Discussion Questions for The Double Helix

1. In The Gifts of Athena,Moyker discussed the drivers of both "propositional knowledge" and "prescriptive knowledge," including principles of sharing information. What role did Cavendish and Wheatstone play in this? What are disadvantages of scientists working near each other? Does advancement of scientific knowledge require that individuals explore the implications of their data with other knowledgeable individuals (e.g., Franklin situation versus Watson)? Is the double helix the propositional knowledge that leads to BioBricks (see attached Economist article)?

2. Should a good history of science favor objectivity over first-hand insight into the thought process of the scientists?

3. In what sense is the development of the double helix "model" a scientific discovery? Would the development of the DNA sequence have been sufficient?

4. Tom Kuhn, in The Structure of Scientific Revolutions,suggests that scientific discovery is a process, a large part of which is the resolution of various anomalies. Discuss importance of Watson's attempt to ignore the Chartoff rule as he tried to fit his "like-to-like" theory (e.g., adenine to adenine) into the structure of DNA prior to his embrace of similarity of shape of "non-like" pairings.

5. Watson and Crick read everything related to DNA research, brainstormed various ideas and models of DNA, attended a multitude of cocktail parties and conferences where DNA was discussed, synthesized the data of others, thought up a solution to the molecular structure of DNA and actually sat down and published the solution. Others, particularly Pauling and Franklin, did a lot of the hypothesizing and data legwork. Who are the real geniuses in this story? Should Rosy have had a piece of the Nobel?

5. What qualities of Watson remind you of:

a. A lunar man

b. Augie March

c. Ulrich?

d. Wittgenstein (similarity of hairstyle too easy)

e. Lincoln

f. Popper

g. Chuck Pierce

6. In what sense is the double helix an "elegant" solution to a scientific problem?

7. Watson notes that Wilkens showed some interest in his sister during their visit to the temples at Paestrum. Vitruvius noted that the Paestrum temples (third century B.C.) had elements of both Etruscan and Greek design. Any similarities to Watson's methodology?

8. Does the DNA model have "significant form" pursuant to Bell's definition? To what extent is Watson's embrace of symmetry important to his solution?

9. Is it fair to say that Watson follows in the tradition of other Cambridge scientist/authors of compelling subject matter trumping dull writing? Discuss the implication of the structure of DNA on Rees' caution concerning biotech in The Final Hour.

Discussion Questons for Einstein Biography

1. Einstein was committed to the idea that imagination (or creative theorizing), as important as or more important than knowledge to the scientist. How did imagination play a role in special relativity? How did imagination play a role in Einstein’s criticism of quantum mechanics?

2. From the texts, it appears that Einstein and Poincare met only once at the 1911 Solvay Conference. Apparently Einstein was not particularly impressed with ole Henri, but Poincare thought Albert had a "most original mind". How did they view the world? How did they view the world of theoretical physics?

3. For Popper, verification and falsifiability were at the heart of science. For that reason, he considered psychoanalysis and Marxism to be flawed theories. How would he view the work of Einstein? Of Bohr? (He may have commented on these guys, but I could not find it discussed in the text).

4. I read that Proust wrote that "the real voyage of discovery consists not in seeing new landscapes but in having new eyes." Would Proust have approved of Einstein's approach to theoretical physics? Would Proust have understood even a small portion of his work?

5. What are your mechanics?

6. How did Einstein view reality? How did those views evolve over time? How did his love of simplicity mesh with his view of reality?

7. Einstein had issues with how Kant bifurcated knowledge. How would Einstein view the work of Ernie Mach and our old friend Wittgenstein? Would Mach and Wittgenstein agree with respect to their philosophies?

8. Compare Watson's and Einstein's use of models to explain theory? Would the Solvay physicists agree that Einstein theories are tight (or became tight) to use Mokyr's terminology?

Discussion Question for Virginia Woolf

1) It seems that the club has explored two main themes in most of our selections. First, is the nature of America and American thought (not particularly relevant for Woolf) and the other is the nature of modernism. While we have explored other themes, we seem to have returned to one or both of the larger themes in many of the selections. What do Woolf’s books contribute to our understanding of the nature of modernism?

