Since its inception in 1915, the Best American series has become the premier annual showcase for the country's finest short fiction and nonfiction. For each volume, a series editor reads pieces from hundreds of periodicals, then selects between fifty and a hundred outstanding works. That selection is pared down to the twenty or so very best pieces by a guest editor who is widely recognized as a leading writer in his or her field. This unique system has helped make the Best American series the most respected -- and most popular -- of its kind. The Best American Science and Nature Writing 2004, edited by Steven Pinker, is another "provocative and thoroughly enjoyable [collection] from start to finish" (Publishers Weekly). Here is the best and newest on science and nature: the psychology of suicide terrorism, desperate measures in surgery, the weird world of octopuses, Sex Week at Yale, the linguistics of click languages, the worst news about cloning, and much more.

WINNER of Mass Books Early Reader Must Reads/Picture Books! "An imaginative and original depiction of one of life's everyday miracles." -- KIRKUS STARRED REVIEW From award-winning and NY Times bestselling children's and beloved birder, Jane Yolen, and award-winning illustrator, Bob Marstall, comes On Bird Hill the first in a series created for bird-lovers and dreamers alike! On Bird Hill is first in a new Jane Yolen series developed for the Cornell Lab, the world's leading authority on bird's. Loosely based on "The Green Grass Grew All Around," a nursery rhyme first published as a song in 1912, this whimsical version follows a boy and his dog as they find a bird in a nest on a hill in a strange valley. This beautiful and enchanting story is perfect for young minds taking flight. 35% of the net proceeds from every Cornell Lab Publishing Group book purchase will support projects such as children's educational and community programs. About the ON BIRD HILL & BEYOND SERIES The ON BIRD HILL & BEYOND series invites children to reclaim the freedom to explore, wander and adventure outdoors. Created especially for the Cornell Lab of Ornithology - the world leader in the study, appreciation, and conservation of birds - by New York Times bestselling author Jane Yolen and renowned illustrators Bob Marstall and Elizabeth Dulemba. The series artfully engages the senses to see, feel, hear, and touch the natural world and the life within. Back matter contains information on birds and wildlife depicted with full-color photos and "How You Can Help" suggestions for budding naturalists and birders. RAVE REVIEWS FOR ON BIRD HILL... "Expressively captures a luminous moment of discovery in the natural world. On Bird Hill leaves space for the imagination and underscores the surprising wonder found in everyday moments." -- School Library Journal "It's a sweetly surreal meditation on the everyday wonders that await in the wild."--Publisher's Weekly "...opens your eyes to the extraordinary in the ordinary of nature. I look forward to more books in the series..."--NC Teacher Stuff

All essays in this volume are reprinted from the Magazine of fantasy and science fiction.