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    Parasite Rex: Inside the Bizarre World of Nature's Most Dangerous Creatures
    Parasite Rex: Inside the Bizarre World of Nature's Most Dangerous Creatures
    Parasite Rex: Inside the Bizarre World of Nature's Most Dangerous Creatures
    Audiobook9 hours

    Parasite Rex: Inside the Bizarre World of Nature's Most Dangerous Creatures

    Written by Carl Zimmer

    Narrated by Charles Constant

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    About this audiobook

    For centuries, parasites have lived in nightmares, horror stories, and the darkest shadows of science. In Parasite Rex, Carl Zimmer takes listeners on a fantastic voyage into the secret universe of these extraordinary life-forms-which are not only among the most highly evolved on Earth, but make up the majority of life's diversity. Traveling from the steamy jungles of Costa Rica to the parasite-riddled war zone of southern Sudan, Zimmer introduces an array of amazing creatures that invade their hosts, prey on them from within, and control their behavior. He also vividly describes parasites that can change DNA, rewire the brain, make men more distrustful and women more outgoing, and turn hosts into the living dead. This comprehensive, gracefully written book brings parasites out into the open and uncovers what they can teach us all about the most fundamental survival tactics in the universe-the laws of Parasite Rex.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherTantor Media, Inc
    Release dateMay 8, 2018
    ISBN9781977380418
    Author

    Carl Zimmer

    Carl Zimmer is a popular science writer and columnist, who reports from the frontiers of biology, where scientists are expanding our understanding of life. Since 2013 he has been a columnist at the New York Times. He is a popular speaker at universities, medical schools, museums, and festivals, and he is also a frequent on radio programs such as Radiolab and This American Life. In 2016, Zimmer won the Stephen Jay Gould Prize, awarded annually by the Society for the Study of Evolution to recognize individuals whose sustained efforts have advanced public understanding of evolutionary science. Zimmer has written on subjects ranging from viruses to neuroscience to evolution, including She Has Her Mother's Laugh, focusing on heredity.

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    Reviews for Parasite Rex

    4/5

    255 ratings21 reviews

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    • 4/5
      I picked up this book, not expecting much. The book was written in 2000, and these types of books tend to be hit or miss, mostly miss. Instead what I found was a very well written book, that will creep a reader out, as well as keep a reader fascinated. The history of parasite research (Darwin thought they were the lowest of the low) was something I never considered before.What I found amazing is just how modern this book is. It was written 20 years ago, and parasitology has advanced, but it covered many things that are only now been completely understood (such as immune response to parasites might cure certain types of diseases). The author clearly did his research. The interviews with various scientists, from parasite catalogers to geneticists, cover the spectrum of researchers studying parasites. And some of the parasite techniques, such as changing fish behavior to be more noticeable to birds, is downright scary. This is NOT a book for the squeamish, but give this 20 year old book a chance, it has stood the test of time.
    • 3/5
      My takeaways from this book are: Parasites are amazing and terrifying and we all have toxoplasmosis.
    • 4/5
      This could be the most frightening book ever written. It is also the most eye-opening and educational I've ever experienced. Zimmer seems to pick book topics that people don't ponder in their everyday lives, but should upon deep reflection. A spectacular aspect of this book is the sheer amount of information and knowledge crammed in, which Zimmer relays breezily, as if it's second nature to him, which is admirable and awesome. The research is extensive, yet he distills it all beautifully. Marvelous writing.
    • 4/5
      An interesting read about the overlooked and under appreciated parasitic species in the environment. It explores the huge variety of parasites in the environment and their various adaptations and sometimes extraordinarily complex life cycles. It discusses how research into parasites has changed ideas about predator-prey relations and how and why sexual reproduction evolved. The book has a definite gross factor as it describes the life cycles and effects that parasites have on their hosts, making you want to sterilize everything you come into contact with and never leave your house. Later it discusses that parasites may play a role in keeping our own immune systems in check preventing us from developing certain auto-immune disorders. An eye-opening read.
    • 5/5
      As the back cover says: definitely not for the squeamish. This book elicited both "wow" and "ew" in quite large amounts.Also not for those who are attached to the idea that humans are somehow the pinnacle of evolution (or creation).If you're not in one of the groups above, do read this book. It's a fascinating look into a badly underestimated group of organisms, showing lots of ingenuity and even beauty.
    • 4/5
      Yes, it's a book about parasites. Many of which are bizarre and fascinating, going through convoluted life cycles you could never in a million years have imagined if they didn't exist and beautifully demonstrating the endless, freaky inventiveness of evolution. Zimmer also makes the point that parasites, which were unfairly neglected by biologists for far too long, are actually an incredibly important, even a dominant feature of Earth's ecosystems, and a driving force in the evolutionary history of their hosts. It's interesting stuff, and it does give one quite a new perspective on the subject of life on Earth. But it has also made me want to go and spend the rest of my life in a sterile bubble somewhere, because these things are horrifying.
    • 4/5
      Whoa!!! This will keep you up at night, and probably make you think twice about travel to tropical areas. Great read, excellent information on a topic not usually discussed. Will change the way you think about parasites, if not the way you feel about them.
    • 4/5
      "When it comes to the tapestry of life, parasites are a hand at the loom."

