If there’s a theme to Mary Midgeley’s current science reading it is
“interdependence”. She is reading Evelyn Fox Keller’s The Century of the
Gene (Harvard University Press, 2000) and Tom Wakeford’s Liaisons of
Life (Wiley, 2001)
(reviewed 26 May), which both take a shot at the
reductionist “selfish gene” model of evolution. Wakeford’s “extremely helpful”
book demonstrates the crucial role of microbes in the development of other
species, while Keller shows how outdated is much of our thinking on the nature
of heredity. She keeps coming back to her well thumbed copy of The Varieties
of Religious Experience by William James (Touchstone, 1997) for its
psychological examination of spirituality and the part religion plays in
people’s everyday lives. Even Midgeley’s lighter reading has a scientific
flavour. The protagonists in David Lodge’s Thinks . . . (Viking, 2001)
spend much of the book comparing the value of literature’s depictions of
consciousness with science’s more material approach.
More from New Scientist
Explore the latest news, articles and features
91ɫÇéƬ
Less than 4 minutes of vigorous exercise a day could halve your dementia risk
News
91ɫÇéƬ
Parkinson’s may be driven by ‘vicious cycle’ that disrupts brain waste drainage
News
Space
Hubble Space Telescope is falling to Earth – should NASA save it?
News
Space
A robot called GIMLI will explore a lunar cave for a future moon base
91ɫÇéƬ
Popular articles
Trending New Scientist articles