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318 reviews for:
Die erstaunliche Wahrheit über Tiere: Was Mythen und Irrtümer über uns verraten
Lucy Cooke
4.23 AVERAGE
318 reviews for:
Die erstaunliche Wahrheit über Tiere: Was Mythen und Irrtümer über uns verraten
Lucy Cooke
4.23 AVERAGE
funny
informative
lighthearted
Through 13 chapters, each dedicated to a different animal, Lucy Cooke offers up a host of Animal histories weird facts and experiments. From Space Storks, Conscripted Bats, elusive Eels to a daring mission for a penguin egg and a glimpse of a young Simund Freud.
Peppered throughout are anecdotes about other animals and her own experiences. I absolutely loved this one, itbwas so funny and eye opening in terms of the beliefs and thoeries of the past.
It concludes, warning the dangers of anthropomorphism and the arrogance of humans, how we have a history of viewing the animal kindgom to source our own needs instead of existing separately from us.
Definitely a perfect read for anyone with nature interests, be warned that it can be a little graphic in terms of past experiments.
Peppered throughout are anecdotes about other animals and her own experiences. I absolutely loved this one, itbwas so funny and eye opening in terms of the beliefs and thoeries of the past.
It concludes, warning the dangers of anthropomorphism and the arrogance of humans, how we have a history of viewing the animal kindgom to source our own needs instead of existing separately from us.
Definitely a perfect read for anyone with nature interests, be warned that it can be a little graphic in terms of past experiments.
Tons of interesting facts in here, but I did find it a bit frustrating at times. This is no weakness of the book itself but if its historical subjects; the author went back through the history of what we know about a lot of these creatures, back to the days when the “experts” were men of “science” who put broad and sometimes outright fantastical assumptions (guesses, outright lies?) about their subjects into publications, thereby cementing this disinformation for years, sometimes decades, with seemingly zero interest in the verification of facts or testing of theories. This kind of hubris is frustrating at any time, but I think I am a bit more sensitive to it right now than I might have been a few years ago. While some of the incorrect presumptions are understandable (hippos are gentle creatures who are good swimmers), some of them are just outright bizarre (beavers chew off their testicles and throw them at their pursuer in order to distract them (you know, like you would throw your wallet away from you to escape a mugger)).
Amongst all these widely-published, dithering blowhards, there were some men who were actually scientifically minded; although, it’s hard to imagine that they would have been as interested in the inner workings of, say, bat sonar if they had had to adhere to the stricter ethical norms that are in place today regarding animal experimentation. They seemed a little TOO interested in the inner workings of their subjects for my taste, but perhaps that’s just me being squeamish and unfairly judge-y of the attitudes of the time.
Anyway, those are the big cons for me for this book, but they really do pale in comparison to the other interesting facts in celebration of these animals’ unique characteristics and abilities. (You can get a good sample of the types of facts and the author’s tone in my MANY highlighted excerpts). Overall, the author’s appreciation of them shines through, and the book serves as a celebration of discovery and curiosity.
Amongst all these widely-published, dithering blowhards, there were some men who were actually scientifically minded; although, it’s hard to imagine that they would have been as interested in the inner workings of, say, bat sonar if they had had to adhere to the stricter ethical norms that are in place today regarding animal experimentation. They seemed a little TOO interested in the inner workings of their subjects for my taste, but perhaps that’s just me being squeamish and unfairly judge-y of the attitudes of the time.
Anyway, those are the big cons for me for this book, but they really do pale in comparison to the other interesting facts in celebration of these animals’ unique characteristics and abilities. (You can get a good sample of the types of facts and the author’s tone in my MANY highlighted excerpts). Overall, the author’s appreciation of them shines through, and the book serves as a celebration of discovery and curiosity.
Glorious and often funny look at the idiosyncrasies and just plain evolutionary marvels of a selection of animals and the misunderstood myths that got allocated to them.
But the book is not just about the animals it is also a wonderfully affectionate look at the foibles (and those moments of success) of the keen naturalists and obsessive zoological types throughout history. Their ideas, the glimpses into their lives are often just as entertaining and engaging as the animals themselves. The sincerity, with which the most absurd hypothesis were embraced, are enhanced as the author brings to light not just their most vocal advocates but also their dissenting compatriots, as in the case of Swedish Bishop Olaus Magnus firm belief in the then time honoured legend that swallows hibernated underwater over winter in great clumps. But as Lucy points out, "Not everyone bought the hibernation story...Oxford-educated..[Charles] Morton...proposed the more rational hypothesis that swallows, as well as other seasonal birds like the stork, migrated to the Moon." In fact, this book is full of similar delightful differences, down to outright feuds, including one Thomas Jefferson against a recurring character, the 'grandiose Comte de Buffon', who was responsible for the most amazing histrionic and over the top descriptions.
The author also recounts more current pursuits, including her own, in the name of zoological science and these were equally fun to read, though also sometimes a wee bit disconcerting and lets just say that the intersection of the phrases 'beaver anal glands' and 'natural vanilla flavour' might have me looking a bit sideways at my next icecream.
