Fire in the Mind: Science, Faith, and the Search for Order - GEORGE jOHNSON

Published by Viking, London, 1996, HARDCOVER. 380 PAGES, CONDITION: NEW.

In the mountains of northern New Mexico, the Tewa pueblo of San Ildefonso and the laboratory city of Los Alamos coexist, representing two distinct, yet not entirely dissimilar world views. In this land of strange juxtapositions where magic and science rub elbows, Johnson introduces us to an amazing diversity of people who see the world through varied lenses, who find vastly different pictures in the night sky. At the core of the book is the question of the human view of the universe: are there really innate patterns in creation, and why do we honor them so highly? Johnson examines some of the radical theories of physics and biology emanating from Los Alamos and compares them to the intricate beliefs of the Tewa Indians, the Catholic sect of the Penitentes, and other inhabitants of the high New Mexico desert in this startling work of intellectual adventure.

George Johnson writes regularly about science for the New York Times. He has also written for National Geographic, Slate, Discover, Scientific American, Wired, and the Atlantic, and his work has been included in The Best American Science Writing. A former Alicia Patterson fellow, he has received awards from PEN and the American Association for the Advancement of Science, and his books were twice finalists for the Royal Societys book prize. He lives in Santa Fe, New Mexico.