Monasticism and science? Look up Albertus Magnus and Roger Bacon.
There will be a debate between Christopher Hitchens and my rotund buddy, Dr. David Allen White, sometime in the near future on the Hugh Hewitt radio show. This will be required listening.
http://www.townhall.com/talkradio/Sh...?RadioShowID=5
Anything Dr. White has to say is interesting, and he is the best layman proponent of traditional Catholicism today.