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Title: A History of the Present Illness

Subtitle: Stories

Author: Louise Aronson

Narrator: Tavia Gilbert

Format: Unabridged

Length: 7 hrs and 51 mins

Language: English

Release date: 11-25-13

Publisher: Audible Studios for Bloomsbury

Ratings: 3.5 of 5 out of 12 votes

Genres: Science & Technology, Medicine

Publisher's Summary:

A History of the Present Illness takes listeners into overlooked lives in the neighborhoods, hospitals, and nursing homes of San Francisco, offering a deeply humane and incisive portrait of health and illness in American today.

An elderly Chinese immigrant sacrifices his demented wife's well-being to his son's authority. A busy Latina physician's eldest daughter's need for more attention has disastrous consequences. A young veteran's injuries become a metaphor for the rest of his life. A gay doctor learns very different lessons about family from his life and his work, and a psychiatrist who advocates for the underserved may herself be crazy.

Together, these honest and compassionate stories introduce a striking new literary voice and provide a view of what it means to be a doctor and a patient unlike anything we've listened to before.

In the tradition of Oliver Sacks and Abraham Verghese, Aronson's writing is based on personal experience and addresses topics of current social relevance. Masterfully told, A History of the Present Illness explores the role of stories in medicine and creates a world pulsating with life, speaking truths about what makes us human.

Members Reviews:

Breathtaking collection of linked stories!

This book simply took my breath away. It's a series of fascinating, 'lightly-linked' short stories that all take place in the neighborhoods and hospitals of San Francisco, and all relate to medicine as it is actually practiced in the U.S. today. I call the stories 'lightly-linked' because the reader needs to pay attention to notice some of the connections and common characters deftly interwoven throughout. Although the linkages didn't really further the plot, they added an element of spice to the stories when I suddenly made the connections among the characters.

This book isn't exactly light reading. There's a lot of grim and sad material in here. I found tears in my eyes more than once, and finished the book with a heavy heart. It really reinforces how our health care system is failing for so many people - immigrants, children, veterans, the elderly, and also the doctors. So don't buy this expecting some kind of TV version of a medical soap opera; this book is gritty, real, and uncompromising.

Aronson astonishes in her ability to inhabit such a wide array of characters with such compassionate authenticity -- the elderly Chinese man who doesn't speak English and visits his demented wife daily; the recently returned Iraq war veteran; the mentally-disturbed psychiatrist; the child deeply traumatized by his mother's death -- all of these people and many more come alive in deftly-constructed prose. Sometimes Aronson's carefully-constructed prose is a bit too noticeable, as she experiments with a wide range of styles and voices throughout the book, but sometimes her prose is simply delicious, to the point that a single paragraph bears reading and re-reading.

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Title: Discover Magazine's Vital Signs

Subtitle: True Tales of Medical Mysteries, Obscure Diseases, and Life-Saving Diagnoses

Author: Dr. Robert A. Norman

Narrator: Mark Moseley

Format: Unabridged

Length: 7 hrs and 14 mins

Language: English

Release date: 11-06-13

Publisher: Audible Studios

Ratings: 4 of 5 out of 82 votes

Genres: Science & Technology, Medicine

Publisher's Summary:

From a case of hysterical paralysis to a pregnancy puncturing a lung, twenty-five of the most thrilling medical mysteries known to man (and doctor)."Vital Signs," a popular column featured in Discover Magazine, has long been a favorite of readers, showcasing, each month, fascinating new tales of strange illnesses and diseases that baffle doctors and elude diagnosis. Each tale is true and borders on the unbelievable.

It's no wonder that throughout the years the column has become an unofficial textbook for medical students, interns, doctors, and anyone interested in human illness and staying healthy.

