Gary McCallister

A "Simply Scientific" Valentines Gary McCallister

The term "romance" was once more or less synonymous with fiction. I know, crazy, huh? Today, of course, romance deserves its own genre and usually has little to do with science. I thought, briefly, about reinventing the concept of scientific romances, but I think trying to make scientists realistically appear romantic is a bit of a stretch. Readers can't generally set aside that much unbelief. But here's the problem. When a "science kind of person" falls in love, they simply have not developed the tools for dealing with the situation. The layperson thinks, when scientists make a discovery, they shout something like "Eureka!" In truth, when scientists discover a new phenomenon like an attractive person, they usually say, "Wow, that's weird!" This response to someone of the opposite gender can be confusing. In fact, science fiction and romance actually have a lot in common. Science fiction, like romance, is about an idea that doesn't exist yet, but soon could. When it does it will change everything for everybody and nothing will ever be the same again. Some people think romance is a fantasy. But romance definitely falls into the science fiction category because science fiction is about improbable possibilities and romance deals with plausible impossibilities. Valentine's Day is such an enigma. The emotions of the entire tradition are absolutely based on scientific principles and events, yet scientists, themselves, seem curiously inept at the practice. You would think it would be the other way around.