“The Hungry Tide” Amitava Ghosh
"And yes, it was true that whatever came out of it would not revolutionize the sciences, or even a minor branch of them, but it was also true that if she were able to go through with it -- even a part of it -- it would be as fine as a piece of descriptive science as any. It would be enough; as an alibi for a life, it would do; she would not need to apologize for how she had spent her time on this earth."
(From "The Hungry Tide" by Amitava Ghosh. These are the thoughts of the protagonist when she makes a very interesting observation in the behavior of Oracella, the Iravaddy river delta dolphin, and in a stroke of epiphany, realizes the scientific question that she needs to pursue in her career which was insipid until then.)