Now, physician and "Vital Signs" editor Robert Norman has compiled the very best of the series into an intriguing and suspenseful collection for fans and new listeners alike. A young woman carries a baby that wasn't her own - and wasn't even a human; Aretha Franklin gives a physician the insight needed to save a life; a modern gynecologist faces an ancient disease. These cases and more, representing a wide variety of unique medical anomalies and life-or-death situations, bring listeners to the front lines of the medical fray.

Fans of hit medical dramas such as House MD will savor the opportunity to listen to the real-life cases that puzzled doctors, the gripping detective work that ensued, and the completely unexpected, often life-saving diagnoses. Discover Magazine's Vital Signs is a glimpse into the exciting work of real medical professionals, told from their perspective, and revealing that anything can happen in medicine. Listeners will never look at a "routine check-up" the same again.

Editorial Reviews:

"Vital Signs" is a wildly popular column in Discover magazine that describes bizarre, comical, and sometimes squeamish medical cases and mysteries.

This thrilling audiobook, compiled by Dr. Robert A. Norman, and narrated with gripping simplicity by Mark Moseley, compiles the best real-life articles from the series, including: a pregnant woman whose unborn baby may or may not even be human, the recurrence of an ancient disease thought to be eradicated, the time Aretha Franklin told a perplexed doctor how to save a patients life, and many more crazy tales.

Pretend youre a detective mastermind, get your sleuthing hat on, and see if you can solve these outlandish medical mysteries.

Members Reviews:

Not for a hypochondriac!

The incorrect pronunciation of many medical terms was very irritating. Please re-record this correctly. Many of the stories were very basic and will bore those with some medical background but most are fascinating and all well presented, succinct and suspenseful for any layman. Beware that everyone will identify with symptoms in some of the stories so anyone with hypochondriac tendencies should avoid this.

Tedious

Half of the book seems to be repetitive biographies of the contributors to the book. The incidents themselves were lacking although I'm sure not so to the individuals involved.

Nice compilation of medical stories

Overall a very nice, and digestible, group of stories. I listened to them on my walk to and from work.

Unique and entertaining

Any additional comments?

I really enjoyed listening to the articles and trying to figure out what was going on in each situation.

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Title: The Alzheimer Conundrum

Subtitle: Entanglements of Dementia and Aging

Author: Margaret Lock

Narrator: Carly Robins

Format: Unabridged

Length: 14 hrs and 1 min

Language: English

Release date: 10-27-13

Publisher: Audible Studios

Ratings: 4.5 of 5 out of 6 votes

Genres: Science & Technology, Medicine

Publisher's Summary:

Because of rapidly aging populations, the number of people worldwide experiencing dementia is increasing and the projections are grim. Despite hundreds of millions of dollars invested in medical research, no effective treatment has been discovered for Alzheimer's disease, the most common form of dementia. The Alzheimer Conundrum exposes the predicaments embedded in current efforts to slow down or halt Alzheimer's disease through early detection of presymptomatic biological changes in healthy individuals.

Based on a careful study of the history of Alzheimer's disease and extensive in-depth interviews with clinicians, scientists, epidemiologists, geneticists, and others, Margaret Lock highlights the limitations and the dissent implicated in this approach. She stresses that one major difficulty is the well-documented absence of behavioral signs of Alzheimer's disease in a significant proportion of elderly individuals, even when Alzheimer neuropathology is present in their brains. This incongruity makes it difficult to distinguish between what counts as normal versus pathological and, further, makes it evident that social and biological processes contribute inseparably to aging. Lock argues that basic research must continue, but it should be complemented by a realistic public health approach available everywhere that will be more effective and more humane than one focused almost exclusively on an increasingly frenzied search for a cure.

Members Reviews:

Great overview of AD research and the various political camps

This book takes work to read as it uses many medical terms that are not familiar to the general consumer. I have a dictionary APP installed on my iPad that displays the definition as one goes simply by touching the word and it found these words so I was able to stay up with the narrative. If one is looking for something to give one hope that a solution to AD is in the immediate future than this book will be a major disappointment. The author is surveying the research landscape and its controversial nature including the political gamesmanship being played by individuals and organizations especially those committed to the arguably failed notion of BAP as the single interior brain mechanism causing AD.

