The Evolution of Monsters and Other Essays

What happens when scientific education explains away every mystery? In the title essay of this collection, Terada Torahiko recalls childhood ghost stories and suggests that their power to awaken wonder may teach something essential about science.

These eight essays range widely. An early account of transmitting photographs describes ingenious electrical devices; reflections on freezing rain invite readers to become observers of rare weather. The shape of eggs raises questions of mechanics and evolution, while an illness prompts an intimate meditation on unlucky ages and the meaning of the past. Tosa’s place names open a speculative inquiry into language and history. Earthquakes lead to questions about scientific specialization, forecasting, and preparedness, and dust explains the colors of skies and distant mountains.

Terada (1878–1935), a Japanese physicist and essayist, brings technical attentiveness, wit, and personal vulnerability to his subjects. Written between 1907 and 1929, these pieces preserve both the discoveries and uncertainties of their period.