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Book Excerpt from The Phantom God
In Chapter 1, “Why Is God Two-Faced?,” author John Wathey argues that the answer to this question is the key to an ethological understanding of religion.
Book Excerpt from The Phantom God
Book Excerpt from The Phantom God

In Chapter 1, “Why Is God Two-Faced?,” author John Wathey argues that the answer to this question is the key to an ethological understanding of religion.

In Chapter 1, “Why Is God Two-Faced?,” author John Wathey argues that the answer to this question is the key to an ethological understanding of religion.

books

Book cover of The Phantom God by John C. Wathey
Opinion: Neuroscience Could Help Demystify Religious Experience
John C. Wathey | Jan 2, 2023 | 4 min read
If we ask the right questions, modern tools could help researchers solve mysteries such as why many people believe in a God that both provides unconditional love and levies eternal damnation.
Brightly colored birds resting on a tree
Book Excerpt from The Creative Lives of Animals
Carol Gigliotti | Oct 17, 2022 | 3 min read
In the book's introduction, author Carol Gigliotti makes the case that intricate behavioral patterns can be just as important to conserve as species’ genomes.
Brightly colored birds resting on a tree
Opinion: Biodiversity Loss Worsened by Extinguishing Animal Innovators
Carol Gigliotti | Oct 17, 2022 | 4 min read
When species disappear, more than their genomes are lost. The potential for their creative innovation to benefit ecosystems vanishes as well.
Illustration of a jackalope
On the Trail of the Jackalope
Michael P. Branch | Feb 14, 2022 | 5 min read
How horned rabbits led the way to the HPV vaccine
Photographs of the December 2021 issue's contributors
Contributors
The Scientist | Dec 1, 2021 | 3 min read
Meet some of the people featured in the December 2021 issue of The Scientist.
a pill bottle with dice spilling out
Book Excerpt from You Bet Your Life
Paul A. Offit | Sep 21, 2021 | 4 min read
In his book’s Introduction, physician-scientist Paul A. Offit reviews the unusual constellation of circumstances around the development of COVID-19 vaccines.
Human blood in a plastic Intravenous drip bag, the tube running out of the image. Square crop. Horizontal with copy space.
Opinion: What the History of Blood Transfusion Reveals About Risk
Paul A. Offit | Sep 1, 2021 | 5 min read
Every medical intervention—even one with a centuries-long history—brings dangers, some of which become clear only later.
Hong Kong skyline with a pink sky in the background
Book excerpt from CRISPR People
Henry T. Greely | Aug 1, 2021 | 9 min read
In Chapter 6, author Henry T. Greely describes how news of the birth of gene-edited babies rocked a 2018 summit on human genome editing.
Opinion: How Biomedicine Could Transform Human Reproduction
Henry T. Greely | Aug 1, 2021 | 3 min read
CRISPR and other innovations are likely to open up a wealth of new options for how people have children.
Giving Sweat the Respect It Deserves
Sarah Everts | Jul 13, 2021 | 5 min read
Not only is the humble fluid a boon for keeping humans cool, it also contains a wealth of biological information.
Pipe Dreams TS Book Club Discussion
The Scientist | Jun 18, 2021 | 2 min read
Join The Scientist on August 20 to discuss Chelsea Wald’s tour of projects aimed at improving toilets—and solving many of the world’s problems in the process.
View of Brandon Taylor's face during the book club discussion for Real Life.
Book Club Discussion of Brandon Taylor’s Real Life
The Scientist Social Club | May 28, 2021 | 1 min read
The Scientist Social Club talked with the author.
a large, mossy cedar tree in a forest
Book Excerpt from Finding the Mother Tree
Suzanne Simard | May 1, 2021 | 4 min read
In the book’s introduction, “Connections,” Suzanne Simard relates how her “perception of the woods has been turned upside down.”
Opinion: Western Canada Must Stop Clearcutting Its “Mother” Trees
Suzanne Simard and Teresa Ryan | May 1, 2021 | 4 min read
Feeding the world’s insatiable appetite for wood products is sacrificing the future of a crucial ecosystem.
an illustration of multiple animals, including a parrot, flamingo, zebra, and leopard
Book Excerpt From How to Be Animal
Melanie Challenger | Apr 1, 2021 | 3 min read
In Chapter 1, “The Indelible Stamp,” author Melanie Challenger addresses the idea of human exceptionalism.
Opinion: Facing Assumptions About the Duality of Human and Animal
Melanie Challenger | Apr 1, 2021 | 3 min read
Since Darwin published his landmark work on natural selection, we’ve understood that we’re animals. But that doesn’t mean we really believe it.
a sunset reflected in a still river through a rainforest
Book Excerpt From A Most Remarkable Creature
Jonathan Meiburg | Mar 30, 2021 | 5 min read
In Chapter 15, “Above the Falls,” author Jonathan Meiburg recounts an evening on a research expedition near the Rewa River in Guyana.
Lessons from Darwin’s “Mischievous” Birds
Jonathan Meiburg | Mar 1, 2021 | 3 min read
An unsung group of South American falcons yields clues to the prehistory of a continent, and hints at secrets of the avian brain.
a tractor moves through a green field
Book Excerpt from Resetting the Table
Robert Paarlberg | Feb 3, 2021 | 5 min read
In his book’s introduction, author Robert Paarlberg advocates for the use of modern science in agriculture.
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