The Secret Life of Science, Jeremy J. Baumberg
The Secret Life of Science, Jeremy J. Baumberg
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The Secret Life of Science
How It Really Works and Why It Matters

Author: Jeremy J. Baumberg

Narrator: Rory Barnett

Unabridged: 9 hr 7 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Publisher: Tantor Media

Published: 07/18/2018


Synopsis

A revealing and provocative look at the current state of global science

We take the advance of science as given. But how does science really work? Is it truly as healthy as we tend to think? How does the system itself shape what scientists do? The Secret Life of Science takes a clear-eyed and provocative look at the current state of global science, shedding light on a cutthroat and tightly tensioned enterprise that even scientists themselves often don't fully understand.

The Secret Life of Science is a dispatch from the front lines of modern science. It paints a startling picture of a complex scientific ecosystem that has become the most competitive free-market environment on the planet. It reveals how big this ecosystem really is, what motivates its participants, and who reaps the rewards. Are there too few scientists in the world or too many? Are some fields expanding at the expense of others? What science is shared or published, and who determines what the public gets to hear about? What is the future of science? Answering these and other questions, this controversial book explains why globalization is not necessarily good for science, nor is the continued growth in the number of scientists. It portrays a scientific community engaged in a race for limited resources that determines whether careers are lost or won, whose research visions become the mainstream, and whose vested interests end up in control.

The Secret Life of Science explains why this hypercompetitive environment is stifling the diversity of research and the resiliency of science itself, and why new ideas are needed to ensure that the scientific enterprise remains healthy and vibrant.

About Jeremy J. Baumberg

Jeremy J. Baumberg is professor of nanotechnology and photonics in the Cavendish Laboratory at the University of Cambridge. He is coauthor of Microcavities, and his work has been featured in such publications as Nature, New Scientist, and Wired. He lives in Cambridge, England.


Reviews

Goodreads review by Mark on August 21, 2019

This book may be very interesting to scientists, but to non-scientists, not so much. It has some very good moments, such as when Baumberg explains how the science that gets reported on is the science that will appeal to readers and how such reporting affects funding and careers, etc. Science reporti......more

Goodreads review by Peter on October 14, 2018

This is a decent and unexciting description of how science looks to a typical scientist. Most of what it says is right, but I was disappointed at how little it said about "why it matters", in spite of putting that in the subtitle. The book might lead readers to think that one of the bigger problems fa......more

Goodreads review by Josh on December 14, 2021

Science is real, to quote They Might Be Giants (and a thousand yard signs). Our lives are profoundly affected not just by the foundations of scientific knowledge (electrical grids, antibiotics, weather forecasts) but also by facts created and disputed on the margins of scientific progress - as the p......more

Goodreads review by Patrick on April 08, 2020

Very british and kind of painful to read or listen to. If you are on a career path to science, or you are interested in the inner workings of the science community, go for it. But make sure that this is a book by someone on a mission, at times confused in his own thoughts.......more

Goodreads review by Richard on March 22, 2022

This is not a philosophy of science book -- it's a practical guide to how actual science gets conducted. Probably a good introduction for a graduate student who's serious about becoming a professional scientist and wants a guidebook on what to expect.......more