If you are one of those people who thinks searing a steak helps it keep its moisture, have a look at The Thermochemical Joy of Cooking. A Wired article about chef Alton Brown (who refers to Heston Blumenthal of the
Fat Duck where I miserably failed to reserve a table for lunch earlier this week). If even more interested you should definitively buy the book by Harold McGee, who has devoted his life to writing about and experimenting with science in the kitchen.