Katinka Matson

How Things Are is a gathering together of some of the most sophisticated and distinguished scientists and thinkers in the world, each contributing an original piece -- an elementary idea, a basic concept, a tool for thought -- relevant to his or her field of science.
The appeal of the essays is their focus and their brevity: a single theme; a surprising point of view; an explanation about why a theory is acceptable or not.
How Things Are gives us a chance to see the minds of distinguished scientists and thinkers at work; the questions they ask, the methods they use; the thought processes they follow in trying to arrive at an understanding of the world around us, and of ourselves.
Imagine that you found yourself in a roomful of distinguished scientists, and that you were able to pose just a single question to each one. These essays can be read as their responses to your questions -- written in a language that you can understand. What a rich resource, this gathering of important thinkers.… (mer)