(1955) Born and raised in Long Island, and was educated at Bennington College, Oxford University, and Columbia University, from which he received a Master’s in English. For the past twenty-five years, Michael Pollan has been writing books and articles about the places where nature and culture intersect: on our plates, in our farms and gardens, and in the built environment. He is the author of Cooked: A Natural History of Transformation (2013) and of four New York Times bestsellers: Food Rules: An Eater’s Manual (2010);In Defense of Food: An Eater’s Manifesto (2008);The Omnivore’s Dilemma: A Natural History of Four Meals (2006) and The Botany of Desire: A Plant’s-Eye View of the World (2001). In 2013, Pollan was awarded a Premio Nonino prize. In 2012, he was given the Distinguished Service Award from the National Association of Biology Teachers. Pollan was named to the 2010 TIME 100, the magazine’s annual list of the world’s 100 most influential people.