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Human Errors: A Panorama of Our Glitches, from Pointless Bones to Broken Genes

Nathan H. Lents (Goodreads Author)

3.94 · Rating details · 2,662 ratings · 348 reviews

An illuminating, entertaining tour of the physical imperfections that make us human

We humans like to think of ourselves as highly evolved creatures. But if we are supposedly evolution’s greatest creation, why do we have such bad knees? Why do we catch head colds so often—two hundred times more often than a dog does? How come our wrists have so many useless bones? Why is t

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Kindle Edition, 255 pages

Published May 1st 2018 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt

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Feb 12, 2020 Mario the lone bookwolf rated it really liked it

Shelves: 0-biology

Over millions of years, a few construction errors can accumulate. Especially when you first get up with difficulty and learn to walk on two legs and then suddenly are just sitting around all day.

In the case of a machine, you need a lot of test models, prototypes and failed attempts until perfect functioning. And even then, an unknown factor in practice can lead to unexpected errors and chain reactions. In a real physical machine like a motor, this is still understandable, in software, however, a ...more

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Feb 20, 2019 Ross Blocher rated it it was amazing

Having consumed many works on evolution and human biology, I was shocked at just how much I learned from this delightful book. In Human Errors: A Panorama of Our Glitches, from Pointless Bones to Broken Genes, biology professor Nathan H. Lents presents a quick, conversational and nutrient-dense look at the various problems our bodies have inherited from of our evolutionary past. Even in discussions of features I knew about, such as our backwards-installed eyeballs and pointlessly-long-and-loopin Having consumed many works on evolution and human biology, I was shocked at just how much I learned from this delightful book. In Human Errors: A Panorama of Our Glitches, from Pointless Bones to Broken Genes, biology professor Nathan H. Lents presents a quick, conversational and nutrient-dense look at the various problems our bodies have inherited from of our evolutionary past. Even in discussions of features I knew about, such as our backwards-installed eyeballs and pointlessly-long-and-looping-through-the-heart laryngeal nerve, Lents manages to present new information or frame it with new insights. Our bodies are amazing, for sure... but they are riddled with many absurd and self-destructive flaws.

One question that I had long pondered but never pursued was how animals can live on much simpler diets than we require. Cows can build their entire bodies by eating grass... why can't we? Why do we need so many "essential" nutrients from a wide variety of sources? As it turns out, most other mammals still have the genes to synthesize their own vitamin C, B vitamins, fatty acids and amino acids; not to mention absorption of nutrients like calcium and iron... whereas our varied diets allowed evolution to ignore the loss of our ability to do the same. The genes are still there, sitting dormant and error-ridden in our genome, and we can identify them. Ironically, we do produce B12 (a vitamin vegans must supplement because it typically comes from animal sources), but the bacteria who do so are in our lower intestine, and B12 is only ingested in the small intestine. So, we build up sufficient levels of B12, only to get rid of them as waste material.

Speaking of dormant genes, our genome is riddled with copies of ancient viruses that inserted themselves at some point in our evolutionary past (we can identify roughly when based on which other animals have the same insertions). One in particular, called Alu, makes up 10 percent of our genome. Our coccyx, the vestige of a tail, serves no meaningful purpose. Our two-bone shins and fore-arms are needlessly complex. We lose our ability to absorb calcium as we age. The ACL ligaments in our knees are small and weak and tear easily, ending many sports careers. The conception process is needlessly wasteful (some half of pregnancies end in natural abortion, and ovaries aren't even connected to the fallopian tubes). The birthing process is also far more difficult and dangerous than it is for our primate cousins. Our immune systems can be triggered to attack us, deciding that the non-existent danger of a peanut or other allergen is sufficient cause to kill the entire body. The section on auto-immune diseases is particularly frustrating: sometimes the body just starts running rampant and treating itself as an enemy. Cancer is a similar perversion of what is in other contexts a healthy process (cell division).

