We humans know how hot the surface of the sun is. We know how much pressure there is at 11,000 meters below sea level. We know bacteria that live in the ice of the coldest tundra and scorpions which are the driest deserts at home. The least remains hidden from science, and if something is unclear, it is only for the time being. For all human curiosity, journalist Emily Anthes was struck by how curious she had rarely heard of research examining places where humans—particularly in the Western world—spend more than 90 percent of their time: indoors.
Like most people, the writer, who has degrees from Yale University, MIT and a range of journalism awards, has spent a lot of time in her apartment over the past two years. Inspired by this, I researched a variety of interiors and compiled the results in this book.
From the local microbiome and the dangers of the smart home
After an introduction, it follows nine chapters dealing with, among other things, the microbiome, work environments, prison psychology, smart home technology, and life beyond our planet. On each page, the author explains why she currently teaches science communication and journalism at MIT. She references a number of studies in each chapter and speaks to different researchers. The facts, which are always well-founded and meticulously documented in the appendix, are explained in an understandable manner and linked together so that a complete picture appears advancing the current research on the complex topic.
Anthes patiently and frequently explains examples from her own life, such as when she disassembled the shower head to take a biofilm sample and wondered if others cleaned it regularly. This makes the work easily accessible. The popular scientific figure does not change the high informational content of the book, since readers who have already dealt with the discussed topic will learn something new.
“Explorer. Communicator. Music geek. Web buff. Social media nerd. Food fanatic.”
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