Slime
A Natural History
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- $19.99
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- $19.99
Publisher Description
A groundbreaking, witty, and eloquent exploration of slime that will leave you appreciating the nebulous and neglected sticky stuff that covers our world, inside and out.
Slime. The very word seems to ooze oily menace, conjuring up a variety of unpleasant associations: mucous, toxins, reptiles, pollutants, and other unsavory viscous semi-liquid substances. Yet without slime, the natural world would be completely unrecognizable; in fact, life itself as we know it would be impossible
In this deft and fascinating book, journalist Susanne Wedlich takes us on a tour of all things slimy, from the most unctuous of science fiction monsters to the biochemical compounds that are the very building blocks of life. Along the way she shows us what slime really means, and why slime is not something to fear, but rather something to ... embrace.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Journalist and biologist Wedlich debuts with a slick dive into the "secret world" of slime. A "dark and dystopian mirror to our own world," slime embodies the epitome of gross, the author writes; for centuries, humans have been repulsed by hydrogels, despite their importance to life. "There is probably no slime-free life form in existence, and maybe there never was," Wedlich notes, offering a close-up examination of the gooey medium in all its glory, including the "pedal mucus" that snails slide on and the "slimy barriers" essential to human respiratory, immune, and digestive systems. Wedlich covers slime's many potential applications, including as a bio-adhesive—the U.S. Navy, for example, is "trialling the use of military lab-grade hagfish slime" to stop enemy ships. Elsewhere, Wedlich offers intriguing descriptions of the mucus that carnivorous plants use to snag prey; the "jelly-like matrix" in the tissue of hadal snailfish, the world's deepest-dwelling fish, that helps them withstand high pressure; and eukaryotic organisms called slime mold: "These ruthlessly hungry slime creatures swap experiences and pass on information simply by merging." Wedlich's unique angle makes for fascinating revelations infused with fun. Pop science fans will have a hard time putting this down.