There is much more here, and all of it is brilliantly and engagingly explained. I recommend this for everyone, as an important insight into our bodies and how they work (and don't), and how the indifferent process of evolution got us here. It's a great collection of interesting facts about the body (some depressing, but all fascinating) that you'll want to share with anyone sitting near you. ...more

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May 18, 2018 Rebecca rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: offered-by-publisher-author, medical, science-tech, read-via-netgalley, wellcome-prize-2019-hopeful

(3.5) Lents is a biology professor at John Jay College, City University of New York, and in this, his second book, he explores the ways in which the human body is flawed. These errors come in three categories: adaptations to the way the world was for early humans (to take advantage of once-scarce nutrients, we gain weight quickly – but lose it only with difficulty); incomplete adaptations (our knees are still not fit for upright walking); and the basic limitations of our evolution (inefficient s (3.5) Lents is a biology professor at John Jay College, City University of New York, and in this, his second book, he explores the ways in which the human body is flawed. These errors come in three categories: adaptations to the way the world was for early humans (to take advantage of once-scarce nutrients, we gain weight quickly – but lose it only with difficulty); incomplete adaptations (our knees are still not fit for upright walking); and the basic limitations of our evolution (inefficient systems such as the throat handling both breath and food, and the recurrent laryngeal nerve being three times longer than necessary because it loops around the aorta). Consider that myopia rates are 30% or higher, the retina faces backward, sinuses drain upwards, there are 100+ autoimmune diseases, we have redundant bones in our wrist and ankle, and we can’t produce most of the vitamins we need. Put simply, we’re not a designer’s ideal. And yet this all makes a lot of sense for an evolved species.

My favorite chapter was on the inefficiencies of human reproduction compared to that of other mammals. Infertility and miscarriage rates are notably high, and gestation is shorter than it really needs to be: because otherwise their heads would get too big to pass through the birth canal, all babies are effectively born premature, so are helpless for much longer than other newborn mammals. I also especially liked the short section on cancer, which would eventually get us all if we only lived long enough. As it is, “evolution has struck an uneasy balance with cancer. Mutations cause cancer, which kills individuals, but it also brings diversity and innovation, which is good for the population.”

Lents writes in a good conversational style and usually avoids oversimplifying the science. In places his book reminded me of Kathryn Schulz’s Being Wrong and Mark O’Connell’s To Be a Machine. It’s a wry and gentle treatment of human weakness; the content never turns depressing or bitter. Recommended for all curious readers of popular science.

Favorite lines:

“While lithopedions [“stone babies”] and abdominal pregnancies are quite rare, they are also 100 percent the result of poor design. Any reasonable plumber would have attached the fallopian tube to the ovary, thereby preventing tragic and often fatal mishaps like these.”

“to call our immune system perfectly designed would be equally inaccurate. There are millions of people who once happily walked this planet only to meet their demise because their bodies simply self-sabotaged. When bodies fight themselves, there can be no winner.”

Originally published on my blog, Bookish Beck. ...more

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May 20, 2018 Jenn "JR" rated it liked it

Shelves: history, netgalley

I really enjoyed the first half to two thirds of this book -- it was a straight forward, conversational and highly accessible discussion of quirks of evolution such as human vision, overly long nerves, and sinuses that drain the wrong way -- along with explanations of how they came to be and the advantages or disadvantages. It's comprehensive enough and covers comparisons to other species (mammal and non) -- and extremely interesting.

I especially enjoyed the chapter on diet and nutrition -- this ...more

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May 25, 2018 Lou rated it really liked it

I came across this on NetGalley but as it had already been published I decided to purchase a copy for myself as I haven't bought a medical text for a few months. I am always drawn to books with a medical element to them and this sounded as though it would be incredibly interesting with the added benefit of learning more about myself.

