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Best-selling author of sixteen books and a long-time writer of the popular column "Science Musings" in the Boston Globe, Chet Raymo invites readers to explore "the beautiful and terrible mystery that soaks creation." In what he describes as a "late-life credo," renowned science writer Chet Raymo narrates his half-century journey from the traditional Catholicism of his youth to his present perspective as a "Catholic agnostic." As a scientist, Raymo holds to the skepticism that accepts only verifiable answers, but as a "religious naturalist," he never ceases his pursuit of "the beautiful and terrible mystery that soaks creation." Raymo assembles a stunning array of scientists, philosophers, mystics, and poets who help him discover "glimmers of the Absolute in every particular." Whether exploring the connection of the human body to the stars or the meaning of prayer of the heart, these challenging reflections will cause believers and agnostics alike to pause and pay attention....
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For almost forty years, Chet Raymo has walked a one-mile path from his house to the college where he taught, chronicling the universe he has found through observing every detail of his route with a scientist's curiosity, a historian's respect for the past, and a child's capacity for wonder. With each step, the landscape he traversed became richer, suggesting deeper and deeper aspects of astronomy, history, biology, and literature, and making the path universal in scope. His insights inspire us to turn out local paths-- whether through cities, suburbs, or rural areas-- into portals to greater understanding of our interconnectedness with nature and history. Chet Raymo is the noted author of Intimate Look at the Night Sky, Skeptics and True Believers, Natural Prayers, and 365 Starry Nights. His popular weekly column, "Science Musing," appeared in the Boston Globe from 1983 until 2003. A professor emeritus of physics and astronomy at Stonehill College, he lives in North Easton, Massachusetts. For almost forty years, Chet Raymo has walked a one-mile path from his house to the college where he taught, chronicling the universe he has found through observing every detail of his route with a scientist's curiosity, a historian's respect for the past, and a child's capacity for wonder. With each step, the landscape he traversed became richer, suggesting deeper and deeper aspects of astronomy, history, biology, and literature, and making the path universal in scope. His insights inspire us to turn our local paths—whether through cities, suburbs, or rural areas—into portals to greater understanding of our interconnectedness with nature and history. "A rolling, expansive monologue, roaming among enormous scientific questions . . . A gorgeous book, a paean to the interconnectedness of life, alive with contagious enthusiasm."—Anthony Doerr, The Boston Globe
"[The Path] is science gracefully applied to the familiar, and its emphasis on the human as an integral part of nature makes it something more than merely informative—a work of edification, a wisdom book."—The Philadelphia Inquirer
"Here Raymo seeks—and finds—the laws of nature and the existential problems of man hidden under every leaf and rock, or caught in the murmur of running water . . . [The] final effect is contagious, even challenging: What history is hidden outside your front door?"—Los Angeles Times
"Raymo has written a book of patience and place, of the small pieces that combine to help one understand the larger world . . . He has given us impetus to know our own back yards better."—The Seattle Times
"Prompted by what he sees, Raymo discusses engagingly such topics as photosynthesis, geology and evolution. The path so intimately familiar to him runs for barely more than a mile, 'but the territory it traverses is as big as the universe.'"—Scientific American
"Bears comparison with the thought-provoking books written by Robert Finch, Roger Swain and even Annie Dillard."—The Providence Journal
"You don’t read The Path, you stroll through it. Or perhaps more precisely, you tag along as Raymo's walking partner as he meanders from subject to subject, effortlessly combining the local history . . . with myriad facts of nature and science."—The San Diego Union-Tribune
"Like his book An Intimate Look at the Night Sky, The Path is an invitation to fall in love with nature and to think rigorously about it as well."—Orion
"This book invites readers to explore [Raymos path] with him. Those who accept will not be disappointed."—The Dallas Morning News
“A little masterpiece combining the individual and the cosmic with a fine and unflinching eye: informative captivating, heartfelt."—Kirkus Review (starred review)
"Raymo ruminates on water as erosive force and life source for the birds, plants, and insects seen on his walk, which in turn provokes tangents on entropy, the chemistry of DNA, and the area’s geology. How wondering a commute can be—if one looks as thoughtfully as Raymo does in this beauty for mature readers."—Booklist ...
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Traces the geological changes in the Northeast since North America perched on the equator and dinosaurs were young. Includes Pennsylvania, New Jersey, New York, Massachussetts, New Hampshire, Vermont and Maine....
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