2) How does Woolf compare to our other authors who wrote in the modernist tradition or about modernism such as Scott Fitzgerald, Clive Bell, Muesil, Mann, Marcel Proust and Alfred Appel?

3) How is gender and male and female roles explored throughout the novel? Are these issues approached differently in the two books?

4) Time is a major theme in this novel. How does Woolf and her characters approach the passage of time? Was her stretching and speeding up of time effective? How did her use of time compare to other authors we have read?

5) Would you agree that Mr. and Mrs. Ramsey are each tyrants of roughly similar rank in their own ways?

6) What does the Lighthouse, and going to the lighthouse, represent? How does this compare to The Castle in Kafka?

7) What of the two books appeared more fictional in nature?

8) I hope you found Woolf’s writing as beautiful as I did. Are there any passages that particularly stand out for you? Any real clunkers? Hint, the professor’s musing about the power of the intellect and the alphabet have always struck home with me.

9) If To the Lighthouse is a novel about the search for meaning in life, how do the characters conduct their search? Are any of them successful in finding an answer?

10 Do you buy the basic thesis of Room of One’s Own?

1) What has changed since the publication of the book that has enabled more woman to write about the broad range of issues that Woolf argued was their due?

12) What is the modern equivalent of a room of one’s own and 500 pounds a year?

13) Woolf mentions in both books many writers and other cultural figures who are largely unknown today. Many of other selections similarly have assumed a high level of cultural literary that isn’t present in contemporary times. When, how and why did we get this way?

Why would anyone be afraid Virginia Woolf?

Do

A Recommendation for Future Discussion

We have read a lot about the American experience and the ideas that have supported the development of the United States from colonial times through the present. A good book that fills in a lot of the gaps in our coverage of these themes from the Revolution through the late nineteenth century is William H. Goetzmann, Beyond the Revolution: A History of American Thought from Paine to Pragmatism.

The Next Selection

Virginia Woolf, To The Lighthouse
Virginia Woolf, A Room of One's Own (Just the essay itself not the whole book)

Enjoy

What we Have Read So Far

Chekov, Uncle Vanya, the Cherry Orchard and other plays

India Unbound: The Social and Economic Revolution from Independence to the Global Information Age by Gurcharan Das-David

De Tocqueville, Democracy in America

Twain, Roughing It

Jefferson -- notes from Va. And autobio

Musil-- man without qualities

Mann -- magic mountain

Vetruvius, Twelve Books of Architecture and Palladio, Four Books of Architecture

William James-- pragmaitism

Bulgakov -- the White Guard

Our Final Home, Rees

Persepolis, Satrapi
Watchmen, moore

The Lunar Men, Uglow

Chernow, Alexander Hamilton

The Leopard, di Lampedusa

The Federalist Papers

Solzenytsin-- First Circle

Pamuk, Museum of Innocence

Appel, Jazz Modernism

Bellow, Augie March

Rorty, achieving our country; essays by Emerson

Whittman, selections from Leaves of Grass

Dawkins, The Selfish Gene

McBeth; also, Witches and Jesuits,
Study of mcb by Gary Wills

Faith and Treason, Fraser

Readings in Aesthetics, Kandinsky, Bergson, Bell (Art), Weschler (Boggs) and others

Dorris Kearns, Team of Rivals

In A Dark Wood Wandering, Haasse

The Kite Runner, Hosseini

Thorough, Walden Pond and Civil Dis.

The metaphysical Club, Menand

Proust, Swan's Way

Proust, Within a Budding Grove

History of India

Good Soldier Shvejk, Hasek

Wittegenstein's Poker, Edmonds and Eidenow

Kind of Blue (re miles Davis), Kahn

Einstein, Isaacson

Mokyr, Gifts of Athena

From Soul to Mind, Read

Human, Gazzaniga

The Singularity--kurzweil

Watson, the Double Helix

101 Books for my Daughter

My daughter and I were in a Borders and found a book called 1001 Books to Read Before You Die. It was arranged chronologically by millennium and then century. I had read a decent number of them and my daughter had read a few. When my wife finally dragged us out of there, my daughter asked if Laura and I would put together a description of at least 100 books she should read and why. Two I know I will include for very different reasons are "The Great Gatsby" and Asimov's "Foundation".

Obviously we have very different kids at very different stages of life but if your kids asked you the same question, what would you include?