Book Stall

What the Nose Knows
The Science of Scent in Everyday Life
by Avery Gilbert
Crown, 2008

Self-defined “smell scientist” Avery Gilbert is a man trained in evolutionary science, animal behavior and neuroscience who has made a career out of noticing, defining and creating odors. His commercial work includes both perfumes and kitty litter. In this book, his first, he provides a refreshingly unique look at odor perception and how it expresses itself in our culture.

“Cooking and spicing are behavioral adaptations with biological consequences. They have shaped out face and made mouth-based smelling a defining human trait,” he points out in a chapter on how essential the sense of smell is to the experience of flavor in food.

In terms of sensory receptor genes, the human nose is relatively weak and our sense of smell has been degrading over time. But thanks to spicy cooking, this may be changing, according to Gilbert.

“In the last 5,000 to 10,000 years, genes for smell receptors, along with genes related to diet and metabolism, have been evolving faster than those in any other physiological system.

“In the recent evolutionary past we have evolved entire subfamilies of odor receptors not shared by the chimpanzee - our closest living relative. An intriguing possibility is that these new receptors are tuned to new smells - ones that only recently became important to human survival. It’s speculation on my part, but I’d bet these receptors pick up the nuances of grilled meat - salmon filets and mastodon steaks - along with the volatiles of fermentation: not only milk products, but alcoholic drinks from beer to wine. On a daily basis we season food to please our palate, but over the long run our palate is evolving to match our menu.”

An entertaining and informative read, Gilbert’s book progresses from the basics of olfactory science to intriguing explorations of what makes for a good smeller, why some smells are malodorous, how odors affect memory, and whether subliminal smells can manipulate behavior.

Covering everything from Smell-O-Vision to scent sensitivity, this fascinating text will appeal to casual and serious readers alike.

Reviewed by Michael Hofferber

Evil Genes
Why Rome Fell, Hitler Rose, Enron Failed and My Sister Stole My Mother’s Boyfriend
by Barbara Oakley

The product of the author’s quest to understand the nature of evil people, both the Machiavellian despots on the world stage and the tyrants in her own family, this book probes the pscyhological, sociological and genetic roots of chronically malevolent behavior.

A popular science text that melds scientific research with family history, Evil Genes probes scientific literature for evidence supporting her theory that evil in some people results from an inherent dysfunction.

Where do the roots of evil lie? In what genes is it manifest? Like autism, there is some evidence that a genetically based brain development disorder can lead to self-righteous behaviors in utter disregard for the welfare of others. But the genetics are far too complex and the influence of social, developmental and environmental factors too varied , to predict where or when evil or psychopathic beavior will occur.

Alternating between the story of her dysfunctional family and a wide-ranging look at evil characters — Hitler, Stalin, Chairman Mao, Slobodan Milosevic, among others — the author weaves her way through psychopathy, genetics, medical imaging, narcissism, evolution and genius in a quixotic pursuit of certainty and definition.

How can you tell if a public figure is potentially evil?

“The best an ordinary person can do is to try to lay aside his or her own ideological blinkers and look honestly at public figures. If a given individual seems most interested in villifying others, proceeds to characterize his own in-group as having been unduly victimized, is ruthlessly vindictive, and finally, is discovered to have cozy, self-serving financial deals, there are reasonable grounds to assume that a person is more than a little Machiavellian and that his or her leadership may be aimed more toward self than public service. Unfortunately, our own tendency, at least regarding leaders who purport to share our ideology, is to avoid looking too closely.”

Evil Genes concludes with textbook-style discussion questions (”For Pondering”) that recap the issues:

• Do you think that you interact with people differently because of your own past experiences with the “successfully sinister?
• Do you see Machiavellian traits in yourself? Are they healthy? How would you know?
• Someday dictators will have access to technology to have themselves cloned, allowing for an endless procession of “mini-me’s.” What effect might this have on evil dictatorships of the future?

