Most Popular Books by Mary Roach

The bestselling author of "Stiff" turns her outrageous curiosity and infectious wit on the most alluring scientific subject of all: sex. In "Bonk," Roach shows how and why sexual arousal and orgasm can be so hard to achieve and what science is doing to make the bedroom a more satisfying place. 16 illustrations.

Beloved, best-selling science writer Mary Roach’s “acutely entertaining, morbidly fascinating” (Susan Adams, Forbes) classic, now with a new epilogue. For two thousand years, cadavers – some willingly, some unwittingly – have been involved in science’s boldest strides and weirdest undertakings. They’ve tested France’s first guillotines, ridden the NASA Space Shuttle, been crucified in a Parisian laboratory to test the authenticity of the Shroud of Turin, and helped solve the mystery of TWA Flight 800. For every new surgical procedure, from heart transplants to gender confirmation surgery, cadavers have helped make history in their quiet way. “Delightful—though never disrespectful” (Les Simpson, Time Out New York), Stiff investigates the strange lives of our bodies postmortem and answers the question: What should we do after we die? “This quirky, funny read offers perspective and insight about life, death and the medical profession. . . . You can close this book with an appreciation of the miracle that the human body really is.” —Tara Parker-Pope, Wall Street Journal “Gross, educational, and unexpectedly sidesplitting.” —Entertainment Weekly

“America’s funniest science writer” (Washington Post) explores the irresistibly strange universe of life without gravity in this New York Times bestseller. The best-selling author of Stiff and Bonk explores the irresistibly strange universe of space travel and life without gravity. From the Space Shuttle training toilet to a crash test of NASA’s new space capsule, Mary Roach takes us on the surreally entertaining trip into the science of life in space and space on Earth.

The author looks to science to determine whether the human soul exists in death, and travels to various places around the world to discuss supernatural occurrences with spirit guides and mediums.

The irresistible, ever-curious, and always bestselling Roach returns with a new adventure to the invisible realm that people carry around inside.

A New York Times / National Bestseller "America''s funniest science writer" (Washington Post) Mary Roach explores the science of keeping human beings intact, awake, sane, uninfected, and uninfested in the bizarre and extreme circumstances of war. 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. She visits a repurposed movie studio where amputee actors help prepare Marine Corps medics for the shock and gore of combat wounds. At Camp Lemmonier, Djibouti, in east Africa, we learn how diarrhea can be a threat to national security. Roach samples caffeinated meat, sniffs an archival sample of a World War II stink bomb, and stays up all night with the crew tending the missiles on the nuclear submarine USS Tennessee. She answers questions not found in any other book on the military: Why is DARPA interested in ducks? How is a wedding gown like a bomb suit? Why are shrimp more dangerous to sailors than sharks? Take a tour of duty with Roach, and you’ll never see our nation’s defenders in the same way again.

From acclaimed, New York Times best-selling author Mary Roach comes the complete collection of her “My Planet” articles published in Reader’s Digest. She was a hit columnist in the magazine, and this book features the articles she wrote in that time. Insightful and hilarious, Mary explores the ins and outs of the modern world: marriage, friends, family, food, technology, customer service, dental floss, and ants—she leaves no element of the American experience unchecked for its inherent paradoxes, pleasures, and foibles. On Cleanliness: Ed has crud vision, and I don’t. I don’t notice filth. Ed sees it everywhere. I am reasonably convinced that Ed can actually see bacteria. . . . He confessed he didn’t like me using his bathrobe because I’d wear it while sitting on the toilet. “It’s not like it goes in the water,” I protested, though if you counted the sash as part of the robe, this wasn’t strictly true. On the Internet: The Internet is a boon for hypochondriacs like me. Right now, for instance, I’m feeling a shooting pain on the side of my neck. A Web search produces five matches, the first three for a condition called Arnold-Chiari Malformation. While my husband, Ed, reads over my shoulder, I recite symptoms from the list. “‘General clumsiness’ and ‘general imbalance,’” I say, as though announcing arrivals at the Marine Corps Ball. “‘Difficulty driving,’ ‘lack of taste,’ ‘difficulty feeling feet on ground.’” “Those aren’t symptoms,” says Ed. “Those are your character flaws.” On Fashion: My husband recently made me try on a bikini. A bikini is not so much a garment as a cloth-based reminder that your parts have been migrating all these years. My waist, I realized that day in the dressing room, has completely disappeared beneath my rib cage, which now rests directly on my hips. I’m exhibiting continental drift in reverse. On Eating Healthy: So Ed and I were eating a lot of vegetables. Vegetables on pasta, vegetables on rice. This was extremely healthy, until you got to the part where Ed and I are found in the kitchen at 10 p.m., feeding on Froot Loops and tubes of cookie dough.

