Book Review ‘Sentient, author Jackie Higgins
Book Review ‘Sentient, author Jackie Higgins
Sentient: How Animals Illuminate the Wonder of Our Human Senses
About the Book
The peacock mantis shrimp can throw a punch that can fracture aquarium walls.
The great grey owl can hear many decibels lower than the human ear.
The star-nosed mole’s miraculous nose allows it to catch worms in as little as 120 milliseconds.
In Sentient, Jackie Higgins assembles a menagerie of zoological creatures – from land, air, sea and all four corners of the globe – to understand what it means to be human. In it, we also meet the four-eyed spook fish and its dark vision, the vampire bat and its remarkable powers of touch, as well as the common octopus, the Goliath catfish and the duck-billed platypus. Each zoological marvel illustrates the surprising sensory powers that lie within us and enables us to engage with the world in ways we never knew possible.
This book explores how we process the world around us through the lens of the incredible sensory capabilities of thirteen animals, revealing that we are not limited to merely five senses.
“A masterpiece of science and nature writing.” —Washington Post
“Illuminating…an extraordinary book.” —The Wall Street Journal
About the Author
Author Jackie Higgins is a graduate of Oxford University with an MA in zoology and has worked for Oxford Scientific Films for over a decade, along with National Geographic, PBS Nova, and the Discovery Channel. She has also written, directed, and produced films at the BBC Science Department. She lives in London.
Book Review
This world is a beautiful yet complex place. The earth is constantly evolving, and with it, its life. Over the rise and fall of innumerable species, one sticks out like a sore thumb: humans, precisely homo sapiens. While some might argue that humans are the most intelligent animal, this title is defined only by the criteria humans assign it.
The system by which we measure intelligence is highly flawed and biased, as certain animals do not possess the skills we deem vital simply because they do not need them to survive. However, when it comes to physical traits, animals have passed down a multitude of attributes that we call our human senses. Sentient is a book by Jackie Higgins describing how animals illuminate these senses and the thin line separating our differences.
An intriguing chapter in the book is Chapter 9: The Cheetah and Our Sense of Balance. The cheetah’s body is lighter and sleeker than its bigger feline counterparts. Over half its mass is a pure muscle that allows for a fast-twitch response. In the words of Higgins, these muscles “prioritise rapidity over endurance.” An example is a famous cheetah, Sara, from the Cincinnati Zoo, who beat Usain Bolt by almost four seconds in a 100-metre sprint with an astounding final mark of 5.95 seconds. The secret to this magnificent speed directly correlates to their sense of balance. How does this relate to humans? Cheetahs and humans share organs in their inner ears called vestibular organs. The only contrast, when compared to other species, is that cheetahs have far more advanced and intricate organs, granting for the fast-paced technique they hunt. However, humans also have a unique sense of balance, with Higgins boldly stating that the way humans walk on two feet is “one of the most daring balancing acts in the animal kingdom.” Our sense of balance and vestibular organs are one of the concealed yet most necessary senses of an animal.
Even with this remarkable sense of balance, cheetahs still don’t make the cut for one of the fastest animal hunters. That honour goes to the star-nosed mole, a little furry abomination residing in the north-eastern United States and Eastern Canada. This critter is the most rapid and voracious mammal predator on the planet, with it being able to spot, kill, and consume its prey within half the time needed for a single blink of an eye (less than 150 milliseconds). Surprisingly, these animals are practically blind (like most moles) but have particularly keen hearing. Despite that, the star-nosed mole’s real success story is revealed in Sentient. Their nose, an organ we typically correspond with smell, is how the mole can sense where its prey lurks about, even in the deepest depths of the underground. The star-nosed mole’s name comes from the tentacles that dangle from its snout.
A few aspects of this book that I enjoyed include the way the facts are presented throughout the book and the unique manner in which the author explains each animal’s characteristics and features. In contrast, one thing that I found to be lacking in the book was that the book sometimes ceased to be entertaining and failed to grasp the reader’s attention. Otherwise, I feel that this novel was a very good read, and would recommend it to anyone interested in learning more about the world around us.
Book Reviewed by Saahil V Patwardhan
Book Details Paperback
- Publisher : Picador (4 July 2021)
- Language : English
- Paperback : 352 pages
- ISBN-10 : 1529030781
- ISBN-13 : 978-1529030785
Kindle and Audio Book versions are also available.