Best Selling Books by Carl Zimmer

For years, scientists have been warning us that a pandemic was all but inevitable. Now it''s here, and the rest of us have a lot to learn. Fortunately, science writer Carl Zimmer is here to guide us. In this compact volume, he tells the story of how the smallest living things known to science can bring an entire planet of people to a halt--and what we can learn from how we''ve defeated them in the past. Planet of Viruses covers such threats as Ebola, MERS, and chikungunya virus; tells about recent scientific discoveries, such as a hundred-million-year-old virus that infected the common ancestor of armadillos, elephants, and humans; and shares new findings that show why climate change may lead to even deadlier outbreaks. Zimmer’s lucid explanations and fascinating stories demonstrate how deeply humans and viruses are intertwined. Viruses helped give rise to the first life-forms, are responsible for many of our most devastating diseases, and will continue to control our fate for centuries. Thoroughly readable, and, for all its honesty about the threats, as reassuring as it is frightening, A Planet of Viruses is a fascinating tour of a world we all need to better understand.

"Students will learn the fundamental concepts of evolutionary theory, such as natural selection, genetic drift, phylogeny, and coevolution. Evolution: Making Sense of Life also drives home the relevance of evolution for disciplines ranging from conservation biology to medicine"--

FINALIST FOR THE PEN/E.O. WILSON LITERARY SCIENCE WRITING AWARD***A NEW YORK TIMES NOTABLE BOOK OF 2021***A SCIENCE NEWS FAVORITE BOOK OF 2021***A SMITHSONIAN TOP TEN SCIENCE BOOK OF 2021 “Stories that both dazzle and edify… This book is not just about life, but about discovery itself.” —Siddhartha Mukherjee, New York Times Book Review We all assume we know what life is, but the more scientists learn about the living world—from protocells to brains, from zygotes to pandemic viruses—the harder they find it is to locate life’s edge. Carl Zimmer investigates one of the biggest questions of all: What is life? The answer seems obvious until you try to seriously answer it. Is the apple sitting on your kitchen counter alive, or is only the apple tree it came from deserving of the word? If we can’t answer that question here on earth, how will we know when and if we discover alien life on other worlds? The question hangs over some of society’s most charged conflicts—whether a fertilized egg is a living person, for example, and when we ought to declare a person legally dead. Life''s Edge is an utterly fascinating investigation that no one but one of the most celebrated science writers of our generation could craft. Zimmer journeys through the strange experiments that have attempted to re-create life. Literally hundreds of definitions of what that should look like now exist, but none has yet emerged as an obvious winner. Lists of what living things have in common do not add up to a theory of life. It''s never clear why some items on the list are essential and others not. Coronaviruses have altered the course of history, and yet many scientists maintain they are not alive. Chemists are creating droplets that can swarm, sense their environment, and multiply. Have they made life in the lab? Whether he is handling pythons in Alabama or searching for hibernating bats in the Adirondacks, Zimmer revels in astounding examples of life at its most bizarre. He tries his own hand at evolving life in a test tube with unnerving results. Charting the obsession with Dr. Frankenstein''s monster and how the world briefly believed radium was the source of all life, Zimmer leads us all the way into the labs and minds of researchers engineering life from scratch.

Used widely in non-majors biology classes, The Tangled Bank is the first textbook about evolution intended for the general reader. Zimmer, an award-winning science writer, takes readers on a fascinating journey into the latest discoveries about evolution. In the Canadian Arctic, paleontologists unearth fossils documenting the move of our ancestors from sea to land. In the outback of Australia, a zoologist tracks some of the world’s deadliest snakes to decipher the 100-million-year evolution of venom molecules. In Africa, geneticists are gathering DNA to probe the origin of our species. In clear, non-technical language, Zimmer explains the central concepts essential for understanding new advances in evolution, including natural selection, genetic drift, and sexual selection. He demonstrates how vital evolution is to all branches of modern biology—from the fight against deadly antibiotic-resistant bacteria to the analysis of the human genome.

A Best Book of the YearSeed Magazine • Granta Magazine • The Plain-DealerIn this fascinating and utterly engaging book, Carl Zimmer traces E. coli''s pivotal role in the history of biology, from the discovery of DNA to the latest advances in biotechnology. He reveals the many surprising and alarming parallels between E. coli''s life and our own. And he describes how E. coli changes in real time, revealing billions of years of history encoded within its genome. E. coli is also the most engineered species on Earth, and as scientists retool this microbe to produce life-saving drugs and clean fuel, they are discovering just how far the definition of life can be stretched.

