-
The Joy of Sweat
- The Strange Science of Perspiration
- Narrated by: Sophie Amoss
- Length: 9 hrs and 3 mins
Failed to add items
Add to Cart failed.
Add to Wish List failed.
Remove from wishlist failed.
Adding to library failed
Follow podcast failed
Unfollow podcast failed
Prime members: New to Audible?Get 2 free audiobooks during trial.
The Joy of Sweat
Buy for $18.00
No default payment method selected.
We are sorry. We are not allowed to sell this product with the selected payment method
Listeners also enjoyed...
-
The Urge
- Our History of Addiction
- By: Carl Erik Fisher
- Narrated by: Mark Deakins
- Length: 11 hrs and 20 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 111
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 93
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 93
As a psychiatrist in training fresh from medical school, Carl Erik Fisher found himself face-to-face with an addiction crisis that nearly cost him everything. Desperate to make sense of his condition, he turned to the history of addiction, learning that our society’s current quagmire is only part of a centuries-old struggle to treat addictive behavior.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Nailed it
- By Paully on 11-23-22
By: Carl Erik Fisher
-
Superlative
- The Biology of Extremes
- By: Matthew D. LaPlante
- Narrated by: George Newbern
- Length: 9 hrs and 27 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 90
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 76
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 76
The world's largest land mammal could help us end cancer. The fastest bird is showing us how to solve a century-old engineering mystery. The oldest tree is giving us insights into climate change. The loudest whale is offering clues about the impact of solar storms. For a long time, scientists ignored superlative life forms as outliers. Increasingly, though, researchers are coming to see great value in studying plants and animals that exist on the outermost edges of the bell curve.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Fascinating survey of amazing biology
- By Nerd's-eye view on 12-06-19
-
The Secret Language of Cells
- What Biological Conversations Tell Us About the Brain-Body Connection, the Future of Medicine, and Life Itself
- By: Jon Lieff MD
- Narrated by: George Newbern
- Length: 9 hrs and 55 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 87
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 68
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 68
While cells are commonly considered the building block of living things, it is actually the communication between cells that brings us to life, controlling our bodies and brains, determining whether we are healthy or sick, and directly influencing how we think, feel, and behave. In The Secret Language of Cells, doctor and neuroscientist Jon Lieff lets us listen in on these conversations, and reveals their significance for everything from mental health to cancer.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
top notch!
- By Amazon Customer on 10-11-20
By: Jon Lieff MD
-
Clean
- The New Science of Skin
- By: James Hamblin
- Narrated by: Barrett Leddy
- Length: 7 hrs and 11 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 414
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 344
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 340
Keeping skin healthy is a booming industry, and yet it seems like almost no one agrees on what actually works. What one person says is vital another says is toxic. We have not cured acne or eczema, allergies keep getting worse, and autoimmune conditions are becoming increasingly common. In Clean, doctor and journalist James Hamblin explores how we got here, examining the science and culture of how we care for our skin today.
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
Pretty topical
- By DT on 08-02-20
By: James Hamblin
-
Who Says You're Dead?
- Medical & Ethical Dilemmas for the Curious & Concerned
- By: Jacob M. Appel MD
- Narrated by: Jonathan Yen
- Length: 8 hrs
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 56
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 49
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 48
Drawing upon the author's two decades teaching medical ethics, as well as his work as a practicing psychiatrist, this profound and addictive little book offers up challenging ethical dilemmas and asks listeners, What would you do? In short, engaging scenarios, Dr. Appel takes on hot-button issues that many of us will confront: genetic screening, sexuality, privacy, doctor-patient confidentiality. He unpacks each hypothetical with a brief reflection drawing from science, philosophy, and history, explaining how others have approached these controversies in real-world cases.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Happens everyday
- By janeen dahn on 01-02-21
-
Immune
- A Journey into the Mysterious System That Keeps You Alive
- By: Philipp Dettmer
- Narrated by: Steve Taylor
- Length: 10 hrs and 28 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 1,229
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 1,054
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 1,047
You wake up and feel a tickle in your throat. Your head hurts. You’re mildly annoyed as you get the kids ready for school and dress for work yourself. Meanwhile, an epic war is being fought, just below your skin. Millions are fighting and dying for you to be able to complain as you head out the door. So what, exactly, is your immune system? In Immune, Philipp Dettmer, the brains behind the most popular science channel on YouTube, takes listeners on a journey through the fortress of the human body and its defenses.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Steve Taylor for the win
