The Secret Body: How the New Science of the Human Body Is Changing the Way We Live

Description

One of our most lauded scientist-writers shows how astonishing breakthroughs in medical science are changing previously immutable aspects of humanity Welcome to a revolution in the science of human health. This book takes us to the frontier of medical research and reveals stunning recent advances that are changing our understanding of how human body works, how we combat and prevent disease and how we understand what it means to be human. We see how super-resolution nano-scopes are revealing hitherto hidden operations within our cells and opening up new new ways of manipulating the immune system; how human embryos can now be preserved alive long enough to see how genetic abnormalities can be corrected during the early stages of foetal development; how light is being used to excite pathways in the brain allowing us to understand and manipulate thoughts and feelings; how our rapidly increasing understanding of the microbiome is radically changing every aspect of human biology. These and many more astonishing discoveries are related as gripping dramas of discovery by an award-winning scientist at the very forefront of this adventure.

Daniel M. Davis is Professor of Immunology at the University of Manchester and author of two previous books- The Beautiful Cure, shortlisted for the 2018 Royal Society Science Book Prize and a book of the year in The Times, Telegraph and New Scientist, and The Compatibility Gene, longlisted for the 2014 Royal Society Science Book Prize and shortlisted for the Society of Biology Book Prize. His research, using super-resolution microscopy to study the immune system, was listed in Discover magazine as one of the top 100 breakthroughs of the year. He is also the author of over 140 academic papers, collectively cited over 13,000 times, including articles in Nature, Science and Scientific American.

A brilliant deep-dive into the latest discoveries of human health. An inspiration! -- Tim Spector, No.1 bestselling author of Spoon-Fed A big-picture forecast of how medicine stands on the threshold of a revolution that will radically change all of our lives ... Davis is a polar opposite of the typecast propeller-hatted futurologist. He is beguilingly informal and affably humorous * The Times * An elegantly written and splendidly concise Cook's Tour of the frontiers of medical biology. It is also an engrossing account of the progress of science * Wall Street Journal * A perfect blend of cutting-edge science and compelling storytelling. Daniel Davis has a rare knack for making complex science comprehensible and thrilling -- BILL BRYSON An extraordinary journey that reveals the magnificence, intricacy and beauty of the human body, fundamentally changing the way we see ourselves. Masterful -- ALICE ROBERTS