Bottom line - i would think this would be valuable reading for researcher in AD or medical professional. If you are a consumer and your interest is in AD as a disease and how it might someday be controlled or eliminated like one might be interested in cancer or any other ubiquitous disease thn this is an interesting read. It can serve as a guide to how one might direct contributions, organizations to support and the extent of political involvement in the funding. AS note earlier it is not for the caregiver or sufferer looking for information that can be acted upon now.

The Alzheimer Conundrum presents a challenge to bio-medical scientific thinking

Lock brings enormous scholarship to this fascinating book on Alzheimer's Disease. It is the story of medical science and contemporary research and raises interesting philosophical and methodological questions about our current understandings of research, knowing, causality and truth in biomedical sciences.

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Title: Scales to Scalpels

Subtitle: Doctors Who Practice the Healing Arts of Music and Medicine

Author: Lisa Wong M.D.

Narrator: Joe Barrett, Suzanne Toren

Format: Unabridged

Length: 8 hrs and 9 mins

Language: English

Release date: 09-24-13

Publisher: Audible Studios

Genres: Science & Technology, Medicine

Publisher's Summary:

This is the incredible story of the Longwood Symphony Orchestra and the remarkable interplay between music and medicine. You may have read about the Longwood Symphony Orchestra (LSO) in the paper or heard them on your favorite radio station. But the LSO is not just any orchestra. It began in 1982 with a group of talented Boston-area physicians, medical students, and health-care professionals and has since flourished under the leadership of violinist Dr. Lisa Wong, who became president of the LSO in 1991. The orchestra is now a proud, extraordinary group of musicians with fans around the globe.

In Scales to Scalpels, Dr. Wong and Robert Viagas chronicle how the musical acumen of these physicians affects the way they administer healing and, in turn, how their work affects their music. What cognitive and emotional shifts occur when a surgeon transitions from the chaos of the ER to the discipline of the orchestra rehearsal studio? What is it like to make a house call to a poor neighborhood in the morning and then play trumpet in a jazz group that night? Does music heal doctors the way the doctors heal their patients? How does practicing the art of music transform the art of practicing medicine?

Editorial Reviews:

Musicians and medical doctors both spend hours practicing a demanding craft so that they can perform flawlessly when it counts. It should be no surprise, then, to hear about the Longwood Symphony Orchestra, whose musicians are all practicing medical professionals. From Scales to Scalpels tells the story of this orchestra, and of the surprising connections its members make between their professional vocation and their avocation as musicians. Narrators Joe Barrett and Suzanne Toren bring insight and vitality to their performance of this nonfiction book that explores how a group of talented doctors find healing from their love and commitment to music.

Members Reviews:

Really interesting connection between music and medicine

Fabulous book about an orchestra in Boston area whose musicians are all doctors or at least in the medical field. A sensitive, discerning view into the lives of these talented performers. You will learn why these doctors spend many, many hours practicing and why their music helps them become more compassionate medical providers. Many of them had to choose between a promising musical career and the medical world. Very cleverly written. I use the book as a gift for someone who understands the gift of music.

Bach to back

Read this prior to back surgery performed by a neurosurgeon who was and is a performing musician. Inspiring and reassuring at both her dedication and the crossover of abilities and talent.

Music is good medicine!

For anyone interested in classical music and the crossover into the world of modern medicine this is a great read!

A great read!

Outstanding book. I really enjoyed and bought a copy for a friend.

Five Stars

Fascinating.

