the presence of another bird, will come back later by themselves and secretly rebury the seed in a new location. This shows that the bird is capable of understanding the social principles of thievery and deception.” If you find that example interesting you will adore this book.

#4) The Wild Trees

This is another book I stumbled onto and boy am I glad I did. Did you know that the location of the worlds tallest tree (a Redwood approaching 400 feet) is a secret known to less then 10 people. Preston is not only a fantastic writer but he is also one of the ten, and a professional tree climber. Covering everything from climbing techniques to undiscovered species living in the crests of the worlds largest living organisms you are sure to find something to relate to here. This book is incredibly inspiring, I was sad to see the final pages approaching.

#3) God Is Not Great

Don’t judge Hitchens by this book’s title or his interviews on CSPAN, the man is one of our greatest intellectuals. He moved to the United States from England because he loved the principles of Jefferson and Paine so deeply that he needed to be a part of it. This book should be a must read for everyone who realizes that many of the world’s problems are caused by who believes what and fighting over that. “Can’t we all just get along?” As he says, “I don’t care what you believe, just don’t try and teach it to my children.”

#2) The World Without Us

Did you know that Manhattan would collapse in a matter of days if humans were to vanish today? That with in a only a few thousand years most of the evidence of civilization’s existence would be reclaimed by the earth. The first chapter along is worth the purchase price. You may have noted all the books and shows like this coming out – this was the source. Don’t miss it.

#1) The Cosmic Serpent

Possibly life changing? I am not sure why but this is one of my favorite books of all time, I got it in Maryland for 2 dollars in the sale bin. This book is about the origins of knowledge and DNA. Why is it that all through history you can find drawings of the DNA double-helix when it was only discovered in the 1940s? Why can third world shamans effectively cure diseases using specific combinations of plants found in the rainforest? Why are they able to go into organically induced  hallucinogenic trances and find the specific plants needed when the odds are in the millions against it. Science is missing something perhaps anthropologist Narby is on to it. This book taught me to think outside the box. During college this book was on the toilet rack for my housemates for all the 4 years we lived together.

Leave a Reply