This intriguing non-fiction book details the design flaws us humans have and their advantages and disadvantages too. Sometimes purely fact driven writing can come ac ...more

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Feb 26, 2020 Jim rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: 1audio, 2non-fiction, science

A very interesting book that was well written & narrated. It's not dry at all considering the amount of data it contains, but it certainly isn't definitive just popular science which is enough for me. It gave me a lot of food for thought. I highly recommend it.

Table of Contents
Introduction: Behold the Blunders of Nature: Evolution is a series of small, random changes that can slowly create some incredibly complex structures, but there are a lot of strange things left over. For instance, our ret ...more

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Jun 21, 2020 Udit Nair rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: science, non-fiction, evolution, 5-stars

Next time if a creationist or intelligent design proponent or a religious person who believes god created humans comes and tells me how perfect human body is, I exactly know what needs to be presented or more appropriately slammed on their faces. This book is precisely discussing most of the major flaws in the human body which is sometimes considered as the benchmark for excellency.

The author indeed starts with the acknowledgement that our body is beautifully crafted and adapted for the best bu Next time if a creationist or intelligent design proponent or a religious person who believes god created humans comes and tells me how perfect human body is, I exactly know what needs to be presented or more appropriately slammed on their faces. This book is precisely discussing most of the major flaws in the human body which is sometimes considered as the benchmark for excellency.

The author indeed starts with the acknowledgement that our body is beautifully crafted and adapted for the best but yet it is not perfect as one would assume it to be. He starts with the complex structure of eye and covers the various lacuanes in the design of the organ. The first chapter addresses about the anatomical absurdities which no engineer would ever design. The discussion ranges from the pointless bones to uneven nerve connections to absurd supply routes. The mention of Achilles and ligament tears with respect to flawed design really explains the recurrence of these injuries in sports arena so frequently.

The second chapter on the human diet is extremely insightful and informative. The need for obtaining vitamins and minerals and many other essentials is explained through evolutionary point of view. Also one would be amazed to know that lot of problems with respect to diet is unique to humans only. Other animals either manufacture eseentials internally or have other organisms within which take care of it.

The third chapter deals with the human genome. This actually helps in understanding the evolution in a better way. The author has given ample examples to suggest how humans have traded off many things for a evolutionary cost. The discussion on fatal diseases like Huntington's or HIV is again very enlightening.

The fourth chapter is the most counterintuitive. Given that humans have successfully outcompeted every other species on the planet, you might think that we’ve mastered this whole reproduction thing. But in fact, human reproduction is inefficient. Extremely inefficient. We are some of the most inefficient reproducers in the animal world because we have errors and flaws throughout almost the entire reproductive process, from the production of sperm and eggs to the survival of our children.

The fifth chapter deals with the most threatening diseases we face as a species. The special focus is on autoimmune diseases. Along with it is the larger implications for the immune system as a whole. The chapter ends towards discussing about the elephant in the room which is the cancer.

The last two chapters are bit philosophical with author discussing about his thoughts vis a vis the humanity as a whole.

The most appropriate conclusion I can derive from the flaws in the human body is that " "Nothing in Biology Makes Sense Except in the Light of Evolution" as rightly said by Theodosius Dobzhanksy. ...more

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Nov 15, 2019 Amanja rated it really liked it

Human Errors is a nonfiction science book all about the mistakes of the human body and brain. It's a book about anatomy, psychology, biological science, and evolutionary history.

Lents goes into detail about not just what is wrong with us but the likely evolutionary path that led to it. He explains the why, which is the best part about this book. He gives a lineage instead of just a list.

For instance: humans are the only animals on Earth that don't produce their own vitamic C and require it throu ...more

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Dec 25, 2018 Jigar rated it it was ok

Shelves: non-fiction, science, biology

I wanted to like this book more. But it has serious flaws. Lents neglects not only key personalities who shape his world view, but whole areas of research, e.g. palaeontology. It exercises hyperbole at the cost of accuracy, evident in the chapter on junk DNA. A more reasonable discussion would at least mention the huge amount of research in epigenetics; there is more to DNA than protein-encoding.