- By Bay Area Engineer on 11-02-21
By: Philipp Dettmer
-
The Urge
- Our History of Addiction
- By: Carl Erik Fisher
- Narrated by: Mark Deakins
- Length: 11 hrs and 20 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 111
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 93
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 93
As a psychiatrist in training fresh from medical school, Carl Erik Fisher found himself face-to-face with an addiction crisis that nearly cost him everything. Desperate to make sense of his condition, he turned to the history of addiction, learning that our society’s current quagmire is only part of a centuries-old struggle to treat addictive behavior.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Nailed it
- By Paully on 11-23-22
By: Carl Erik Fisher
-
Superlative
- The Biology of Extremes
- By: Matthew D. LaPlante
- Narrated by: George Newbern
- Length: 9 hrs and 27 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 90
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 76
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 76
The world's largest land mammal could help us end cancer. The fastest bird is showing us how to solve a century-old engineering mystery. The oldest tree is giving us insights into climate change. The loudest whale is offering clues about the impact of solar storms. For a long time, scientists ignored superlative life forms as outliers. Increasingly, though, researchers are coming to see great value in studying plants and animals that exist on the outermost edges of the bell curve.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Fascinating survey of amazing biology
- By Nerd's-eye view on 12-06-19
-
The Secret Language of Cells
- What Biological Conversations Tell Us About the Brain-Body Connection, the Future of Medicine, and Life Itself
- By: Jon Lieff MD
- Narrated by: George Newbern
- Length: 9 hrs and 55 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 87
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 68
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 68
While cells are commonly considered the building block of living things, it is actually the communication between cells that brings us to life, controlling our bodies and brains, determining whether we are healthy or sick, and directly influencing how we think, feel, and behave. In The Secret Language of Cells, doctor and neuroscientist Jon Lieff lets us listen in on these conversations, and reveals their significance for everything from mental health to cancer.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
top notch!
- By Amazon Customer on 10-11-20
By: Jon Lieff MD
-
Clean
- The New Science of Skin
- By: James Hamblin
- Narrated by: Barrett Leddy
- Length: 7 hrs and 11 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 414
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 344
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 340
Keeping skin healthy is a booming industry, and yet it seems like almost no one agrees on what actually works. What one person says is vital another says is toxic. We have not cured acne or eczema, allergies keep getting worse, and autoimmune conditions are becoming increasingly common. In Clean, doctor and journalist James Hamblin explores how we got here, examining the science and culture of how we care for our skin today.
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
Pretty topical
- By DT on 08-02-20
By: James Hamblin
-
Who Says You're Dead?
- Medical & Ethical Dilemmas for the Curious & Concerned
- By: Jacob M. Appel MD
- Narrated by: Jonathan Yen
- Length: 8 hrs
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 56
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 49
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 48
Drawing upon the author's two decades teaching medical ethics, as well as his work as a practicing psychiatrist, this profound and addictive little book offers up challenging ethical dilemmas and asks listeners, What would you do? In short, engaging scenarios, Dr. Appel takes on hot-button issues that many of us will confront: genetic screening, sexuality, privacy, doctor-patient confidentiality. He unpacks each hypothetical with a brief reflection drawing from science, philosophy, and history, explaining how others have approached these controversies in real-world cases.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Happens everyday
- By janeen dahn on 01-02-21
-
Immune
- A Journey into the Mysterious System That Keeps You Alive
- By: Philipp Dettmer
- Narrated by: Steve Taylor
- Length: 10 hrs and 28 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 1,229
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 1,054
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 1,047
You wake up and feel a tickle in your throat. Your head hurts. You’re mildly annoyed as you get the kids ready for school and dress for work yourself. Meanwhile, an epic war is being fought, just below your skin. Millions are fighting and dying for you to be able to complain as you head out the door. So what, exactly, is your immune system? In Immune, Philipp Dettmer, the brains behind the most popular science channel on YouTube, takes listeners on a journey through the fortress of the human body and its defenses.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Steve Taylor for the win
- By Bay Area Engineer on 11-02-21
By: Philipp Dettmer
-
The Brain That Changes Itself
- Stories of Personal Triumph from the Frontiers of Brain Science
- By: Norman Doidge M.D.
