Jim Ottaviani is an American writer who is the author of several

comic book A comic book, also called comicbook, comic magazine or (in the United Kingdom and Ireland) simply comic, is a publication that consists of comics art in the form of sequential juxtaposed panel (comics), panels that represent individual scenes. ...

s about the

history of science The history of science covers the development of science from ancient times to the present. It encompasses all three major branches of science: natural, social, and formal. Science's earliest roots can be traced to Ancient Egypt and Meso ...

. His best-known work, ''Two-Fisted Science: Stories About Scientists'', features biographical stories about

Galileo Galilei Galileo di Vincenzo Bonaiuti de' Galilei (15 February 1564 – 8 January 1642) was an Italian astronomer, physicist and engineer, sometimes described as a polymath. Commonly referred to as Galileo, his name was pronounced (, ). He w ...

Isaac Newton Sir Isaac Newton (25 December 1642 – 20 March 1726/27) was an English mathematician, physicist, astronomer, alchemist, theologian, and author (described in his time as a " natural philosopher"), widely recognised as one of the g ...

Niels Bohr Niels Henrik David Bohr (; 7 October 1885 – 18 November 1962) was a Danish physicist who made foundational contributions to understanding atomic structure and quantum theory, for which he received the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1922 ...

, and several stories about physicist

Richard Feynman Richard Phillips Feynman (; May 11, 1918 – February 15, 1988) was an American theoretical physicist, known for his work in the path integral formulation of quantum mechanics, the theory of quantum electrodynamics, the physics of the superf ...

. He is also a

librarian A librarian is a person who works professionally in a library providing access to information, and sometimes social or technical programming, or instruction on information literacy to users. The role of the librarian has changed much over time ...

and has worked as a nuclear engineer.

Biography

Ottaviani has a background in science, earning a B.S. at the

University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign The University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (U of I, Illinois, University of Illinois, or UIUC) is a public land-grant research university in Illinois in the twin cities of Champaign and Urbana. It is the flagship institution of the Uni ...

in 1986, followed by a master's degree in nuclear engineering from the

University of Michigan , mottoeng = "Arts, Knowledge, Truth" , former_names = Catholepistemiad, or University of Michigania (1817–1821) , budget = $10.3 billion (2021) , endowment = $17 billion (2021)As o ...

in 1987. He worked for several years retrofitting and fixing nuclear power plants. Intrigued by the research component of his job, Ottaviani began taking library science courses at

Drexel University Drexel University is a private research university with its main campus in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Drexel's undergraduate school was founded in 1891 by Anthony J. Drexel, a financier and philanthropist. Founded as Drexel Institute of Ar ...

, and in 1990 he enrolled in the Library and Information Science program at the University of Michigan. He earned his M.S. in information and library studies from Michigan in 1992. He spent several years working as a reference librarian at Michigan's Media Union Library. He now works at the University of Michigan Library as coordinator of Deep Blue, the university's

institutional repository An institutional repository is an archive for collecting, preserving, and disseminating digital copies of the intellectual output of an institution, particularly a research institution. Academics also utilize their IRs for archiving published work ...

.Applewhite, Ashton. (2002).
"The Hero Checks Her Oscilloscope"
. '

IEEE Spectrum ''IEEE Spectrum'' is a magazine edited by the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers The Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) is a 501(c)(3) professional association for electronic engineering and electrical e ...

' 39(2):66-69.Peacock, S. (2003). Jim Ottaviani. In ''Contemporary Authors'' (Vol. 202, pp. 310-311). Detroit, Michigan: Gale Research Company. Ottaviani's interest in writing science-related comics was inspired by Richard Rhodes's book ''The Making of the Atomic Bomb''. In discussing the book with comic book artist Steve Lieber, the two decided to write and illustrate a famous meeting between physicists Niels Bohr and

Werner Heisenberg Werner Karl Heisenberg () (5 December 1901 – 1 February 1976) was a German theoretical physicist and one of the main pioneers of the theory of quantum mechanics. He published his work in 1925 in a breakthrough paper. In the subsequent series ...

during World War II. That project expanded to include other stories from the history of science to become the graphic novel ''Two-Fisted Science'', including stories written by Ottaviani and illustrated by a variety of artists.Figuracion, Neil
"A Look Inside the Lab - A Genre Bender Interview with Jim Ottaviani"
nterview/nowiki>. 'Broken Frontier', 2005. Since the publication of ''Two-Fisted Science'', Ottaviani has gone on to write several other comic books about scientists, including ''Dignifying Science'' (about women scientists), ''Fallout'' (about the creation of the atomic bomb), ''Suspended in Language'' (about physicist Niels Bohr) and ''

Bone Sharps, Cowboys, and Thunder Lizards ''Bone Sharps, Cowboys, and Thunder Lizards: A Tale of Edward Drinker Cope, Othniel Charles Marsh, and the Gilded Age of Paleontology'' is a 2005 graphic novel written by Jim Ottaviani and illustrated by the company Big Time Attic. The book t ...

