Science Is Culture: Conversations at the New Intersection of Science + Society

Seed magazine brings together a unique gathering of prominent scientists, artists, novelists, philosophers and other thinkers who are tearing down the wall between science and culture.

We are on the cusp of a twenty-first-century scientific renaissance. Science is driving our culture and conversation unlike ever before, transforming the social, political, economic, aesthetic, and intellectual landscape of our time. Today, science is culture. As global issues—like energy and health—become increasingly interconnected, and as our curiosities—like how the mind works or why the universe is expanding—become more complex, we need a new way of looking at the world that blurs the lines between scientific disciplines and the borders between the sciences and the arts and humanities.

In this spirit, the award-winning science magazine Seed has paired scientists with nonscientists to explore ideas of common interest to us all. This book is the result of these illuminating Seed Salon conversations, edited and with an introduction by Seed founder and editor in chief Adam Bly. Science Is Culture includes:

• E. O. Wilson + Daniel C. Dennet
• Steven Pinker + Rebecca Goldstein
• Noam Chomsky + Robert Trivers
• David Byrne + Daniel Levitin
• Jonathan Lethem + Janna Levin
• Benoit Mandelbrot + Paola Antonelli
• Lisa Randall + Chuck Hoberman
• Michel Gondry + Robert Stickgold
• Alan Lightman + Richard Colton
• Laurie David + Stephen Schneider
• Tom Wolfe + Michael Gazzaniga
• Marc Hauser + Errol Morris

Seed magazine brings together a unique gathering of prominent scientists, artists, novelists, philosophers + other thinkers who are tearing down the wall between science + culture.

We are on the cusp of a twenty-first-century scientific renaissance. Science is driving our culture and conversation unlike ever before, transforming the social, political, economic, aesthetic, and intellectual landscape of our time. Today, science is culture. As global issues—like energy and health—become increasingly interconnected, and as our curiosities—like how the mind works or why the universe is expanding—become more complex, we need a new way of looking at the world that blurs the lines between scientific disciplines and the borders between the sciences and the arts and humanities. In this spirit, the award-winning science magazine Seed has paired scientists with nonscientists to explore ideas of common interest to us all. This book is the result of these illuminating Seed Salon conversations, edited and with an introduction by Seedfounder and editor in chief Adam Bly. Science Is Culture includes:

E. O. Wilson + Daniel C. Dennet

Steven Pinker + Rebecca Goldstein

Noam Chomsky + Robert Trivers

David Byrne + Daniel Levitin

Jonathan Lethem + Janna Levin

Benoit Mandelbrot + Paola Antonelli

Lisa Randall + Chuck Hoberman

Michel Gondry + Robert Stickgold

Alan Lightman + Richard Colton

Laurie David + Stephen Schneider

Tom Wolfe + Michael Gazzaniga

Marc Hauser + Errol Morris

“The best comparison for Seed is the early years of Rolling Stone, when music was less a subject than a lens to view American culture. In other words, what sets Seed apart from its competitors is its focus on storytelling—and the unfolding dramas enacted in our 21st–century laboratories make for some pretty fascinating tales.” - Jury statement by the Independent Press Awards