- Narrated by: Jim Bond
- Length: 11 hrs and 25 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 530
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 442
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 440
An astonishing new science called neuroplasticity is overthrowing the centuries-old notion that the human brain is immutable. Psychiatrist and psychoanalyst, Norman Doidge, MD, traveled the country to meet both the brilliant scientists championing neuroplasticity and the people whose lives they've transformed - people whose mental limitations or brain damage were seen as unalterable.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
***MIND BLOWN***
- By Laura Elsasser on 04-04-21
-
The Lions of Fifth Avenue
- A GMA Book Club Pick (A Novel)
- By: Fiona Davis
- Narrated by: Erin Bennett, Lisa Flanagan
- Length: 10 hrs and 37 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 3,344
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 2,894
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 2,887
It's 1913, and on the surface, Laura Lyons couldn't ask for more out of life - her husband is the superintendent of the New York Public Library, allowing their family to live in an apartment within the grand building, and they are blessed with two children. But headstrong, passionate Laura wants more, and when she takes a leap of faith and applies to the Columbia Journalism School, her world is cracked wide open.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Exhilarating
- By Joanna Butler on 08-20-20
By: Fiona Davis
-
Deep Medicine
- How Artificial Intelligence Can Make Healthcare Human Again
- By: Eric Topol
- Narrated by: Graham Winton
- Length: 11 hrs and 6 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 754
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 636
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 632
Medicine has become inhuman, to disastrous effect. The doctor-patient relationship - the heart of medicine - is broken: doctors are too distracted and overwhelmed to truly connect with their patients, and medical errors and misdiagnoses abound. In Deep Medicine, leading physician Eric Topol reveals how artificial intelligence can help. AI has the potential to transform everything doctors do, from notetaking and medical scans to diagnosis and treatment, greatly cutting down the cost of medicine and reducing human mortality.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
a must book for all doctors and patients.
- By adva onn on 04-21-19
By: Eric Topol
-
Journey of the Mind
- How Thinking Emerged from Chaos
- By: Ogi Ogas, Sai Gaddam
- Narrated by: Cary Hite
- Length: 10 hrs and 15 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 46
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 35
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 34
Why do minds exist? How did mud and stone develop into beings that can experience longing, regret, love, and compassion - beings that are aware of their own experience? Until recently, science offered few answers to these existential questions. Journey of the Mind is the first book to offer a unified account of the mind that explains how consciousness, language, the Self, and civilization emerged incrementally out of chaos.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Consciousness: objectively physical yet subjective
- By Jeffrey W. Rudisel on 04-16-22
By: Ogi Ogas, and others
-
Women's Work
- The First 20,000 Years: Women, Cloth, and Society in Early Times
- By: Elizabeth Wayland Barber
- Narrated by: Donna Postel
- Length: 8 hrs and 57 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 200
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 170
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 169
Twenty thousand years ago, women were making and wearing the first clothing created from spun fibers. In fact, right up to the Industrial Revolution the fiber arts were an enormous economic force, belonging primarily to women. Despite the great toil required in making cloth and clothing, most books on ancient history and economics have no information on them. Much of this gap results from the extreme perishability of what women produced, but it seems clear that until now descriptions of prehistoric and early historic cultures have omitted virtually half the picture.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Respectful treatment of the archeological record.
- By fiberflair on 02-23-21
-
Spillover
- By: David Quammen
- Narrated by: Jonathan Yen
- Length: 20 hrs and 47 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 1,832
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 1,571
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 1,567
The emergence of strange new diseases is a frightening problem that seems to be getting worse. In this age of speedy travel, it threatens a worldwide pandemic. We hear news reports of Ebola, SARS, AIDS, and something called Hendra killing horses and people in Australia - but those reports miss the big truth that such phenomena are part of a single pattern. The bugs that transmit these diseases share one thing: they originate in wild animals and pass to humans by a process called spillover. David Quammen tracks this subject around the world.
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
Fascinating, but not Riveting
- By L. M. Roberts on 03-08-14
By: David Quammen
-
The Body
- A Guide for Occupants
- By: Bill Bryson
- Narrated by: Bill Bryson
- Length: 14 hrs and 4 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 6,703
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 5,640
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 5,594
Bill Bryson once again proves himself to be an incomparable companion as he guides us through the human body - how it functions, its remarkable ability to heal itself, and (unfortunately) the ways it can fail. Full of extraordinary facts (your body made a million red blood cells since you started reading this) and irresistible Bryson-esque anecdotes, The Body will lead you to a deeper understanding of the miracle that is life in general and you in particular. As Bill Bryson writes, "We pass our existence within this wobble of flesh and yet take it almost entirely for granted."
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Must Read for the Sheer Fun of It
- By J.B. on 10-16-19
By: Bill Bryson
-
The Physician
- The Cole Trilogy, Book 1
- By: Noah Gordon
- Narrated by: Richard Higgins
- Length: 24 hrs and 41 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 618
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 556
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 555
A child holds the hand of his dying mother and is terrified, aware something is taking her. Orphaned and given to an itinerant barber-surgeon, Rob Cole becomes a fast-talking swindler, peddling a worthless medicine. But as he matures, his strange gift - an acute sensitivity to impending death - never leaves him, and he yearns to become a healer. Arab madrassas are the only authentic medical schools, and he makes his perilous way to Persia.