      What a delight of a book! Cogent and penetrating analysis of the history and evolution of parasites and how they affect us in ways we are just beginning to understand. Highly recommended for bioscience geeks, and anyone else who can get past the ick factor.
    • 5/5
      I wanted my insides scraped until I reached the end. Zimmer begins by horrifying you with parasites' pervasiveness and longevity as a species; their ability to manipulate their hosts; and the painful, ugly, debilitating/fatal effects of their infiltration. Then he blows your mind with the idea that they may be responsible for the development of sex. And finally he appeases you by presenting evidence that they may prevent your immune system from killing/harming you, can be used to combat invasive species (if you're super careful), and are overall a sign of a healthy ecosystem. Crazy interesting. I don't, however, recommend having Google image on standby as you read.
    • 4/5
      Interesting theory. Good points. We know all is not always as it seems and everything has its place. It makes sense to me. As much as we might want to rid ourselves and create a perfect, pure, sterile world for ourselves, it is not how we were meant to live. My generation got dirty and we were the better for it. A little repetitive in places, but overall a good presentation. You might also want to read "Survival of the Sickest" for more on this subject.
    • 5/5
      Fascinating overview, and high quality science writing, with good approachable summaries of current research. Zimmer makes excellent points about how the notion of parasite is being redefined to remove the 'yuk' factor, so that humans can be seen as a kind of parasite—even possibly learning something about the stewardship of the Earth from our fellow parasites. There's a bonus NZ mention of Curtis Lively's work on the evolution of sex in indigenous aquatic snails.
    • 4/5
      The author looks at evolution and the parasites that have evolved along with man. Well written and compelling.
    • 5/5
      What I read when I was convalescing from shoulder surgery. I couldn’t handle anything with a plot. It was fascinating.
    • 3/5
      I thought I was going to like this book much more than I did. I actually did not finish reading it because I got bored with it. Zimmer is an excellent author, and I enjoy reading most of his stuff. This book, however, just seemed longer than it needed to be. It seemed repetitive in spots, and overall was not that compelling. While it's not a medical textbook, I thought the illustrations could have been more interesting and "yuckier" as well. Not one of Zimmer's best books, but it's OK for a dip into now and then.
    • 4/5
      It's been a few years, but I remember enjoying this book. The one thing I especially remember is his comparison of pregnancy to having a parasite, but most expecting mothers don't find that information amusing (even though they do somewhat understand it).
    • 2/5
      After 70 pages or so, I refused to keep on reading. Too cumbersome and an excesively elaborated vocabulary disencouraged me. At first I thought it was similar to The hot Zone in its style (which I really enjoyed) when the author first relates Justine's journey through sleep disease. But it changes and furthe becomes a descriptive book of data that does not engage. Maybe the book inproves after 100 pages, but I couldn't arrive.
    • 4/5
      Here is another fascinating book by Carl Zimmer, clearly one of my new favorite science writers. The subtitle of this book is Inside the Bizarre World of Nature's Most Dangerous Creatures, and it is appropriate. Just as our knowledge of evolutionary biology is exploding, so, too is our knowledge of parasitology. Once considered a problem of Africa and the low-lying equatorial countries of the world, we now know that parasites are everywhere and they play a large role in the development and evolution of the planet. For example, evolutionary biologists have had a hard time coming up with a good justification for sex. (Other than as a justification for high-speed Internet connections in the home, I mean.) Parasitologists now have evidence that sexual reproduction is a strategy for dealing with parasitic attacks. And where else could you learn about the anal cannon of the leaf-rolling caterpillar, which shoots digestive waste up to two feet away, thereby avoiding the parasitic wasp that is attracted to the smell? If you are a parent, you will find threatening stories in here that will surely keep the children in line!