“America’s funniest science writer” (Washington Post) asks the questions children ask in this young readers adaptation of her best-selling Packing for Mars. What is it like to float weightlessly in the air? What happens if you vomit in your helmet during a spacewalk? How do astronauts go to the bathroom? Is it true that they don’t shower? Can farts really be deadly in space? Best-selling Mary Roach has the answers. In this whip-smart, funny, and informative young readers adaptation of her best-selling Packing for Mars, Roach guides us through the irresistibly strange, frequently gross, and awe-inspiring realm of space travel and life without gravity. From flying on NASA’s Weightless Wonder to eating space food, Packing for Mars for Kids is chock-full of firs-hand experiences and thorough research. Roach has crafted an authoritative and accessible book that is perfectly pitched to inquiring middle grade readers.

Does the light just go out and that''s that - the million-year nap? Or will some part of my personality, my me-ness, persist? What will that feel like? What will I do all day? Is there a place to plug in my laptop?" Mary Roach trains her considerable humour and curiosity on the human soul, seeking answers from a varied and fascinating crew of contemporary and historical soul-searchers: scientists, schemers, engineers, mediums, all trying to prove (or disprove) that life goes on after we die. Along the way she encounters electromagnetic hauntings, out-of-body experiences, ghosts and lawsuits: Mary Roach sifts and weighs the evidence in her hilarious, inimitable style.

An Instant New York Times Bestseller #1 Los Angeles Times Bestseller #1 Indie Hardcover Nonfiction Bestseller A Publishers Weekly Best Nonfiction Book of 2021 Longlisted for the 2022 Andrew Carnegie Medal for Excellence in Nonfiction Join "America’s funniest science writer" (Peter Carlson, Washington Post), Mary Roach, on an irresistible investigation into the unpredictable world where wildlife and humans meet. What’s to be done about a jaywalking moose? A bear caught breaking and entering? A murderous tree? Three hundred years ago, animals that broke the law would be assigned legal representation and put on trial. These days, as New York Times best-selling author Mary Roach discovers, the answers are best found not in jurisprudence but in science: the curious science of human-wildlife conflict, a discipline at the crossroads of human behavior and wildlife biology. Roach tags along with animal-attack forensics investigators, human-elephant conflict specialists, bear managers, and "danger tree" faller blasters. Intrepid as ever, she travels from leopard-terrorized hamlets in the Indian Himalaya to St. Peter’s Square in the early hours before the pope arrives for Easter Mass, when vandal gulls swoop in to destroy the elaborate floral display. She taste-tests rat bait, learns how to install a vulture effigy, and gets mugged by a macaque. Combining little-known forensic science and conservation genetics with a motley cast of laser scarecrows, langur impersonators, and trespassing squirrels, Roach reveals as much about humanity as about nature’s lawbreakers. When it comes to "problem" wildlife, she finds, humans are more often the problem—and the solution. Fascinating, witty, and humane, Fuzz offers hope for compassionate coexistence in our ever-expanding human habitat.

What’s to be done about a drunken elephant? A monkey caught mugging passers-by? A trespassing squirrel? Mary Roach delves into the unpredictable world where wildlife and humans meet. ‘Delightful’ Ed Yong, author of An Immense World Follow Mary Roach as she investigates laser scarecrows, robo-hawks, human-elephant conflict specialists and monkey impersonators. Travel to the bear-busy back alleys of Aspen, the gull-vandalized floral displays at the Vatican and leopard-terrorized hamlets in the Himalayas. In this fresh, funny and thoroughly researched book, dive into the weird and wonderful moments when humanity and wildlife bump up against one another. *** AN AMAZON BEST BOOK OF 2021 ‘A provocative and engaging exploration of our evolving relationship with the rest of nature.’ Guardian ‘Combining diligently researched scientific reporting with the sniggering wit of a stand-up comic… Animal Vegetable Criminal loves an eyebrow-raising anecdote.’ The Times ‘An idiosyncratic tour with Roach as the wisecracking, ever-probing guide… My favorite moments, ultimately, weren’t the funny ones, but those that reveal a bit of scientific poetry.’ New York Times

