ABSTRACT
Through reading the short ecological memoir that follows and engaging with the activities in this chapter, students will learn: how reading can encourage people to engage reflexively with their own experiences in ways that can be transformational; how to identify and work with the different emotions involved in transformational reading (aesthetic, narrative, evaluative and self-modifying); how to convey scientific information in ways that invoke intellectual feelings of pleasure in readers; and how to construct their own transformational narratives. Studies of reading demonstrate that people reflect on their lives and experiences in the tiny moments that a proficient reader has between looking at the words and ascertaining their meaning. The chapter argues that ecological writing breaks down problematic divisions between the sciences and the humanities and may point towards shifts in society towards a greater integration of STEM subjects and the humanities.
