Project and content management for Contemporary Authors volumes
WORK TITLE: The Wasp That Brainwashed the Caterpillar
WORK NOTES:
PSEUDONYM(S):
BIRTHDATE:
WEBSITE:
CITY:
STATE:
COUNTRY:
NATIONALITY:
http://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/authors/2141587/matt-simon
RESEARCHER NOTES:
LC control no.: n 2016034294
LCCN Permalink: https://lccn.loc.gov/n2016034294
HEADING: Simon, Matt
000 00484cz a2200133n 450
001 10191253
005 20160623165224.0
008 160623n| azannaabn |a aaa
010 __ |a n 2016034294
040 __ |a DLC |b eng |e rda |c DLC
100 1_ |a Simon, Matt
400 1_ |a Simon, Matthew
670 __ |a The wasp that brainwashed the caterpillar, 2016: |b ECIP t.p. (Matt Simon) dataview (Matthew Simon)
670 __ |a Amazon publr. info for The wasp that brainwashed … |b (Matt Simon; science writer for Wired magazine)
PERSONAL
Male.
EDUCATION:University of California, Davis, A.B., 2006.
ADDRESS
CAREER
Business Wire, copy editor, 2006-08; chrisad, copy editor, 2010-11; Wired, home page editor and science writer, 2011-. Has also worked as a freelance writer and copy editor.
WRITINGS
SIDELIGHTS
Matt Simon studied English and communication at the University of California, Davis, where he earned an A.B. After working several years as a copy editor at magazines and businesses, he took a job at Wired as home page editor and science writer. His specialty is zoology, the stranger the better. His first book is The Wasp That Brainwashed the Caterpillar: Evolution’s Most Unbelievable Solutions to Life’s Biggest Problems. In this book—which is fashioned after his column at Wired, “Absurd Creature of the Week,” Simon looks at a variety of creatures and how they have adapted in perhaps strange ways to a life that, he says, “sucks.”
The book’s title creature, the wasp, for example, deposits eggs inside a caterpillar and leaves them there to grow and hatch. As Cassie Martin describes it in Science News, “Some larvae stay behind to release chemicals that manipulate the caterpillar’s brain”—persuading the caterpillar to act as host and then, when the larvae hatch, as protector. Martin pronounced the book “full of . . . fascinating facts that will both impress and creep out.” A reviewer at Publishers Weekly found the book witty and engaging, “an entertaining look at evolution’s frightening billion-year arms race.” Online at Shelf Awareness, Katie Weed commented that The Wasp That Brainwashed the Caterpillar is a “gleeful ode to weird science” with stories that both “repel and fascinate.” A correspondent in Forbes called the book “conversational” and “humorous” as well as “fun” and “informative.”
BIOCRIT
PERIODICALS
Men’s Fitness, October, 2016, review of The Wasp That Brainwashed the Caterpillar: Evolution’s Most Unbelievable Solutions to Life’s Biggest Problems, p. 50.
Publishers Weekly, September 12, 2016, review of The Wasp That Brainwashed the Caterpillar, p. 45.
Science News, October 15, 2016, Cassie Martin, “Meet Earth’s Most Fanciful Creatures,” review of The Wasp That Brainwashed the Caterpillar, p. 28.
ONLINE
Forbes, https://www.forbes.com/ (January 11, 2017), review of The Wasp That Brainwashed the Caterpillar.
Shelf Awareness, http://www.shelf-awareness.com/ (November 8, 2016), Katie Weed, review of The Wasp That Brainwashed the Caterpillar.*
Matt Simon
Homepage editor
San Francisco Bay AreaWriting and Editing
Current
Wired Magazine
Previous
chrisad, various, Business Wire
Education
University of California, Davis
Recommendations 1 person has recommended Matt
Websites
Company Website
129
connections
View Matt’s full profile. It's free!
Your colleagues, classmates, and 500 million other professionals are on LinkedIn.
View Matt’s Full Profile
Summary
Author of The Wasp That Brainwashed the Caterpillar (https://www.amazon.com/Wasp-That-Brainwashed-Caterpillar-Unbelievable/dp/014312868X). Working on a second book about body-snatching parasites.
Experience
Wired Magazine
homepage editor
Wired Magazine
October 2011 – Present (5 years 9 months)san francisco bay area
chrisad
copy editor
chrisad
September 2010 – October 2011 (1 year 2 months)
freelance writer/editor
various
August 2008 – September 2010 (2 years 2 months)
Business Wire
copy editor
Business Wire
June 2006 – August 2008 (2 years 3 months)
Education
University of California, Davis
University of California, Davis
A.B., English, communication
2002 – 2006
Matt Simon
Photo of Matt Simon
Photo: © Christie Hemm Klok/WIRED
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Matt Simon is a science writer at Wired magazine, where he specializes in zoology, particularly of the bizarre variety. He is one of just a handful of humans to witness the fabled mating ritual of the axolotl salamander, as is detailed in this here book that he suggests you buy.
6/10/2017 General OneFile Saved Articles
http://go.galegroup.com/ps/marklist.do?actionCmd=GET_MARK_LIST&userGroupName=schlager&inPS=true&prodId=ITOF&ts=1497128263088 1/4
Print Marked Items
Meet Earth's most fanciful creatures
Cassie Martin
Science News.
