Get a free audiobook
Spillover
People who bought this also bought...
-
The Tangled Tree
- A Radical New History of Life
- Written by: David Quammen
- Narrated by: Jacques Roy
- Length: 13 hrs and 48 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 5
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 4
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 4
In the mid-1970s, scientists began using DNA sequences to reexamine the history of all life. Perhaps the most startling discovery to come out of this new field is horizontal gene transfer (HGT), or the movement of genes across species lines. For instance, we now know that roughly eight percent of the human genome arrived not through traditional inheritance from directly ancestral forms, but sideways by viral infection - a type of HGT. In The Tangled Tree David Quammen chronicles these discoveries through the lives of the researchers who made them.
-
2 out of 5 stars
-
More biography than science.
- By Amazon Customer on 2018-10-07
-
The Hot Zone
- A Terrifying True Story
- Written by: Richard Preston
- Narrated by: Howard McGillin
- Length: 3 hrs and 5 mins
- Abridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 13
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 10
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 10
A highly infectious, deadly virus from the Central African rain forest suddenly appears in the suburbs of Washington, D.C. There is no cure. In a few days, 90 percent of its victims are dead. A secret military SWAT team of soldiers and scientists is mobilized to stop the outbreak of this exotic "hot" virus. The Hot Zone tells this dramatic story, giving a hair-raising account of the appearance of rare and lethal viruses and their "crashes" into the human race.
-
The Demon in the Freezer
- Written by: Richard Preston
- Narrated by: Paul Boehmer
- Length: 8 hrs and 53 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 8
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 7
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 7
"This book will give you nightmares," cautions The New York Times. Richard Preston takes us inside the ongoing war against bioterrorism, investigating the anthrax attacks of October 2001 and the potential for a future bio-attack using smallpox or, worse yet, a new superpox virus resistant to all vaccines. "As exciting as the best thrillers, yet scarier by far, for Preston's pages deal with clear, present and very real dangers," says Publishers Weekly.
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
Great read
- By Chris McDonell on 2019-05-25
-
Viruses, Plagues, and History
- Past, Present, and Future
- Written by: Michael B. A. Oldstone
- Narrated by: L.J. Ganser
- Length: 13 hrs and 38 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 1
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 1
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 1
The story of viruses and humanity is a story of fear and ignorance, of grief and heartbreak, and of great bravery and sacrifice. Michael Oldstone tells all these stories as he illuminates the history of the devastating diseases that have tormented humanity, focusing mostly on the most famous viruses. For this revised edition, Oldstone includes discussions of new viruses like SARS, bird flu, virally caused cancers, chronic wasting disease, and West Nile. Viruses, Plagues, and History paints a sweeping portrait of humanity's long-standing conflict with our unseen viral enemies.
-
The Rise and Fall of the Dinosaurs
- A New History of a Lost World
- Written by: Steve Brusatte
- Narrated by: Patrick Lawlor
- Length: 10 hrs and 7 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 62
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 58
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 57
In this stunning narrative spanning more than 200 million years, Steve Brusatte, a young American paleontologist who has emerged as one of the foremost stars of the field - discovering 10 new species and leading groundbreaking scientific studies and fieldwork - masterfully tells the complete, surprising, and new history of the dinosaurs, drawing on cutting-edge science to dramatically bring to life their lost world and illuminate their enigmatic origins, spectacular flourishing, astonishing diversity, cataclysmic extinction, and startling living legacy.
-
3 out of 5 stars
-
Not bad
- By Amazon Customer on 2018-06-23
-
She Has Her Mother's Laugh
- The Powers, Perversions, and Potential of Heredity
- Written by: Carl Zimmer
- Narrated by: Joe Ochman
- Length: 20 hrs and 32 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 12
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 12
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 12
She Has Her Mother's Laugh presents a profoundly original perspective on what we pass along from generation to generation. Charles Darwin played a crucial part in turning heredity into a scientific question, and yet he failed spectacularly to answer it. The birth of genetics in the early 1900s seemed to do precisely that. Gradually, people translated their old notions about heredity into a language of genes. We need a new definition of what heredity is and, through Carl Zimmer's lucid exposition and storytelling, this resounding tour de force delivers it.
-
The Tangled Tree
- A Radical New History of Life
- Written by: David Quammen
- Narrated by: Jacques Roy
- Length: 13 hrs and 48 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 5
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 4
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 4
In the mid-1970s, scientists began using DNA sequences to reexamine the history of all life. Perhaps the most startling discovery to come out of this new field is horizontal gene transfer (HGT), or the movement of genes across species lines. For instance, we now know that roughly eight percent of the human genome arrived not through traditional inheritance from directly ancestral forms, but sideways by viral infection - a type of HGT. In The Tangled Tree David Quammen chronicles these discoveries through the lives of the researchers who made them.
-
2 out of 5 stars
-
More biography than science.
