What We Are Reading Today: ‘Costa Rica’s Rainforests’

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Updated 12 October 2025
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What We Are Reading Today: ‘Costa Rica’s Rainforests’

  • This lavishly illustrated book provides a fascinating, up-to-date, and accessible introduction to the natural history of this forest and its flowering plants

Author: SCOTT WESLEY SHUMWAY

The lowland rainforest of Costa Rica is one of the most biologically diverse ecosystems on the planet.

This lavishly illustrated book provides a fascinating, up-to-date, and accessible introduction to the natural history of this forest and its flowering plants, ferns, fungi, birds, amphibians, reptiles, mammals, fishes, and insects.

The book focuses on La Selva Research Station, one of the best-studied tropical forests in the world, but it applies to all of Costa Rica’s lowland rainforests and the species it covers are common throughout much of Central America and the Neotropics.

 


What We Are Reading Today: ‘The Odd Quantum’ by Sam Treiman

Updated 09 December 2025
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What We Are Reading Today: ‘The Odd Quantum’ by Sam Treiman

This is a rare and much-needed book: a concise but comprehensive account of quantum mechanics for popular science readers written by a respected physicist.

Sam Treiman—who was internationally renowned for his work in particle physics—makes quantum mechanics accessible to nonspecialists.

Combining mastery of the material with clear, elegant prose and infectious enthusiasm, he conveys the substance, methods, and profound oddities of the field. Treiman begins with an overview of quantum mechanics.