190.8 (Oct. 15, 2016): p28.
COPYRIGHT 2016 Science Service, Inc.
http://www.sciencenews.org
Full Text:
The Wasp That Brainwashed the Caterpillar
Matt Simon
PENGUIN BOOKS, $20
[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]
Writer Matt Simon begins his new book with a bleak outlook on life: "In the animal kingdom, life sucks and then you
die." But thanks to evolutionwhich Simon calls "the most majestic problemsolving force on planet Earth"some
critters have peculiar adaptations that make life suck a little less (though sometimes at the expense of other species).
From mustachioed toads to pink fairy armadillos, Simon's debut book, The Wasp That Brainwashed the Caterpillar,
recounts an eclectic cadre of animals that use creative and often bizarre solutions to find love, a babysitter, a meal or a
place to crash.
Take, for instance, the book's title characters. Technically, it's the wasp larvae that brainwash the caterpillar. Once a
female Glyptapanteles wasp deposits eggs into a living caterpillar, she takes off, leaving the oblivious host to babysit
her young. After hatching, some larvae stay behind to release chemicals that manipulate the caterpillar's brain. Once
their siblings erupt from the poor creature's body, the caterpillar mindlessly protects the youngsters from predators.
Mind control isn't unique to waspsflies and even fungi do it, too. But the book is about more than just the seemingly
diabolical tactics of parasites. Prey species also have skin, or in some cases snot, in the game.
Hagfish, eellike fish that scavenge the seafloor, eject thick, slimy mucus to clog the gills of sharks that try to make a
meal of the hagfish. And the East African crested rat protects itself from dogs and other predators by slathering its fur
with the chewedup bark of the Acokanthera tree, traditionally used by indigenous hunters to make poison arrows. "A
species may gain an edge, but any sort of edge is answered," Simon writes. And so marches on the arms race of natural
selection.
The author never dives deeply into exactly how these creatures evolved. The book is a quick, fun read that's light on
science and heavy on snark (not to mention a lot of anthropomorphizing). Readers familiar with Simon's column for
Wired, "Absurd Creature of the Week," may already be acquainted with some of these animals. But the book is packed
full of even more fascinating facts that will both impress and creep out.Cassie Martin
Source Citation (MLA 8
th Edition)
Martin, Cassie. "Meet Earth's most fanciful creatures." Science News, 15 Oct. 2016, p. 28. General OneFile,
go.galegroup.com/ps/i.do?
p=ITOF&sw=w&u=schlager&v=2.1&id=GALE%7CA467258579&it=r&asid=a3843695a4a3bc0f5cbcb209b4b4ce05.
Accessed 10 June 2017.
6/10/2017 General OneFile Saved Articles
http://go.galegroup.com/ps/marklist.do?actionCmd=GET_MARK_LIST&userGroupName=schlager&inPS=true&prodId=ITOF&ts=1497128263088 2/4
Gale Document Number: GALE|A467258579
6/10/2017 General OneFile Saved Articles
http://go.galegroup.com/ps/marklist.do?actionCmd=GET_MARK_LIST&userGroupName=schlager&inPS=true&prodId=ITOF&ts=1497128263088 3/4
The Wasp That Brainwashed the Caterpillar:
Evolution's Most Unbelievable Solutions to
Life's Biggest Problems
Publishers Weekly.
263.37 (Sept. 12, 2016): p45.
COPYRIGHT 2016 PWxyz, LLC
http://www.publishersweekly.com/
Full Text:
The Wasp That Brainwashed the Caterpillar: Evolution's Most Unbelievable Solutions to Life's Biggest Problems
Matt Simon. Penguin, $20 (272p) ISBN 9780143128687
Simon, a science writer at Wired magazine, lays out an entertaining look at evolution's frightening billionyear arms
race. All species must adapt to changing environments to survive; many do it in strange ways, and Simon delivers a
wellwritten, if light, recitation of some of the weirdest. There are camouflage creatures: the spidertailed horned viper,
whose accurately named tail lures prey; the orb weaver spider, which spins a web to mimic "bird turds"; a "satanic"
gecko that's shaped like a leaf; and the cuttlefish, which is capable of imitating any background. Simon also profiles
some mind controllers, including Glyptapanteles wasps, which inject their eggs into caterpillars so that the resulting
larvae can puppet them into being their bodyguards, and the Ophiocordyceps fungus that "invades ants' brains and
mindcontrols them up into trees." Many animals live in odd placessuch as the gonads of sea cucumbers or the
tongues of fishand others wield bizarre weapons (heated hammer hands, intoxicants, glue). This is not an indepth
look at evolutionary processes; each entry in the parade of creatures is brief. Simon's wit, combined with the genuine
eccentricity of his subjects, make this a fun and accessible book. Agent: David Fugate, LaunchBooks. (Nov.)
Source Citation (MLA 8
th Edition)
"The Wasp That Brainwashed the Caterpillar: Evolution's Most Unbelievable Solutions to Life's Biggest Problems."
