Simplicity pleases the mind. Some scientists claim that equations are likely to be correct because they are simple, or that molecules naturally assume more symmetric arrangements of atoms, or that multistep mechanisms for chemical reactions are less common than concerted one-fell-swoop reactions. What happens when the scientist's hard work reveals that the equation is messy, the molecule looks like an odd clump of pasta, and the mechanism has at least 17 steps? In my July-August 2000 column, I argued that in such situations telling a story takes the place of simplicity as a pleasing principle. Because narrative is not reducible to mathematics, it is not given its due in our scientific world. Too bad; storytelling is both ancient and deeply human. It is a shared treasure between science and the arts and humanities.
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