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Cartas A Un Joven Científico (2014)

by Edward O. Wilson(Favorite Author)

3.82 of 5 Votes: 2

languge

English

genre

Memoir & Autobiography

publisher

Debate

review 1: This book was great inspiration for me. I have been contemplating ending my pursuit of a career in science, so Wilson's encouragement to stay the course was much needed. I think it'd be a great read for anyone in a similar situation, or anyone contemplating a career in science. He does go on in detail about his own research, but I found it enlightening to get a glimpse of the thought processes of someone as important to biology as E.O. Wilson.
review 2: I'm not the target audience for this: a collection of 'letters' to an unnamed, fictitious young person with an interest in science, trying to entice that person to start a career in science (since 'you are needed'). I've already got a bit of a career in science, I don't need chapters telling me how a theory is f... moreormed. The various facts about different ant colonies are quite inspiring, though.One note: It's often said that Wilson doesn't like maths and tells other people they don't need it, but here the position is a bit better fleshed out, and more agreeable: 1) he only talks about algebra as used for model building and in theoretical biology, he never mentions statistics at all (which you'll need, dear student).2) he correctly says that the time investment into learning all the maths is better invested elsewhere if you got diverging interests - you can always find a collaborator who's better at mathematics than you are. The last two chapters, in which Wilson describes how theories are developed and tested using stories from his life, show that; he always lists collaborators who built the models based on his data.In the end, it seems he says 'you don't need maths' as a bit of 'propaganda', since there are prospective scientists who end up in different careers out of a fear of mathematics.Recommended for: High school students/undergrads who are looking for something to do with their lives less

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