Then there's the constant assertion that humans are considerably worse adapted than other animals. Bu ...more

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Jul 04, 2019 Chafic (Rello) rated it really liked it

Shelves: nonfiction

This was a surprisingly informative read.
Dare I say it? It was a page-turner, and a nonfiction book at that!

Really entertaining, this book has a great conversational style that I think all biology teachers should strive for. It made learning 'fun'! But seriously, the amount of flaws in the human body is astounding.

Crappy Vitamin C production? Why are there so many bones in your wrists? Why are our eyes weird?
There's also some psychology sprinkled in there too because the brain is also weird.

Real ...more

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Dec 24, 2019 Gina rated it really liked it

Shelves: nonfiction, medical, science

If you believe human beings are the most evolved, perfect beings on Earth, this book will definitely make you think otherwise.

The human being, it turns out, has evolved into a very imperfect living being. This book delves into the ways in which our bodies, while amazing and complicated, have some built-in weaknesses.

Have you ever wondered why we tend to get head colds while other beings seem immune to them, or at least, get the viruses much less often? Why do we have such problems with our joint ...more

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Feb 05, 2018 David Wineberg rated it really liked it

To Err is Human

Human Errors is a page-turner of a biology book. Nathan Lents focuses on mistakes, redundancies and weaknesses that make life a constant gamble for humans. From genetic code destruction to pointless bones, overtaxed muscles, meandering nerves and backward designs, the book combines a million years’ worth of wrong choices, errors, flukes and plain bad luck that is the human body. At several points, Lents ventures that no engineer would design such and such a system this way – it’s To Err is Human

Human Errors is a page-turner of a biology book. Nathan Lents focuses on mistakes, redundancies and weaknesses that make life a constant gamble for humans. From genetic code destruction to pointless bones, overtaxed muscles, meandering nerves and backward designs, the book combines a million years’ worth of wrong choices, errors, flukes and plain bad luck that is the human body. At several points, Lents ventures that no engineer would design such and such a system this way – it’s just wasteful, inefficient or crazy.

The human body is the sum of all its travels through time. It has vestiges of other forms it took, corrupted DNA that was not immediately fatal (so it was able to be passed on) and evolutionary benefits that have outlived their usefulness. The result is a being that needs an outsized amount of care and feeding, technology and medicine. We are the only animal with this need.

-Our sinus cavity drainage (from the top!) gives humans headcolds far more often than any other animal.
-Our backs are optimized for four-legged living.
-Human eyeballs are built backwards, causing a large blindspot in each eye that is more or less overcome by having two eyes and therefore stereo-vision. Cephalopods got our kind of eye right, among the two dozen totally different kinds of eyes, each adapted to the bearers’ environment.
-Our procreation equipment is so inefficient, both mother and child are at risk of death from the act of birth, unlike any other primates. Lents says primates will continue to care for other offspring while giving birth, something unimaginable for women. Cows often barely notice they are giving birth.
-There is an entire a la carte menu of autoimmune diseases unique to humans, and often only to women, for which we have no cures and no idea why they occur. Our own cells attack our systems until they kill us. Another unique feature of humans.

One recurring theme is food. We are both blessed and cursed with the need for a variety of food. Most animals eat the same thing day in and day out all their lives, but have finely balanced metabolisms, because they produce whatever they need internally. Humans need constant interventions with different vitamins, minerals and meds. That humans could subsist and thrive on multiple foods started out as a giant Darwinian advantage. Now that we actually need that variety for a balanced diet, it is a liability. We are the only animal with this need, too. Our DNA is so corrupted we now require this variety and intervention – or die.