Go Out There

The Solar System Beyond Neptune
edited by M. A. Barucci, H. Boehnhardt, D. P. Cruikshank, and A. Morbidelli

The Kuiper Belt, discovered in 1992, is a region of the Solar System extending beyond the orbit of Neptune to approximately 55 AU from the Sun. Similar to the asteroid belt, yet at least 20 times as wide, it contains a suprising number of objects like dwarf planets (Pluto) and “scattered discs” and “cubewanos.”

This text, consisting of papers by over 100 contributing researchers, presents discoveries that have been made in the first 15 yearsof Kuiper Belt exploration. A region of space that was once regio incognita and an impenetrable mystery is now the new frontier of planetary science.

The latest volume in the Space Science Series of the University of Arizona Press, The Solar System Beyond Neptune consists of 35 chapters divided into seven sections that concern population estimates for transneptunian objects, their bulk properties, physical processes, formation and evolution, and a number of indiividually peculiar objects. The final section explores the links and relationships between transneptunian objects and the rest of the solar system.

The result is the most current and authoritative explanation of the solar system’s farthest reaches.

• Out There: Worlds Collide, Forming Pluto

The Book of Draft Horses: The Gentle Giants That Built the World
by Donna Campbell Smith
Lyons Press, 2007

As the name implies, “draft horses” are renowned for their size, strength and proficiency as beasts of burden - pulling wagons, plowing fields, hauling cargo. But the ancestors of today’s Clydesdales, Percherons, Belgians were the expensive possessions of medieval royalty. They were more likely to be found in festivals and battles ridden by knights in armor than working on a farm.

It wasn’t until the 1800s that the draught horse or dray horse found its calling in the fields, and the career was short-lived. The advent of trucks and tractors driven by internal compustion engines brought an end to the age of horsepower.

As freelance writer Donna Campbell Smith illustrates in The Book of Draft Horses, the advent of the engine didn’t mean an end to the heavy horse. They are still being used in many parts of the country for hauling and plowing, as well as for pleasure driving and county fair pulling contests.

“A resurgence of interest in the draft horse occurred in the 1970s, maybe as a result of gas shortages and high prices at the pump. Small farmers turned back to the original horsepower. Registration of new foals climbed. Draft horses today are showing up on small farms, in the logging industry, in the show ring and pulling competitions, and in the back yard as pleasure horses.”

A celebratory overview of draft horses as well as a practical handbook, Smith’s book covers the history and breeds of draft horses followed by separate chapters on buying, caring for, showing, working and breeding the animals.

An Introduction to Plant Breeding
by Jack Brown and Peter Caligari
Wiley-Blackwell, 2008

A textbook and professional reference for anyone involved in plant breeding, from students to researchers, this new title surveys the field and provides up-to-date information about recent developments,

Following an introductory chapter, the authors provide an overview of modes of reproduction, breeding objectives and schemes, genetics and breeding, predictions, selection, alternative techniques, and practical considerations. Each chapter organized with classroom study in mind, with a summary and “think questions” at the end of each chapter. The volume is indexed, but provides no references.

In their discussions of breeding objectives, the authors note the economic incentives that drive private breeding companies to develop cultivars that will sell seeds and produce royalties. “Public sector breeding groups are often not under the same economic restraints. Thus the private breeder in maximizing profits wll tend to favour objectives that will promote seed sales and discourage farmers from retaining a portion of their crop as seed for the following season. In many cases therefor hybrid cultivars are preferred over homozygous lines or open-pollinated populations.”

Whether in the private or public sector, plant breeding is nevertheless a numbers game with the aim of creating superior genotypes for successful new cultivars.  A knowledge of how this breeding occurs — molecular, cell and genetic techniques — is essential to all crop and plant scientists and has become an integral part of agriculture and plant sciences undergraduate degrees.

Veteran plant breeders and educators in Chile (Peter Caligari) and Idaho (Jack Brown), the authors provide a concise overview of their chosen field and are not shy about emphasizing the global importance of plant breeding.

