The son of Don Francis and Dorothy Ellen, Robert Miller Hazen was born in Rockville Centre, N.Y. on November 1, 1948. Hazen received his Bachelor of Science Degree at MIT in 1971 and earned his Ph.D. at Harvard University. A research scientist as well as a part-time musician, Hazen has used his vast background in both fields to write a number of books and articles over the years. Some of those books include Music Men, The Poetry of Geology, Keepers of the Flame, and Sciences: An Integrated Approach. Hazen's book, Science Matters: Achieving Scientific Literacy, written with James S. Trefil, was heralded by Kirkus Review as "easily one of the finest available single-volume introductions to… science."
James Trefil was born in Chicago and educated at the University of Illinois, Oxford University, and Stanford University, where he earned a Ph.D. in physics. Currently Clarence H. Robinson Professor of physics at George Mason University, he is among the well-respected scientists who have the skill to translate physics for the general reader into prose worthy of an English major. For example, his "meditation trilogy," described below, recounts interesting examples, clear explanations, and the wonder of science in Trefil's beautiful and lively language.
ROBERT M. HAZENis the author of more than 350 articles and 20 books on earth science, materials science, origins of life, history and music. A Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, he received the Mineralogical Society of America Award, the Ipatief Prize, the ASCAP-Deems Taylor Award, and other awards for his research and writing. Hazen is a researcher at the Carnegie Institution for Science and is Robinson Professor of Earth Sciences at George Mason University. His recent books includeGenesis: The Scientific Quest for Life's OriginsandThe Sciences: An Integrated Approach(with James Trefil). JAMES TREFIL, Robinson Professor of Physics at George Mason University,… is the author of over 40 books and 100 articles in professional journals. He is a fellow of the American Physical Society, the American Association for the Advancement of Science, and the World Economic Forum. He is the recipient of the Andrew Gemant Award (American institute of Physics), the Westinghouse and Subaru Awards (American Association for the Advancement of Science) and the 2008 Science Writing Award (American Physical Society). His most recent books areWhy ScienceandThe Sciences: An Integrated Approach(with Robert Hazen).