Combining the literary sensibility of David Quammen with the scientific rigor of Stephen Jay Gould, Carl Zimmer reveals the power, danger, and beauty of the surprising creatures who dominate the earth: parasites. For centuries, parasites have lived in nightmares, horror stories, and the darkest shadows of science. In Parasite Rex, Carl Zimmer takes readers 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.

At the beginning of Europe''s turbulent seventeenth century, no one knew how the brain worked. By the century''s close, the science of the brain had taken root, helping to overturn many common misconceptions about the human body as well as to unseat centuries-old philosophies of man and God. Presiding over this evolution was the founder of modern neurology, Thomas Willis, a fascinating, sympathetic, even heroic figure who stands at the centre of an extraordinary group of scientists and philosophers known as the ''Oxford circle''. Chronicled here in vivid detail are their groundbreaking revelations and often gory experiments that first enshrined the brain as the chemical engine of reason, emotion, and madness - indeed as the very seat of the human soul.

Body art meets popular science in this elegant, mind-blowing collection, written by renowned science writer Carl Zimmer. This fascinating book showcases hundreds of eye-catching tattoos that pay tribute to various scientific disciplines, from evolutionary biology and neuroscience to mathematics and astrophysics, and reveals the stories of the individuals who chose to inscribe their obsessions in their skin. Best of all, each tattoo provides a leaping-off point for bestselling essayist and lecturer Zimmer to reflect on the science in question, whether its the importance of an image of Darwins finches or the significance of the uranium atom inked into the chest of a young radiologist.

Everybody Out of the Pond At the Water''s Edge will change the way you think about your place in the world. The awesome journey of life''s transformation from the first microbes 4 billion years ago to Homo sapiens today is an epic that we are only now beginning to grasp. Magnificent and bizarre, it is the story of how we got here, what we left behind, and what we brought with us. We all know about evolution, but it still seems absurd that our ancestors were fish. Darwin''s idea of natural selection was the key to solving generation-to-generation evolution -- microevolution -- but it could only point us toward a complete explanation, still to come, of the engines of macroevolution, the transformation of body shapes across millions of years. Now, drawing on the latest fossil discoveries and breakthrough scientific analysis, Carl Zimmer reveals how macroevolution works. Escorting us along the trail of discovery up to the current dramatic research in paleontology, ecology, genetics, and embryology, Zimmer shows how scientists today are unveiling the secrets of life that biologists struggled with two centuries ago. In this book, you will find a dazzling, brash literary talent and a rigorous scientific sensibility gracefully brought together. Carl Zimmer provides a comprehensive, lucid, and authoritative answer to the mystery of how nature actually made itself.

The fascinating, untold story of the air we breathe, the hidden life it contains, and invisible dangers that can turn the world upside down Every day we draw in two thousand gallons of air—and thousands of living things. From the ground to the stratosphere, the air teems with invisible life. This last great biological frontier remains so mysterious that it took over two years for scientists to finally agree that the Covid pandemic was caused by an airborne virus. In Air-Borne, award-winning New York Times columnist and author Carl Zimmer leads us on an odyssey through the living atmosphere and through the history of its discovery. We travel to the tops of mountain glaciers, where Louis Pasteur caught germs from the air, and follow Amelia Earhart and Charles Lindbergh above the clouds, where they conducted groundbreaking experiments. We meet the long-forgotten pioneers of aerobiology including William and Mildred Wells, who tried for decades to warn the world about airborne infections, only to die in obscurity. Air-Borne chronicles the dark side of aerobiology with gripping accounts of how the United States and the Soviet Union clandestinely built arsenals of airborne biological weapons designed to spread anthrax, smallpox, and an array of other pathogens. Air-Borne also leaves readers looking at the world with new eyes—as a place where the oceans and forests loft trillions of cells into the air, where microbes eat clouds, and where life soars thousands of miles on the wind. Weaving together gripping history with the latest reporting on Covid and other threats to global health, Air-Borne surprises us on every page as it reveals the hidden world of the air.

