We all know what a literary critic is: a trained reader who examines, analyzes, and appraises the texts of all kinds of writers. But what exactly is a science critic? Wouldn't that be a trained practitioner who investigates and sometimes assesses the assumptions and accomplishments of scientists? Of course, there are countless science writers, but I believe that Evelyn Fox Keller is one of our foremost science critics: a brilliant professional with an undergraduate degree from Brandeis and a PhD from Harvard who explores physics, mathematics, molecular biology, and genetics from a deeply learned insider's point of view. She is now a professor emerita at MIT. She also happens to be one of my oldest friends.
Evelyn was mentored in her youth by the eminent nuclear physicist Leo
