Science and literature : bridging the two cultures
(Book)

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General Shelving - 3rd Floor
PN55 .W55 2001
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General Shelving - 3rd FloorPN55 .W55 2001On Shelf

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Format
Book
Physical Desc
xiii, 252 pages : illustrations ; 24 cm
Language
English

Notes

Bibliography
Includes bibliographical references (pages 241-246) and index.
Description
"In this lively and provocative book, a scientist and a humanities scholar attempt to build a bridge between the two cultures in which they work. Addressing fundamental issues of human nature and the ability of science to understand it, and using texts from the biblical Genesis to Brave New World, they explore topics from ethics and social values to chaos theory. With an eye on keeping the science accessible to all, the book contains background chapters on concepts in science that feed into the analysis of literature. That discussion leads to expanded consideration of some of the most compelling contemporary issues, from new developments in the science of the brain and the nature of the mind to possible limitations on scientific knowledge in the natural and social sciences. The authors then explore the use of scientific concepts and ideas in particular literary works: they use Darwinian theories to extract insights from John Fowles's The French Lieutenant's Woman; they use entropy, Maxwell's demon, and chaos theory to study Thomas Pynchon's The Crying of Lot 49; and they confront the notion of scientific progress with artistic notions of patterns and cycles in W. B. Yeats's poetry. Supplementing the basic discussion, dialogues between the authors range over more controversial areas, such as the question of free will and postmodern views of power, knowledge, and language. Never allowing either of them to escape with trite or trivial statements, the debates illustrate the extent to which commonalities and differences exist between their fields. This entertaining and exceptionally timely book will enlighten both student and scholar, no matter what their discipline." -- Publisher's description
Local note
SACFinal081324

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Citations

APA Citation, 7th Edition (style guide)

Wilson, D. L. 1., & Bowen, Z. R. (2001). Science and literature: bridging the two cultures . University Press of Florida.

Chicago / Turabian - Author Date Citation, 17th Edition (style guide)

Wilson, David L. 1943- and Zack R., Bowen. 2001. Science and Literature: Bridging the Two Cultures. Gainesville, FL: University Press of Florida.

Chicago / Turabian - Humanities (Notes and Bibliography) Citation, 17th Edition (style guide)

Wilson, David L. 1943- and Zack R., Bowen. Science and Literature: Bridging the Two Cultures Gainesville, FL: University Press of Florida, 2001.

Harvard Citation (style guide)

Wilson, D. L. 1. and Bowen, Z. R. (2001). Science and literature: bridging the two cultures. Gainesville, FL: University Press of Florida.

MLA Citation, 9th Edition (style guide)

Wilson, David L. 1943-, and Zack R. Bowen. Science and Literature: Bridging the Two Cultures University Press of Florida, 2001.

Note! Citations contain only title, author, edition, publisher, and year published. Citations should be used as a guideline and should be double checked for accuracy. Citation formats are based on standards as of August 2021.

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