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Copy/paste the text below into your blog. <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/298172.The_Best_American_Science_Writing_2007?utm_medium=api&amp;utm_source=blog_review" style="float: left; padding-right: 20px"><img alt="The Best American Science Writing 2007 (Best American Science Writing)" border="0" src="http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/41AlxIT-xaL._SL160_.jpg" /></a> <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/298172.The_Best_American_Science_Writing_2007?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_review">The Best American Science Writing 2007</a> by <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/16329.Gina_Kolata">Gina Kolata</a><br/><br/> <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/17313011?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_review"><h3>My review</h3></a> rating: 4 of 5 stars<br/>What makes for good science writing? This is a question that editors of the Best American Science Writing tackle every year. In 2006 Atul Gawande, surgeon and writer, asserted that the best science writing achieves the 'coolness' factor, that prose which makes technical and complex topics exciting and accessible to a broad audience. Writing styles that speak to the work-a-day person, word craft that seamlessly translates unfamiliar concepts to even the most casual reader. This year Gina Kolata, science journalist for The New York Times, and author of several books, believes that some of the best science writing is that which captures "the excitement of a moment" (viii). She has selected a variety of essays and articles that immediately engage and convey new ideas that help us reshape of understanding of the world. <br/><br/>It is amazing to read and learn about all the new discoveries and incremental progress made toward solving an intractable mathematical conjecture or testing the efficacy of a new drug, but this is overwhelming for many of us who are not in the field and may be unfamiliar with the historical development, politics, and the jargon involved. Most of us need a narrative hook or a 'grease spot,' as Kolata relates, which is a term from the advertising industry; she explains, that this "is the place near the start of an article that made me just slide right in" (ix). Readers of the the 2007 edition will not be disappointed. Portals of entry are abundant. You will find a variety of styles, topics, and voices, but one feature is consistent throughout--compelling detail that rivets one's attention. So switch off the phone, close the laptop, and enjoy a sampling of some of America's most gifted writers. Contributors include The New Yorker's John Cassidy, Science magazine's Jennifer Couzin, and Matthew Chapman, great-great-grandson of Charles Darwin. <br/><br/><a href="http://www.goodreads.com/review/list/300991?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_review">View all my reviews.</a>