-
3 out of 5 stars
-
From a Persian
- By Lilian Piruzan Ansari on 01-01-18
By: Noah Gordon
-
Billy the Kid
- The Endless Ride
- By: Michael Wallis
- Narrated by: Todd McLaren
- Length: 9 hrs and 5 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 261
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 194
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 196
Award-winning historian Michael Wallis has spent several years re-creating the rich, anecdotal saga of Billy the Kid (1859-1881), a deeply mythologized young man who became a legend in his own time and yet remains an enigma to this day. With the Gilded Age in full swing and the Industrial Revolution reshaping the American landscape, "the Kid", who was gunned down by Sheriff Pat Garrett in the New Mexico Territory at the age of 21, became a new breed of celebrity outlaw.
-
3 out of 5 stars
-
Disappointing
- By MJTCPA on 07-30-11
By: Michael Wallis
-
Romantic Outlaws
- The Extraordinary Lives of Mary Wollstonecraft and Her Daughter Mary Shelley
- By: Charlotte Gordon
- Narrated by: Susan Lyons
- Length: 22 hrs and 31 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 305
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 269
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 269
Charlotte Gordon's new work is a fresh look at the lives of Mary Wollstonecraft and Mary Shelley, who together comprise one of the most illustrious and inspiring mother-daughter pairs in history.
-
3 out of 5 stars
-
Tons of info, poor format choice.
- By Gotta Tellya on 02-06-17
By: Charlotte Gordon
-
The Last Emperor of Mexico
- The Dramatic Story of the Habsburg Archduke Who Created a Kingdom in the New World
- By: Edward Shawcross
- Narrated by: Gustavo Rex
- Length: 11 hrs and 54 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 353
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 301
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 302
In the 1860s, Napoleon III, intent on curbing the rise of American imperialism, persuaded a young Austrian archduke and a Belgian princess to leave Europe and become the emperor and empress of Mexico. They and their entourage arrived in a Mexico ruled by terror, where revolutionary fervor was barely suppressed by French troops. When the United States, now clear of its own Civil War, aided the rebels in pushing back Maximilian’s imperial soldiers, the French army withdrew, abandoning the young couple. The regime fell apart.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Excellent
- By Kyle P. Dalton on 03-24-22
By: Edward Shawcross
-
Three Tigers, One Mountain
- A Journey Through the Bitter History and Current Conflicts of China, Korea, and Japan
- By: Michael Booth
- Narrated by: Julian Elfer
- Length: 10 hrs and 44 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 166
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 146
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 147
There is an ancient Chinese proverb that states, "Two tigers cannot share the same mountain." However, in East Asia, there are three tigers on that mountain: China, Japan, and Korea, and they have a long history of turmoil and tension with each other. In his latest entertaining and thought-provoking narrative travelogue, Michael Booth sets out to discover how deep, really, the enmity is between these three "tiger" nations and what prevents them from making peace.
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
Not much new here if you are already familiar
- By Anonymous User on 07-13-20
By: Michael Booth
Publisher's summary
An Outside Magazine 2021 Science Book Pick
One of Smithsonian's 10 Best Science Books of 2021
A taboo-busting romp through the shame, stink, and strange science of sweating.
Sweating may be one of our weirdest biological functions, but it’s also one of our most vital and least understood. In The Joy of Sweat, Sarah Everts delves into its role in the body - and in human history.
Why is sweat salty? Why do we sweat when stressed? Why do some people produce colorful sweat? And should you worry about Big Brother tracking the hundreds of molecules that leak out in your sweat - not just the stinky ones or alleged pheromones - but the ones that reveal secrets about your health and vices?
Everts’ entertaining investigation takes listeners around the world - from Moscow, where she participates in a dating event in which people sniff sweat in search of love, to New Jersey, where companies hire trained armpit sniffers to assess the efficacy of their anti-sweat products. In Finland, Everts explores the delights of the legendary smoke sauna and the purported health benefits of good sweat, while in the Netherlands she slips into the sauna theater scene, replete with costumes, special effects, and towel dancing.
Along the way, Everts traces humanity’s long quest to control sweat, culminating in the multibillion-dollar industry for deodorants and antiperspirants. And she shows that while sweating can be annoying, our sophisticated temperature control strategy is one of humanity’s most powerful biological traits.
Deeply researched and written with great zest, The Joy of Sweat is a fresh take on a gross but engrossing fact of human life.