- By Amazon Customer on 2018-10-07
-
The Hot Zone
- A Terrifying True Story
- Written by: Richard Preston
- Narrated by: Howard McGillin
- Length: 3 hrs and 5 mins
- Abridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 13
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 10
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 10
A highly infectious, deadly virus from the Central African rain forest suddenly appears in the suburbs of Washington, D.C. There is no cure. In a few days, 90 percent of its victims are dead. A secret military SWAT team of soldiers and scientists is mobilized to stop the outbreak of this exotic "hot" virus. The Hot Zone tells this dramatic story, giving a hair-raising account of the appearance of rare and lethal viruses and their "crashes" into the human race.
-
The Demon in the Freezer
- Written by: Richard Preston
- Narrated by: Paul Boehmer
- Length: 8 hrs and 53 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 8
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 7
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 7
"This book will give you nightmares," cautions The New York Times. Richard Preston takes us inside the ongoing war against bioterrorism, investigating the anthrax attacks of October 2001 and the potential for a future bio-attack using smallpox or, worse yet, a new superpox virus resistant to all vaccines. "As exciting as the best thrillers, yet scarier by far, for Preston's pages deal with clear, present and very real dangers," says Publishers Weekly.
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
Great read
- By Chris McDonell on 2019-05-25
-
Viruses, Plagues, and History
- Past, Present, and Future
- Written by: Michael B. A. Oldstone
- Narrated by: L.J. Ganser
- Length: 13 hrs and 38 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 1
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 1
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 1
The story of viruses and humanity is a story of fear and ignorance, of grief and heartbreak, and of great bravery and sacrifice. Michael Oldstone tells all these stories as he illuminates the history of the devastating diseases that have tormented humanity, focusing mostly on the most famous viruses. For this revised edition, Oldstone includes discussions of new viruses like SARS, bird flu, virally caused cancers, chronic wasting disease, and West Nile. Viruses, Plagues, and History paints a sweeping portrait of humanity's long-standing conflict with our unseen viral enemies.
-
The Rise and Fall of the Dinosaurs
- A New History of a Lost World
- Written by: Steve Brusatte
- Narrated by: Patrick Lawlor
- Length: 10 hrs and 7 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 62
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 58
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 57
In this stunning narrative spanning more than 200 million years, Steve Brusatte, a young American paleontologist who has emerged as one of the foremost stars of the field - discovering 10 new species and leading groundbreaking scientific studies and fieldwork - masterfully tells the complete, surprising, and new history of the dinosaurs, drawing on cutting-edge science to dramatically bring to life their lost world and illuminate their enigmatic origins, spectacular flourishing, astonishing diversity, cataclysmic extinction, and startling living legacy.
-
3 out of 5 stars
-
Not bad
- By Amazon Customer on 2018-06-23
-
She Has Her Mother's Laugh
- The Powers, Perversions, and Potential of Heredity
- Written by: Carl Zimmer
- Narrated by: Joe Ochman
- Length: 20 hrs and 32 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 12
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 12
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 12
She Has Her Mother's Laugh presents a profoundly original perspective on what we pass along from generation to generation. Charles Darwin played a crucial part in turning heredity into a scientific question, and yet he failed spectacularly to answer it. The birth of genetics in the early 1900s seemed to do precisely that. Gradually, people translated their old notions about heredity into a language of genes. We need a new definition of what heredity is and, through Carl Zimmer's lucid exposition and storytelling, this resounding tour de force delivers it.
Publisher's Summary
A masterpiece of science reporting that tracks the animal origins of emerging human diseases.
The emergence of strange new diseases is a frightening problem that seems to be getting worse. In this age of speedy travel, it threatens a worldwide pandemic. We hear news reports of Ebola, SARS, AIDS, and something called Hendra killing horses and people in Australia - but those reports miss the big truth that such phenomena are part of a single pattern. The bugs that transmit these diseases share one thing: they originate in wild animals and pass to humans by a process called spillover. David Quammen tracks this subject around the world. He recounts adventures in the field - netting bats in China, trapping monkeys in Bangladesh, stalking gorillas in the Congo - with the world’s leading disease scientists. In Spillover, Quammen takes the listener along on this astonishing quest to learn how, where from, and why these diseases emerge, and he asks the terrifying question: What might the next big one be?
More from the same
What members say
Average Customer Ratings
Overall
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
5 Stars1
-
4 Stars0
-
3 Stars0
-
2 Stars0
-
1 Stars0
Performance
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
5 Stars1
-
4 Stars0
-
3 Stars0
-
2 Stars0
-
1 Stars0
Story
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
5 Stars1
-
4 Stars0
-
3 Stars0
-
2 Stars0
-
1 Stars0
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars
-
Story4 out of 5 stars
- K
- 2014-05-11
Good story with a few slow moments
A great overview of the history of modern cross-over viruses from animals to humans w/ a smattering of bacteria. Mostly, it's a great read, but there is a section of the history of HIV that gets ridiculously long.
