This Is Your Brain On Parasites: How Tiny Creatures Manipulate Our Behavior and Shape Society Paperback – Illustrated, May 16, 2017

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A very entertaining book that gives you a lot to ponder, but one thing to keep in mind is that the author is a journalist, not a scientist. That's not a negative, the book is well researched and well written but it feels like a number of the examples used are chosen for their entertainment value and their wow factor as opposed to scientific veracity. There are many experiments and theories that are highlighted in the book with caveats like "the results haven't yet been duplicated", or "the sample size was very small" etc. To clarify again, I enjoyed the book, but just keep in mind its a bit more skewed toward entertainment. That of course has the bonus of making it easier to grasp.The book starts out focusing on the animal kingdom and I think its where it really shines. Here you'll be reading about amazing parasites that take control of their hosts and force them to do very detrimental things. Things that will most often cause the host to kill itself, or get itself eaten so the parasite can continue on its life cycle. It's stuff that sounds like science fiction but is happening all around us.Following that, the book focuses more on humans and how parasites can affect us. The first major example is the parasite toxoplasma. Rats affected with toxo lose their fear of cats and become less risk averse, making them more likely to be eaten by a cat, which just so happens where the toxo want to live. The author then gives examples of similar situations in people. People with toxo apparently have a higher incidence of car accidents. Is the infection making them drive more recklessly? Some scientists believe so and their research follows that theory.Following that the book continues exploring the affect of parasites on peoples' personalities. Could parasites affect whether you're shy or outgoing? Liberal or conservative? Whether or not you like spicy food? Do societies that developed in areas where parasites are a concern differ from those that didn't? In what ways? Many people would brush those questions off with a quick no, but the book may make you think a little bit harder about it.

The author introduces us to this new field of study, with fascinating examples. It is very readable and thought provoking.

Interesting, enlightening

For most what exists is what is actually seen with the eyes. However it is what's not seen that can either work to help all living beings or destroy all living beings.I like how the author bring to our awareness of the hidden world.

I am a molecular parasitologist with 10 years research experience in this discipline, and although I like to take a break from my work, sometimes I want to remind myself why I am doing this, because research is often focused on the details and not the big picture. This book is great place to start as a fun introduction to parasitology, or as a refresher highlighting the diverse impact parasites have on Earth and human society.The book covers manipulations of parasites on behavior of various animals including humans, and cites some examples familiar to readers of Richard Dawkins, and other science writers, but really dives deep into the most provocative and controversial aspects of microbiology and parasitology research and sociology. I really enjoyed her writing on toxoplasmosis, rabies, and emotional disgust, and it certainly got me thinking fresh thoughts on my chosen research career, and it's broader relevance outside of academia.Her writing is fast-paced, erudite and balanced, although at times she does get off-topic a little (e.g. Chapter 3 - caffeine in plants; Chapter 6 - commensal bacteria in the gut), nevertheless the unrelated examples are never boring, and do provide additional context. Alas, much to my chagrin, she does not mention the organism I study Trypanosoma brucei, which is infamous for causing African Sleeping Sickness as a result of brain invasion and inflammation, which chemically manipulates the sleep/wake cycle of brain activity in human hosts. For this reason I rate the book 4 stars, as she missed a premier and fascinating example in her showcases of brains on parasites, which killed millions of Africans in the 20th century. However, I will recommend this book to my scientist coworkers and undergraduates I teach and mentor in the future.An additional note - "Parasite Rex" by Carl Zimmer and "New Guinea Tapeworms and Jewish Grandmothers" by Robert Desowitz are two other excellent popular science books on parasites in the last 40 years, I can also recommend reading. This book compliments both, and reading all three will educate and entertain you in different ways.

The book is well worth a read because it has personal and social points of great import for humanity and individuals, but sadly you'll have to ignore a double dose of attention seeking arrogance who's oddly ignorant when it comes to deeply and accurately understanding genuine solutions. Main value is drawing attention to problems that do indeed need thoroughly wise solutions.

Dr. MCAuliffe has the clinical trials test data proving how millions of people have disgusting parasites in our body and brains.