The Animal Intelligence Bundle: “Minds of Their Own” by Virginia Morell (March 2008) “Almost Human” by Mary Roach (April 2008) “The Genius of Swarms” by Peter Miller (July 2007) In “Minds of Their Own,” Virginia Morell provides an overview of the science of animal intelligence. She introduces you to an African gray parrot named Alex, a bonobo named Kanzi, and a border collie named Betsy. Each of these animals tells us something interesting about the way they perceive and manipulate their world. The article also looks at what scientists are learning about the intelligence of dolphins and crows, beyond mere communication. In “Almost Human,” Mary Roach takes us to the savannahs of Senegal to meet a group of 34 chimpanzees, whose behavior and social structures have given scientists some important clues about the nature of their communication and intelligence. In “The Genius of Swarms,” Peter Miller looks at the collective behavior of ants, bees, and other insects for what they can tell us about social organization and how sometimes intelligence lies outside of the individual brain. This article served as the basis for his book, The Smart Swarm: How Understanding Flocks, Schools, and Colonies Can Make Us Better at Communicating, Decision Making, and Getting Things Done.

Mit dem Tod ist keinesfalls alles vorbei. Leichen sind auf vielfältige Weise nützlich, indem sie Forschung und Wissenschaft zur Verfügung stehen. Sie helfen dabei, Autos sicherer zu machen, dienen als Anschauungs- und Übungsobjekte für angehende Ärzte und geben Gerichtsmedizinern wichtige Hinweise, mit denen Verbrechen aufgeklärt werden können. Sie wurden ins All geschossen, haben die ersten Guillotinen und sogar die Echtheit des Turiner Grabtuchs getestet. Mary Roach hat die vielfältigen postmortalen Verwendungsformen recherchiert und mit Ärzten, Wissenschaftlern und Leichenbestattern darüber gesprochen, was man mit Leichen alles anfangen kann. Daraus ist ein überaus unterhaltsames, faszinierendes und skurriles Buch entstanden, auch wenn die Hauptakteure in Anatomiesälen, Laboratorien und Krematorien zu finden sind.

Neues von der Meisterin der komischen Naturwissenschaften Wir riechen und schlürfen, schmecken, kauen, schlucken. Und dann? Was passiert mit Müsli, Steak, Salat und Cola, wenn sie im Schlund verschwunden sind? Mary Roach, die Spezialistin für das ungewöhnliche in den Naturwissenschaften, nimmt uns mit auf eine höchst unterhaltsame Reise durch den Verdauungsapparat – vom Mund bis zum After –, die keine Frage auslässt: Warum mögen wir so gern Knuspriges? Warum verdaut der Magen sich nicht selbst? Wie viel kann man essen, bevor der Magen platzt? Kann uns eine Verstopfung umbringen? (Und ist Elvis Presley vielleicht daran gestorben?) Mary Roach trifft Wissenschaftler, die sich furchtlos mit eher anrüchigen Themen befassen, besucht ein Tierfuttertestlabor, schaut dem Magen bei der Arbeit zu und untersucht den Darm als potentielles Versteck. Urkomisch und informativ.

Las macabras entidades que integran el dramatis personae de la última obra de Mary Roach figurarían, sin lugar a dudas, entre las más infelices que pueda concebir la fantasía si no fuera por la penosa circunstancia de que no son hijas de la imaginación. Pese al escalofrío o el desaliento que invade al delicado lector tras un primer acercamiento a tan lúgubre materia, la lectura de estas páginas acaba provocando involuntarias sonrisas y recias carcajadas. Porque Fiambres es una exploración contagiosamente alegre de las crueles diligencias practicadas con algunos de nuestros cuerpos cuando, una vez exhalado el último suspiro, los abandonamos a su suerte en los escatológicos umbrales de la tumba: cadáveres abiertos en canal y en el altar de la ciencia, difuntos que contribuyen al progreso de la medicina con los genitales perforados o los ojos extraídos, fiambres arrojados desde aviones o cosidos a balazos para verificar la eficiencia de nuevas armas, despojos crucificados como Nuestro Señor o devorados por gusanos, materia inerte que alcanza por fin la transubstanciación en forma de abono... Por muy gris que haya sido su existencia en este valle de lágrimas, cualquiera puede redimirse post mortem e incluso, con un poco de suerte, incorporarse a la grandiosa epopeya del conocimiento humano: “Un tipo de lo más normal que decide donar sus órganos puede convertirse, de repente, en un héroe”. La intrépida Mary Roach ha escrito con morbosa erudición e irreverente ingenio una obra que se adentra en el más allá para mostrarnos el lado más visible y deplorable de la otra vida. Mary Roach es periodista y licenciada en psicología. Sus artículos han sido publicados por Salon, Wired, Outside, GQ, Discover, Reader’s Digest, Vogue y New York Times Magazine. Vive y trabaja en San Francisco

