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mscoutj's review
5.0
In her latest book, Marlene Zuk makes a case for some of the world’s smallest inhabitants: “If you are one of those that think insects are important, but not breathtaking, pests without inspiring passion, I want to change your mind.” Zuk then proceeds to make her case for insects as fascinating objects of study.
The introduction illustrates the importance of insects not only to human existence, but to human understanding as well. By studying creatures so completely different from ourselves, we can come to knowledge that is not possible otherwise. By setting aside the anthropomorphism Zuk indicates is inherent in virtually all vertebrate study, we can truly look at life from a new perspective. And what do we find when we do so? “It is possible to be unselfish without a moral code, sophisticated without an education, and beautiful wearing a skeleton on the outside.” Though one could argue that latter is subjective, her point is certainly well made.
She also makes the case for insects as both mirror and window to the human condition. They are mirrors in that they exhibit a lot of the same behavior: animal husbandry, language, social hierarchies and learning. However, she adds, they do all of those things without the benefit of the advanced hardware that the vertebrate brain offers, as well as missing the software of the pituitary system and hormones so important in humans. Insects are windows because of those differences. One of the points she returns to again and again is that insects make for great study subjects because we aren’t them.
Another ongoing theme throughout the book is the “obsession” by humans to guarantee ourselves a club of one, and only one, member. For each trait that was presumed to be unique to humanity (personality, language, the ability to learn) that has been observed in the insect world, scientists seem to get a case of the “yeah buts”, in order to prove why it is not really. Barring that, the list for admission continues to add new criteria, though she also points out that “one can detect a certain desperation in resorting to homicidal violence as a badge of distinction.”
The different chapters investigate different aspects of insect life, anything from education to parenting to the altruism of ants. Do insects have personalities? Yes, Zuk argues and here’s how that benefits them and us. She also has a chapter on the one topic about which she is asked most frequently, “Two Fruit Flies Walk into a Bar…”
In the final chapter, “Six-Legged Language”, she describes language studies. Famous for dancing their communiqués, honeybees need to communicate new food sources as well as new locations when it is necessary to move the hive. When communicating the latter, in addition to where, the scout bees have to communicate desirability of the different options and come to a consensus so that the entire swarm can be moved to the new home. And that is just the beginning of the task.
Overall, Sex on Six Legs is a thoroughly enjoyable book. Though she emphasizes certain themes almost to the point of redundancy (i.e., the evils of anthropomorphism and the human club of one, or that insects make great subjects of study) she also tenders a great deal of evidence for why this is so. This is a book that is certainly aimed more towards a popular audience than a scientific one, but she does not assume that audience is unintelligent. Nor does she assume the audience can’t take a joke, as she does spend a fair bit of time with her tongue firmly planted in cheek. It is certainly a great introduction to ethology for the lay reader and has the potential to change minds about the fascination of insects.
The introduction illustrates the importance of insects not only to human existence, but to human understanding as well. By studying creatures so completely different from ourselves, we can come to knowledge that is not possible otherwise. By setting aside the anthropomorphism Zuk indicates is inherent in virtually all vertebrate study, we can truly look at life from a new perspective. And what do we find when we do so? “It is possible to be unselfish without a moral code, sophisticated without an education, and beautiful wearing a skeleton on the outside.” Though one could argue that latter is subjective, her point is certainly well made.
She also makes the case for insects as both mirror and window to the human condition. They are mirrors in that they exhibit a lot of the same behavior: animal husbandry, language, social hierarchies and learning. However, she adds, they do all of those things without the benefit of the advanced hardware that the vertebrate brain offers, as well as missing the software of the pituitary system and hormones so important in humans. Insects are windows because of those differences. One of the points she returns to again and again is that insects make for great study subjects because we aren’t them.
Another ongoing theme throughout the book is the “obsession” by humans to guarantee ourselves a club of one, and only one, member. For each trait that was presumed to be unique to humanity (personality, language, the ability to learn) that has been observed in the insect world, scientists seem to get a case of the “yeah buts”, in order to prove why it is not really. Barring that, the list for admission continues to add new criteria, though she also points out that “one can detect a certain desperation in resorting to homicidal violence as a badge of distinction.”
The different chapters investigate different aspects of insect life, anything from education to parenting to the altruism of ants. Do insects have personalities? Yes, Zuk argues and here’s how that benefits them and us. She also has a chapter on the one topic about which she is asked most frequently, “Two Fruit Flies Walk into a Bar…”
In the final chapter, “Six-Legged Language”, she describes language studies. Famous for dancing their communiqués, honeybees need to communicate new food sources as well as new locations when it is necessary to move the hive. When communicating the latter, in addition to where, the scout bees have to communicate desirability of the different options and come to a consensus so that the entire swarm can be moved to the new home. And that is just the beginning of the task.