'' (about nineteenth century

paleontologists Paleontology (), also spelled palaeontology or palæontology, is the scientific study of life that existed prior to, and sometimes including, the start of the Holocene epoch (roughly 11,700 years before present). It includes the study of fossi ...

). These works are all self-published by Ottaviani's own company, G. T. Labs, which he started in 1996. The company's name is an homage to General Techtronics Labs, the fictional company where comic book character Peter Parker was bitten by the radioactive spider that led to his becoming Spider-Man. Two of Ottaviani's most recent works ''Levitation'' and ''Wire Mothers'' (published July 2007) are the beginning of a planned series on "the science of the unscientific." ''Levitation'' the physical and psychological aspects of stage magic. ''Wire Mothers'' is tells the story of psychologist Harry Harlow's work in the 1950s on importance of love and affection among

primates Primates are a diverse order of mammals. They are divided into the strepsirrhines, which include the lemurs, galagos, and lorisids, and the haplorhines, which include the tarsiers and the simians (monkeys and apes, the latter includin ...

, in contravention of then-prevailing theories put forward by the Behaviorist school of thought.Spurgeon, Tom.
A Short Interview With Jim Ottaviani, Janine Johnston and Dylan Meconis
"
The Comics Reporter.'' May 6, 2007. In addition to his self-published work, Ottaviani has worked on two short comic books about orangutan
s, one of which was published by the Orangutan Foundation International. He also has two forthcoming comics in the works to be published by First Second Books, one on physicist

and another on three primatologists: Jane Goodall">Primatology">primatologists: Jane Goodall, Dian Fossey">Jane_Goodall.html" ;"title="Primatology">primatologists: Jane Goodall">Primatology">primatologists: Jane Goodall, Dian Fossey, and Biruté Galdikas. On August 31, 2011, Ottaviani appeared on the Science Channel's ''Dark Matters: Twisted But True''. On November 15, 2013, First Second announced that it would publish Ottaviani's upcoming biography of Stephen Hawking with illustrations by

Leland Myrick Leland Myrick is an author and illustrator. In 1999, he was nominated for an Ignatz Award for Promising New Talent for '' The Sweet Collection'', and in 2004 he was awarded a Xeric Grant to create '' Bright Elegy''. He illustrated the New York Tim ...

. In June 2014, Tor.com released Ottaviani and Leland Purvis'

Alan Turing Alan Mathison Turing (; 23 June 1912 – 7 June 1954) was an English mathematician, computer scientist, logician, cryptanalyst, philosopher, and theoretical biologist. Turing was highly influential in the development of theoretical c ...

biography, ''The Imitation Game'', for free online. An expanded, print version of the book appeared in 2016.

Awards

Ottaviani's 2001 graphic novel ''Fallout: J. Robert Oppenheimer, Leo Szilard, and the Political Science of the Atomic Bomb'' was nominated for the 2002

Ignatz Award The Ignatz Awards recognize outstanding achievements in comics and cartooning by small press creators or creator-owned projects published by larger publishers. They have been awarded each year at the Small Press Expo since 1997, only skipping ...

for Outstanding Graphic Novel or Collection. ''Dignifying Science: Stories about Women Scientists'' was nominated for a 1999

Eisner Award The Will Eisner Comic Industry Awards, commonly shortened to the Eisner Awards, are prizes given for creative achievement in American comic books, sometimes referred to as the comics industry's equivalent of the Academy Awards. They are named in ...

and for the 2000 Lulu Award. The 2003 ''Quantum entanglement, spooky action at a distance, teleportation, and you'' was nominated for the 2004

for Outstanding Minicomic. Ottaviani was also awarded a 1997

Xeric Foundation The Xeric Foundation is a private, nonprofit corporation based in Northampton, Massachusetts, which for twenty years awarded self-publishing grants to comic book creators, as well as qualified charitable and nonprofit organizations. The Xeric Fo ...

grant for ''Two-Fisted Science''.

Bibliography

* ''Safecracker'', (artist:

Bernie Mireault Bernard Edward Mireault (born 1961) is a Canadian comic book artist and writer. Comics critic Timothy Callahan has argued that Mireault is one of the unheralded creators who helped bring in the Modern Age of Comic Books: Biography Mireault was ...