●把牠們全都殺了！ ●不准傷害任何一隻！ 某些野生動物族群恢復的程度，讓牠們開始出現在人類的生活裡，例如熊、狼、彌猴等等。與此同時，則有更多人類搬進動物們的地盤。過去野生生物學界探討的大多是如何「復育」和「計算族群數量」，現在的問題卻逐漸變成「人類與野生動物的互動」。 要怎麼處理闖進家門把廚房翻得亂七八糟、殺了幾隻雞或咬了鄰居一口的動物？我們顯然還沒有共識。 除了人類與野生動物之間的衝突，人與人之間的衝突也無法忽視。農牧業者、當地居民和動物愛好者在文化衝突中彼此厭惡，隔閡對立之深堪比政治。 作者跟著動物行為專家走進有熊出沒的餐館後巷、籠罩大象和花豹威脅陰影的印度村莊。她回顧了鳥類學家在驅鳥對策上的努力，拜訪毒藥測試員，也展望了遺傳學家未來可能的貢獻。以溫暖詼諧的文字，在人類活動範圍不斷擴張的今天，尋找「人獸共存」的希望。 推薦 「為什麼產生同樣衝突，有些動物『受保護』，有些物種卻『非死不可』？而最沒道理的是，經常被判死刑的物種造成人類的損害其實並不嚴重到足以『致命』……作者最讓我欣賞的地方，正是單純羅列出各種案例的看見與聽見，並不急著引導讀者回答YES或NO的呆板答案。」 —吳幸如，國立屏東科技大學森林系助理教授 「回到台灣的議題上，過去因為歷史糾結、族群關係而導致野生動物衝突議題出現裂隙。我常遇到部落族人打趣地說：『為什麼平地人這麼浪費資源，卻要求原住民都得要保育山林？』我身邊朋友更感慨的說：『多數都市人在生活中會面對多少野生動物？他們能理解一頭熊出現在家旁的恐懼？如果他們生活之中只有麻雀、白頭翁，那他們喊出台灣黑熊應該要保育，似乎邏輯上很簡單，卻從沒思考到整天跟熊相處然後提心吊膽的在地居民感受。』 這問題很直接挑戰現代人的保育觀。我想，問100個都市人大概會有101個人說黑熊絕對要保育。但是若你問100個生活在山區的居民？可能答案就不是如此。我指的不是如此，不是二元論的說不用保育，而是你會聽到不同族群、生活模式或土地上的不同聲音。」 —郭彥仁（郭熊），台灣黑熊生態研究者、作家 「瑪莉‧羅曲絕對不會讓場子冷掉。她的故事總是充滿幽默巧思和進取精神……不過本書最大的魅力，在於每一段精采經歷背後，都透露出她的溫和反思：關於我們要如何生活，才能為人類與萬物共享的這個地球善盡悉心管理的責任。」 —艾瑞克‧麥克丹尼爾（Eric McDaniel），美國公共廣播電台（NPR） 「本書充滿離奇的事實和超乎想像的第一手報導……羅曲記錄了人類對於各種動植物『罪行』的反應，從看似滑稽的對策，到令人不安的手段，讓讀者不忍釋卷。」 —喬‧史普林（Joe Spring），《史密森尼》雜誌（Smithsonian） 「羅曲闡述了詳盡的調查結果，並透過注釋補充了各種不合時宜的研究、離題的小資訊以及逗趣見解，為論述主題增添了深度和趣味……令人耳目一新的非小說類作品，讓以往的小眾主題得以觸及更廣大的讀者群。」 —凱瑟琳‧E‧海姆斯（Katherine E. Himes），《科學》雜誌（Science）

"Roach explica en este libro por qué la excitación sexual y el orgasmo (dos de los fenómenos naturales más complejos, curiosos y gratos) pueden ser tan difíciles de alcanzar y qué está haciendo la ciencia para lograr que la cama sea un mueble cada vez más ameno pars sus usuarios"--Page 4 of cover.