Overall, Sex on Six Legs is a thoroughly enjoyable book. Though she emphasizes certain themes almost to the point of redundancy (i.e., the evils of anthropomorphism and the human club of one, or that insects make great subjects of study) she also tenders a great deal of evidence for why this is so. This is a book that is certainly aimed more towards a popular audience than a scientific one, but she does not assume that audience is unintelligent. Nor does she assume the audience can’t take a joke, as she does spend a fair bit of time with her tongue firmly planted in cheek. It is certainly a great introduction to ethology for the lay reader and has the potential to change minds about the fascination of insects.
jessferg's review
3.0
A completely accessible book for the citizen scientist. Interesting information with some occasional humor and not to much editorializing/anthropomorphism.
The book is not a comprehensive look at a specific species but a series of essays that looks at specific behaviors in the insect world. This format really allows for a good understanding of the evolution of the behavior's development. Which is, of course, fascinating.
I did have to re-read a few paragraphs here and there (especially the one describing how slave ants work - so bizarre and, at first, confusing) but in all cases it was because of a genuine misunderstanding on on my part, not because of the writing. I don't think the average reader will have any issues following along.
The book is not a comprehensive look at a specific species but a series of essays that looks at specific behaviors in the insect world. This format really allows for a good understanding of the evolution of the behavior's development. Which is, of course, fascinating.
I did have to re-read a few paragraphs here and there (especially the one describing how slave ants work - so bizarre and, at first, confusing) but in all cases it was because of a genuine misunderstanding on on my part, not because of the writing. I don't think the average reader will have any issues following along.
valcuellar's review
4.0
Not as much sex as I thought, since the title is Sex on six legs. It is a very entertaining book, very comic and informative. The chapter on the bees was very feminist! I wonder if it was intended. As an entomologist I enjoy this kind of books.
rachelmansmckenny's review
4.0
One of those books I kept having to pause reading to share factoids with my husband.
purplemoonmyst's review
5.0
From Goodreads:
Insects have inspired fear, fascination, and enlightenment for centuries. They are capable of incredibly complex behavior, even with brains often the size of a poppy seed. How do they accomplish feats that look like human activity— personality, language, childcare—with completely different pathways from our own? What is going on inside the mind of those ants that march like boot-camp graduates across your kitchen floor? How does the lead ant know exactly where to take his colony, to that one bread crumb that your nightly sweep missed? Can insects be taught new skills as easily as your new puppy?
Sex on Six Legs is a startling and exciting book that provides answers to these questions and many more. With the humor of Olivia Judson’s Dr. Tatiana’s Sex Advice to All Creation, Zuk not only examines the bedroom lives of creepy crawlies but also calls into question some of our own longheld assumptions about learning, the nature of personality, and what our own large brains might be for.
My Review: I have to admit when I saw this at the library it was the title that drew me in. My first thought was sex life of insects? Who would write a book on such things? Then I picked it up and saw that it compared human processes and insects process and was hooked.
I never thought of insects as having any redeeming qualities. I see one and I stomp on it. This book opened my eyes. It described how insects can be social and how they communicate various things. For example, wasp can tell when another wasp not of its nest intrudes and will fight the intruder. What I found most fascinating was the fact that a researcher actually got a hold of a wasp and painted their faces to test this fact. I want to know how they do these sort of things without getting stung.
The biggest thing that the book does is to show that even though we think of humans has having special qualities and insects are nothing like us they are in fact. They do not have brains per se so everything boils down to neurons. We can see how neurons influence behavior and this in turn can lead us to discover more about humans and the why we act the way we do.
This was a fascinating book. I could not put it down, The author writes in a way where lay people can understand it. The author injects a sense of humor throughout the book that makes it a funny and delightful read.This review was originally posted on Adventures in Never Never Land
archytas's review
4.0
I was possibly the perfect audience for this book: I know a fair bit about current animal cognition discussions, but nothing at all about insects, and I enjoy Zuk's humour a good deal. So the book's fairly haphazard approach to explaining the significance of, say, cooperation, didnt really bother me. I loved Zuk's clear explanation of hive life, and such innovations as consensus decision making through dancing. Zuk does love a good insect reproduction anecdote and will travel some distance from her point to tell it, but she also excels at using the surprising to challenge assumpions, which *is* usually the point.
