A Physicist on Madison Avenue

Harvard physics professor Rothman ( Science a la Mode ) is an urbane and stylish science writer who here brings the reader in touch with nearly every major issue in astrophysics theory. Surveying current debates in cosmology--``the Hollywood science''--in three balanced, discerning articles, he prepares readers for the next wave of science writing on the Big Bang. ``On That Day, When the Earth Is Dissolved in Positrons'' and other pieces take us to the edge of the ``theoretically known,'' where the leap to the ``philosophically known'' seems short and tempting. The title essay, detailing Rothman's term as an editor for Scientific American magazine, is an arch, titillating and discerning examination of the differences between the science practiced in academia and that sold by Madison Avenue. Illustrations. (June)