Of helixes, neurons, and chemicals
Science author Carl Zimmer drew back the curtain on an unexpected aspect of the inner lives of scientists Tuesday: their tattoos. Once reserved for sailors and bikers, tattoos have unquestionably gone mainstream in recent decades. But Zimmer’s latest book, “Science Ink: Tattoos of the Science Obsessed,” unbuttons the secret lives of the buttoned-up science community. The tattoos Zimmer revealed range from the expected — biologists with tattoos of DNA’s double helix — to the touching. One neuroscientist has a nerve cell tattoo that commemorates not just her chosen field, but also her father’s lost battle with Lou Gehrig’s disease. (It was this that convinced her to go into medicine.) “Scientists have a lot of passion,” said author Carl Zimmer. “Tattoos are a sign of that.” “Scientists have a lot of passion,” Zimmer said. “Tattoos are a sign of that.” Zimmer, author of 11 popular science books, spoke at the Geological Lecture Hall as part of...