La nostra prossima casa la affitteremo in un altro pianeta del sistema solare. Trascorreremo le vacanze estive sulla Luna e nelle sere d''agosto ci ritroveremo a brindare a un cocktail party in qualche catena alberghiera su Marte. Tutto intorno a noi vedremo l''infinito, il firmamento, ascolteremo la musica abissale dei buchi neri, contempleremo quella sfera sublime e ridicola che è la Terra. Dopo millenni passati ad alloggiare sulla superficie terrestre – a camminarci, a inalarne gli odori e a solcarne il cielo e i mari – l''uomo sta per cambiare dimora. Probabilmente non avverrà domani, ma è certo che in un futuro non troppo remoto questo sogno sarà alla nostra portata. Eppure, nello spazio sembra mancare tutto ciò di cui abbiamo bisogno per sopravvivere: l''acqua, la gravità, l''aria. Mancano tutte le nostre irrinunciabili comodità, come profumate toilette, cibi esotici, la possibilità di fare romantiche camminate o di contemplare la variopinta bellezza dei fiori. Come reagirebbero il nostro corpo e la nostra psiche a tutte queste privazioni? Cosa succederebbe se durante il viaggio ci trovassimo a vomitare nel nostro casco da astronauti? Se fossimo costretti per settimane a non curare la nostra igiene? Se nei lunghi viaggi a bordo delle navicelle ci fosse precluso di fare l''amore? Per dare una risposta a tutti questi quesiti le agenzie spaziali hanno allestito sulla Terra innovativi e bizzarri ambienti per simulare le situazioni più estreme: prove dure e allo stesso tempo stravaganti alle quali deve sottoporsi chiunque desideri avventurarsi nell''universo. Con il suo avvincente stile narrativo Mary Roach descrive in modo arguto, divertente e irriverente tutti i compromessi che dovremmo accettare per lasciare il nostro pianeta e andare a vivere su Marte, raccontando aneddoti e incidenti – spesso tragicomici – capitati agli astronauti mentre si trovavano a fluttuare nel cosmo. Come vivremo su Marte non è solo una sorprendente guida per la sopravvivenza nello spazio, ma un''esplorazione di ciò che significa essere umani, con i nostri limiti, le nostre fragilità biologiche e culturali. A quanta normalità sapremo rinunciare? Per quanto tempo? E come ci trasformerà questa nuova vita?

Dit keer neemt Roach de lezer mee op een spannende, ranzige en leerzame tocht langs het maag-darmkanaal. Hoe nemen we voedingsstoffen in ons op? Kun je zoveel eten dat je maag uit elkaar barst? Hoe werken je smaakpapillen? Kun je het overleven als je levend opgegeten wordt? Hap Slik Weg is verplichte kost voor wie houdt van ingenieuze woordspelingen, nieuwe inzichten en humor om van te schaterlachen.