Publishers Weekly, 12 Sept. 2016, p. 45. General OneFile, go.galegroup.com/ps/i.do?
p=ITOF&sw=w&u=schlager&v=2.1&id=GALE%7CA464046281&it=r&asid=eceae8a8bbd21506d3f40b16f2c6f535.
Accessed 10 June 2017.
Gale Document Number: GALE|A464046281
6/10/2017 General OneFile Saved Articles
http://go.galegroup.com/ps/marklist.do?actionCmd=GET_MARK_LIST&userGroupName=schlager&inPS=true&prodId=ITOF&ts=1497128263088 4/4
Your can'tmiss fall reads
Men's Fitness.
32.8 (Oct. 2016): p50.
COPYRIGHT 2016 Weider Publications
http://www.mensfitness.com
Full Text:
A longawaited memoir from the Boss, an entertaining story of millennial angst, and a truescience thriller featuringamong
other curiositiesa fungus that creates zombies out of ants. Dig in!
Cannibals in Love
BY MIKE ROBERTS
[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]
* This debut novel starts post9/11 and blends several vignettes of a millennial dealing with deadend jobs, lastcall
nights, and the knowledge that, thanks to their predecessors, this lost generation will never attain true happiness. "How
do you live in a world that won't live up to its promise?" the narrator asks. But the book is no selfpitying lament for
thwarted ambition. It's a funny, minutely observed look at the way we live now.
The Wasp that Brainwashed the Caterpillar
BY MATT SIMON
[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]
* It's been 150plus years since Darwin introduced the theory of evolution. Some animals, though, evolved in ways that
would've surprised even him. Simon, who writes about evolutionary oddities for Wired, dives into nature's most
extreme examples, like salamanders that can regenerate parts of their brains and pintsize shrimp with claws powerful
enough to break glass.
Born to Run
BY BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN
[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]
* Fans of the Boss have waited four decades for this memoir, and the famed musician doesn't disappoint, delivering on
his promise "to show the reader his mind." With neverbeentold anecdotes about his childhood in Freehold. NJ. his
beginnings in a bar band, and the personal demons that inspired "Born to Run" and "Thunder Road." this riveting
memoir will thrill anyone who blasts "Rosalita" out on the back roads or hums "I'm on Fire" in the dark.
Source Citation (MLA 8
th Edition)
"Your can'tmiss fall reads." Men's Fitness, Oct. 2016, p. 50. General OneFile, go.galegroup.com/ps/i.do?
p=ITOF&sw=w&u=schlager&v=2.1&id=GALE%7CA464448711&it=r&asid=6a42f9e93cc2c52a582ede753e19164c.
Accessed 10 June 2017.
Gale Document Number: GALE|A464448711
The Wasp That Brainwashed the Caterpillar: Evolution's Most Unbelievable Solutions to Life's Biggest Problems
by Matt Simon, illus. by Vladimir Stankovic
FacebookTwitter
Biology can be funny--especially through the eyes of Matt Simon, science writer for Wired magazine. The Wasp That Brainwashed the Caterpillar: Evolution's Most Unbelievable Solutions to Life's Biggest Problems is Simon's gleeful ode to weird science.
Provocatively titled chapters group evolutionary problems and solutions into wry categories, with various animals and their adaptations featured in each. A sampling: "Turns Out Getting Eaten Is Bad for Survival" and "You Absolutely Must Get Laid." In the latter, Simon writes, "Think finding love in a bar is hard? Try finding it in the desolation of the deep sea." The solution for anglerfish involves the males burrowing parasite-like into the females, their bodies fusing and thus syncing the fish's hormones, ensuring that the males release sperm when the females release eggs.
Like nature itself, Simon's descriptions often repel and fascinate. The hagfish's solution to escaping sharks entails choking attackers, "filling their gills with copious amounts of snot." There is also the fungus that zombifies ants, which Simon repeatedly assures readers he is not making up.
He includes notes on humans, too. He celebrates significant scientists throughout history, including one woman whom Simon laments that science has forgotten: natural historian Maria Merian, who studied bugs in Surinam in 1699. Simon also tells a memorable anecdote about modern marine biologists who, when deep sea diving, play Angry Birds on waterproof iPads during slow ascents to avoid the bends. Closing the book with reflections on the scientists combatting humans' impact on our shared planet, Simon reflects with optimism and appreciation on the significance of their work. --Katie Weed, freelance writer and reviewerDiscover: Science writer Matt Simon investigates the wackiest and weirdest results of evolution.
The Wasp That Brainwashed the Caterpillar: Evolution's Most Unbelievable Solutions to Life's Biggest Problems by Matt Simon [2016, Penguin Books; Amazon US; Amazon UK]
Evolution has certainly shaped a lot of strange creatures, most of which are unknown to the general public. As if sensing this empty niche, Matt Simon wrote his fun and informative book, The Wasp That Brainwashed the Caterpillar. Conversational in tone and often humorous, the short chapters make this an ideal "subway read". Although this book includes disgusting descriptions (but otherwise lacks much deep scientific detail), it will certainly appeal to younger readers and to non-specialists who are interested in some of the weirder aspects of nature.