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Title: The Age of Autism

Subtitle: Mercury, Medicine, and as Man-Made Epidemic

Author: Dan Olmsted, Mark Blaxil

Narrator: Paul Boehmer

Format: Unabridged

Length: 17 hrs and 22 mins

Language: English

Release date: 08-26-13

Publisher: Audible Studios

Ratings: 4.5 of 5 out of 6 votes

Genres: Science & Technology, Medicine

Publisher's Summary:

A groundbreaking book, The Age of Autism explores how mankind has unwittingly poisoned itself for half a millennium.

For centuries, medicine has made reckless use of one of earth's most toxic substances: mercury - and the consequences, often invisible or ignored, continue to be tragic. Today, background pollution levels, including global emissions of mercury as well as other toxicants, make us all more vulnerable to its effects. From the worst cases of syphilis to Sigmund Freud's first cases of hysteria, from baffling new disorders in 19th century Britain to the modern scourge of autism, The Age of Autism traces the long overlooked history of mercury poisoning.

Now, for the first time, authors Dan Olmsted and Mark Blaxill uncover that history. Within this context, they present startling findings: investigating the first cases of autism diagnosed in the 1940s revealed an unsuspected link to a new form of mercury in seed disinfectants, lumber fungicides and vaccines.

In the tradition of Silent Spring and An Inconvenient Truth, Olmsted and Blaxill demonstrate with clarity how chemical and environmental clues may have been missed as medical "experts," many of them blinded by decades of systemic bias, instead placed blamed on parental behavior or children's biology. By exposing the roots and rise of The Age of Autism, this book attempts to point the way out - to a safer future for our children and the planet.

Members Reviews:

A very thorough scientific journey of the harmful uses of mercury in medicine

What a fantastically researched and documented book about the medical uses of mercury in medicine throughout history including the uses of amalgams in dentistry now Krigen to be harmful to fetus's and the harmful affects of mercury in vaccines and currently flu shots given to pregnant women who's mercury content still exists.

Authoritative and Thorough

The author does an amazingly thorough research on the history of mercury use from ancient days to modern times, as well as the description and research of autism and other diseases. At times he goes into way more detail than I was interested in hearing. It is fascinating and heartbreaking to learn of the blunders of the medical field and the total lack of environmental concern that our government has for the safety of it's citizens. Worse, is the way science is politicized and controlled by the highest bidder. It is so important for people to make informed choices. Knowledge is power to enable one to make good health choices.

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Title: ADHD: Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder

Subtitle: Defining and Understanding a Diagnosis of ADHD

Author: Susan Reed

Narrator: Claton Butcher

Format: Unabridged

Length: 1 hr and 26 mins

Language: English

Release date: 06-25-13

Publisher: JK Publishing II

Ratings: 4.5 of 5 out of 12 votes

Genres: Science & Technology, Medicine

Publisher's Summary:

You have heard the acronym, ADHD, several times before and you probably know of at least one person that has ADHD. This book breaks down ADHD or Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder. This disorder has caused a great deal of controversy and discussion in recent years and continues to leave many with unanswered questions as to its definition, symptoms, causes, treatment, medications and so much more.

Between 3% and 5% of the population of North America and Europe have ADHD. Rates of diagnosis vary wildly between different countries with North America consistently reporting the highest rates of ADHD in the world. Among schoolchildren in the United States, ADHD rates have skyrocketed, and currently sit somewhere between 3% and 16%. With these astounding statistics, ADHD has become a real issue that is surrounding much of the population.

There is also a greater number of boys affected with ADHD as compared to their female counterparts. There are at least twice as many confirmed cases of males with ADHD than confirmed females; some estimates have found as many as four diagnosed boys to every one diagnosed girl. It is not yet known whether the gender gap is due to a genuine biological gender difference, or an erroneous difference in diagnosis rates. Preliminary studies have found that girls who display inattentive or hyperactive symptoms are far less likely than boys to be suspected of having ADHD by parents and teachers, which may account for some of the discrepancy. Sub-types of ADHD involving hyperactivity are much more prevalent among boys, while the primarily inattentive subtype tends to have a more even gender divide.