「休士頓，我們發霉了！」 《紐約時報》暢銷書榜第六名暢銷書 AMAZON最佳當月好書，4.5顆星幾近完美讀者好評 第七屆全美「一城市一好書」舊金山最佳選書 電影〈絕地救援〉（書名：《火星任務》） 《不過是具屍體》、《大口一吞，然後呢？》之後，最搞怪的暢銷科普作家瑪莉．羅曲 帶你一窺所有為宇宙科學獻身的神奇事蹟！ 歡迎來到太空！你的身體飄了起來，進入無重力的奇異空間。踏出太空艙，緩緩漫步，感受無垠的宇宙，探索前所未有的世界…… 太空如此令人著迷，但想要來趟太空旅行，你得先做好心理準備。太空缺乏我們賴以生存的一切，沒有空氣、重力、水，沒有新鮮的食物，當然更沒有啤酒！除此之外，還有許多難題：坐太空船會不會暈機？在太空中怎麼洗澡跟上廁所？想打手槍時怎麼辦？如果一整年都無法落地走路，或是吃不到新鮮蔬果，會怎麼樣呢？ 為了回答這些問題，各國航太總署絞盡腦汁設計了各式各樣的太空模擬實驗，古怪的程度令人張目結舌： ．變身人體烤肉串，瘋狂旋轉逼吐的暈眩大挑戰「動暈症研究」。 ．連續一個月不換衣服不洗澡，挑戰人類忍受骯髒極限的「最低個人衛生實驗」。 ．NASA付錢讓你連續賴床三個月的超幸福「臥床飛行模擬」實驗。 ．測試食物脹氣係數與造成人體甲烷產生量的「豆類餐點實驗」。 ．從最高時速兩萬八千公里的座艙中逃脫的「太空跳傘任務」。 別小看這些搞笑實驗喔，這可是和太空人的性命息息相關呢。 本書作者瑪莉．羅曲是美國最幽默的科普作家，繼暢銷書《不過是具屍體》、《一起搞吧！科學與性的奇異交配》之後，這次她要帶你探索令人難以抗拒的太空旅行。從太空梭的馬桶使用訓練，到三萬六千公尺高的跳傘逃生測試，這是一趟絕無冷場的超現實科學之旅！ 【各界好評】 「在太空裡，沒人會聽見你發瘋似的咯咯笑聲，就像我閱讀本書的反應一樣。」——賈各布斯，《我的聖經狂想曲》作者 「全美最幽默的科普作家。」——比爾傑，《紐約客》撰稿人 「瑪莉．羅曲不僅值得信賴，有無窮的好奇心，而且還古怪得讓人樂不可支。她的研究一絲不苟，卻引人入勝。」——《西雅圖時報》 「瑪莉．羅曲妙筆生花……呈現出人類廣大、時而瘋狂的追尋中的眾多面向。」——《紐約時報》 「風趣、好奇，而且面對專家毫不膽怯的瑪莉．羅曲，是帶領讀者探索科學奧秘的完美人選。」——《新聞周刊》 出版社 貓頭鷹出版 (城邦)

Roach shows how and why sexual arousal and orgasm can be so hard to achieve and what science is doing to make the bedroom a more satisfying place.

屍體才是推動醫學進展的最大功臣！ 「是的，他生前是好人，我當然不想挖出他的屍體……但只要想到如果有二十個人可以因此獲益，那就值得了。」by不具名的醫學院學生 死刑犯的屍體曾是古人練習開刀的對象？ 遺體防腐技術是來自於南北戰爭？ 為了製造更安全的汽車，屍體也充當防撞測試員？ 乘客的遺體如何解開飛機失事之謎？ 子彈的射擊效能提高，是因為科學家以屍體來做試驗改良？ 《紐約時報》暢銷書作者瑪莉．羅曲，冒著被質疑「腦袋壞了」的風險，帶領讀者展開一場死亡之旅。為了一探屍體在死前與死後的作用，羅曲前往南方大學醫學中心解剖室、田納西大學人類學研究中心、韋恩州立大學衝擊研究所等機構，看屍體的各部位如何被「有效應用」。這位喜愛四處獵奇的「古怪」記者，認為屍體不只是屍體，它能成就不朽的科學成就。 趁著心臟還在跳動，靈魂尚未離開軀竅，《不過是具屍體》告訴我們應該秉持開放的態度，自行決定死後的旅程：成為美妙浪漫的花園肥料、流進水裡被鄰居喝下肚、前進哈佛做個罐中腦，或是在教學陳列架赤身裸體搔首弄姿「永久保存」……在羅曲機智幽默的筆鋒下，死亡再也不只是場感傷的人生大事，而能替醫學與科學進展開啟新的章節。 本書特色 ※ 外科醫師暨金鼎獎得主蘇上豪 撰文推薦 ※《紐約時報》暢銷書 ※ 亞馬遜書店編輯選書 ※ 獲選「Barnes & Noble」連鎖書店「發現偉大新作家」 ※ 獲選博多書店「原創之聲」獎 ※《ELLE》讀者選書獎 ※《娛樂週刊》、《舊金山紀事報》、《西雅圖時報》、《聖荷西信使報》、《拉斯維加斯信使報》、美國國家公共廣播電台「科學的星期五」二○○三年最佳圖書