    • 5/5
      One of the best non-fiction books I've read in years. I could not put it down. At a party recently, I found myself surrounded by PhD level marine biologists who were hanging on my every word as I described some of the parasites listed in the book. My favorite is the one that eats the tongue of a fish and then positions itself in the fish's mouth as a replacement tongue, only taking whatever food it needs and then helping the fish to swallow the rest to keep it alive. Some of the parasites have only been described and understood in the last 5-6 years, and yet this class of organism makes up a significant fraction of the Earth's biosphere. The author takes the reader through their evolution, biology, and ecology in an engaging, easy to read and digest form.Highly recommended.
    • 4/5
      One of the chief features of this book is that it focuses not only on parasites that affect humans but on parasites that affect all animals. To be clear, they focused on non-virus, non-bacteria -- that is, only one-celled or multi-celled eukaryotic parasites. The book tells a great many fascinating stories, including how parasitism could have influenced the evolution of sex, how they elude the immune system, and how completely they may take over their host's lives. Parasites that eat your flesh? That's old hat. What about parasites that castrate crabs and create their own faux egg sac so the crabs, like any good crustacean mothers, carefully distribute the parasites in the sea? Or the parasites that are brightly colored and climb into snails' transparent antennae to draw the attention of hungry birds? Or (and this I could hardly believe until I saw the shocking photograph) the crustacean parasite that crawls in a fish, eats it's tongue, and then replaces the tongue moving as a tongue would but taking a bite out of every gulp. Yes, parasites are macroscopic evidence of the incredible diversity that evolution can create.The writing of this book is certainly interesting, and I was pleased that he used metaphors that did not confuse or mislead the reader as lesser science journalists often do. The structure of the book is kind of a Parasite Story Hour, though. The stories are loosely grouped into chapters, but this book isn't quite as well crafted as Richard Rhodes' Deadly Feasts. In that book, Rhodes manages to show the arc of discovery of prions, give real depth to the people involved, and effectively communicate the nature of cutting edge scientific experiments without simplifying the concepts to a meaningless level. That piece of science journalism was a welcome surprise, but I would never hold another to such a high standard. Parasite Rex was a good read for someone like me with bizarre tastes but it's probably not for the squeamish or those with delicate stomachs.
    • 5/5
      You will never lick your dirty fingers again. When you look in the mirror you don't see all the tiny parasites that live in your eyelids. They're everywhere, they're everywhere!!! This is a great book on a narrow subject.
    • 4/5
      Zimmer claims that parasites are ubiquitous on Earth, and far more sophisticated than we give them credit. They are far from being unfinished, or inferior, products of evolution. Even though Zimmer’s definition is a broad one, since he lumps bacteria and viruses together with parasites (though he doesn’t discuss these in detail), he proves them to be highly interesting. Even if we look only at the organisms that we are sure are parasites by most definitions like tapeworms or hookworms, we find that they are capable of changing the host’s DNA, reworking or evading the immune system, tricking the males into thinking they are females and spreading the parasite’s eggs, making infected prey more attractive to the predators and, consequently, more easily caught, and even changing human emotions and behaviours. They may even be responsible for the introduction of sexual reproduction in the evolution. The theory that caught my attention was the parasite’s possible responsibility for allergies. Our immune system produces an antibody called IgE among many other types of immune response particles. It turns out that this antibody has been most probably used as a fighter of parasites for thousands of years, and now, in the absence of parasites to destroy, it overreacts and attacks its own host’s body in response to such harmless substances like pollen, or foods, causing allergies and such diseases as Crohn’s or colitis.