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WORK TITLE: Furry Logic
WORK NOTES: with Matin Durrani
PSEUDONYM(S):
BIRTHDATE:
WEBSITE: https://lizkalaugher.net/
CITY: Bristol, England
STATE:
COUNTRY: United Kingdom
NATIONALITY: British
http://environmentalresearchweb.org/cws/our-team * https://lizkalaugher.net/about/ * https://www.linkedin.com/in/lizkalaugher/
RESEARCHER NOTES:
PERSONAL
Female.
EDUCATION:Graduated from the University of Oxford; University of Bristol, UK, Ph.D.
ADDRESS
CAREER
IOP Publishing, Bristol, England, environmental science writer.
MEMBER:Association of British Science Writers.
AWARDS:Journalism fellowships from the World Federation of Science Journalists and the European Geosciences Union.
WRITINGS
Contributor to the BBC News Website, Guardian, PhysicsWorld magazine, and BBC Focus magazine.
SIDELIGHTS
Liz Kalaugher translated her childhood love of animals into a career as an environmental science writer, and she has received journalism fellowships from the World Federation of Science Journalists and the European Geosciences Union. She earned her materials science degree at Oxford University and then went on to complete her doctorate at the University of Bristol. Kalaugher has since gone on to work as a science writer for IOP Publishing, and she has reported on everything from beluga whales to reindeer. Her work has appeared on the BBC News Website, as well as the London Guardian, PhysicsWorld magazine, and BBC Focus magazine.
For her first book, Kalaugher teamed with Martin Durrani to write Furry Logic: The Physics of Animal Life. The book essentially explores how various animals have evolved to use physics to their advantage, from regulating body temperature to mating and eating. Focusing on different aspects of physics, the book is arranged into sections that explore these aspects, including sections on “Fluid,” “Sound and Light,” “Heat,” and “Force.” Through these lenses, the authors address the unique workings of bees, lobsters, eels, dogs, ants, and cats (any animal that notably uses physics to survive). For instance, the authors explain that, given our knowledge of flight and gravity, bees should not be able to fly; yet fly they do, all thanks to non-steady state aerodynamics. Dogs use harmonic motion to effectively shake water from their coats, while Oriental hornets are living, breathing illustrations of quantum mechanics. The book is written for lay readers and features a conversational tone, exploring the detailed workings of peacock mating rituals and elephant navigation. Regarding the latter, the authors explain that male peacocks shake their tales to create a pleasing vibrato that matches with their louder vocations. Elephants also use vibrations, albeit to navigate rather than mate; by lifting one foot into the air, elephants use the remaining three feet to sense vibrations through the ground and triangulate locations.
Reviews of Furry Logic were largely positive, and critics advised that the book is both fun and educational. While some felt the authors occasionally go too far with animal-based puns, most nevertheless felt that Furry Logic is well worth a read. In the words of a Kirkus Reviews correspondent, “the authors clearly explain the physical principles involved.” The result is “light science reading that informs while it entertains—good for dipping into and out of.” Mirko Kovac, writing in the online Science, was also impressed, and he called the book “a source of inspiration and a catalyst for reflection on the synergetic potential between biology and engineering.” Kovac added that the volume is “equally inspiring and humbling. Most critically, it demonstrates the potential for a new paradigm that integrates biology and engineering in a way that may help us solve humanity’s most important challenges.”
As Katrina Krämer pointed out in her online Chemistry World assessment, “I believe the authors intentionally didn’t assume any science knowledge since the book is clearly pitched at a younger audience. Its tone is jovial and packed full of pop culture references. If you enjoy puns, you’ll find a high density of witty wordplay in Furry logic.” A Publishers Weekly contributor offered both pros and cons, asserting that “Durrani and Kalaugher approach their captivating material in a lighthearted fashion, though the wordplay gets a bit stale by the end of the book.” Offering more strident applause in the online ScienceNews, Sid Perkins advised that “readers need not understand the intricacies of polarized light . . . to enjoy Furry Logic. Nor is this book an exhaustive account of the characteristics and behavior of every animal that uses such phenomena in interesting ways. There should be plenty of material for a sequel to this fascinating book.”
BIOCRIT
PERIODICALS
Kirkus Reviews, November 15, 2016, review of Furry Logic: The Physics of Animal Life.
Publishers Weekly, October 3, 2016, review of Furry Logic.
ONLINE
Chemistry World, https://www.chemistryworld.com/ (February 4, 2017), Katrina Krämer, review of Furry Logic.
Fury Logic Website, http://furrylogicbook.com (June 21, 2017).