Kun puu tekee murhan! Vastustamattoman hauska ja humaani teos luonnon ja ihmisten maailman välisistä yhteentörmäyksistä. Miten on toimittava, kun hirvi kuljeskelee pihapiirissä kuin kotimetsässään? Tai kun karhu yllätetään murtautumasta asuntoon? Entäpä silloin, kun puu on tehnyt murhan? Lakia rikkoneet eläimet saattoivat 300 vuotta sitten saada syytteen ja avukseen puolustusasianajajan. Nykyisin vastauksia ei etsitä lakikirjoista, vaan ne pyritään löytämään tieteen avulla. Luomakunnan ”rikoksia” ratkomaan on syntynyt erityinen monitieteinen tutkimusala, jossa tarvitaan niin ihmisen käyttäytymisen kuin eläinten ja kasvien biologian tuntemusta. Amerikan hauskimmaksi tietokirjailijaksi sanottu Mary Roach kertoo rikospaikkatutkimuksen taidonnäytteistä ja eläinten genetiikan selvittelyn hienouksista ja yhdistelee tarinaan värikkäitä esimerkkejä käytännön kokemuksista. Ongelmat nousevat useammin ihmisten kuin eläinten toiminnasta – ja ihmisten on ne toiminnassaan ratkaistava. Kalifornian Oaklandissa asuva Mary Roach on kirjoittanut useita kansainvälisesti suuren lukijakunnan saavuttaneita tietokirjoja. Hänen kirjoituksiaan on julkaisu myös mm. National Geographicissa ja New York Times Magazinessa.

Avec une curiosité et un humour inégalés, Mary Roach répond à toutes les questions que personne n''avait osé se poser sur la science des humains en guerre... Elle nous embarque ainsi dans une folle tournée de laboratoires pas comme les autres ! La voici esquivant les tirs hostiles avec une équipe de Paintball dans le cadre d''une étude sur la perte auditive, visitant le studio de mode de l''armée américaine pour révéler les dernières tendances, se rendant sur un tournage où des acteurs amputés aident à préparer les médecins au choc des blessures en combat réel ou s''inquiétant du manque de sommeil à bord d''un sous-marin nucléaire... La voici encore retraçant les efforts des chercheurs – pas toujours couronnées de succès – pour créer une bombe puante fatale ou un répulsif anti-requin, mener la guerre à la chaleur, aux mouches et même à la diarrhée !Une enquête décapante sur des chercheurs un peu particuliers, qui tentent de maintenir les êtres humains en un seul morceau, frais et dispos, sains, non infectés et non infestés... dans les circonstances bizarres et extrêmes qui sont celles de la guerre. Car la panique, l''épuisement, la chaleur, le bruit, la nourriture ou les insectes sont parfois encore plus à craindre que l''ennemi !

- 5 disturbing tales of horror - "A Witch By Any Other Name" by Cynthia Jerkins - Interview with Mary Roach, author of "Stiff", "Spook" and "Bonk" - twisted artwork "Uranophobia" by Erika "Thrivis" Harm - Creepy cover art "Terrorific" by Jonatan Iversen-Ejve

A look inside the world of forensics examines the use of human cadavers in a wide range of endeavors, including research into new surgical procedures, space exploration, and a Tennessee human decay research facility.

Depuis deux mille ans, nous participons après notre mort, volontairement ou non, aux avancées les plus audacieuses et aux expériences les plus étranges de la science. Autrefois disséqués dans les amphithéâtres des écoles de médecine, les cadavres ont contribué aux progrès de la chirurgie. Plus récemment, ils ont notamment permis de démontrer l''utilité de la ceinture de sécurité, ont aidé un étudiant du Tennessee à discréditer la théorie de la combustion spontanée du corps humain et ont été analysés dans un laboratoire parisien pour évaluer l''authenticité du suaire de Turin. Cette enquête pimentée d''un humour noir jubilatoire s''attache à montrer à quel point l''univers du cadavre est immense et ses usages, infinis. Des laboratoires-ateliers de chirurgie esthétique aux centres de recherche sur le compost humain en passant par les écoles de thanatopraxie, c''est un voyage dans un au-delà très concret qui nous est proposé.