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Author interviews > Jeff Bennett Interview
Publising trade books vs textbooks.
On the road with Jeff Bennett
We caught up with Jeff on his book tour for his latest book, On the Cosmic Horizon: Ten Great Mysteries for Third Millennium Astronomy. A teacher and an author, he has taught college courses in astronomy, physics, mathematics, and education, as well as writing about astronomy in The Cosmic Perspective, Third Edition Update, The Essential Cosmic Perspective, Third Edition, Statistical Reasoning for Everyday Life, and Using and Understanding Mathematics.
Jeffrey Bennett earned a B.A. in biophysics from the University of California San Diego, and an M.S. and Ph.D. in astrophysics from the University of Colorado. He served for two years as a Visiting Senior Scientist at NASA Headquarters, where he developed educational programs for the Hubble Space Telescope and other astronomical missions. He also led the creation of the Colorado Scale Model Solar System, a one to ten billion scale model of the solar system, and is now consulting with the Challenger Center for Space Science Education, the Smithsonian Institution, and NASA on a project to build similar scale models for the National Mall in Washington, D.C., and other locations around the world. He has recently begun writing science books for a popular audience and for children.
BC | We can tell that you have enjoyed writing textbooks in the past, since you have so many, how was your experience with writing a popular trade book?
JB | It was fun! Students and the public are not really so different, and many of the same ideas apply across both types of book. Of course, a popular book is much shorter, since people tend to read it quickly instead of studying it in-depth for a quarter or semester.
BC | Did this experience improve your ability as a writer and/or communicator?
JB | Well I hope so, but I think readers are the best judges of this.
BC | You've been on this extensive book tour, have there been any reoccurring questions?
JB | Surprisingly, I've gotten fairly different questions in each place I've spoken. Perhaps the most recurrent question concerns my opinion as to whether there are other intelligent civilizations in the universe. My answer is: I don't know, but given that there are more stars in the universe than grains of sand on the beaches of Earth (see Mystery #1 in On the Cosmic Horizon), it seems hard to imagine that we could be the only civilization among all those stars...
BC | We know you're interested in bringing science to the public, can you tell us something about the solar system model you're working on in Washington D.C.?
JB | It's a 1-to-10 billion scale model of our solar system, much like the one you can read about in my astronomy books. The exhibit will have a person-size pedestal for each planet, with the planet itself encased in glass. Although I suggested the idea and have consulted on the project, nearly all the hard work and design is being done by my friends at the Challenger Center for Space Science Education (http://www.challenger.org/) and the Smithsonian Traveling Exhibition Service. Funding for the project comes from NASA. The exhibit will be just outside the National Air and Space Museum; with luck, it will open in fall, 2001.
BC | Who has been your biggest influence throughout your career and why?
JB | Carl Sagan. Although I met him only a couple of times, his writing and his Cosmos series were what convinced me to study astronomy in graduate school, and they've inspired me ever since. In particular, I got into astronomy textbook writing because I was always struck by how Sagan made astronomy seem so interesting while many textbooks made it seem so boring. My goal has been to write books that capture some of the same flavor that Sagan captured in his popular writing.
BC | What is the next book you're working on?
JB | I'm currently working on updates of both my astronomy and mathematics texts, a book about life in the universe, and a science book for children.
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