The book ultimately argues for some pretty sophisticated cognive functions in insects, most compellingly in social hive structures. Like most in this field, Zuk doesn't strongly delineate what she means by intelligence, regarding it possibly as a kind of summed total of various diverse traits. (I really the term, implying a linear measurable value-laden scale, should be ditched entirely in this field.) Her elaboration of the complexities of negotiation among species is the high point here: she has a remarkably clear explanation of consensus, leader and dispersed decision making works in ants, termites and bees.
Zuk is pretty firmly on the Selfish Gene side of evolutionary theory, whereas I tend to agree more with complex factor evolutionary biologists. This influences, obviously, a lot of her thinking around collaboration in particular, which she views as a constant tension related directly to gene transmission. She sits on the sceptical side of the social brain hypothesis, and even of extended-childhood-for-learning, without much explanation as to why. But her aim is always to explain not to pursuade, making it easy to disagree with her and enjoy the book at the same time. It is a skill more of us should have.
The book ultimately argues for some pretty sophisticated cognive functions in insects, most compellingly in social hive structures. Like most in this field, Zuk doesn't strongly delineate what she means by intelligence, regarding it possibly as a kind of summed total of various diverse traits. (I really the term, implying a linear measurable value-laden scale, should be ditched entirely in this field.) Her elaboration of the complexities of negotiation among species is the high point here: she has a remarkably clear explanation of consensus, leader and dispersed decision making works in ants, termites and bees.
Zuk is pretty firmly on the Selfish Gene side of evolutionary theory, whereas I tend to agree more with complex factor evolutionary biologists. This influences, obviously, a lot of her thinking around collaboration in particular, which she views as a constant tension related directly to gene transmission. She sits on the sceptical side of the social brain hypothesis, and even of extended-childhood-for-learning, without much explanation as to why. But her aim is always to explain not to pursuade, making it easy to disagree with her and enjoy the book at the same time. It is a skill more of us should have.
bibliocyclist's review
3.0
Why I want to read this book (from a review by Zadie Smith):
This book has given me almost more insect anecdotes than I know what to do with. At dinner, they don't just end the conversation, they end dinner. It is a powerful feeling: I recommend it. Whatever the person sitting opposite thinks he knows about insects, after reading this book I guarantee you will know more. He will say, "Oh, sure, some wasps inject their cockroach prey with a paralyzing poison which allows them to drag the roach back to the wasp nest and keep it fresh." You will sigh and look down at the butter dish. You will inform your friend--not without humility--that there exists a jewel wasp who rather than using simple paralysis injects the roach with "a judicious sting inside its head, so that its nervous system, and legs, still function well enough to allow it to walk on its own." Then the wasp leads the roach to its doom, effectively "hijacking its free will." Zombie-cockroach! And p.s.: if you ever see a silent male cricket failing to attract any females, it's not because he's shy, it's because a fly has, at some earlier point, deposited some tiny larvae on him, and one or more of the resulting maggots have gone into his body, eaten him from the inside, grown as big as the cricket itself, and now live inside inside him. Zombie-cricket-fly! Game, set, match, you.
"Everything not forbidden is compulsory."
Regret, it would seem, is not part of the ant repertoire.
This book has given me almost more insect anecdotes than I know what to do with. At dinner, they don't just end the conversation, they end dinner. It is a powerful feeling: I recommend it. Whatever the person sitting opposite thinks he knows about insects, after reading this book I guarantee you will know more. He will say, "Oh, sure, some wasps inject their cockroach prey with a paralyzing poison which allows them to drag the roach back to the wasp nest and keep it fresh." You will sigh and look down at the butter dish. You will inform your friend--not without humility--that there exists a jewel wasp who rather than using simple paralysis injects the roach with "a judicious sting inside its head, so that its nervous system, and legs, still function well enough to allow it to walk on its own." Then the wasp leads the roach to its doom, effectively "hijacking its free will." Zombie-cockroach! And p.s.: if you ever see a silent male cricket failing to attract any females, it's not because he's shy, it's because a fly has, at some earlier point, deposited some tiny larvae on him, and one or more of the resulting maggots have gone into his body, eaten him from the inside, grown as big as the cricket itself, and now live inside inside him. Zombie-cricket-fly! Game, set, match, you.
"Everything not forbidden is compulsory."
Regret, it would seem, is not part of the ant repertoire.
cspiwak's review
4.0
nothing is as bizzare & intrigguing as the insect world and pleanty of examples are given here. very enjoyable
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