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by Kathleen McAuliffe (Author)
"Engrossing ... [An] expedition through the hidden and sometimes horrifying microbial domain." --Wall Street Journal "Fascinating--and full of the kind of factoids you can't wait to share." --Scientific American
Parasites can live only inside another animal and, as Kathleen McAuliffe reveals, these tiny organisms have many evolutionary motives for manipulating the behavior of their hosts. With astonishing precision, parasites can coax rats to approach cats, spiders to transform the patterns of their webs, and fish to draw the attention of birds that then swoop down to feast on them. We humans are hardly immune to their influence. Organisms we pick up from our own pets are strongly suspected of changing our personality traits and contributing to recklessness and impulsivity--even suicide. Germs that cause colds and the flu may alter our behavior even before symptoms become apparent.
Author Biography
KATHLEEN MCAULIFFE is a journalist whose work has appeared in The Best American Science and Nature Writing and more than a dozen national magazines, including Atlantic, Discover, the New York Times Magazine, and Smithsonian.