Critic reviews
"An entertaining and illuminating guide to the necessity and virtues of perspiration…Everts is a crisp and lively writer." (Jennifer Szalai, New York Times)
"Everts has charm and enthusiasm, writes breezily and, along the way, effectively debunks a number of enduring myths.... [F]un, entertaining and full of interesting facts. (Simon Humphreys, The Mail on Sunday)
"A fascinating account of an involuntary bodily function that turns out to be as unique as a fingerprint." (Irina Dumitrescu, Times Literary Supplement (UK))
Related to this topic
-
Gulp
- Adventures on the Alimentary Canal
- By: Mary Roach
- Narrated by: Emily Woo Zeller
- Length: 8 hrs and 21 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 3,916
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 3,459
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 3,464
Best-selling author Mary Roach returns with a new adventure to the invisible realm we carry around inside. Roach takes us down the hatch on an unforgettable tour. The alimentary canal is classic Mary Roach terrain: The questions explored in Gulp are as taboo, in their way, as the cadavers in Stiff and every bit as surreal as the universe of zero gravity explored in Packing for Mars. Why is crunchy food so appealing? Why is it so hard to find words for flavors and smells? Why doesn’t the stomach digest itself? How much can you eat before your stomach bursts?
-
3 out of 5 stars
-
Funtastic Voyage
- By Mel on 04-05-13
By: Mary Roach
-
That's the Way the Cookie Crumbles
- 65 All New Commentaries on the Fascinating Chemistry of Everyday Life
- By: Dr. Joe Schwarcz
- Narrated by: Walter Dixon
- Length: 7 hrs and 41 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 38
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 33
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 32
Interesting anecdotes and engaging tales make science fun, meaningful, and accessible. Separating sense from nonsense and fact from myth, these essays cover everything from the ups of helium to the downs of drain cleaners and provide answers to numerous mysteries, such as why bug juice is used to color ice cream and how spies used secret inks. Mercury in teeth, arsenic in water, lead in the environment, and aspartame in food are discussed.
-
1 out of 5 stars
-
Very cavalier attitude
- By Paula on 11-14-14
By: Dr. Joe Schwarcz
-
The Second Book of General Ignorance
- Everything You Think You Know Is (Still) Wrong
- By: John Lloyd, John Mitchinson
- Narrated by: Julian Elfer
- Length: 10 hrs and 46 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 112
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 87
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 86
Just when you thought that it was safe to start showing off again, John Lloyd and John Mitchinson are back with another busload of mistakes and misunderstandings. Here is a new collection of simple, perfectly obvious questions you'll be quite certain you know the answers to. Whether it's history, science, sports, geography, literature, language, medicine, the classics, or common wisdom, you'll be astonished to discover that everything you thought you knew is still hopelessly wrong.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
It's all stuff from QI
- By Bonnie Kennedy on 04-07-21
By: John Lloyd, and others
-
Proof
- The Science of Booze
- By: Adam Rogers
- Narrated by: Sean Runnette
- Length: 8 hrs and 45 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 1,565
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 1,383
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 1,376
In Proof, Adam Rogers reveals alcohol as a miracle of science, going deep into the pleasures of making and drinking booze—and the effects of the latter. The people who make and sell alcohol may talk about history and tradition, but alcohol production is really powered by physics, molecular biology, organic chemistry, and a bit of metallurgy—and our taste for those products is a melding of psychology and neurobiology.
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
Great listening to all about booze
- By Atila on 08-02-14
By: Adam Rogers
-
Poisons
- From Hemlock to Botox and the Killer Bean Calabar
- By: Peter Macinnis
- Narrated by: Stephen Hoye
- Length: 7 hrs and 36 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 78
-
Performance4 out of 5 stars 71
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 70
A wide-ranging and provocative look - teeming with little-known facts and engaging stories - at a subject of the direst interest. Poisons permeate our world. They are in the environment, the workplace, the home. They are in food, our favorite whiskey, medicine, well water. They have been used to cure disease as well as incapacitate and kill. They smooth wrinkles, block pain, stimulate, and enhance athletic ability. In this entertaining and fact-filled audiobook, science writer Peter Macinnis considers poisons in all their aspects. He recounts stories of the celebrated poisoners in history and literature....
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
#MyNonFictionAddiction
- By IsleWait on 11-07-19
By: Peter Macinnis
-
Quackery
- A Brief History of the Worst Ways to Cure Everything
- By: Lydia Kang, Nate Pedersen
- Narrated by: Hillary Huber
- Length: 10 hrs and 29 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 951
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 822
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 822
What won't we try in our quest for perfect health, beauty, and the fountain of youth? Well, just imagine a time when doctors prescribed morphine for crying infants. When liquefied gold was touted as immortality in a glass. And when strychnine - yes, that strychnine, the one used in rat poison - was dosed like Viagra. Looking back with fascination, horror, and not a little dash of dark, knowing humor, Quackery recounts the lively, at times unbelievable, history of medical misfires and malpractices.
