Pleased to meet me : how genes, germs, and the curious forces that make us who we are / Bill Sullivan.
Record details
- ISBN: 9781426220555
- ISBN: 1426220553
- Physical Description: 335 pages ; 24 cm
- Publisher: Washington, D.C. : National Geographic, [2019]
Content descriptions
Bibliography, etc. Note: | Includes bibliographical references (pages 302-329) and index. |
Formatted Contents Note: | Introduction: meet the real you -- Meet your maker -- Meet your tastes -- Meet your appetite -- Meet your addictions -- Meet your moods -- Meet your demons -- Meet your match -- Meet your mind -- Meet your beliefs -- Meet your future -- Epilogue: meet the new you. |
Search for related items by subject
Subject: | Epigenetics. Neurogenetics. Epigenetics. Neurogenetics. |
Location | Call Number / Copy Notes | Barcode | Shelving Location | Status | Due Date |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Homer Public Library | 572.865 SUL (Text) | 000156001 | Nonfiction | Available | - |
BookList Review
Pleased to Meet Me : Epigenetics, DNA, Microbes, and the Hidden Forces Shaping Who We Are
Booklist
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
The ambitious aim of this book, to elucidate Why we are who we are and do the things we do, rings a bit like a 1970s song lyric and, frankly, seems unattainable. But Sullivan, a professor of microbiology and immunology, gives it the old college try. He explains how human behavior, actions, and personality arise from a complex interplay between genes, epigenetics (the effect of environment on our genes), hormones, neurotransmitters, our evolutionary history, environment, our microbiota (the trillions of microorganisms living on and inside us), and culture. He examines how these many factors and forces contribute to moods and phobias, sex and love, taste and appetite, brain and mind, addictions and beliefs (religious and political). The scientific discussion is enlivened by Sullivan's quirky sense of humor and frequent nods to pop culture. Unusual (and sometimes unsettling) information, such as that about one-third of persons are infected by a single-cell parasite, Toxoplasma gondii, transmitted by cats or acquired from contaminated food or water, is plentiful. Humans' only innate fears are of falling and loud, unanticipated noises. Intriguingly informative.--Tony Miksanek Copyright 2010 Booklist