Our failing DNA gets its own chapter. The GULO gene in humans is the stub of something that was once very useful. GULO produces vitamin C – just not in humans. Somewhere along the way, an ape had a gene mutation that disabled GULO. It must have lived in an environment filled with citrus, because it didn’t die off, but produced offspring that also had the gene disabled. As animals dispersed from those food sources, scurvy killed off those who had no access to citrus. Today, we have vitamin supplements and imported fruit all year. Lents says our bodies will simply never be able to accidentally repair and restore what’s left of GULO to active duty. There are now too many missing factors for such a complex mutation to occur.

“You cannot have sexual reproductions, DNA and cellular life without also having cancer,” Lents says. It is a natural bug in our design. He says there is a 100% chance of developing cancer if something else doesn’t kill you first, because “cell division is dangerous game” and innumerable mutations can trigger uncontrollable tumors.

As he says in the epilogue: “It’s survival of the fittest, not the perfect.”

David Wineberg
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Jan 31, 2018 Christina Dudley rated it really liked it

Shelves: galleys, nonfiction, science

I tore through this fun and fascinating look at human flaws, both physiological and mental, especially enjoying the physiological, since it was almost wholly new to me. Backwards retinas? Incomplete adaptation to walking upright? Extra bones? Broken-down Vitamin C production? The flaws in our thinking were more familiar to anyone who's studied any psychology, but it was still interesting. My family was subjected to many, "Did you know...?"-type comments out of the blue, so I'm sure they're relie ...more

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Jun 25, 2020 Roberta rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: non-fiction, rereadable, science, health, audiobook, evolutionary-biology

A better future is within our reach. The question is, will we be able to grasp it? Or, to put it in a different way: Will our advanced intelligence prove to be our biggest asset or our biggest flaw? We already have the science that can save our species from itself. We are waiting only for the will. And if we can't muster it in time to prevent a global collapse, we will have the ultimate proof of our poor design.

All in all, this was really enjoyable. Nicely accompanies The God Delusion. Also, de ...more

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Mar 06, 2018 Cindy Lauren rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Really enjoyed this book- it answered lots of questions that I had about why certain things about the human body and how it operates, some things that simply don't make sense.
The research is thorough and the writing is entertaining.
It's helpful to know, fascinating to learn and fund to read. Recommend. ...more

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May 29, 2019 Grumpus rated it it was ok · review of another edition

Shelves: science

The grumpus23 (23-word commentary)
Takeaway: The operating system of our body is flawed because evolution works by random mutations and survival of the fittest, not the perfect.

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Feb 21, 2020 Jeanette rated it liked it

This is a super easy read for the layman. I read it completely in one sit down. You don't need to know tons of human biology or physicality either. But it doesn't hurt. Lents' prose is friendly and the tone is rather fun filled in the "eyes" of the telling. Not always the case with any science based material, IMHO.

The errors of poorly evolved systems (breathing and eating through the same tube is a HUGE one) are explained. And the author gives some mutation "oops" for other species, as well.

Our ...more

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May 04, 2018 Monique rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: source-netgalley, format-ebook-epub, format-ebook-kindle, reviews-all, reviews-netgalley, booklength-200-pgs, nonfiction-science, nonfiction, nonfiction-science-biology, year-2018-read

Review written: May 4, 2018
Star Rating: ★★½☆☆
Heat Rating: N/A

An Advanced Reader Copy (ARC) of this book was received free via Netgalley for an honest review.

Human Errors got burned badly by expectations. When I saw the title and blurb on Netgalley, it suggested a very specific and narrow focus to me. I was looking forward to some very medical discussions, even some interesting evolutionary discussions. Unfortunately, the bulk of this book did not focus on the things I was expecting.

That's Review written: May 4, 2018
Star Rating: ★★½☆☆
Heat Rating: N/A

An Advanced Reader Copy (ARC) of this book was received free via Netgalley for an honest review.

Human Errors got burned badly by expectations. When I saw the title and blurb on Netgalley, it suggested a very specific and narrow focus to me. I was looking forward to some very medical discussions, even some interesting evolutionary discussions. Unfortunately, the bulk of this book did not focus on the things I was expecting.