-
2 out of 5 stars
-
Computer-generated Narrator. Dated Humour.
- By Nemo on 12-28-18
By: Lydia Kang, and others
-
Gulp
- Adventures on the Alimentary Canal
- By: Mary Roach
- Narrated by: Emily Woo Zeller
- Length: 8 hrs and 21 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 3,916
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 3,459
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 3,464
Best-selling author Mary Roach returns with a new adventure to the invisible realm we carry around inside. Roach takes us down the hatch on an unforgettable tour. The alimentary canal is classic Mary Roach terrain: The questions explored in Gulp are as taboo, in their way, as the cadavers in Stiff and every bit as surreal as the universe of zero gravity explored in Packing for Mars. Why is crunchy food so appealing? Why is it so hard to find words for flavors and smells? Why doesn’t the stomach digest itself? How much can you eat before your stomach bursts?
-
3 out of 5 stars
-
Funtastic Voyage
- By Mel on 04-05-13
By: Mary Roach
-
That's the Way the Cookie Crumbles
- 65 All New Commentaries on the Fascinating Chemistry of Everyday Life
- By: Dr. Joe Schwarcz
- Narrated by: Walter Dixon
- Length: 7 hrs and 41 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 38
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 33
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 32
Interesting anecdotes and engaging tales make science fun, meaningful, and accessible. Separating sense from nonsense and fact from myth, these essays cover everything from the ups of helium to the downs of drain cleaners and provide answers to numerous mysteries, such as why bug juice is used to color ice cream and how spies used secret inks. Mercury in teeth, arsenic in water, lead in the environment, and aspartame in food are discussed.
-
1 out of 5 stars
-
Very cavalier attitude
- By Paula on 11-14-14
By: Dr. Joe Schwarcz
-
The Second Book of General Ignorance
- Everything You Think You Know Is (Still) Wrong
- By: John Lloyd, John Mitchinson
- Narrated by: Julian Elfer
- Length: 10 hrs and 46 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 112
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 87
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 86
Just when you thought that it was safe to start showing off again, John Lloyd and John Mitchinson are back with another busload of mistakes and misunderstandings. Here is a new collection of simple, perfectly obvious questions you'll be quite certain you know the answers to. Whether it's history, science, sports, geography, literature, language, medicine, the classics, or common wisdom, you'll be astonished to discover that everything you thought you knew is still hopelessly wrong.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
It's all stuff from QI
- By Bonnie Kennedy on 04-07-21
By: John Lloyd, and others
-
Proof
- The Science of Booze
- By: Adam Rogers
- Narrated by: Sean Runnette
- Length: 8 hrs and 45 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 1,565
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 1,383
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 1,376
In Proof, Adam Rogers reveals alcohol as a miracle of science, going deep into the pleasures of making and drinking booze—and the effects of the latter. The people who make and sell alcohol may talk about history and tradition, but alcohol production is really powered by physics, molecular biology, organic chemistry, and a bit of metallurgy—and our taste for those products is a melding of psychology and neurobiology.
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
Great listening to all about booze
- By Atila on 08-02-14
By: Adam Rogers
-
Poisons
- From Hemlock to Botox and the Killer Bean Calabar
- By: Peter Macinnis
- Narrated by: Stephen Hoye
- Length: 7 hrs and 36 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 78
-
Performance4 out of 5 stars 71
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 70
A wide-ranging and provocative look - teeming with little-known facts and engaging stories - at a subject of the direst interest. Poisons permeate our world. They are in the environment, the workplace, the home. They are in food, our favorite whiskey, medicine, well water. They have been used to cure disease as well as incapacitate and kill. They smooth wrinkles, block pain, stimulate, and enhance athletic ability. In this entertaining and fact-filled audiobook, science writer Peter Macinnis considers poisons in all their aspects. He recounts stories of the celebrated poisoners in history and literature....
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
#MyNonFictionAddiction
- By IsleWait on 11-07-19
By: Peter Macinnis
-
Quackery
- A Brief History of the Worst Ways to Cure Everything
- By: Lydia Kang, Nate Pedersen
- Narrated by: Hillary Huber
- Length: 10 hrs and 29 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 951
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 822
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 822
What won't we try in our quest for perfect health, beauty, and the fountain of youth? Well, just imagine a time when doctors prescribed morphine for crying infants. When liquefied gold was touted as immortality in a glass. And when strychnine - yes, that strychnine, the one used in rat poison - was dosed like Viagra. Looking back with fascination, horror, and not a little dash of dark, knowing humor, Quackery recounts the lively, at times unbelievable, history of medical misfires and malpractices.
