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| Volume 49, Number 3, Fall 2000 |
BOOKS BY AND FOR MEMBERSby Ruth Winter Challenges of Human Space Exploration by Marsha Freeman (NASW) with a foreword by Dr. Michael DeBakey, published by Springer Praxis. Freeman, associate editor of 21st Century Science & Technology, writes about the untold story of the triumphs of the Shuttle-Mir program. For most people, she notes, the MIR space station is synonymous with calamity-a fire, collision with an unmanned Progress M-34 supply vehicle, and countless less life-threatening technical failures and harrowing moments in orbit. Unfortunately, she writes, that tends to eclipse the fact that the American and Russian space agencies successfully cooperated on this project for six years. NASA astronauts and Russian cosmonauts worked together to overcome mechanical and engineering breakdowns, cultural differences, political crises, and mistrust to contribute significantly to scientific advancement including growing food in space and tissue engineering. This book includes lessons learned about reducing risks and stress. It has many implications for the forthcoming International Space Station. Freeman can be reached at 703-777-7473 or krafft@erols.com. The publisher's publicity department can be reached at 212-460-1500 or www.springer-ny.com. Almost America: From the Colonists to Clinton: A What-If History of the United States by Steve Tally (NASW), published by HarperCollins. Tally, who is a science writer at Purdue University specializing in biotechnology and genomics, veers from the serious to the humorous in his other speciality-pop history. In the book he presents the "what ifs" of the United States' past: from the legendary (What if George Washington had chosen not to cross the Delaware River?) to the overlooked (What if Neil Armstrong had chosen to abort the moon landing when his computers indicated that he was about to crash?) to the obscure (What if Teddy Roosevelt had actually banned football, as he was about to do in 1906?). He gives readers an entertaining and lucid example of alternative history at its best, reveals just how strong the connection is between human action and global events, and tells us how completely different our world could have been. This is Tally's second book. Harcourt Brace published his first book in 1992, Bland Ambition, a humorous history of the American vice presidency. The publicist for the book is Leslie Cohen at 212-207-7490 or leslie.cohen@harpercollins.com. Tally can be reached at 765-463-4355 or swtally@gte.net. Einstein's Unfinished Symphony: Listening to the Sounds of Space-Time by Marcia Bartusiak (NASW), published by Joseph Henry Press. Bartusiak says that she first was formally introduced to the science of gravity waves nearly two decades ago while on an assignment for the late magazine Science 85. She became intrigued with laser interferometry and its promise for astronomy. She asks: "What if we could hear the heavens?" "What if the cosmic display we've observed over the years had a sound track?" Eighty-five years ago, Albert Einstein announced his theory of relativity. Part of his theory was the existence of gravity waves-vibrations in space-time. Bartusiak says that scientists now seek to prove this last prediction-what she calls "Einstein's unfinished symphony." She writes that when these gravity waves finally reveal themselves to astronomers, we will be able to glean new data about some of the most violent events in the universe. Using the metaphor of music, Bartusiak allows the reader to imagine the cymbal crashes from exploding stars, help to tune it to the periodic drumbeats of swiftly rotating neutron stars, describe the extended chirps from the merger of two black holes, even to let the reader eavesdrop on the remnant echoes from the mighty jolt of the Big Bang itself. The Joseph Henry Press publicity department can be reached at 202-334-3117 or amerchan@nas.edu. Bartusiak can be reached at 978-443-6434 or bar2siak@mit.edu. Decoding Darkness: The Search for the Genetic Causes of Alzheimer's Disease by Rudolph E. Tanzi and Ann B. Parson (NASW), published by Perseus Publishing. Parson is a Cambridge, MA, freelance. Tanzi is professor of neurology at Harvard Medical School and director of the Genetics and Aging Unit at Mass General Hospital. By the year 2050, 14 million Americans will die of Alzheimer's. The book chronicles the search for the genetic causes of this incurable brain disease and illuminates one promising theory-the amyloid hypothesis-that could hold the key to effective medications. The authors also describe the daily lives of those trying to conquer Alzheimer's, offering a close-up view of