Showing titles in Biology

The 1964 murder of a nationally known cancer researcher sets the stage for this gripping exposé of medical professionals enmeshed in covert government operations over the course of three decades. Following a trail of police records, FBI files, cancer statistics, and medical journals, this revealing book presents evidence of a web of medical secret-keeping that began with the handling of evidence in the JFK assassination and continued apace....

Brigit Strawbridge Howard was shocked the day she realized she knew more about the French Revolution than she did about her native trees. And birds. And wildflowers. And bees. The thought stopped her — quite literally — in her tracks. But that day was also the start of a journey, one filled with silver birches and hairy-footed flower bees, skylarks, and rosebay willow herb, and the joy that comes with deepening one’s relationship with place.

The British countryside is renowned for its natural beauty and diverse wildlife and any walk, whether it be in woodland, wetland or open country, is always accompanied by the varied songs and calls of our birdlife.

The author of Gutbliss and one of today's preeminent gastroenterologists distils the latest research on the microbiome into a practical program for boosting overall health. The microbiome - the collective name for the trillions of bacteria that live in our gut - is today's hottest medical topic.

Challenging what you know and think about your own body and how it defends you against all sorts of maladies and how it might also eventually be your own downfall, Immune is a vital and remarkably fun crash course in what is arguably, and increasingly, the most important system in the body.

We are surrounded by big claims for how to enhance our immunity. But the one thing the science is clear on is that everyone's immune system is entirely unique. So how do we tell the myths from the facts? And is there anything we can actually do to benefit our immune health? World-leading immunologist Daniel M. Davis has the answers in this truly authoritative and highly accessible, myth-busting guide to the effects of stress, age, exercise, weight, nutrition, sleep and mental health on our immune health.

In The Other Big Bang, the evolutionary and developmental biologist Eric S. Haag explores the two-billion-year history of sex, from the first organisms on Earth to contemporary humans.

Vor 100.000 Jahren war der Homo sapiens noch ein unbedeutendes Tier, das unauffällig in einem abgelegenen Winkel des afrikanischen Kontinents lebte. Unsere Vorfahren teilten sich den Planeten mit mindestens fünf weiteren menschlichen Spezies und die Rolle, die sie im Ökosystem spielten, war nicht größer als die von Gorillas, Libellen oder Quallen. Vor 70.000 Jahren dann vollzog sich ein mysteriöser und rascher Wandel mit dem Homo sapiens.

Authored by experts and authorities in the field and professionally narrated for easy listening, this crash course is a valuable tool both during school and when preparing for the USMLE or if you’re simply interested in the subject of endocrinology.

Breathtaking, brilliant and passionate, these essays, journalism, lectures and letters make an unanswerable case for the wonder of scientific discovery and its power to stir the imagination; for the practical necessity of scientific endeavour to society; and for the importance of the scientific way of thinking – particularly in today’s ‘post-truth’ world.

For six years Jim and Jamie Dutcher lived intimately with a pack of wolves, gaining their trust as no one has before. In this book the Dutchers reflect on the virtues they observed in wolf society and behavior. Each chapter exemplifies a principle, such as kindness, teamwork, playfulness, respect, curiosity, and compassion. Their heartfelt stories combine into a thought-provoking meditation on the values shared between the human and the animal world.

We may believe that we are the masters of our fates, but in reality, we are at the mercy of hundreds of trillions of single-celled organisms that exert control over every aspect of how our minds and bodies function. These are the diverse species of microbes that work together synergistically to communicate with each other and with every system in our bodies. You are your microbiome’s home, and it wants to take care of you, but first you have to protect it. In Gut Check, Dr. Steven Gundry reveals the emerging science proving that Hippocrates was right—all disease begins in the gut.

The knowledge of death is so terrifying that we live most of our lives in denial of it. Our fear of death has underpinned our religions, inspired our cultures, and also driven our science. Today we are living through a revolution in biology. Giant strides are being made in our understanding of why we age and die, and why some species live longer than others. Immortality, once a faint hope, has never been more within our grasp. Here, Nobel Prize-winning biologist Venki Ramakrishnan offers a definitive look at why we die - and whether we can do anything about it.

With over 17,000 known diseases affecting humans, and countless poisons, carcinogens and toxins in our environment, it's a miracle that our bodies manage to keep us alive. And that is, of course, if they don't betray us themselves, whether through cancers or autoimmune conditions. Biomedical researcher Professor John Tregoning tells the unlikely story of how, against all odds, we manage to stay alive. Taking an organ-by-organ tour of the human body, Tregoning embarks on his own experimental quest, testing 'life-extending' diets and exercise regimes to separate fact from fad.

Dr Jonathan Reisman - physician, adventure traveller and naturalist - allows listeners to navigate their insides like an explorer discovering a new world. Through his offbeat adventures in healthcare and travel, Reisman discovers new perspectives on the body: a trip to the Alaskan Arctic reveals that fat is not the enemy, but the hero; a stint in the Himalayas uncovers the boundary where the brain ends and the mind begins; and eating a sheep's head in Iceland offers a lesson in empathy.

The blackbird is one of the most familiar of all British birds and its song is a great favourite. Enjoy the beautiful melodies created by this much-loved songbird in the British Library's new collection of recordings, which reveal the extraordinary virtuosity, splendour, and magic of its song. From the poet Edward Thomas to the Beatles, the blackbird has been an inspiration to writers, composers, and the wider public for many centuries.

Ageing - not cancer, not heart disease - is the world’s leading cause of death and suffering. We accept as inevitable that as we get older our bodies and minds begin to deteriorate, and we are increasingly likely to be struck by dementia or disease. Ageing is so deeply ingrained in human experience that we never think to ask: is it necessary?

Cat Bohannon answers questions scientists should have been addressing for decades. With boundless curiosity and sharp wit, she covers the past 200 million years to explain the specific science behind the development of the female sex. Eve is not only a sweeping revision of human history, it's an urgent and necessary corrective for a world that has focused primarily on the male body for far too long. Bohannon's findings will completely change what you think you know about evolution.

This audiobook by Eugène Marais is a passionate, insightful account into the world of termites. It is a meticulously researched expose of their complex, highly structured community life.

We like to think of ourselves as highly evolved creatures. But if we are evolution's greatest creation, why are we so badly designed? We have retinas that face backward, the stump of a tail, and way too many bones in our wrists. We must find vitamins and nutrients in our diets that other animals simply make for themselves. Millions of us can't reproduce successfully without help from modern science. We have nerves that take bizarre paths, muscles that attach to nothing, and lymph nodes that do more harm than good. And that's just the beginning of the story.