Liz Kalaugher Website, https://lizkalaugher.net (June 21, 2017).
Science, http://blogs.sciencemag.org/ (January 17, 2017), Mirko Kovac, review of Furry Logic.
ScienceNews, https://www.sciencenews.org/ ( January 7, 2017), Sid Perkins, review of Furry Logic.*
Liz Kalaugher is editor of environmentalresearchweb. Liz has more than 10 years' experience as a science writer and holds a degree in materials science from the University of Oxford, and a PhD in materials science and a certificate in wildlife biology from the University of Bristol, UK.
Hi there. I’m a science journalist based in Bristol and a member of the Association of British Science Writers. I’ve just finished writing Furry Logic: the Physics of Animal Life for Bloomsbury Sigma, it will be out in the UK in October 2016 and the US in January 2017. For my day job I write about environmental science for IOP Publishing. I’ve also written for the BBC News website, The Guardian, PhysicsWorld magazine and BBC Focus magazine.
Liz Kalaugher is a science and environment writer based in Bristol, UK. Fascinated by animals since a childhood encounter with a squashed frog, she is a particular fan of bats, bees and badgers. After winning journalism fellowships from the World Federation of Science Journalists and the European Geosciences Union, Liz has also reported on beluga whales in the Canadian Arctic and Finnish reindeer. She has a materials science degree from the University of Oxford and a PhD in thin-film diamond from the University of Bristol.
Liz tweets from @LizKalaugher and you can find out more about Furry Logic at furrylogicbook.com
Liz Kalaugher is a science and environment writer based in Bristol, UK. Fascinated by animals since a childhood encounter with a squashed frog, she is a particular fan of bats, bees and badgers. After winning journalism fellowships from the World Federation of Science Journalists and the European Geosciences Union, Liz has also reported on beluga whales in the Canadian Arctic and Finnish reindeer. She has a materials science degree from Oxford University and a PhD in thin-film diamond. She blogs at lizkalaugher.net.
Furry Logic: The Physics of Animal Life
Nancy Bent
113.7 (Dec. 1, 2016): p16.
Copyright: COPYRIGHT 2016 American Library Association
http://www.ala.org/ala/aboutala/offices/publishing/booklist_publications/booklist/booklist.cfm
Furry Logic: The Physics of Animal Life.
By Matin Durrani and Liz Kalaugher.
Jan. 2017. 304p. Bloomsbury/Sigma, $27 (9781472914095). 590.
Many readers will see the word physics in the subtitle and sheer away from this captivating work, but even the most phobic will be drawn in as scientists and science editors Durrani and Kalaugher demonstrate how animals use physics in their daily lives. To both survive and pass on their genes, animals have evolved to exploit the principles of physics. As they cover the six basics--heat, forces, fluids, sound, electricity and magnetism, and light--the authors portray animals that are masters of each particular phenomenon. A dog shaking water from its fur is an example of heat convection (wet fur conducts heat from the body), while a gecko crossing a ceiling is exploiting the tiny attractive forces between molecules to make its feet stick. Cats master fluid dynamics when they drink, creating a column of water with their tongues. Durrani and Kalaugher reveal similarly intriguing details about bats, peafowl, and sound; electric eels, loggerhead turtles, and electricity and magnetism; and honeybees and octopus and light. All are equally fascinating and fun examples of the physics of biology.--Nancy Bent
YA: Bad jokes, cool animals, and easy-to-digest physics make this one a winner. NB.
Source Citation (MLA 8th Edition)
Bent, Nancy. "Furry Logic: The Physics of Animal Life." Booklist, 1 Dec. 2016, p. 16. General OneFile, go.galegroup.com/ps/i.do?p=ITOF&sw=w&u=schlager&v=2.1&id=GALE%7CA474717313&it=r&asid=a1f9e5574a57910b4e59149383d401c4. Accessed 3 June 2017.