6 of 6 people found this review helpful
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars
-
Performance4 out of 5 stars
-
Story5 out of 5 stars
- Tyler S
- 2015-06-12
Wonderful, factual, and engaging
Excellent, detailed description of the ways in which various zoonotic pathogens afflict humans, and how scientists study them. As a scientist myself, I appreciated the details and was never bored, but at the same time I think it would be accessible to a wide audience--a difficult balance to strike, but one that David Quammen achieves again and again.
3 of 3 people found this review helpful
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars
-
Performance3 out of 5 stars
-
Story5 out of 5 stars
- L. M. Roberts
- 2014-03-08
Fascinating, but not Riveting
The stories are well told, the theme carries through, and even though much of it is very dry material, it's easy enough to follow. Extremely distracting is the narrator's mispromunciation of numerous scientific words. He's actually a good reader, sounding confident and articulate... then he comes to a work he doesn't know and instead of learning how to say it, just plunges ahead repeatedly saying things like "zoe-ON-a-sis" for zoonosis, and "uh-SAY" for assay - to name a couple of the more annoying examples. This isn't a case of British vs American pronunciation, either, just an actor who should have been coached better.
14 of 17 people found this review helpful
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars
-
Story5 out of 5 stars
- George
- 2014-09-01
Great Book
Would you listen to Spillover again? Why?
Not only would listen to Spillover again but I plan to do so within the next week. The reason I will listen again is that it contains excellent scientific information encapsulated in a very entertaining story.
What was one of the most memorable moments of Spillover?
I frequently hike and hunt and I am concerned about Lyme Disease. I have read numerous explanations and discussions about the disease but nowhere did I find a description as clear and succinct as the information in this book. In fact the book completely changed my understanding of Lyme Disease.
Which scene was your favorite?
The AIDS epidemic's beginning in the early 20th century. Especially the theory that early attempts to improve African population resistance to known diseases using hypodermic needle injection without modern sterilization may have been a key factor in accelerating the epidemic. The attempt to do something good may have had a bad outcome.
Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?
Yes but it a little too long for that!
Any additional comments?
I especially liked the way this book is organized. I frequently go back and listen to specific topics and this book is beautifully organized with many chapters which correspond to specific discussions making it easy to go back.
5 of 6 people found this review helpful
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars
-
Performance3 out of 5 stars
-
Story5 out of 5 stars
- alan
- 2013-09-06
fine book
excellent important book and the narrator fits the book quite well---until he comes to pronounce Chinese names----he did fine in " other parts of the world" --- why didn't his director help him pronounce Chinese city names/
it really makes one go ouch when listening/
but a fine book nevertheless/
2 of 2 people found this review helpful
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars
-
Performance4 out of 5 stars
-
Story5 out of 5 stars
- Giri
- 2013-08-01
Engaging, masterful and terrific
What did you love best about Spillover?
The selection of stories, the development of context in each case and the scholarship required to produce this volume. On top of that the prose is outstanding. I have read three other of Quammen's books and I have been just as interested in all the topics of his other books, but this easy equals and possibly exceeds his other works.
What was one of the most memorable moments of Spillover?
The interlude of the imagined story of the voyager in the history of HIV. Gripping!
Which scene was your favorite?
Spelunking into the bat caves in Uganda.
If you were to make a film of this book, what would the tag line be?
"opportunity lurks in every bat"
2 of 2 people found this review helpful
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars
-
Performance3 out of 5 stars
-
Story5 out of 5 stars
- L. J.
- 2014-03-11
Problems with pronunciation ...
What did you love best about Spillover?
The work is fascinating, well researched, engagingly written and important.
Any additional comments?
As a trained zoologist and French speaker, the narrator's disastrous pronunciation of technical terms, scientific names and words in French was incredibly distracting. 'Phylogetics' instead of 'phylogenetics' was particularly grating, and the French phrases were so badly garbled as to be incomprehensible. Otherwise, I would strongly recommend this audiobook.
7 of 9 people found this review helpful
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars
-
Story4 out of 5 stars
- Emilio
- 2016-03-10
Great!
An excellent book incredibly well researched. Excessive detail at times. But so informative that it should be required reading!
1 of 1 people found this review helpful
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars
-
Performance4 out of 5 stars
-
Story4 out of 5 stars
- Jeremy R. Morton, MD
- 2016-02-24
Exhaustive, detailed presentation.
This is a very detailed and exhaustive description of practically every known pathogen that has made use of multiple hosts and how genetic mutations, animal behavior, human behavior and chance have created myriads of des ease patterns from clusters to epidemics throughout history involving both animals and humans. The author also chronicles the numerous doctors and other scientists who have devoted their lives chasing these viruses and other organisms around the world. It may be a lot more than you ever wanted to know about zoonotic diseases, but for a physician it is a fascinating treatise, and I highly recommend it. I listened to it at double speed and found it moved along better. JRM, MD
1 of 1 people found this review helpful
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars
-
Story5 out of 5 stars
- David
- 2016-02-08
Inspiring
one of my favorite epidemiological books as of yet! really enjoyed the depth the author went into to bring the story to light.
1 of 1 people found this review helpful