A book written by Pat Shipman, adjunct professor of anthropology at Penn State, was announced last night, February 24, 1999, as a finalist for the Los Angeles Times Book Prize in the science and technology category during a ceremony at the National Arts Club in New York City. Her book, Taking Wing: Archaeopteryx and the Evolution of Bird Flight, which was published by Simon and Schuster in 1998, won the Phi Beta Kappa Award in Science last year.
Written for a general audience, the book is a compelling account of the finding and interpretation of Archaeopteryx, the enigmatic fossil whose anatomy combines birdlike and reptilian features that have puzzled and intrigued scientists since the discovery of the first specimen in 1861. The seven known specimens of Archaeopteryx lie at the center of a heated debate about how birds evolved the ability to soar above the ground. Scientific interpretation is complicated by the almost iconic status of the beautiful fossil, which has come to represent the evolutionary process itself. Included in the story are some fundamental questions: How do birds fly? Did birds evolve flight "ground up" or "trees down?" Are birds really just evolved dinosaurs? And, how do scientists actually do science? The book has been hailed by reviewers as "gripping," "an absolutely terrific book," and "as well structured as any mystery novel."
The Los Angeles Times Book Prizes have been given annually since 1980. They recognize books published in the previous calendar year that exemplify excellence in eight categories: biography, current interest, fiction, first fiction, history, poetry, young-adult fiction, and science and technology. Winners of this year's award, who will be selected from five finalists in each category, will be announced at a ceremony in Los Angeles on April 23, 1999, and will receive a citation and a monetary prize.
The Los Angeles Times appoints committees of independent judges, most of whom are published writers, who select nominees, name finalists, and choose the ultimate winners of the prizes. The other finalists in the category of science and technology this year include "The Baltimore Case: A Trial of Politics, Science, and Character" by Daniel J. Kevles, published by W. W. Norton; "Mendel's Dwarf" by Simon Mawer, published by Harmony Books; "Phantoms in the Brain: Probing the Mysteries of the Human Mind" by V. S. Ramachandran and Sandra Blakeslee; and "Blood: An Epic History of Medicine and Commerce" by Douglas Starr, published by Alfred A. Knopf. Among the previous winners in the category of science and technology are "How the Mind Works" by Steven Pinker, published in 1997; "The Demon-Haunted World: Science as a Candle in the Dark" by Carl Sagan, published in 1996; and "Naturalist" by Edward O. Wilson, published in 1995.
Shipman is a well-known science writer specializing in subjects related to human origins and evolution. In 1997, she won the prestigious Rhone-Poulenc General Prize, given annually for the best book promoting the public understanding of science published in English, for her book, The Wisdom of the Bones, published by Alfred A. Knopf and coauthored with her husband, Alan Walker, also of Penn State.
Contact:
Pat Shipman: phone 814-231-1549, e-mail pls10@psu.edu
Barbara K. Kennedy: phone 814-863-4682, e-mail science@psu.edu