Panic in Level 4, Richard Preston
Panic in Level 4, Richard Preston
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Panic in Level 4
Cannibals, Killer Viruses, and Other Journeys to the Edge of Science

Author: Richard Preston

Narrator: James Lurie

Unabridged: 7 hr 49 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Published: 05/27/2008


Synopsis

Bizarre illnesses and plagues that kill people in the most unspeakable ways. Obsessive and inspired efforts by scientists to solve mysteries and save lives. From The Hot Zone to The Demon in the Freezer and beyond, Richard Preston’s bestselling works have mesmerized readers everywhere by showing them strange worlds of nature they never dreamed of.

Panic in Level 4 is a grand tour through the eerie and unforgettable universe of Richard Preston, filled with incredible characters and mysteries that refuse to leave one’s mind. Here are dramatic true stories from this acclaimed and award-winning author, including:

• The phenomenon of “self-cannibals,” who suffer from a rare genetic condition caused by one wrong letter in their DNA that forces them to compulsively chew their own flesh–and why everyone may have a touch of this disease.
• The search for the unknown host of Ebola virus, an organism hidden somewhere in African rain forests, where the disease finds its way into the human species, causing outbreaks of unparalleled horror.
• The brilliant Russian brothers–“one mathematician divided between two bodies”–who built a supercomputer in their apartment from mail-order parts in an attempt to find hidden order in the number pi (π).

In fascinating, intimate, and exhilarating detail, Richard Preston portrays the frightening forces and constructive discoveries that are currently roiling and reordering our world, once again proving himself a master of the nonfiction narrative and, as noted in The Washington Post, “a science writer with an uncommon gift for turning complex biology into riveting page-turners.”

About Richard Preston

Richard Preston has written nine books, including The Hot Zone, The Demon in the Freezer, and The Wild Trees. His books have been translated into more than thirty languages, and most of them have first appeared as articles in The New Yorker. Preston has won numerous awards, including the American Institute of Physics Award and the National Magazine Award. He’s also the only person not a medical doctor ever to receive the Centers for Disease Control’s Champion of Prevention Award for public health. An asteroid is named “Preston” after him. (Asteroid Preston is a ball of rock three miles in diameter, traveling on a wild orbit near Mars.) Richard Preston lives outside New York City with his wife, Michelle. They have three children.


Reviews

Goodreads review by Mara on March 06, 2015

In introducing this collection of essays, Richard Preston reflects on the nature and constraints of writing narrative non-fiction. Basically, Preston is using Panic as an opportunity to add to or modify his pieces (many of which originally appeared as articles in The New Yorker) and give the rea......more

Like other reviewers, I was left disappointed because this book was not what I expected it to be. Maybe it was our fault for not reading the blurb too closely, but I do think the subtitle “Cannibals, Killer Viruses, and Other Journeys to the Edge of Science” is very misleading. Of all the chapters i......more


Quotes

“Compelling . . . stories of high scientific adventure.”—Seattle Times

“[Preston’s] stories sparkle with images of stark beauty and darkness; mature reflections about the complex worlds we all occupy.”—Denver Post

“With his 1994 sensation The Hot Zone, science writer Richard Preston terrified millions. . . . In his new book, Panic in Level 4, he continues to probe nature’s stranger side.”—USA Today