AMACOM

Welcome to BioTech Nation (June, $24.95) by Moira Gunn charts the NPR radio host's progress as she learns the ins and outs of biotechnology via interviews with leaders in the field.

BASIC BOOKS

I Am a Strange Loop (Mar., $26.95) by Douglas Hofstadter. This follow-up to Gödel, Escher, Bach looks at the nature of consciousness and identity.Ad/promo. Author tour.

DK

Space Flight (June, $40) by Giles Sparrow traces the history of man in space on the 50th anniversary of the first space flight.

HARVARD UNIV. PRESS

The AccidentalMind (Mar., $25.95) by David J. Linden contends that the brain is an agglomeration of ad hoc solutions that have accrued over time, not a problem-solving machine.

JOSEPH HENRY PRESS

Faux Real: Genuine Leather and 200 Years of Inspired Fakes (June, $27.95) by Robert Kanigel explores the thin line between the almost real, the ersatz and the fake.

HOUGHTON MIFFLIN

The Canon: A Whirligig Tour of the Beautiful Basics of Science (May, $23) by Natalie Angier addresses underlying issues in physics, chemistry, biology, geology and astronomy. 75,000 first printing. Ad/promo. Author tour.

METROPOLITAN BOOKS

Better: A Surgeon's Notes on Performance (Apr., $24) by Atul Gawande. Using medical practices as examples, the author describes how people and organizations improve at what they do.

MIKAYA PRESS (dist. by Firefly)

Over the Mountains (Mar., $29.95) by Michael Collier introduces the Aerial View of Geology series, based on the author's photos of major mountain ranges in the U.S.

PRINCETON UNIV. PRESS

Einstein on Politics: His Personal Thoughts and Public Stands on War and Peace (June, $29.95) by David E. Rowe and Robert Schulmann puts Einstein's most important public and private political writings into historical context.

SKYHORSE (Dist. by Sterling)

Can You Drill A Hole Through Your Head and Survive? (May, $19.95) by Simon Rogers presents answers to questions about science, health and nature.

UNIV. OF CALIFORNIA PRESS

Neptune's Ark: From Ichthyosaurs to Orcas (May, $27.50) by David Rains Wallace, illus. by Ken Kirkland, traces marine evolution on the Pacific Coast over the past 500 million years.