J. Peder Zane is writer and editor who has worked at The New York Times and The News & Observer of Raleigh, North Carolina. His work has won several national awards including the Distinguished Writing Award for Commentary from the American Society of Newspaper Editors. He is a former member of the Board of the National Book Critics Circle. He has contributed to and edited two books published by W.W. Norton, "The Top Ten: Writers Pick Their Favorite Books" (2007) and "Remarkable Reads: Writers and Their Adventures in Reading" (2004). He is writing a book with Professor Adrian Bejan of Duke University titled "The Law of Life: The Scientific Principle Behind Evolution and Design in Nature." Peder teaches Journalism and Mass Communication at St. Augustine's College in Raleigh. He is a graduate of the Collegiate School, Wesleyan University and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.