From the savannas of Africa to modern-day labs for biomechanical analysis and molecular genetics, Smithsonian Intimate Guide to Human Origins reveals how anthropologists are furiously redrawing the human family tree. Their discoveries have spawned a host of new questions: Should chimpanzees be included as a human species? Was it the physical difficulty of human childbirth that encouraged the development of social groups in early human species? Did humans and Neanderthals interbreed? Why did humans supplant Neanderthals in the end? In answering such questions, Smithsonian Intimate Guide to Human Origins sheds new light on one of the most important questions of all: What makes us human?

Award-winning writer, columnist, and journalists Carl Zimmer selects twenty science and nature essays that represent the best examples of the form published in 2022. “What''s most compelling about a scientific story is the way it challenges us to think about the concepts we take for granted,” writes guest editor Carl Zimmer in his introduction. The essays in this year’s Best American Science and Nature Writing probe at the ordinary and urge us to think more deeply about our place in the world around us. From a hopeful portrait of a future for people with Alzheimer’s disease, to a fascinating exploration of the rise of nearsightedness in children, to the heroic story of a herd of cows that evaded a hurricane, these selections reveal how science and nature shape our everyday lives. With tremendous intelligence, clarity, and insight, this anthology offers an expansive look at where we are and where we are headed. The Best American Science and Nature Writing 2023 includes JESSICA CAMILLE AGUIRRE • VANESSA GREGORY • SABRINA IMBLER FERRIS JABR • MARION RENAULT • ELIZABETH SVOBODA NATALIE WOLCHOVER • SARAH ZHANG and others

Humanity has always been intrigued by the timeless question: Where did we come from? In 1974, the discovery of the fossilised bones of a three-million-year-old female dubbed ''Lucy'' captured the world''s attention. This nearly complete skeleton of an early human ancestor not only triggered widespread interest in our human origins but also prompted a thorough re-evaluation of established scientific doctrines. Today, hardly a month goes by without news of significant discoveries that are changing our understanding of human origins at what seems like the speed of lightning. But what does all this new knowledge about our species mean? That''s exactly what acclaimed science writer Carl Zimmer tackles in this accessible, up-to-the-minute guide to human origins. Zimmer offers an entertaining and illuminating journey through our ancestry - beginning sixty-five million years ago with the first primates and ending today, as we enter a new phase of evolution. From ancient fossils unearthed in the Sahara Desert to the analysis of DNA by robots at the National Human Genome Research Institute in suburban Maryland, Zimmer weaves together the varied clues about our human ancestry in an entertaining, informative and highly readable volume that will appeal to expert and general reader alike.

Viruses are the smallest living things known to science, yet they hold the entire planet in their sway. Rabbits with Horns and Other Astounding Viruses explores the bizarre places viruses dwell, and considers the often unexpected ways they influence our world. From agricultural production and crystal caves to rabbits with horns and cervical cancer, viruses are behind many of the wonders—some fascinating, some frightening—of the natural world, as well as some of our greatest medical challenges. Through his engaging considerations of the tobacco mosaic virus, viruses in ocean algae, and the human papillomavirus, award-winning science writer Carl Zimmer brings us up to speed on the nuances and depth of today''s cutting-edge scientific research on virology.

Durante años los científicos nos han estado advirtiendo que una pandemia era casi inevitable. Ahora está aquí y el resto de nosotros tenemos mucho que aprender. Un planeta de virus presenta la investigación más reciente sobre cómo los virus dominan nuestras vidas y nuestra biosfera. Las explicaciones lúcidas de Zimmer y sus fascinantes historias demuestran cuán profundamente están entrelazados los humanos y los virus. Éstos ayudaron a dar lugar a las primeras formas de vida, son responsables de muchas de nuestras enfermedades más devastadoras y continuarán controlando nuestro destino durante siglos. Completamente legible y, a pesar de su honestidad acerca de las amenazas, tan tranquilizador como aterrador, es un fascinante recorrido por un mundo que todos necesitamos comprender mejor.

