The Prize for Science Writing: Shortlist 2005

Judges
Rosaleen Love (Convenor), John Jenkin and Robert Paddle

Shortlist

The Land of Flowers: An Australian Environment on the Brink
Irene Cunningham
Otford Press
Irene Cunningham tells a moving story of personal and ecological awakening, as she comes to appreciate the meaning of her particular small plot of land in the broader context of environmental history. The Land of Flowers provides rare and valuable insight into the recent ecological history of mid-coastal Western Australia. Irene Cunningham bases her story on early nineteenth century European observations and agricultural practices, coupled with records of past and present indigenous knowledge, and detailed against the lopsided cultural and political interactions taking place between the indigenous peoples and the European invaders.

Stem Cells: Controversy at the Frontiers of Science
Elizabeth Finkel
ABC Books
Elizabeth Finkel relates the story of stem cell science from the point of view of an engaged and enthusiastic proponent, keen to clarify the complexities of the new science of life and its social meanings for the general reader. She explains complex scientific issues clearly and well, while engaging with the serious ethical and political controversies the research has engendered. Stem Cells celebrates Australian innovation and achievements in this important new field of medical science.

Astonishing Animals
Tim Flannery and Peter Schouten
Text Publishing
While acknowledging that the aesthetics of beauty are shared by many living things, Astonishing Animals focuses on the human recognition of beauty in the expressed astonishment at animal adaptation. In the tradition of medieval bestiaries, Astonishing Animals artfully combines both text and illustration to detail the behavioural characteristics associated with diverse animal colourings and physiology (traditionally including one imaginary animal as well). Granted, the animals are strange, exotic, weird and exaggerated, all in response to evolutionary pressures. Above all, they are beautiful, and the book is an appealing homage to the aesthetics of animal species, evolution and intellectual endeavour.