Ed Felten is concerned that a survey of University presidents on what books they feel their undergrads should have read is a little thin on the sciences.
In a later post, he explores the great books tradition in the liberal arts vs the need to stay current in science texts: Shakespeare doesn’t age, while Darwin’s work has (due to the nature of science as the pursuit of knowledge).
I look forward to his list and discussion of the books submitted by readers. I think there is a “science deficit” in education, and it may account for the misunderstandings and controversies over the teaching of natural history, space exploration, cosmology, etc.
Perhaps this will be a Western Canon, only with science texts that show both the universal facts that haven’t changed and the evolution of scientific thought.