The best popular science book of the year, Stumbling on Happiness by Daniel Gilbert, was chosen last night at a Royal Society gala reception.
Jennifer Rohn
The winning entry, published by Harper Press and a 2:1 favourite with the bookmakers, combined the latest research results with case studies and philosophy to explore why we continually seek happiness yet so often fail to achieve it. As a fundamental human impulse, Gilbert argues that our happiness-seeking drive is an ancient instinct that raises important questions about human nature.
The envelope, please
As Sir Martin Rees, President of the RS, began slitting open the sealed envelope, a ripple of anticipation swept across the 200+ crowd. Unfortunately, faulty technology foiled a planned telephone link to the winner, who was unable to attend the ceremony. Earlier, Rees praised the book prize as an antidote to the ‘turgid and opaque’ writing of scholarly journals.
A Professor of Psychology at Harvard, Gilbert is a leading authority in the fields of affective forecasting and the fundamental attribution error. One can only assume that his own happiness will be significantly boosted by the £10,000 cash prize.
This year’s judging panel was led by Colin Pillinger, Professor of Planetary Sciences at the Open University. Pillinger, who said that books were his favourite Christmas gifts, had been over the moon to receive more than eighty to sift through, and apologised to his fellow judges for the occasional ‘tantrum’.
The other shortlisted entries were Homo Britannicus (Penguin Allen Lane) by London’s Natural History Museum professor Chris Stringer; In Search of Memory (WW Norton) by Nobel laureate Eric Kandel; Lonesome George (Macmillan) by evolutionary ecologist Henry Nicholls; One in Three (Profile Books) by TV director and writer Adam Wishart; and The Rough Guide to Climate Change by atmospheric science writer and editor Robert Henson. Each shortlisted author received a cheque for £1000.
“It was an honour just to be shortlisted,” said Stringer, one of three London contenders (along with Wishart and Nicholls). He hopes that sales of his book, an epic tale of the Britain’s earliest inhabitants, will be further boosted by the mention.
Downscaled
In its 29th year, the book competition failed to achieve its usual level of industrial sponsorship. While partially supported this year by Aventis, the Prize shed the pharma’s name, which it has borne since 2000. Throughout the 1990’s, the award was known as the Rhone-Poulenc prize. Rees said he very much hoped that the Prize would continue up to the Society’s 350th anniversary in 2010 “and far beyond”.
According to Scott Keir, Project Manager for the competition, trimming the event to a drinks reception instead of the usual banquet actually had advantages, as more people could be invited and the opportunities for networking were greater.
The junior prize for the best science book aimed at children, also announced on the night, was awarded to Can You Feel the Force? (Doring Kindersley) by Top Gear presenter Richard Hammond. The shortlist was judged by 1000 British school children.