"In this rich dystopian novel Ricardo Sztein risks all to follow his intellectual curiosity in defiance of the extreme utilitarianism of his society. The spiritual cousin of Dickens’ “Hard Times”, with a nod to Big Brother, “Jellyfish” projects our current pragmatism into a frightening but possible future. A wonderful book for those who love creativity, science and the great gifts of serendipity."
–Barbara Esstman, author, The Other Anna and Night Ride Home
“The time is the near future when an economically stressed government threatens academic freedom of basic scientists. In ‘Jellyfish Have Eyes,’ an award-winning scientist pays a heavy price for his breakthrough discoveries that jellyfish interact and visualize evolution. Piatigorsky’s imaginative account that Dr. Ricardo Sztein’s path from discovery to condemnation gives a chilling warning that is sure to stimulate debate on the role of government in dictating the direction of scientific research.”
–Joseph Horwitz, Ph.D., Distinguished Professor, UCLA School of Medicine
Scientists, writers and artists of all genres devote their creative lives to draw whatever they can from themselves. Rarely does the final product achieve the imagined vision. For most, including myself, the challenge continues from one effort to another, always banking on the possibility that the next result will be better than the one before. [...]
Lucky me! My novel, "Jellyfish Have Eyes," was well reviewed by Joel Shurkin (thank you!) in the National Academy of Sciences website and its journal, Proceedings of the National Academy - a rare case of a first novel not lost in the vast wasteland out there. But what I think is important is that he [...]
We tend to think about our life as a series of episodes or time periods that we remember – our childhood, college, marriage, children, grandchildren, profession, specific events, activities that mean a lot to us. This list will differ for everyone, but will be equally important for all. For some time now I have been [...]
Cracks have developed a bad reputation and are considered blemishes. Cracked implies broken, ready to be discarded. “He’s a crackpot! What’s he thinking – that he can part the Red Sea? That he’s Moses?” Such a crackpot needs to be avoided. We commonly believe that the crack damages the object, the bone, the appearance, the [...]
