Reading and writing arc often taught as highly predictable activitie::s. Supposedly, when we read, we follO\v word by word until we have transfe1Ted the writer's thoughts from his or her niind to...

Reading and writing arc often taught as highly predictable activitie::s. Supposedly, when we read, we follO\v word by word until we have transfe1Ted the writer's thoughts from his or her niind to ours. When we write, we should have a clear argument that we ought to outline before we compose. Bur "Reading and Writing About the New 1-lumanjties" takes a ditfrrent view. It represents reading and writing as complex activitii::s. Rc�idcrs are not passive receivers, after all. but actively help co create what they read. And writing is a process of discovery that can kad to insights we seldom have when we first sit down to write. Not only arc reading :md w1iti11g more complex than many people assume but both involve moments of real uncertainty. Using this inb·oduction as your guide, consider the role that uncertainty plays in the acts of reading and w1iting. Should we try to avoid uncertainty, or is the experience somehow liberating? What is the relation between uncertainty and the lt:arning process'