Science Ink and the Science Tattoo Emporium

In her Twitter stream, the always-interesting Mary Roach alerts me to what looks like an amazing book of science tattoos: Science Ink, compiled by Carl Zimmer, a writer and blogger for Discover Magazine. This looks to be about the coolest book ever.

The full title is Science Ink: Tattoos of the Science Obsessed. It stemmed from one of Zimmer’s innocent musings on the Discover blog, when he wondered in public if scientists (and science students) had science-related tattoos.

They do — frequently enough that Discover was able to create the Science Tattoo Emporium, which catalogs more than 250 science-related tattoos.

Zimmer put out a call for tattoos for the book that became Science Ink, and the rest is — well, if not science history, at least it’ll be a 128-page picture book damned soon.

Zimmer himself is a freelance science reporter who writes for The New York Times in addition to Discover. He’s at CarlZimmer.com, and Science Ink is scheduled for October, 2011.

I can’t say for sure, but I’m betting the book will confirm what I have always suspected: if you want to find the really hot dates in any venue, look for the ones with wire-rimmed glasses and caffeine tramp stamps. Of course, if you’re strictly the cuddle-party type or craving a long-term relationship rather than stimulant-fueled all-night sex between conversations about stellar physics, look for someone branded with oxytocin.

[Via author Mary Roach.]

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