A ‘whif’ of a breakthrough
When David Edwards dreamed three years ago of creating inhalable chocolate, he put his inspiration into action with the help of resources far and near. On campus, Edwards, the Gordon McKay Professor of the Practice of Biomedical Engineering in Harvard’s School of Engineering and Applied Sciences, turned to his own students, who began testing the intriguing notion of eating via breathing. Meanwhile, at Edwards’ art and design innovation center Le Laboratoire in France, the double-Michelin-starred chef Thierry Marx was also testing Edwards’ idea by working to produce gratifying flavor through aerosol. The resulting product, Le Whif, released last year, was a success that overstepped culinary and scientific boundaries. But even more of an accomplishment than Le Whif, Edwards might argue, was the revolutionary philosophy behind it. In his new book, “The Lab: Creativity and Culture,” a sequel to 2008’s “Artscience: Creativity in the Post-Google Generation,” Edwards reveals how risk-taking and multi-disciplinary collaboration...