Poet Jane Hirshfield calls these “unaccountable” times. Crises in the biosphere—climate change, extinctions—collide with crises in human life. And in her new book Ledger, she says she has tried to do the accounting of where we, human beings, are as a result.

As a poet whose work touches on the Hubble telescope, the proteins of itch, and the silencing of climate researchers, Hirshfield talks with John Dankosky about the particular observational capacity of language, and why scientists and poets can share similar awe. Hirshfield is also the founder of Poets for Science, which continues a project to create a global community poem started after 2017’s March for Science. You can read a selection of her poetry from Ledger here.

Universe of Art is hosted and produced by D. Peterschmidt, who also wrote the music. The original segment was produced by Christie Taylor. Our show art was illustrated by Abelle Hayford. Support for Science Friday's science and arts coverage comes from the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation. 

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Read this episode's transcript here.