Gale Document Number: GALE|A474717313
Durrani, Matin: FURRY LOGIC
(Nov. 15, 2016):
Copyright: COPYRIGHT 2016 Kirkus Media LLC
http://www.kirkusreviews.com/
Durrani, Matin FURRY LOGIC Bloomsbury Sigma (Adult Nonfiction) $27.00 1, 31 ISBN: 978-1-4729-1409-5
How animals are designed to make the most efficient use of physical principles in their struggle to survive.Physics World magazine editor Durrani and Kalaugher, who has a doctorate in materials science, admit to "anthropomorphising" animal behavior in the interest of telling a good story, a smart decision that allows them to amply demonstrate how animals succeed in making physics work for them. Each of the chapters focuses on a specific area of physics--Heat, Forces, Fluids, Sound, Electricity and Magnetism, and Light--and the authors clearly explain the physical principles involved. Many of the examples they provide may seem counterintuitive. For example, a wet dog expends less energy removing moisture by shaking its fur than if it simply waited for the water to evaporate. This is because the cooling effect of evaporation requires the dog to expend energy to maintain its body temperature. As the authors write, "dog fur minimizes heat loss through conduction and convection. But if that fur is wet, the animal has to burn precious energy to stay warm enough for its body to work. No pooch is that daft, as you'll know to your soggy cost if you've stood next to a dog that's just bounded out of a river." Though readers likely don't frequently think about hornets, they will be surprised to learn that Oriental hornets have a natural solar cell that allows them to convert sunbeams into electricity. Durrani and Kalaugher also speculate about the multipurpose role of the peacock's tail in the mating ritual. The colorful plumage is a sign of vitality that attracts mate-seeking females. Furthermore, recordings reveal that by rustling their tails, they make "a quieter, and more pleasing, shivering noise," that accompanies their more raucous mating-related vocalizations. Another offbeat factoid--in a book full of them--is the way that elephants raise one foot from the ground in order to use their other three to triangulate vibrations. Light science reading that informs while it entertains--good for dipping into and out of.
Source Citation (MLA 8th Edition)
"Durrani, Matin: FURRY LOGIC." Kirkus Reviews, 15 Nov. 2016. General OneFile, go.galegroup.com/ps/i.do?p=ITOF&sw=w&u=schlager&v=2.1&id=GALE%7CA469865650&it=r&asid=b257618c1e629bcb56209f87c153fed6. Accessed 3 June 2017.
Gale Document Number: GALE|A469865650
Durrani, Matin & Liz Kalaugher. Furry Logic: The Physics of Animal Life
Catherine Lantz
141.18 (Nov. 1, 2016): p95.
Copyright: COPYRIGHT 2016 Library Journals, LLC. A wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
http://www.libraryjournal.com/
* Durrani, Matin & Liz Kalaugher. Furry Logic: The Physics of Animal Life. Bloomsbury Sigma. Jan. 2017. 304p. illus. index. ISBN 9781472914095. $27; ebk. ISBN 9781472914101. NAT HIST
[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]
Durrani (editor, Physics World) and Kalaugher (editor, environmentalresearchweb.org) combine physics with biology to explore how animals eat, keep warm, mate, and protect themselves in their natural environments. Arranged into sections such as "Heat," "Force," "Fluid," and "Sound and Light," the book illustrates how ants, cats, snakes, bees, eels, lobsters, and other creatures manage the world around them. Just as human beings don't have to know how an engine works to drive a car or understand the principles of flight to ride in a plane, animals are unaware of the laws and properties they manipulate to survive and flourish. The authors entertain and explain with cases such as the simple harmonic motion of a shaking dog or the quantum mechanics of the Oriental hornet. The tone is charming and conversational, and humorous examples are paired with detailed descriptions of physics at work. VERDICT Readers don't need a background in physics to enjoy this engaging, educational title. Recommended for fans of popular science, including YA audiences.--Catherine Lantz, Univ. of Illinois at Chicago Lib.
Source Citation (MLA 8th Edition)
Lantz, Catherine. "Durrani, Matin & Liz Kalaugher. Furry Logic: The Physics of Animal Life." Library Journal, 1 Nov. 2016, p. 95+. General OneFile, go.galegroup.com/ps/i.do?p=ITOF&sw=w&u=schlager&v=2.1&id=GALE%7CA467830422&it=r&asid=015c71d94b6cb601a110bb4593436074. Accessed 3 June 2017.
Gale Document Number: GALE|A467830422
Furry Logic: The Physics of Animal Life
263.40 (Oct. 3, 2016): p108.
Copyright: COPYRIGHT 2016 PWxyz, LLC
http://www.publishersweekly.com/
Furry Logic: The Physics of Animal Life
Matin Durrani and Liz Kalaugher. Sigma, $27 (304p) ISBN 978-1-4729-1409-5
Bridging physics and biology in an accessible, informative, and (mostly) humorous manner, science journalists Durrani and Kalaugher take readers on an eclectic tour of the natural world. In individual chapters focusing on the physics of heat, force, fluid dynamics, sound, electricity and magnetism, and light, they explain basic principles and describe how a range of animals make use of those principles, often in surprising ways, to increase their ability to survive and reproduce. The authors demonstrate why mosquitos aren't killed when hit by raindrops weighing 50 times the mass of the insect, how bees manage to fly when simple equations suggest that they shouldn't be able to generate enough lift to do so, and how loggerhead turtles use the Earth's magnetic field to return to the beach upon which they hatched after swimming in the open ocean for five to 10 years. The examples are often fascinating, but Durrani and Kalaugher's larger message about the need to integrate the sciences is far more important: "Dividing physicists and biologists--making them go to separate classes and learn different subjects--stifles progress." Durrani and Kalaugher approach their captivating material in a lighthearted fashion, though the wordplay gets a bit stale by the end of the book. (Feb.)