high-stakes research and the molecular-genetics revolution. What separates Alzheimer's from the normal decline that comes with aging? In another musical analogy, the authors tell us to think of our brains as a stereo whose music is memory. "Your stereo works great for a lot of years. Eventually, as it ages, it occasionally short circuits. That's normal decline. In Alzheimer's, there's a toxic invader in the stereo-one that actively destroys the wires that make up the circuit. It doesn't just temporarily disrupt the music, it silences it." The book recounts several first-time therapies based on the amyloid hypothesis. Some seek to curb the accumulation of amyloid in the brain, some are aimed at lowering the production of A-beta (the major component of amyloid), while other trials employ drugs that prevent A-beta from turning into amyloid in the first place. Parson can be reached at 617-661-9151 or aparson@bu.edu. The PR for the book is Lissa Warren at 617-252-5212 or lissa.warren@perseusbooks.com. Bold Science: Seven Scientists Who Are Changing Our World by Red Anton (NASW), published by W. H. Freeman & Co. Anton, Chicago freelance science writer and professor at DePaul University, maintains we live in an era of science triumph as we move from three centuries of discovery to a new age of mastery. But the architects of the new science do not fit the mold of the past-they are often from small teams, frequently women, and often multidisciplinary and opportunistic. He tells the stories of controversial thinkers offering new kinds of creativity even as they enrage some colleagues. They include gene hunter Craig Venter, neuroscientist Susan Greenfield, planetary astronomer Geoff Marcy, immunologist Polly Matzinger, cosmologist Saul Perlmutter, ecologist Gretchen Daily, and evolutionist Carl Woese. Paul Hoffman, president of Encyclopaedia Britannica, said Bold Science is "science writing at its finest." Anton can be reached at 708-771-5843 or tangon@wppost.depaul.edu. The PR for the book, Jeff Theis, can be contacted at 212-561-8221 or jtheis@whfreeman.com. Milestones in Health and Medicine by Anne S. Harding (NASW), published by Oryx. Harding, a New York freelance, has included 500 entries in her book describing the advances in the treatment of disease and the understanding of human health. The developments she cites cover a wide range. For example, she notes that the first ovariotomy was the removal of a 22-pound tumor from the ovary of Jane Todd Crawford by Dr. Ephraim McDowell in 1809, before the days of antisepsis or anesthesia. Crawford rode 60 miles on horseback to have the operation and read psalms during the 25-minute operation. She rode home on horseback 20 days later and lived for 33 more years. Another entry in the book describes egg donation, which produced the first cases of successful pregnancies in 1984. This is a useful book for science writers who have to insert a historical note while writing about a new advance in medicine. Harding can be reached at 212-932-8103 or anne_harding@yahoo.com The PR for the book is Julie Simonson who can be reached at 602-265-2651 or by fax at 800-279-4663. Passport To Adventure by John Troan (NASW), published by Neworks Press. Troan, a veteran of a 44-year career with the Pittsburgh Press and other Scripps-Howard newspapers, has written his autobiography. The son of an immigrant coal miner and an illiterate mother, he describes his Depression-era childhood and his struggle to get through Penn State. His journalistic adventures included being caught in a mine-strike ambush, shadowing suspected Communists, and helping to preserve a trap for a suspected spy. He writes that as a "medical reporter, he suffered every symptom he wrote about--from brain tumor to gangrene of the toenail." His career in science writing covers everything from the Salk vaccine to the birth of America's space program. You can contact Troan at 412-563-7243. The Best American Science and Nature Writing 2000, David Quammen (editor), published by Houghton Mifflin Co. The newest addition to the Houghton Mifflin successful Best American SeriesTM. Collected by guest editor David Quammen and Best American Series editor Burkhard Bilger, this anthology showcases some of the finest literary nonfiction writing on scientific and natural history topics published in 1999. Among the authors are NASW members Natalie Angier and Brian Hayes. PR for the book is Megan Wilson at 617-351-5688 or megan_wilson@hmco.com. Send material about new books to Ruth Winter, 44 Holly Drive, Short Hills, NJ 07078, or e-mail ruthwrite@aol.com. Include the name of the publisher's PR and appropriate contact information as well as how you prefer members to get in touch with you. |