by Freeman Dyson (nonfiction
selection)
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Discussion Questions
General Discussion Question
1. What is your favorite essay from this compilation? What is your least favorite?
Discussion Questions
1. Was it necessary to include the Foreword and the Introduction to this volume?
2. Part One, titled "Visions of Space," includes 5 essays. Most present a rather bleak vision of the future for space exploration. How do you feel about spending money to explore space?
3. The second essay in Part One, "One Giant Leap to Nowhere," ends with the comment that NASA's true destiny is "to build that bridge to the stars." (p. 22) Your thoughts?
4. Part Two claims that "Neurology [is] Displacing Molecular Biology." Do you agree?
5. The "marshmallow test," resolving PTSD with memory research, and reorganizing the brain to cure phantom limb pain are all covered in the 3 neurology essays. Do you think these are all viable fields of study?
6. Part Three focuses on "Natural Beauty." Birds, ants, whales, walking sticks, ponies, and Darwin are all covered in the 7 essays. Did 1 of these 7 make more of an impact on you than the others?
7. The 3rd essay in Part Three, "Modern Darwins," compares Charles Darwin and Gregor Mendel. Mendel published his paper on inheritance 7 years after Darwin published his book, but Mendel's work was ignored while Darwin's became famous. (p.121) Why do you think this happened?
8. The last three parts all focus on the Environment: "Gloom and Doom," "Small Blessings," and "Big Blessings." Why do you think the editor, Freeman Dyson, devoted so much space to the Environment? Do you agree with his decision?
9. The second essay in Part Four, "A Formula for Disaster," focuses on economics. Why do you think this essay was included in a section about the Environment?
10. Part Five discusses "Small Blessings" in the Environment. "A Life of Its Own" describes the creation of artificial life using BioBricks, a process that may also work as a new energy source. Your thoughts on this concept?
11. Letting cows eat grass is the simple approach to farming described in Part Six's "Graze Anatomy." Are you concerned about the preparation of the meat and vegetables that you eat?
Created
January 2012