Source Citation (MLA 8th Edition)
"Furry Logic: The Physics of Animal Life." Publishers Weekly, 3 Oct. 2016, p. 108. General OneFile, go.galegroup.com/ps/i.do?p=ITOF&sw=w&u=schlager&v=2.1&id=GALE%7CA466166616&it=r&asid=d119738937d44e97d0229e4906e093ad. Accessed 3 June 2017.
Gale Document Number: GALE|A466166616
A physics-focused tour of the animal kingdom offers inspiration for engineers and roboticists
By Mirko Kovac
January 17, 2017
Furry Logic: The Physics of Animal Life
Matin Durrani and Liz Kalaugher
Bloomsbury Sigma
2017
312 pp.
Purchase this item now
According to traditional flight physics, bees should not be able to fly. But fly they do, with mastery of non–steady state aerodynamics and little concern about our limited understanding of their capabilities. Human knowledge is catching up, however, with recent scientific insights revealing that these inconspicuous little creatures use aeroelastic deformation of their wings and highly dynamic vortex interactions to stay aloft.
Furry Logic: The Physics of Animal Life includes this and many other examples that illustrate how nature had solved complex engineering challenges millions of years before humanity even invented algebra. Building on recent insights in biophysics research, the book shows how animals have adapted to some of the most stringent and extreme environments. It is organized into six chapters that explain how animals use heat, forces, fluids, sound, electricity, and light to their advantage.
Accessible to readers from all backgrounds, Furry Logic uses a refreshing combination of scientific precision and colloquial wit to maintain engagement and admiration for the engineering marvels created by nature. Examples include the remarkable observation that all animals between 3 kilograms and 8 tons urinate for an average duration of 21 seconds and the fact that bees spit out nectar on hot days to cool their brains. Although many of these facts seem merely entertaining at first, they are based on some of the best biophysics research, with implications that could be of major relevance to the synthesis of novel and high-performance systems in engineering.
ALIJA/ISTOCKPHOTO
A flexible layer of collagen and elastic fibers under dogs’ skin allows them to rotate their wet fur nearly 180° to reduce heat loss.
Many great inventions have started with observing and understanding nature. For example, in his “Codex on the Flight of Birds” written about 1505, Leonardo da Vinci suggested that engineers should look to animals for inspiration for flying machines. Using a similar philosophy, Nikola Tesla, who invented the first aerial robots in 1898, was a keen bird lover who emphasized the importance of natural processes as models for engineering. Both da Vinci and Tesla not only were inspired by nature but also were able to understand the underlying physics, define the operational principles, and creatively translate them to engineering systems.
For me as a roboticist, Furry Logic was a source of inspiration and a catalyst for reflection on the synergetic potential between biology and engineering. The field of bioinspired engineering has seen several major successes in recent years, and it is an emerging subject of cross-disciplinary science. Applications range from gecko-inspired adhesive pads for heart surgery to flocking bird–inspired algorithms that solve search and optimization problems to flying fish–inspired aerial robots that can sample water quality during floods.
Bioinspired engineering is of particular relevance to robotics, where energy efficiency, sensing, control, and mechanical design need to be codeveloped and integrated in functional prototypes. This is especially important in unpredictable or changing environments. But the benefits of bringing together engineering and biology are greater than inspiration. Robots can be used as physical models to answer biological questions that would otherwise require difficult and/or potentially unethical animal experiments.
In chapter 3, for example, the authors describe a robotic flapping device that yielded an unprecedented look at the aerodynamics underlying bumblebee flight. Strategically placed holes released smoke during movement, offering insights that would not have been possible to obtain from living bees.
Furry Logic is an important book that is equally inspiring and humbling. Most critically, it demonstrates the potential for a new paradigm that integrates biology and engineering in a way that may help us solve humanity’s most important challenges.
