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    Cannibalism: A Perfectly Natural History by Bill Schutt Summary

    Cannibalism: A Perfectly Natural History
    Bill Schutt
    3.9 (6899 Reviews)
    ScienceHistorySociety
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    Overview of Cannibalism

    Cannibalism isn't just taboo - it's natural science. Zoologist Bill Schutt's New York Times Editor's Choice explores how species (including humans) consume their own. From medicinal body parts to climate change implications, this darkly humorous journey will forever change what you thought was simply unthinkable.

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    Best quote from Cannibalism

    “

    Natural selection has favored tadpoles that can "get out of the pool" quickly before it evaporates, and cannibalism provides the perfect solution.

    ”
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    What if the line between civilization and savagery was thinner than we'd like to admit? We recoil at the thought of consuming human flesh, yet cannibalism has woven itself through nature, history, and even our own cultural practices in ways that challenge everything we think we know about what's "natural." This isn't just about horror movies or tabloid headlines-it's about understanding a biological phenomenon that appears across species, including our own, under specific conditions. When we peel back the layers of revulsion and examine cannibalism through a scientific lens, we discover it's not an aberration but an adaptation, not madness but survival calculus. The question isn't whether cannibalism exists in nature-it's everywhere. The real question is: what does its prevalence tell us about evolution, human nature, and our precarious future?

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