That's not to say that the opening chapters didn't have some fascinating medical and evolutionary discussions, because they did. I loved learning about the eye and its structure, for example. That was fascinating and even moreso because this eye type evolved twice and in wildly different animals. There was talk of our wrist and ankle bones and other structures that seem foolish or redundant or just poorly designed. Sometimes it was accompanied by discussions of evolution and why certain things might have been selected for even when they were bad (like sickle cell anemia and its relationship with malaria). These parts were my favorites.

But, when the book began discussing things in terms of how an engineer might design and then arguing that something was an error because an engineer wouldn't design it that way, it gradually began to lose me. The curious discussions about the flaws in the human reproductive system were interesting, but the author never makes the kinds of intellectual jumps I would have expected. The discussion on out digestive tract, our diet needs, and how evolution ended up selecting things that could be considered detrimental (like that we can't make all the enzymes, proteins, etc that we need to survive) was interesting. But again, it lacked any real discussion about how or why this may have been selected for. He doesn't even explain why this is an error beyond the idea that it is just poorly engineered.

And then he gets into ways the brain is fooled. It was at that point that I mostly checked out. That isn't a defect or wrong or whatever you want to call it unless you want to argue, as he does, that all humans should be perfectly logical at all times. And what exactly is the definition of perfectly logical, you might ask? Well, it appears to be what the author thinks is logical.

In the end, it appears that the book was little more than a set up for his epilogue: a discussion on whether this is other life in the universe and whether we will adapt or kill ourselves. I was deeply disappointed because I wanted way more of those opening bits and way less of the judgmental and, in my opinion, arguable discussions in the lat roughly 2/3 of the book.

I did learn some interesting things, notably about the eye, and am grateful for it. In that sense, the book was good. But the rest of it seemed difficult to accept at face value when so many value judgments were being put on it as opposed to just facts. I did like the illustrations that accompanied some of the examples.

This review is ©May 2018 by Monique N. and has been posted to Netgalley. ...more

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May 29, 2018 Michelle rated it really liked it

Shelves: non-fiction, 2018, science-medicine, net-galley, edelweiss

From bad knees to backward retinas to autoimmune disease and the uptick in peanut allergies, Professor Nathan Lents' book Human Errors is told in a conversational tone that brings anatomy and physiology to the masses. Since the beginning of time we humans have been in awe of ourselves and what makes us especially unique creatures. Usually we emphasize that which makes us "more complex" or "more highly evolved" ignorant of the randomness of mutations and the misdirection of evolution. Here, Lents ...more

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Mar 15, 2018 Book Him Danno rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Thank you to netgalley for the advance copy of Human Errors for an honesty review.
Human Erros by Nathan H. Lent is the biology book I wish I had head in school. The authors makes human biology fun, humors and fun.
Several quote that stuck with me because of cancer in the family. “You cannot have sexual reproductions, DNA and cellular life without also having cancer."
My children have eye issues and have to wear glasses so learning about the human eyes was beyond fascinating.
I learned by I get so ...more

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Jun 07, 2018 Olga Miret rated it really liked it