Poker Wizards: Wisdom from the World’s Top No-Limit Hold’em Poker Players
by Warwick Dunnett
Cardoza, 2008

Poker Wizards is a compilation of interviews with several of the world’s most accomplished poker players:

• Chris Ferguson, aka “Jesus,” talking about game theory and “intellectualizing gut feeling.”
• Dan Harrington, author of Harrington on Hold ‘em
• T.J. Cloutier, author of How To Win The Championship: Hold’em Strategies for The Final Table
• Daniel Negreanu, author of Power Hold’em Strategy, discussing  the psychological traits important to successful players.
• Mike Sexton, author of One of a Kind, advocates aggressive play.
• Marcel Luske emphasizing the importance of hand selection
• Kathy Liebert, the #1 female money winner in tournament poker.
• Mel Judah, a World Poker Tour titlist with career earning over $3 million.
• Marc Salem, author of Marc Salem’s Mind Games: A Practical Step-by-step Guide to Developing Your Mental Powers, revealing some physical tells to look for in your opponents.

Warwick Dunnet organized the interviews, each about 20 to 30 pages, around key subjects like psychology and tournament strategy and “the makings of a poker wizard. He provides a summary chapter at the end of the book,

The “wizards” all agree on the importance of discipline, study, and hours of practice as the keys to improving one’s game. There are no magical tricks or subversive systems at work in any of these players’ approach, and none offer a comprehensive set of guidelines. Instead, the book is filled with brief nuggets of “wizdom,” as Dunnet calls them.

Best for players in no-limit hold’em tournaments, this book also includes some insights into limit hold’em and cash games, and general advice about poker in general.

How to Activate Your Brain: A Practical Guide, Book 1
by Valentin Bragin. AuthorHouse, 2007.

This large print book, written primarily for elderly readers, describes exercises and techniques designed to relieve stress and activate brain functions.

The text and exercises are used at the author’s Stress Relief and Memory Training Center in Brooklyn, New York, where psychiatrist Valentin Bragin — a specialist in stress and stress-related disorders — works with severely ill geriatric patients.

“The core of the program is a set of light physical exercises that are done mostly in a sitting position,” Bragin explains.

This “Brain Activation Program,” developed over a 12-year period, appears to revitalize the brain and reverse mental deterioration in some patients. It includes light physical exercise, meditative breathing, memory training, and stimulation from light and sound.

According to Bragin, patients who followed the program have overcome forgetfulness, inattentiveness, depression and apathy. After six months of treatment, some exhibited marked improvement in memory, reaction time, coordination, attention, and concentration.

Bragin on diet:

My recommendations for diet are very simple: Start with one healthy meal a day, and then pay attention to how it makes you feel. Compare it to the rest of your meals. Then slowly change the second meal to a ‘diet”‘meal. Gradually, you will begin to feel different and better. Your mind will become sharper and  you will have more energy.

The Lady Was a Gambler: True Stories of Notorious Women of the Old West
by Chris Enss. TwoDot, 2007

Contrary to most media representations, men did not win the West alone. There were women involved as well.

Old West occupations like cowboying and mining were almost exclusively male, but there were exceptions. There were also a few women whose circumstances or inclination led them to become professional gamblers and card sharks.

Author and screenwriter Chris Enss introduces 15 colorful, independent, and exceptional women gamblers of the Old West in this collection of cardsharp profiles.

“Throughout the history of the early gaming days of the Old West, women proved they were just as capable as men at dealing cards and throwing dice,” Enss claims.

Even so, professional women gamblers were a rarity and, according to Enss, “the most successful lady gamblers possessed stunning good looks, which helped disarm aggressive opponents and gave them something pretty to look at as they lost their moeny.”

The women profiled are Alice Ivers, Eleanora Dumont, Lottie Deno, Kitty LeRoy, Belle Ryan Cora, Gertudis Maria Barcelo, Belle Siddons, Kate O’Leary, Belle Starr, Minnie Smith, Martha Jane Canary, Jenny Rowe and Mary Hamlin.