As for Lucy's writings about the animals themselves, these completely met and surpassed my expectations. To be honest, I was going to skip the chapter on eels (I came here for the mammals and avians) but I took a glance to see what angle she would take, what misinformation the humble eel (which turned out to be more extraordinary than humble) was saddled with. Welp, one chapter down I had an entirely new appreciation for eels, had been thoroughly entranced by stories of those plagued by the question of eel reproduction and was as "giddy with discovery [as] Grassi [was when he] proclaimed the Strait of Messina...to be the breeding ground of all European eels, thereby claiming the lip-smacking fish and its extraordinary lifecycle as the property of the newly united Kingdom of Italy."
Basically, I am just fangirling this book for being not just the playfully clever look at animals and their myths that I expected it to be but also for all its extra goodies in the shape of; the morsels of history info, the random but awesome linguistics moment, and the necessary conversation around conservation.
But the book is not just about the animals it is also a wonderfully affectionate look at the foibles (and those moments of success) of the keen naturalists and obsessive zoological types throughout history. Their ideas, the glimpses into their lives are often just as entertaining and engaging as the animals themselves. The sincerity, with which the most absurd hypothesis were embraced, are enhanced as the author brings to light not just their most vocal advocates but also their dissenting compatriots, as in the case of Swedish Bishop Olaus Magnus firm belief in the then time honoured legend that swallows hibernated underwater over winter in great clumps. But as Lucy points out, "Not everyone bought the hibernation story...Oxford-educated..[Charles] Morton...proposed the more rational hypothesis that swallows, as well as other seasonal birds like the stork, migrated to the Moon." In fact, this book is full of similar delightful differences, down to outright feuds, including one Thomas Jefferson against a recurring character, the 'grandiose Comte de Buffon', who was responsible for the most amazing histrionic and over the top descriptions.
The author also recounts more current pursuits, including her own, in the name of zoological science and these were equally fun to read, though also sometimes a wee bit disconcerting and lets just say that the intersection of the phrases 'beaver anal glands' and 'natural vanilla flavour' might have me looking a bit sideways at my next icecream.
As for Lucy's writings about the animals themselves, these completely met and surpassed my expectations. To be honest, I was going to skip the chapter on eels (I came here for the mammals and avians) but I took a glance to see what angle she would take, what misinformation the humble eel (which turned out to be more extraordinary than humble) was saddled with. Welp, one chapter down I had an entirely new appreciation for eels, had been thoroughly entranced by stories of those plagued by the question of eel reproduction and was as "giddy with discovery [as] Grassi [was when he] proclaimed the Strait of Messina...to be the breeding ground of all European eels, thereby claiming the lip-smacking fish and its extraordinary lifecycle as the property of the newly united Kingdom of Italy."
Basically, I am just fangirling this book for being not just the playfully clever look at animals and their myths that I expected it to be but also for all its extra goodies in the shape of; the morsels of history info, the random but awesome linguistics moment, and the necessary conversation around conservation.
funny
informative
lighthearted
fast-paced
If you like animals and cheesy humor, this is an interesting read. There is a large focus on myths that stemmed from the embarrassing depths of early zoology, which was entertaining for the most part. I think that the author was more interested in clowning on certain historical figures than anything else, so it did get a tad repetitive at times. Overall though, when the text was gearing more towards animal facts, I found this to be a pretty decent read.
adventurous
funny
informative
inspiring
medium-paced
I love animal facts and this is a masterful mix of earnest love for the weirdest creatures out there and the humbling history of how much we got wrong about them. The coffers of my "did you know?" bank have been delightfully refilled. Cooke makes a great audiobook narrator as well. I highly recommend.
adventurous
funny
informative
lighthearted
fast-paced
The Truth About Animals is a collection of history and latest scientific findings of 13 amazing animals that have been largely misunderstood. To name a few: sloth is not the nature's misfit but a strong survivor and a perfect result of the natural selection; The cuteness of pandas in our eyes severely distorted our understanding of the animal (sex-shy? no); Live African clawed frogs were used in the first reliable pregnancy test, and this frog species, brought by humans to the rest of the world, may be responsible for the deadly amphibian chytrid fungus that is wiping out other amphibians species all over the world.
Humans have been looking for meanings and drawing moral lessons from animals since ancient Greece. In this book, Lucy Cooke discusses that in medieval Christian literature, religious views heavily influenced the early western understanding of many animals, from the drunken moose to the penguins thought to resemble the conservative Christian family values. Anthropomorphism is the consequence of the human psych, as it reflects our false belief that we are the center of the natural world. The author criticizes China's panda conservation--the inadequacy of protecting the animals natural habitat, the focus on AI-based breeding program only, and the re-wilding of these animals has a long way to go.
Humans have been looking for meanings and drawing moral lessons from animals since ancient Greece. In this book, Lucy Cooke discusses that in medieval Christian literature, religious views heavily influenced the early western understanding of many animals, from the drunken moose to the penguins thought to resemble the conservative Christian family values. Anthropomorphism is the consequence of the human psych, as it reflects our false belief that we are the center of the natural world. The author criticizes China's panda conservation--the inadequacy of protecting the animals natural habitat, the focus on AI-based breeding program only, and the re-wilding of these animals has a long way to go.