Der preisgekrönte Wissenschaftsautor Carl Zimmer nimmt uns in diesem Buch mit auf eine faszinierende Reise in die Vergangenheit - und in die Zukunft. Wir erfahren, woher die Menschen kommen und wohin sie vielleicht gehen. Der sehr verständlich geschriebene Band schlägt dabei einen weiten Bogen. Von prähistorischen Fossilien, die in der Sahara ausgegraben wurden, bis zu den DNA-Analyserobotern am National Human Genome Research Institute in einem Vorort von Maryland - es gelingt Zimmer, die verschiedenen Facetten unserer Herkunft und Entwicklung zu einer ebenso unterhaltsamen wie lehrreichen Geschichte zu verbinden, die für Laien und Fachleute gleichermaßen ihren Reiz hat. Fast täglich erweitern neue Entdeckungen unsere Kenntnisse über die Evolution des Menschen und unsere Ursprünge. So gaben Wissenschaftler im Jahre 2004 nach Forschungsarbeiten auf der indonesischen Insel Flores bekannt, dass sie die Überreste sehr kleiner, bisher unbekannter Hominiden gefunden hatten. Diese Menschenvorfahren waren nur einen knappen Meter groß, hatten aber ein ähnlich strukturiertes (wenn auch kleineres) Gehirn als wir. Die kleinen Fossilien - sie wurden auf den Namen Homo floresiensis getauft (und in den Medien auch als "Hobbits" bezeichnet) - sind zum Gegenstand einer hitzigen Diskussion unter den Evolutionsforschern geworden. Die Reise, die wir unter der sachkundigen Führung von Carl Zimmer unternehmen, beginnt vor 65 Millionen Jahren mit den ersten Primaten und endet in der Gegenwart mit dem Übergang zu einer neuen Evolutionsphase. Unterwegs zeichnet der Autor noch einmal die wichtigsten Schritte unserer Evolution nach, darunter jene Phasen, in denen Hominiden zum ersten Mal aufrecht gingen, Werkzeuge herstellten und ein Bewusstsein entwickelten. Dabei gelangt Zimmer zu einer faszinierenden Erkenntnis: Fossilien sind heute nicht mehr die einzige Quelle für Informationen über unsere Entstehungsgeschichte. Wir können den Weg, auf dem wir gekommen sind, auch in unserer eigenen DNA teilweise zurückverfolgen! [Format: 21 x 17,8 cm]

Charles Darwin desempeñó un papel crucial a la hora de convertir la herencia en una cuestión científica y, sin embargo, fracasó estrepitosamente a la hora de responderla. El nacimiento de la genética, a principios del siglo XX, pareció hacer precisamente eso. Poco a poco la gente tradujo sus antiguas nociones sobre la herencia a un lenguaje de genes. A medida que la tecnología para el estudio de los genes se abarató, millones de personas pidieron pruebas genéticas para relacionarse con padres desaparecidos, con antepasados lejanos, con identidades étnicas... Pero, escribe Zimmer, "cada uno de nosotros es portador de una amalgama de fragmentos de ADN, cosidos a partir de algunos de nuestros muchos antepasados. Cada pieza tiene su propia ascendencia, recorriendo un camino diferente a través de la historia de la humanidad. Un fragmento concreto puede ser a veces motivo de preocupación, pero la mayor parte de nuestro ADN influye en lo que somos -nuestro aspecto, nuestra estatura, nuestras inclinaciones- de maneras inconcebiblemente sutiles". La herencia no se limita a los genes que pasan de padres a hijos. La herencia continúa dentro de nuestro propio cuerpo, ya que una sola célula da lugar a trillones de células que conforman nuestro cuerpo. Decimos que heredamos los genes de nuestros antepasados -utilizando una palabra que antaño se refería a reinos y haciendas-, pero heredamos otras cosas que importan tanto o más para nuestras vidas, desde los microbios hasta las tecnologías que utilizamos para hacer la vida más cómoda. Necesitamos una nueva definición de lo que es la herencia y, a través de la lúcida exposición y narración de Carl Zimmer, este resonante tour de force nos la proporciona. Entrelazando investigaciones científicas históricas y actuales, su propia experiencia con sus dos hijas y el tipo de reportaje original que se espera de uno de los mejores periodistas científicos del mundo, Zimmer acaba por desentrañar los urgentes dilemas bioéticos que surgen de las nuevas tecnologías biomédicas, pero también las antiguas presunciones sobre quiénes somos realmente y qué podemos transmitir a las generaciones futuras.

Em 2020, um germe invisível – um vírus – destruiu totalmente nossas vidas. Estamos mais familiarizados com os vírus que nos causam resfriados ou, mais recentemente, covid-19. Mas eles também provocam uma vasta gama de outras doenças, incluindo um distúrbio que faz as pessoas germinarem como árvores. Os vírus fazem parte de nossas vidas há tanto tempo que, na verdade, somos parte vírus: o genoma humano contém mais DNA de vírus do que nossos próprios genes. Enquanto isso, cientistas estão descobrindo vírus em todos os lugares: no solo, no oceano, até mesmo em cavernas profundas a quilômetros de profundidade. Em PLANETA DE VÍRUS, Carl Zimmer, professor da Universidade de Yale e colunista do The New York Times, retira o véu sobre este mundo oculto de modo acessível e elegante. Ele apresenta as pesquisas mais recentes sobre como os vírus controlam nossas vidas e nossa biosfera – incluindo a atual pandemia –, como ajudaram a dar origem às primeiras formas de vida, como estão produzindo novas doenças, como podemos controlá-los para nossos próprios fins e como continuarão a ser parte fundamental da existência da humanidade.

