Jay is an imaginative bee scientist who communicates clearly using every-day language. His book is an absorbing, provocative, entertaining and uplifting read.
Scientific research sometimes produces information that is difficult to take advantage of in practice; until later translational research fills the gaps enabling us to understand the fuller picture. Thus, we tend to progress in waves as initial frustration alternates with breakthrough.
In Jay’s own words, “In these essays, I describe success stories in translational bee research, projects where the toil of scientists has led to ‘news you can use’ as a beekeeper”.
Jay explains 5 reasons for his belief that we can be optimistic about the world of honeybees and other pollinators – he calls them Beeoptimism. He knows that opportunities lie in what is still unknown – the challenge is to identify and take them. His final essay – Let’s not go viral is timely in the wake of the COVID-19 human pandemic.
This book is an updated compendium of 34 essays by Jay D. Evans of USDA-ARS, published in A. I. Root’s Bee Culture magazine.