From demographics, to gender and diet, to medicinal treatment, ADHD will be uncovered in detail. This book will guide the reader into this mystery of ADHD that is, and has, affected so many lives.

Members Reviews:

Basic overview...but O.K. for beginners...

Pretty basic overview of ADD & ADHD...Quick read....O.K. for beginners, but not for those who are already educated on the subject.

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Title: How to Prepare for the Medical Boards

Subtitle: Secrets for Success on Usmle Step 1 and Comlex Level 1

Author: Adeleke T. Adesina

Narrator: Robert J. Eckrich

Format: Unabridged

Length: 3 hrs and 23 mins

Language: English

Release date: 06-20-13

Publisher: Dr. Adeleke Adesina and Dr. Farook Taha

Ratings: 3 of 5 out of 8 votes

Genres: Science & Technology, Medicine

Publisher's Summary:

Studying for major medical exams can be a confusing and stressful task. In How to Prepare for the Medical Boards, third-year medical students Adeleke T. Adesina and Farook W. Taha present a useful guide for medical students studying for both the United States Medical Licensing Exam (USMLE) Step 1 and the Comprehensive Osteopathic Medical Licensing Exam (COMLEX) Level I. Using a system-based learning method, How to Prepare for the Medical Boards provides a plan to study for the major topics tested on the board exams and suggests a unique approach to reading and keeping mental notes. It discusses the use of First Aid for the USMLE Step 1 and question banks in the preparation process. A bonus chapter addresses how to survive medical school's rigorous education requirements and the most ancient ways to maximize education while still enjoying life. Based on personal experience, Adesina and Taha help medical students discover the secrets, learn the rules, and avoid common costly mistakes when preparing for and taking important national medical board examinations. These students have developed a unique stepwise approach to help students score above 95 on their medical boards.

Members Reviews:

Review of studying aids you already knew.

This book highly encourages reader to purchase USMLE review books. This endorsement can be tedious but I learned it was actually a good idea.

His ideas for succeeding on this test were what you already know. Schedule your time, don't drink alcohol, and keep a routine incorporating exercise. These are good ideas but ones we don't need a book to tell us.

I found a few helpful hints but no new ideas-Just reinforcement of what I already knew. For this I would not recommend-the time it took to listen to this book is better served studying.

No medical info

Maybe is my fault, I was looking for a medical boards review book. This is general information that you can obtain from your friends and colleagues.

Not for listening

What could have made this a 4 or 5-star listening experience for you?

many of the side notes, copyright information and websites (very specific details) are elaborately spelled out making it difficult to listen to

Any additional comments?

Book seems more for reading than listening

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Title: Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy for Cancer

Author: Trish Bartley, John Teasdale

Narrator: Christine Rendel

Format: Unabridged

Length: 13 hrs and 24 mins

Language: English

Release date: 04-15-13

Publisher: Audible Studios

Ratings: 4 of 5 out of 2 votes

Genres: Science & Technology, Medicine

Publisher's Summary:

An Invitation to the Practice of Mindfulness. We may long for wholeness, suggests Jon Kabat-Zinn, but the truth is that it is already here and already ours. The practice of mindfulness holds the possibility of not just a fleeting sense of contentment, but a true embracing of a deeper unity that envelops and permeates our lives.

With Mindfulness for Beginners you are invited to learn how to transform your relationship to the way you think, feel, love, work, and play and thereby awaken to and embody more completely who you really are. Here, the teacher, scientist, and clinician who first demonstrated the benefits of mindfulness within mainstream Western medicine offers a book that you can use in three unique ways: as a collection of reflections and practices to be opened and explored at random; as an illuminating and engaging start-to-finish read; or as an unfolding lesson- a-day primer on mindfulness practice.