Desde las junglas húmedas de Costa Rica hasta el fétido entorno de las zonas rebeldes del sur de Sudán, Carl Zimmer nos guía a través de un viaje por el universo de los parásitos, un mundo en el que habitamos sin ser conscientes. Nos descubre que no solo son las formas de vida más exitosas de la Tierra, sino que favorecen el desarrollo del sexo, dan forma a los ecosistemas y son el motor de la evolución. Zimmer muestra cuánto han evolucionado estos organismos y describe la aterradora facilidad con que pueden devorar a sus hospedadores e incluso controlar su conducta, como el siniestro Sacculina carcini, que se establece en un desafortunado cangrejo y devora todo menos aquello que su anfitrión necesita para llevarse comida a la boca, que será consumida por él; o la criatura unicelular Toxoplasma gondii, que puede invadir el cerebro humano e influir en su conducta para asegurarse su supervivencia. Para Zimmer, la humanidad en sí misma es una nueva clase de parásito que se aprovecha de todo el planeta. Por tanto, si vamos a alcanzar toda la sofisticación que caracteriza a estas formas de vida, si vamos a fomentar el florecimiento de la vida en toda su diversidad tal como hacen ellos, debemos aprender cómo convive la naturaleza consigo misma, entender las leyes que rigen el extraño mundo de las criaturas más peligrosas de la naturaleza.

FINALIST AL PREMIULUI BAILLIE GIFFORD PENTRU NONFICȚIUNE 2018 Ca două picături de apă prezintă o perspectivă profund originală asupra a ceea ce transmitem de la o generație la alta. Charles Darwin a jucat un rol crucial în transformarea eredității într-o problemă științifică, dar, cu toate acestea, tentativa sa de a oferi un răspuns s-a soldat cu un eșec spectaculos. Nașterea geneticii la începutul anilor 1900 a părut să facă exact asta. Treptat, oamenii și-au tradus vechile noțiuni despre ereditate în limbajul genelor. Pe măsură ce tehnologia de studiere a genelor a devenit mai ieftină, milioane de oameni și-au comandat teste genetice care să îi aducă aproape de părinți lipsă, de strămoși îndepărtați, de identități etnice... Dar, ne spune Zimmer, ereditatea nu se referă doar la genele care trec de la părinte la copil. Ereditatea continuă în corpul nostru, pe măsură ce o singură celulă se transformă în miliarde de celule care ne formează trupul. Spunem că moștenim gene de la strămoșii noștri – folosind un cuvânt care se referea pe vremuri la moșii și regate –, dar moștenim și alte lucruri care înseamnă la fel de mult sau mai mult pentru viața noastră, de la microbi la tehnologiile pe care le folosim pentru a ne face viața mai ușoară. Avem nevoie de o nouă definiție a eredității și, prin intermediul explicațiilor elocvente și al talentului de povestitor al lui Carl Zimmer, acest volum, adevărat tur de forță, ne-o oferă. Împletind cercetări științifice vechi și actuale, propria experiență cu cele două fiice ale sale și tipul de relatare jurnalistică de așteptat de la unul dintre cei mai buni ziariști de știință, Zimmer dezvăluie întrebări referitoare la bioetică ce au nevoie urgentă de răspunsuri de la noile tehnologii biomedicale, dar și ipoteze cunoscute despre cine suntem cu adevărat și despre ce putem transmite viitoarelor generații. „Minunat scrisă... O carte fascinantă.“ The Times „Nuanțată, antrenantă și oferind un echilibru perfect între povestire și știință... Cine este interesat în parcursul lui prin istorie și de ce poate lăsa în urmă va găsi multe lucruri interesante în aceste pagini.“ New Scientist „Fascinantă... Inteligent convingătoare.“ Observer „Extraordinară... Această carte îl reprezintă pe Zimmer cu ce poate face cel mai bine: să combată concepțiile greșite despre știință cu blândețe, prin proză.“ New York Review of Books „De ce seamănă copiii cu părinții și cu frații lor, dar, cu toate acestea, sunt diferiți unul de altul?... Fascinant... Cartea lui Zimmer este o modalitate excelentă de a te pune rapid la curent cu ultimele noutăți.“ Washington Post CARL ZIMMER este scriitor și editorialist cunoscut de știință popularizată, relatând despre cercetările avansate din biologie. Din 2013 este editorialist la New York Times. Ține prelegeri la universități, școli medicale, muzee și festivaluri și este o prezență obișnuită în programe radio. În 2016, Zimmer a câștigat Premiul Stephen Jay Gould, decernat anual de Societatea pentru Studiul Evoluției ca modalitate de recunoaștere a indivizilor ale căror eforturi susținute au dus la creșterea înțelegerii publicului în ceea ce privește știința evoluționistă. Zimmer este autorul a 12 cărți despre știință, pe subiecte de la virusuri la neuroștiință și evoluție.

