I thought that I’d review another story by Loren Eiseley for my next book review. The Hidden Teacher, an essay of his that I read recently, seemed to be a good choice, since the school year has progressed somewhat and I thought that a reminder of how teachers can be found in unsuspecting places was needed. It blends his experiences with a spider, the story of a mathematical prodigy, the lives of cells and the idea that teachers can be found anywhere together. As usual with his essays, it’s not completely scientific — while it does explore the world of cells, it also includes an ordinary event (the spider’s web and the pencil that poked it) and an unusual story, that of the prodigy who calculated problems with amazing speed and efficiency. All of these stories illustrated his point: teachers don’t have to explain things to students in a noisy, typical schoolroom to be “teachers,” anyone who teaches someone else something can be a teacher. Even objects, experiences, or dreams can be teachers if they explain something to someone. I found it an engaging story, an unusual mix of different occurrences that made for a well-presented, well-supported essay. I would rate it a 9.5/10 and recommend it to readers who are interested in science, different ways of learning, or simply looking for some good reading.
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