July 2009
Beginner
306 pages
8h 37m
English
Overview
What, exactly, do you know about your body? Do you know how yourimmune system works? Or what your pancreas does? Or the myriad --and often simple -- ways you can improve the way your bodyfunctions?
This full-color, visually rich guide answers these questions andmore. Matthew MacDonald, noted author of Your Brain: TheMissing Manual, takes you on a fascinating tour of your bodyfrom the outside in, beginning with your skin and progressing toyour vital organs. You'll look at the quirks, curiosities, andshortcomings we've all learned to live with, and pick up justenough biology to understand how your body works. You'll learn:
That you shed skin more frequently than snakes do
Why the number of fat cells you have rarely changes, no matterhow much you diet or exercise -- they simply get bigger orsmaller
How you can measure and control fat
That your hair is made from the same stuff as horses'hooves
That you use only a small amount of the oxygen you inhale
Why blood pressure is a more important health measure thanheart rate -- with four ways to lower dangerously high bloodpressure
Why our bodies crave foods that make us fat
How to use heart rate to shape an optimal workout session --one that's neither too easy nor too strenuous
Why a tongue with just half a dozen taste buds can identifythousands of flavors
Why bacteria in your gut outnumbers cells in your body -- andwhat function they serve
Why we age, and why we can't turn back the clock
What happens to your body in the minutes after you die
Rather than dumbed-down self-help or dense medical text,Your Body: The Missing Manual is entertaining and packedwith information you can use. It's a book that may well change yourlife.
Reader comments for Your Brain: The Missing Manual,also by author Matthew MacDonald:
"Popular books on the brain are often minefields of attractive butinaccurate information. This one manages to avoid most of the hypeand easy faulty generalizations while providing easy to read anddigest information about the brain. It has useful tricks withoutthe breathless hype of many popular books." -- Elizabeth Zwicky,The Usenix Magazine
"...a unique guide that should be sought after by any who want tomaximize what they can accomplish with their mental abilities andresources." -- James A. Cox, The Midwest Book Review - WisconsinBookwatch
"If you can't figure out how to use your brain after reading thisguide, you may want to return your brain for another." -- TheSacramento Book Review, Volume 1, Issue 2, Page 19
"It's rare to find a book on any technical subject that is as wellwritten and readable as Your Brain: The Missing Manual. The bookcovers pretty much anything you may want to know about your brain,from what makes it up, through how it develops to how to mitigatethe affects of aging. The book is easy reading, fact packed andhighlighted notes and practical applications. So if you want tolearn more about your brain, how it works, how to get the best outof it or just want to stave off the ravages of Alzheimers (seechapter ten for details of how learning helps maintain your brain)then I can't recommend this book highly enough." -- Neil Davis,Amazon.co.uk
"MacDonald's writing style is perfect for this kind of guide. Itremains educational without becoming overly technical or usingunexplained jargon. And even though the book covers a broad scopeof topics, MacDonald keeps it well organized and easy to follow.The book captures your attention with fun facts and interestingstudies that any person could apply to their own understanding ofhuman ability. It has great descriptions of the brain and itsinterconnected parts, as well as providing full color pictures anddiagrams to offer a better explanation of what the author istalking about." -- Janica Unruh, Blogcritics Magazine