O carte accesibilă și fascinantă în același timp ce ne dezvăluie din secretele lumii nevăzute a virusurilor Carl Zimmer prezintă cele mai recente cercetări despre modul în care virușii guvernează întreaga noastră existență, modul în care au contribuit la nașterea primelor forme de viață, cum contribuie la producerea de noi boli, cum putem valorifica virușii pentru propriile noastre scopuri și cum virușii vor continua să influențeze soarta omenirii în anii următori. În acest inedit tur de introducere în frontierele biologiei ne vom îmbogăți perspectiva asupra vieții Parcurgând această carte, aflăm despre începuturile viruu00adsou00adlogiei, despre virusurile care provoacă răcelile obișnuite, despre virusul gripei și celebra gripă spaniolă, despre HPV, HIV, ebola, virusul variolei, West Nile, SARS, H5N1, COVID-19 și multe altele. Aflăm despre virusuri inofensive pentru animalele puru00adtău00adtoare ce devin mortale la oameni, despre interacțiunea unor virusuri cu bacteriile, suntem imersați în fascinanta lume acvatică a oceanelor cu neînchipuita și uluitoarea lor colecție de virusuri, aflăm despre recent descoperitele virusuri gigant și multe alte informații interesante.

Cet ouvrage retrace les grandes lignes de la science de l''évolution, depuis les pré-darwiniens jusqu''aux derniers développements en génétique et en médecine évolutionniste. L''étude des phénomènes du monde vivant, tels que la sélection naturelle, l''évolution et la disparition des espèces, n''est pas un champ réservé aux seuls chercheurs. En effet, les implications de ces phénomènes sur notre existence sont nombreuses et importantes. Carl Zimmer offre une introduction à l''évolution claire, complète et abondamment illustrée. Il en rappelle les principes et en étudie l''enjeu majeur à l''échelle humaine : mieux comprendre l''homme et son évolution au sein de nos sociétés organisées. Quelle est l''origine de nos comportements en société? Quelles sont les limites de l''adaptation de l''homme au bouleversement de notre mode de vie ? Autant de questions auxquelles l''évolution apporte des éléments de réponses. "L''évolution est plus qu''une théorie : c''est une façon de comprendre le monde".

Il y a plus de virus sur Terre (1031) que d''étoiles dans l''univers (1024) ! C''est difficile à croire et pourtant nous ne vivons ni sur la planète bleue ni sur celle des singes, mais bien sur celle des virus. Ils sont les plus petits êtres vivants connus de la science mais sont partout. Sous la calotte glaciaire de l''Antarctique, dans les océans, qui en abritent l''équivalent de 75 millions de baleines bleues, et bien sûr, dans tous les organismes vivants dont ils sont les hôtes indésirables, à commencer par notre espèce. Rhume, grippe, Ebola, MERS, chikungunya ; virus géants ou surgis du passé. Pas une année sans que les virus fassent planer la menace d''une épidémie dévastatrice et posent de nouvelles questions à la science : Comment évoluons-nous avec eux depuis des millénaires (8% de notre génome est d''origine virale) ? Le changement climatique conduira-t-il à des épidémies encore plus mortelles ? Les virus disparus que l''on ressuscite constituent-ils une nouvelle menace ? En 10 récits brillants et incisifs, sans aucun jargon, Carl Zimmer fait la lumière sur les secrets de ce fascinant univers caché.