I liked it, but had hoped for more biology. The main focus was on language and even a rather large section devoted to the possibility of self-replicating artificial intelligence ( )

This is a case where I should have read a few more reviews before trying the book. Based on the subtitle I was expecting a book speculating on what alien life in the universe could be like as backed up by current scientific understanding. Unfortunately this book was mostly about Earth zoology and evolution with occasional mentions along the lines of "And this is how it could be on other planets too." It is my mismatched expectations that hurt my enjoyment of what otherwise was a decent book about evolutionary theory for animals on Earth. ( )

Interesting book, but not overly engaging. ( )

Within the library that is science fiction (and sometimes fantasy), there are aliens. Lots and lots of aliens. They are often humanoid in appearance with language skills that mimic English (in early 20th century literature) or make clicking and squeaking noises like dolphins. Mostly, these aliens eat people.

Some science fiction writers have gone out of their way to develop new aliens that are unique. In Isaac Asimov's 1972 novel The Gods Themselves, the aliens that exist in a parallel universe with differing physics have evolved three distinct sexes. In the Story of Your Life, a novella by Ted Chiang and adapted into the movie Arrival, we are presented with heptapod aliens and a very distinctive language (actually two) that is outstanding in its imagination.

Typically, however, when humans design aliens as part of science fiction, they do so based on certain cognitive biases. That is, authors tend to favor things which conform to their existing beliefs about the world or they frame their imaginations within the confines of what they have been influence by. Often aliens are green or gray (because that just doesn't seem right) or they are violent. The latter, in fact, speaks to an innate racial bias within all humans that something non-human cannot be benevolent.

Arik Kershenbaum, a zoologist, wrote a book I feel should be required reading for any current or would-be science fiction writer. In The Zoologist's Guide to the Galaxy, Kershenbaum evolves the concept of aliens by devolving our own Earth-bound species. Each chapter of the book dives into things that make animals, well, animals. For example, locomotion is important for getting food. How did our ancestors evolve this particular trait and what does it say about how aliens might do the same? Is it necessary to have biologic symmetry (e.g., two legs, two arms, two eyes). What about sociality? Cooperation and competition is not a Earth-only thing. It cannot be, so how would that look on a different planet?

What is most fascinating about this book is not just the devolution of Earth-bound species to explain the evolution that might occur on other planets, but the pure accessibility of the book. While nonfiction, this is perhaps one of the easiest and most complete books I have had the pleasure of reading in the many (many) years I have been reading. But The Zoologist's Guide to the Galaxy served me in more ways than just expanding my knowledge. It has been instrumental in how I designed my own aliens for my own writing. ( )

Arik Kershenbaum is a zoologist, and College Lecturer at Girton College, Cambridge. In this book, he uses his deep knowledge of zoology on this planet to work out what alien life might be like, if and when we find it.

He starts from the assumption that both the same physical laws will apply everywhere, and that evolution is the only reasonable mechanism to govern the development of life. We can't say exactly what alien life forms will be like, but we can make reasonable projections of how life forms might move, communicate, and socialize in environments we can plausibly envision existing on other worlds.

Kershenbaum takes us through some of the ways evolution has created animals to populate what are from the human perspective truly bizarre and alien environments right here on Earth, including the deep ocean--and the ways very different types of organisms have evolved essentially the same solution to similar problems. An obvious example is birds and bats, both of which have arms, or forelegs if you prefer, evolved into wings. They're not even the only two groups of animals that have evolved that very similar solution, but they're the two most similar that we're all familiar with.

He goes on to examine ways in which aliens in a variety of types of environments might move, get energy, and communicate with each other--and perhaps, eventually, communicate with us. He also examines whether we would, if the opportunity arises, consider intelligent aliens as people, or even human. I'm not persuaded by his argument for the usefulness of extending the word "human" to include intelligent aliens; I think it's more reasonable to stick with "people," since I'm not sure these hypothetical intelligent aliens would necessarily be flattered by us deciding we're all the same species. But who knows, we haven't met them yet. It's all speculation, and Kershenbaum's argument is interesting.

He's got some really fascinating speculation about what kind of life we might find in the interior oceans of worlds like Saturn's moon, Enceladus, which are potentially capable of supporting life, or whether there may be aliens who, like some of Earth's cephalopods, use the ability to control their displays of color to convey impressively complex communication. These are just specific examples; this is a fascinating and delightful book.

Highly recommended.

I bought this audiobook. ( )