-
2 out of 5 stars
-
Computer-generated Narrator. Dated Humour.
- By Nemo on 12-28-18
By: Lydia Kang, and others
-
A Brief History of Vice
- How Bad Behavior Built Civilization
- By: Robert Evans
- Narrated by: Tristan Morris
- Length: 7 hrs and 42 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 950
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 825
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 824
Guns, germs, and steel might have transformed us from hunter-gatherers into modern man, but booze, sex, trash talk, and tripping built our civilization. Cracked editor Robert Evans brings his signature dogged research and lively insight to uncover the many and magnificent ways vice has influenced history, from the prostitute-turned-empress who scored a major victory for women's rights to the beer that helped create - and destroy - South America's first empire.
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
Funny and somewhat informative
- By Neuron on 08-20-16
By: Robert Evans
-
The Sawbones Book
- The Horrifying, Hilarious Road to Modern Medicine
- By: Justin McElroy, Dr. Sydnee McElroy
- Narrated by: Justin McElroy, Dr. Sydnee McElroy
- Length: 6 hrs and 29 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 1,860
-
Performance4 out of 5 stars 1,683
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 1,671
Wondering whether eating powdered mummies might be just the thing to cure your ills? Tempted by those vintage ads suggesting you wear radioactive underpants for virility? Ever considered drilling a hole in your head to deal with those pesky headaches? Probably not. But for thousands of years, people have done things like this - and things that make radioactive underpants seem downright sensible! In their hit podcast, Sawbones, Sydnee and Justin McElroy breakdown the weird and wonderful way we got to modern healthcare. And some of the terrifying detours along the way.
-
2 out of 5 stars
-
Close but no cigar . . .
- By Amanda Buffkin on 12-22-18
By: Justin McElroy, and others
-
Grunt
- The Curious Science of Humans at War
- By: Mary Roach
- Narrated by: Abby Elvidge
- Length: 8 hrs and 54 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 2,300
-
Performance4 out of 5 stars 2,067
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 2,063
Grunt tackles the science behind some of a soldier's most challenging adversaries - panic, exhaustion, heat, noise - and introduces us to the scientists who seek to conquer them. Mary Roach dodges hostile fire with the U.S. Marine Corps Paintball Team as part of a study on hearing loss and survivability in combat. She visits the fashion design studio of U.S. Army Natick Labs and learns why a zipper is a problem for a sniper.
-
3 out of 5 stars
-
I Usually Love Mary Roach, But--
- By Gillian on 12-07-16
By: Mary Roach
-
Mycophilia
- Revelations From the Weird World of Mushrooms
- By: Eugenia Bone
- Narrated by: Aimee Jolson
- Length: 11 hrs and 2 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 553
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 487
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 482
In Mycophilia, accomplished food writer and cookbook author Eugenia Bone examines the role of fungi as exotic delicacy, curative, poison, and hallucinogen, and ultimately discovers that a greater understanding of fungi is key to facing many challenges of the 21st century.
-
1 out of 5 stars
-
Absolutely awful, insufferable, racist author
- By Rs 🦇 on 11-25-19
By: Eugenia Bone
-
Breath
- The New Science of a Lost Art
- By: James Nestor
- Narrated by: James Nestor
- Length: 7 hrs and 18 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 9,218
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 7,270
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 7,213
There is nothing more essential to our health and well-being than breathing. Yet, as a species, humans have lost the ability to breathe correctly, with grave consequences. Journalist James Nestor travels the world to figure out what went wrong and how to fix it. The answers aren’t found in pulmonology labs, as we might expect, but in the muddy digs of ancient burial sites, secret Soviet facilities, New Jersey choir schools, and the smoggy streets of São Paulo. Nestor tracks down men and women exploring the hidden science behind ancient breathing practices.
-
3 out of 5 stars
-
Does NOT coincide with Book text
- By FamAzz on 07-13-20
By: James Nestor
-
Caffeinated
- How Our Daily Habit Helps, Hurts, and Hooks Us
- By: Murray Carpenter
- Narrated by: Sean Pratt
- Length: 9 hrs and 15 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 72
-
Performance4 out of 5 stars 68
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 69
The most popular drug in America is a white powder. No, not that powder. This is caffeine in its most essential state. And Caffeinated reveals the little-known truth about this addictive, largely unregulated drug found in coffee, energy drinks, teas, colas, chocolate, and even pain relievers. Drawing on the latest research, Caffeinated brings us the inside perspective at the additive that Salt Sugar Fat overlooked.