Beginning and advanced meditators alike will discover in these pages a valuable distillation of the key attitudes and essential practices that Jon Kabat-Zinn has found most useful with his students, including: Why heartfulness is synonymous with true mindfulness. The value of coming back to our bodies and to our senses over and over again. How our thoughts self-liberate when touched by awareness. Moving beyond our story into direct experience. Stabilizing our attention and presence amidst daily activities. The three poisons that cause suffering and their antidotes How mindfulness heals, even after the fact. Reclaiming our wholeness, and more.

The prescription for living a more mindful life seems simple enough: return your awareness again and again to whatever is going on. But if youve tried it, you know that here is where all the questions and challenges really begin. Mindfulness for Beginners provides welcome answers, insights, and instruction to help us make that shift, moment by moment, into a more spacious, clear, reliable, and loving connection with ourselves and the world.

Members Reviews:

I'm only 1.5 hours in, but

What disappointed you about Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy for Cancer?

This is going to be a TOUGH book to finish. Imagine the most annoying British woman reading you the most acronym-laden, boring book on the planet. TADA! That's this book. I am TRYING to hang in there for the "nuggets" that might lie within, but this is a second by second struggle. The alternative was to listen to some gong-banging yoga-esque mindfulness book . . . which I'm wishing I'd done.

What could Trish Bartley and John Teasdale have done to make this a more enjoyable book for you?

Not sure . . . except the narration is truly grating.

How did the narrator detract from the book?

She makes it incredible difficult to hang onto this reading.

What character would you cut from Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy for Cancer?

None

Any additional comments?

You can hear the imperialism in some of the commentary . . . about how they've "discovered" concepts but given no credit to Asian or other cultures that have practiced these concepts for centuries before their "discovery" and documentation. Referring to individual countries but then referring to all of the continent of Africa as if blanket statements apply to the entire continent. Things like that.

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Title: Callous Disregard

Subtitle: Autism and Vaccines - The Truth Behind a Tragedy

Author: Andrew Wakefield

Narrator: Gildart Jackson

Format: Unabridged

Length: 9 hrs and 37 mins

Language: English

Release date: 02-28-13

Publisher: Audible Studios

Ratings: 4.5 of 5 out of 27 votes

Genres: Science & Technology, Medicine

Publisher's Summary:

Andrew Wakefield reveals the inside story of the vaccine-autism connection, and his controversial research.

As Andrew Wakefield states in his prologue, If autism does not affect your family now, it will. If something does not change - and change soon - this is almost a mathematical certainty. This book affects you also. It is not a parochial look at a trivial medical spat in the United Kingdom, but dispatches from the battlefront in a major confrontation - a struggle against compromise in medicine, corruption of science, and a real and present threat to children in the interests of policy and profit. It is a story of how the system deals with dissent among its doctors and scientists.

In the pursuit of possible links between childhood vaccines, intestinal inflammation, and neurologic injury in children, Wakefield lost his job in Londons Royal Free Hospital, his country of birth, his career, and his medical license. A recent General Medical Council ruling stated that he was dishonest, irresponsible and showed callous disregard for the distress and pain of children. Maligned by the medical establishment and mainstream media, Wakefield endeavors to set the record straight in Callous Disregard. While explaining what really happened, he calls out the organizations and individuals that are acting not for the sake of children affected by autism, but in their own self-interests.

Editorial Reviews:

Diagnoses of autism are rising. Why? Is some biological agent causing an actual uptick in autism?

In 1998, the respected medical journal The Lancet published a paper by Dr. Andrew Wakefield, a U.K.-based physician and researcher, that proposed a link between child vaccinations and autism. The paper ignited a major public fear of vaccinations and a hot scientific debate which ended with the disgrace and discrediting of Wakefield and his findings.

Callous Disregard, adeptly narrated by Gildart Jackson, is Wakefields attempt to uphold his original findings and clear his name. More than a discussion of vaccination and autism, Callous Disregard, is a look into the process of scientific discovery and the special interests that can get in the way.

