When we look at the wealth of opportunities hovering on the horizon of science -- genomic sequencing, personalized medicine, nanoscience, quantum computing, space technology -- we realize how crucial it is. But the reason science really matters runs deeper still. Science is a way of life. Science is a perspective. Science is the process that takes us from confusion to understanding in a manner that's precise, predictive and reliable -- a transformation, for those lucky enough to experience it, that is empowering. As every parent knows, children begin life as uninhibited, unabashed explorers of the unknown. Science is a great adventure stories, one that's been unfolding for thousands of years as we have sought to understand ourselves and our surroundings -- to look out on the world, and see that the wonder of the cosmos transcends everything that divides us. Columbia University physicist Brian Greene reflects further on science and wonder.