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
Caffeine in all its myriad presentations
- By Bonny on 04-12-14
By: Murray Carpenter
-
Farmacology
- Total Health from the Ground Up
- By: Daphne Miller MD
- Narrated by: Sarah Mollo-Christensen
- Length: 8 hrs and 14 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 359
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 313
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 310
Can urban farms reduce neighborhood crime? These may not sound like typical questions for a family physician to consider, but in Farmacology, Daphne Miller, MD, ventures out of her medical office and travels to seven innovative family farms around the country on a quest to discover the hidden connections between how we care for our bodies and how we grow our food. Miller also seeks out the perspectives of noted biomedical scientists and artfully weaves in their research, along with stories from her own practice. Farmacology offers a profound new approach to healing.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Crystals and all - great book
- By Topherwayne on 02-22-20
By: Daphne Miller MD
-
Biomimicry
- Innovation Inspired by Nature
- By: Janine M. Benyus
- Narrated by: Callie Beaulieu
- Length: 14 hrs and 55 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 56
-
Performance4 out of 5 stars 44
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 44
Biomimicry is rapidly transforming life on earth. Biomimics study nature's most successful ideas over the past 3.5 million years, and adapt them for human use. The results are revolutionizing how materials are invented and how we compute, heal ourselves, repair the environment, and feed the world. Janine Benyus takes listeners into the lab and in the field with maverick thinkers as they: discover miracle drugs by watching what chimps eat when they're sick; learn how to create by watching spiders weave fibers; and many more examples.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Dated but good
- By stephen taylor on 09-05-21
By: Janine M. Benyus
-
This Is Your Brain on Parasites
- How Tiny Creatures Manipulate Our Behavior and Shape Society
- By: Kathleen McAuliffe
- Narrated by: Nicol Zanzarella
- Length: 8 hrs and 20 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 1,109
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 986
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 984
A riveting investigation of the myriad ways that parasites control how other creatures - including humans - think, feel, and act. These tiny organisms can live only inside another animal, and, as McAuliffe reveals, they have many evolutionary motives for manipulating their host's behavior. Far more often than appreciated, these puppeteers orchestrate the interplay between predator and prey.
-
3 out of 5 stars
-
Entertaining but questionable studies
- By mdkoci on 01-02-17
-
How to Smoke Pot (Properly)
- A Highbrow Guide to Getting High
- By: David Bienenstock
- Narrated by: Graham Halstead
- Length: 7 hrs and 36 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 78
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 69
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 70
Once literally demonized as "the Devil's lettuce" and linked to all manner of deviant behavior by the establishment's shameless antimarijuana propaganda campaigns, Cannabis sativa has lately been enjoying a long-overdue Renaissance. So now that the squares at long last seem ready to rethink pot's place in polite society, how, exactly, can members of this vibrant, innovative, life-affirming culture proudly and properly emerge from the underground - without forgetting our roots or losing our cool?
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Great
- By Alejandro on 04-25-16
-
What Makes Olga Run?
- The Mystery of the 90-Something Track Star and What She Can Teach Us about Living Longer, Happier Lives
- By: Bruce Grierson
- Narrated by: Sean Pratt
- Length: 8 hrs and 6 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 77
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 66
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 64
In What Makes Olga Run? Bruce Grierson explores what the wild success of a 94-year-old track star can tell us about how our bodies and minds age. Olga Kotelko is not your average 94-year-old. She not only looks and acts like a much younger woman, she holds over 23 world records in track and field, 17 in her current 90 to 95 category. Convinced that this remarkable woman could help unlock many of the mysteries of aging, Grierson set out to uncover what it is that's driving Olga.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
I can't stop talking about this book
- By David Shear on 05-27-14
By: Bruce Grierson
-
Napoleon's Buttons
- 17 Molecules That Changed History
- By: Penny Le Couteur, Jay Burreson
- Narrated by: Laural Merlington
- Length: 11 hrs and 6 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 308
-
Performance4 out of 5 stars 268
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 269
Napoleon's Buttons is the fascinating account of 17 groups of molecules that have greatly influenced the course of history. These molecules provided the impetus for early exploration, and made possible the voyages of discovery that ensued. The molecules resulted in grand feats of engineering and spurred advances in medicine and law; they determined what we now eat, drink, and wear. A change as small as the position of an atom can lead to enormous alterations in the properties of a substance.
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
Wish one of the authors would have read this book
- By A.J. on 03-09-12
By: Penny Le Couteur, and others