On the Art and Craft of Doing Science

Kenneth Catania

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Hardback

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English

Princeton University Press
28 May 2025

Research methods: general; Science: general issues

Series: Skills for Scholars

A scientist's personal reflections on how to harness creativity and curiosity to generate new ideas and discover the unexpected

Like any creative endeavour, science can be a messy and chaotic affair. On the Art and Craft of Doing Science shares the creative process of an innovative and accomplished scientist, taking readers behind the scenes of some of his most pioneering investigations and explaining why the practice of science, far from being an orderly exercise in pure logic, is a form of creative expression like any other art.

Kenneth Catania begins by discussing how ideas set the stage for scientific breakthroughs and goes on to describe ways to approach experimental design. He sheds light on the importance of art in making discoveries and demonstrates how to find and tell a compelling story about a scientific result while accurately communicating its findings. What role does failure play in science? Is it possible to fail better? How do you define success? Catania provides insights to these and other questions, along the way sharing the lessons he's learned from diverse figures ranging from science philosopher Thomas Kuhn to novelist Stephen King.

Blending illuminating historical examples with insights from Catania's own groundbreaking research in biology and neuroscience, On the Art and Craft of Doing Science draws parallels with art and writing to reveal the creative side to the practice of good science.

By: Kenneth Catania
Imprint: Princeton University Press
Country of Publication: United States
Dimensions: Height: 203mm, Width: 127mm,
ISBN: 9780691249278
ISBN 10: 069124927X
Series: Skills for Scholars
Pages: 224
Publication Date: 28 May 2025
Audience: Professional and scholarly , College/higher education , General/trade , Undergraduate , Further / Higher Education
Format: Hardback
Publisher's Status: Active

Kenneth Catania is Stevenson Professor of Biological Sciences at Vanderbilt University. A MacArthur Fellow and Guggenheim Fellow, he is the author of Great Adaptations: Star-Nosed Moles, Electric Eels, and Other Tales of Evolution's Mysteries Solved (Princeton).

Reviews for On the Art and Craft of Doing Science

""An excellently written and illustrated work.""---Marjorie Mann, Library Journal ""A smooth read that could provide major takeaways for a broad audience, whether you are early in your career, a tenured professor, or someone who is outside academic science. . . . The lessons from history as well as Catania’s own work are relatable, regardless of where you are in your career.""---Kevin Neumann, Integrative and Comparative Biology