‘Furry Logic’ showcases how animals exploit physics
Book chronicles use of light, magnetism and other phenomena
By
Sid Perkins
8:00am, January 7, 2017
Peacock
SOUNDS GOOD When peacocks shake their tail feathers, they make low-frequency sounds that attract peahens. This manipulation of sound is one example of animals’ use of physics detailed in Furry Logic.
Jatin Sindhu/Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0)
Magazine issue: Vol. 191, No. 1, January 21, 2017, p. 29
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Furry Logic
Matin Durrani and Liz Kalaugher
Bloomsbury, $27
Warning: Furry Logic is not, as the title might suggest, a detailed exploration of mammals’ reasoning skills. Instead, it’s a fun, informative chronicle of how myriad animals take advantage of the laws of physics.
Science writers Matin Durrani and Liz Kalaugher cite a trove of recent (and often surprising) research findings. They draw on their backgrounds — Durrani is a physicist, Kalaugher a materials scientist — to explain how animals exploit sound, light, electricity and magnetism, among other things, in pursuit of food, sex and survival. These creatures don’t consciously use physics the way that humans design and use tools, of course, but they are evolutionary marvels nonetheless.
Peacocks, for example, produce low-frequency sounds while shimmying their tail feathers (SN Online: 04/27/16). The birds use these sounds — and not just the sight of those colorful plumes — to impress females and fend off competing males. At the other end of the sonic spectrum, some bats use stealth echolocation to track down their preferred prey. Moths targeted by these bats have sensors that can pick up these ultrasonic calls, but the bats squeak so softly that a moth can’t hear its stalker until it is less than a half-second’s flight away.
Durrani and Kalaugher let readers know when the science isn’t settled. Researchers aren’t quite sure how peahens pick up males’ infrasonic signals, for example. Scientists also haven’t figured out how the archerfish spits so precisely (SN: 10/4/14, p. 8), knocking prey off low-hanging branches above the water as often as 94 percent of the time. The submerged fish must somehow gauge the angle at which light bends as it enters the water and then accurately compensate for refraction while spewing a stream of water. Amazingly, this feat may be innate rather than learned via trial and error.
Readers need not understand the intricacies of polarized light, Earth’s magnetic field or surface tension to enjoy Furry Logic. Nor is this book an exhaustive account of the characteristics and behavior of every animal that uses such phenomena in interesting ways. There should be plenty of material for a sequel to this fascinating book.
Furry logic: the physics of animal life
Katrina Krämer By Katrina Krämer4 February 2017
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Matin Durrani and Liz Kalaugher
Bloomsbury Sigma
2016 | 304pp | £16.99
ISBN 9781472914095
Buy this book from Amazon.co.uk
Furry logic
How can mosquitoes fly in the rain, despite one raindrop weighing about 50 times as much as the insect? And how does an archerfish deal with refraction when it tries to snipe insects by spitting at them with a jet of water? These are only a few of the questions Matin Durrani and Liz Kalaugher tackle in their book Furry logic.
In six chapters on heat, forces, fluids, sound, electricity and light, the authors explore how animals have evolved to exploit these physical phenomena to survive. Furry logic looks at all kinds of common and quirky animals, from seemingly simple questions of how cats drink – which is, as I found out, so complex that researchers still argue which of the different mathematical models they developed is correct – to scientists trying to reconstruct how long-extinct pterosaurs could fly despite their enormous size.
Instead of just stating fact after fact, Durrani and Kalaugher take the reader on a journey following the scientists that uncovered (or are still working to uncover) the physics behind animals’ behaviour. University of Cambridge zoologists built a one-metre wingspan bionic moth – an image that is simultaneously fascinating and terrifying – to study the aerodynamics of insect flight, and a Georgia Institute of Technology researcher watched 16 animal species urinate to find out that on average it takes them 21 seconds to empty their bladder. I thoroughly enjoyed reading about the researchers’ work and their sometimes unusual methods to study their animal of choice in more detail. I think it is these personable insights that will make the physics more approachable.
Science-savvy readers might be familiar with many of the physical phenomena the authors describe and might find some of the explanations overly long or even superfluous; however, I believe the authors intentionally didn’t assume any science knowledge since the book is clearly pitched at a younger audience. Its tone is jovial and packed full of pop culture references. If you enjoy puns, you’ll find a high density of witty wordplay in Furry logic.
If I had one criticism, it would be that complicated science is labelled as tedious and the mention of scientific words as panic-inducing. ‘Here we’ve aimed for a level that remains fun,’ the authors write in their introduction. I think that science can be fascinating, engaging or surprising, but it doesn’t necessarily have to be fun – or be ‘made fun’, for example by avoiding scientific words or complex details.
Furry logic features on our book club podcast.