An Immense World
How Animal Senses Reveal the Hidden Realms Around Us
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An Immense World
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Narrated by:
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Ed Yong
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By:
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Ed Yong
About this listen
Brought to you by Penguin.
Humans have three or four colour-detecting cones in their retinas. Mantis shrimp have 16. In fact, their eyes seem to have more in common with satellite technology than with biological vision as we currently understand it. They have evolved to track movement with an acuity no other species can match by processing raw information; they may not 'see', in the human sense, at all.
Marine molluscs called chitons have eyes that are made of stone. Scorpions appear to see with their entire bodies. It isn't only vision that differs from species to species—some animals also have senses we lack entirely. Knifefish navigate by electrical charge.
An Immense World will take us on an insider's tour of the natural world by describing the biology, physics and chemistry animals use to perceive it. We may lack some of their senses, but our own super-sense lies in our ability to understand theirs. And in the face of the largest extinction event since the meteor that killed the dinosaurs, our only hope of saving other species is bound up with our ability to see what they see, and feel what they feel.
©2022 Ed Yong (P)2022 Penguin AudioListeners also enjoyed...
What listeners say about An Immense World
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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- David H
- 13-01-23
A new Classic
Thought provoking journey through other creatures Umvelt, The “way they sense their world” perfectly read by the author whose obvious excitement and awe of other species
Senses is infectious. I loved this book and I think you will too.
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1 person found this helpful
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- Anonymous User
- 28-02-24
Fascinating
Very easy to listen to well narrated a fascinating collection of what science knows and does not know about the sensory perceptions of other species
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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- Gemma Herbertson
- 13-09-22
Extremely enlightening. Huge asset to neuroscience
I thought I knew a lot about the senses... this book increased my umwelt 10 fold (at least)! Mesmerising. Incredibly interesting. The new David Attenborough. I even cried at the end - such powerful and moving words. Thank you for writing this truly amazing book.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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- whatisiswhat
- 18-01-24
Eye-opening…
…and totally mind-blowing. An essential listen for anyone interested in the natural world, or who enjoys learning about all the ways our perception is narrow, and could be so different.
The writing is really great: walking a line between being informative and poetic, and hitting just the right balance.
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- Joanna JJ
- 26-11-23
Absolutely beautiful and brilliant.
Thie is a book that you will come back to. The amount of information in it is huge but because of this you can see, hear and feel many different worlds.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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- Filip Malinowski
- 10-05-23
Wonderful exploration...
This book reads like a collection of facts or curiosities. But each of them is absolutely fascinating and can change the way you think about everything that's around, and how other senses may perceive it.
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1 person found this helpful
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- Joe W
- 24-08-22
One of my fav audiobooks ever!
This book is amazingly well researched, and read with great clarity and passion by the author. Couldn't get enough of it and listened to it very quickly. So many fascinating insights that expanded my view of the world. Just brilliant!
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- M Robinson
- 30-08-23
Super Interesting
Fascinating deep dive into how other animals senses can vary so wildly from our own as humans.
I particularly found the chapter on scent (predominantly with regard to dogs, as I have three of my own), and visual senses and colour spectrums (as an artist) incredibly enlightening.
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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- Skye Everard
- 20-11-23
Fascinating Book, Okay Narrator
Loved learning more about the sensory experience of all these animals, some stuff I didn't even know. the narration was soothing and pleasant to listen to, but every time this chap said "towards" I was reminded just how oddly he pronounces the word. Still, worth that for the interest factor alone.
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- sara
- 04-02-23
inspiring
I loved this audio book. it was read superbly, it contains some amazing facts, and it conveys an overarching respect and appreciation for nature and its creatures.
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