I Contain Multitudes cover art

I Contain Multitudes

The Microbes Within Us and a Grander View of Life

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I Contain Multitudes

By: Ed Yong
Narrated by: Charlie Anson
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About this listen

Your body is teeming with tens of trillions of microbes. It's an entire world, a colony full of life. In other words, you contain multitudes. These microscopic companions sculpt our organs, protect us from diseases, guide our behaviour and bombard us with their genes. They also hold the key to understanding all life on earth.

In I Contain Multitudes, Ed Yong opens our eyes and invites us to marvel at ourselves and other animals in a new light, less as individuals and more as thriving ecosystems. We learn the invisible and wondrous science behind the corals that construct mighty reefs and the squid that create their own light shows. We see how bacteria can alter our response to cancer-fighting drugs, tune our immune system, influence our evolution and even modify our genetic make-up. And we meet the scientists who are manipulating these microscopic partners to our advantage.

In a million tiny ways, I Contain Multitudes will radically change how you think about the natural world - and how you see yourself.

©2016 Ed Yong (P)2016 Random House AudioBooks Animals Biological Sciences Biology Physics Science Natural History Bacteria Physiology
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Interesting and entertaining. The writer won me over by not being overly biased despite their enthusiasm for the topic (a common pitfall in nonfiction). Easy to recommend!

Narration is pleasant, but post edits sound a lot different from the other content, and they have been made in segments of just a few words, which is jarring, and happens frequently. Next time edit whole sentences instead please!

Enjoyable

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An amazing book full of fascinating information, well narrated and one of my favourite books so far on the microbiome.

Amazing

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A really fantastic and eye opening book, about the overall importance of bacteria and other microbes for all living things. Young discusses how new gene technologies are revealing the ways in which we are essentially controlled by our bacteria, and how to use these in the prevention of diseases and overall environmental management.

Enjoyable and very interesting

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If I’d been able to read a book like this in high school, instead of a boring textbook, I would have learned so much more!

Absolutely Fascinating!

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Very well told and illuminating story of the microbes around us and those who study them. This book changed my view on how microbes interact with us and other organisms and the hard yakka it took to work out the subtleties of these interactions and how we can manipulate these associations to our own ends.
If I learnt nothing else it is also never underestimate the far reach and importance of Wolbachia and that they eat ‘Chowbachia’.

Changed my two dimensional view of microbes

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An amazing cornucopia of fascinating facts, exciting viewpoints, and amusing anecdotes. Well researched and brilliantly written. One of my new favouritest favourite books!
Well narrated too, despite a few minor recording inconsistencies.

Truly magnificent!

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amazing read so informative and interesting lots more discovery to be had in the world of microorganisms

cool journey

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