) General Tektronics Labs, 1997, excerpted from ''Two-Fisted Science.'' * ''Two-Fisted Science: Stories About Scientists'', (various artists) General Tektronics Labs, 1997. . ** Second edition, G. T. Labs, 2001. . * ''Wild person in the woods'' (artist:

Anne Timmons Anne, alternatively spelled Ann, is a form of the Latin female given name Anna (name), Anna. This in turn is a representation of the Hebrew Hannah (given name), Hannah, which means 'favour' or 'grace'. Related names include Annie (given name), ...

). Orangutan Foundation International, 1998. * ''"Talking" orangutans in Borneo'' (by Nancy Briggs and Jim Ottaviani; illustrated by

), Orangutan Foundation International, 2000. * ''Fallout: J. Robert Oppenheimer, Leo Szilard, and the Political Science of the Atomic Bomb'', (various artists) G. T. Labs, 2001. . * ''Dignifying Science: stories about women scientists'', (various artists) Second edition, G. T. Labs, 2003. . * ''Quantum Entanglement, Spooky Action at a Distance, Teleportation, and You : a.k.a the Official G.T. Labs Guide to Teleportation via Quantum Entanglement and Spooky Action at a Distance (Including a Brief but Helpful Section on Why, Perhaps, You Should Not Try This at Home)'', (artist: Roger Langridge) G. T. Labs, 2003. * ''Suspended In Language: Niels Bohr's Life, Discoveries, And The Century He Shaped'', (artist: Leland Purvis) G.T. Labs, 2004. . * ''

: A Tale of Edward Drinker Cope, Othniel Charles Marsh, and the Gilded Age of Paleontology'' (artist: Big Time Attic), G. T. Labs, 2005. . * ''Levitation: Physics and Psychology in the Service of Deception'' (artist:

Janine Johnston Janine may refer to: People and characters * Janine (given name) Music * Janine (David Bowie song), "Janine" (David Bowie song), a 1969 song by David Bowie * "Janine", a 1979 song by Trooper from the album ''Flying Colors (Trooper album), Fl ...

), G.T. Labs, 2007: * ''Wire Mothers: Harry Harlow and the Science of Love'' (artist: Dylan Meconis), G.T. Labs, 2007: * ''T-Minus: The Race to the Moon'' (artists: Zander Cannon & Kevin Cannon), Aladdin, 2009: * ''Feynman'' (artist:

), First Second, 2011: * ''Primates: The Fearless Science of Jane Goodall, Dian Fossey, and Biruté Galdikas'', illustrated by Maris Wicks, First Second, 2013, *
The Imitation Game
', illustrated by Leland Purvis, Tor.com, 2014. * ''The Imitation Game: Alan Turing Decoded'' (artist: Leland Purvis), Harry N. Abrams, 2016, *''Hawking'' (artist: Leland Myrick), First Second, 2019, *'' Naturalist'' (by Edward O. Wilson; adapted by Jim Ottaviani and C.M. Butzer; artist: C.M. Butzer), Island Press, 2020 *''Astronauts: Women on the Final Frontier'' (artist: Maris Wicks), First Second, 2020, ISBN 9781626728776 *''Einstein'' (artist: Jerel Dye), First Second, 2022, ISBN 9781626728769

Footnotes

References

Cowboys, Dinosaurs, Heisenberg and Bohr: Jim Ottaviani
��an interview by Carol Fox in the 'Sequential Tart' web zine.
A Short Interview with Jim Ottaviani
��in ''The Comics Reporter'', June 12, 2005; focuses on the business aspects of self-publishing and marketing niche comics, and on ''Bone Sharps, Cowboys, and Thunder Lizards''
Holy Evolution, Darwin! Comics Take On Science
by

Neda Ulaby Neda Ulaby ( ar, ندى علبي, born 1970) is an American reporter for National Public Radio, covering arts, cultural trends and digital media. She lives in Washington, D.C. Early life and education Born during Black September in Amman, ...

on NPR's Morning Edition. Includes interviews with Jim Ottaviani and biologist

Jay Hosler Jay Hosler is the author and illustrator of science-oriented comics. He is best known for his graphic novels '' Clan Apis'', '' The Sandwalk Adventures'', and '' Optical Allusions''. '' Clan Apis'', a Xeric Foundation Award winner, follows the li ...

. Aired Feb. 14, 2005.

External links

G T Labs website
��Jim Ottaviani's publishing company
Video interview with Jim Ottaviani
��Ottaviani talks about non-fiction comics with Jim and Mary Russell at the 2006 Snap! Comics Arts Festival
Several reviews of Ottaviani's works
at ComicsWorthReading.com

Review of Ottaviani's book Feynman
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ottaviani, Jim American comics writers American writers of Italian descent American librarians University of Illinois alumni University of Michigan College of Engineering alumni University of Michigan staff Living people Year of birth missing (living people) American historians of science