Members Reviews:

Always better to know both sides of the story!

it is human nature to witch hunt when the old guard is threatened. Unfortunate but true. Thankfully in these days of wide open media we can ascertain the whole truth. The fact that Wakefield et al never actually suggested not vaccinating and yet were made the sacrificial lambs in the money vs truth circus is telling. The pro vaccine/repeaters army always wheel this example out and yet have never fact checked. Keep up the great work Andy Wakefield. I still don't think we know the whole story but the egomaniacal monster of allopathic medicine and corporate pharma madness needs to be put back in check and you and your ilk are a big part of the change.

The Truth Shall Set You Free

Although a bit difficult to understand at some points, it is the truth. Wakefield is innocent, regardless of the lies Brian Deer has put forth.

Eye opening account re: Mmr / autism report

I enjoyed listening to Wakefields account of this issue. Addressing each false accusation got a little old but I understand why he addressed each one. Worth the read!

shocking

I found the content shocking and very frightening.

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Title: Happy Accidents

Subtitle: Serendipity in Major Medical Breakthroughs in the Twentieth Century

Author: Morton A. Meyers

Narrator: Richard Waterhouse

Format: Unabridged

Length: 12 hrs and 37 mins

Language: English

Release date: 02-28-13

Publisher: Audible Studios

Ratings: 4 of 5 out of 29 votes

Genres: Science & Technology, Medicine

Publisher's Summary:

A fascinating and highly accessible look at the surprising role serendipity has played in some of the most important medical discoveries in the 20th century.

Happy Accidents is a fascinating, entertaining, and highly accessible look at the surprising role serendipity has played in some of the most important medical discoveries in the 20th century. What do penicillin, chemotherapy drugs, X-rays, Valium, the Pap smear, and Viagra have in common? They were each discovered accidentally, stumbled upon in the search for something else. In the 1990s, Pfizer had high hopes for a new drug that would boost blood flow to the heart. As they conducted trials on angina sufferers, researchers noted a startling effect: While the drug did not affect blood flow to the heart, it did affect blood flow elsewhere! Now over six million American men have taken Viagra in their lifetime.

Winston Churchill once said, "Men occasionally stumble across the truth, but most of them pick themselves up and hurry off as if nothing has happened." Within the scientific community, a certain stigma is attached to chance discovery because it is wrongly seen as pure luck. Happy accidents certainly happen every day, but it takes intelligence, insight, and creativity to recognize a "Eureka, I found what I wasn't looking for!" moment and know what to do next. In discussing medical breakthroughs, Dr. Morton Meyers makes a cogent, highly engaging argument for a more creative, rather than purely linear, approach to science. And it may just save our lives!

Editorial Reviews:

Perhaps more than anything else, Dr. Morton A. Meyerss nonfiction audiobook Happy Accidents is a call to arms for more creative encouragement in the field of medical research. Through the masterful performance of actor Richard Waterhouse, whose voice brings popular science to life, this radiologist cum author inspires listeners and lab workers alike to embrace unpredictability. Without allowing room for mistakes and boundless curiosity in the laboratory, microwaves, X-rays, and artificial sweeteners might never have been invented. These tales of serendipitous discovery are essential to Meyerss wider agenda of fostering medical imaginations. In the words of Dr. Meyers, "We invent by intention, but we discover by surprise."

Members Reviews:

Amazing stories of serendipity and breakthroughs

A collection of well researched stories regarding serendipity that lead to significant medical breakthroughs. The stories are fascinating. The narrator does a solid job. Literally not a bad chapter in the entire book.

Don't waste your money!

Boring style of writing, author constantly uses the words serendipity, perfect book for egg heads

Not well written

What could have made this a 4 or 5-star listening experience for you?

Good information in the book, just not well written. It was hard to follow and I got bored.

Medicine needs Serendipity

Any additional comments?

This was a very enjoyable book on why we had some of the medical advances that are so important to us. It may have been by accident but it took someone to see and understand it.