Dunwoody Pond: Reflections on the High Plains Wetlands and the Cultivation of Naturalists

While many college graduates compete for money or glory, a few study biology-not to discover the cure for cancer or build better weapons but to slosh through muck catching dragonflies, toads and other small animals to examine the parasites inside them. Univ. of Nebraska professor Janovy (Keith County Journal) here tells the stories of five gifted students who never outgrew their childlike sense of wonder. He also tells of earlier students and what they have (or have not) become since those idyllic days wading in Dunwoody Pond, a virtual outdoor laboratory for budding biologists. More than a book about people and the organisms they study, this is also a meditation on what science is, as opposed to what it can do. Janovy laments that many brilliant students waste their talents by channeling curiosity into ``scientific'' careers whose primary motive is to serve humanity or reap profits. Although some of the prose is pretentious, the chapters can be read separately, and some, such as The Road to Roscoe, describing the Nebraska wetlands, are riveting. (Oct.)