Facts, anecdotes, some opinions, and a very engaging way of learning about the human body. Thanks to NetGalley and to the publishers (Weidenfeld & Nicolson) for providing me an ARC copy of this book that I freely chose to review.
When I saw this book on offer, I could not resist. I studied Medicine and have been fascinated by Biology and the Natural Sciences for ages. I have also thought and often commented on our (mostly mine, but yes, most of the issues are general, not exclusive to me) flawed Facts, anecdotes, some opinions, and a very engaging way of learning about the human body. Thanks to NetGalley and to the publishers (Weidenfeld & Nicolson) for providing me an ARC copy of this book that I freely chose to review.
When I saw this book on offer, I could not resist. I studied Medicine and have been fascinated by Biology and the Natural Sciences for ages. I have also thought and often commented on our (mostly mine, but yes, most of the issues are general, not exclusive to me) flawed design, no matter how superior we feel to the rest of the species that share the planet with us. In a later chapter of the book, the author sums it up observing that if we participated in an Olympic Games-style contest that included all of the Earth’s species, we would not win at anything, apart from perhaps decathlon (or chess if it was included), as we are generalists. We might not be able to compete with the physical prowess shown by many other species (we are not the fastest, the strongest, the best hunters, the ones who jump higher or who can run for longer), but we can do many things to a reasonable level. And yes, we are pretty intelligent (however we choose to use our minds).
There is enough material to fill several books under the general title of this book, and Lents chooses pretty interesting ones (although I guess some will appeal to some readers more than others). He talks about pointless bones and anatomical errors, our diet (here he talks about our tendency to obesity and our need to eat a varied diet due to the fact that our bodies have lost the ability to synthesise a number of vitamins, amino acids… while other species do),junk in the genome (issues to do with our DNA), homo sterilis (we are not very good at reproducing as a species), why God invented doctors (about our immune system and autoimmune diseases, cancer…), a species of suckers (about cognitive biases. The title of the chapter refers to P.T. Barnum’s edict ‘a sucker born every minute’ although as the author notes, this is an underestimate), and he discusses the possible future of humanity in the epilogue. There is a fair amount of information contained in this book, and that includes some useful illustrations, and notes at the end (I read an ARC copy, but it is possible that the final version contains even more documentation and resources). It is an educational read that I thoroughly enjoyed. I listened to the book thanks to the text-to-speech facility, and it suits it well, as it has a very conversational tone and manages to impart lots of information without being overbearing or obscure. I read some reviews suggesting that it was so packed with facts that it was better to read it in small bites. Personally, I read it in a few days and never got bored of it, but it might depend on the reader’s interest in the subject.
I was familiar with some of the content but I appreciated the author’s take and the way he organised the materials. Although I enjoyed the whole book, I was particularly interested in the chapters on genetics (the DNA analysis and the identification of specific genes have moved on remarkably since I completed my degree) and on cognitive biases. As a doctor, I also agreed with his comments about autoimmune diseases, the difficulties in their diagnosis, and how these illnesses can sometimes be confused with psychiatric illnesses (being a psychiatrist, I know only too well this can happen). Of course, as is to be expected from the topic, the book reflects on the development of the species and discusses natural selection and evolution, and I was fascinated by the reviews of people who took his arguments as personal attacks on their beliefs. I agree that some of his interpretations and his hypothesis of the reasons for some of these flaws can be debatable, but that does not apply to the facts, and I did not feel the book is intended as a provocation but as a source of information, and entertainment. As the writer notes, we remember better (and believe in) anecdotes and stories than we do dry data. (I am not an expert on the subject but was fascinated by the comments on his blog.)
I found the book fascinating, and as a writer, I thought it was full of information useful to people thinking of writing in a variety of genres, from science-fiction (thoughts about how other species might evolve crossed my mind as I read it), historical fiction (if we go back many years), and any books with a focus on human beings and science. I would recommend checking a sample of the book to see if the writer’s style suits the reader. I highlighted many lines (and was surprised when I learned that female Bluefin tunas don’t reach sexual maturity until they are twenty years old and was pleased to learn about the important roll old female orcas play in their society) but I particularly like this one:
Scurvy is a dystopian novel written by the human body.
A great read for those who prefer non-fiction and fact-packed books, perfect for people with little time, as it can be picked up and savoured in bite-size instalments, and a book that might pique our interest in and lead to further research on some of the topics. Experts are unlikely to find new information here, but other readers will come out enlightened and with plenty to think about. I strongly recommend it. ...more

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Feb 18, 2018 Rachel Noel rated it really liked it

*Book provided via NetGalley for an honest review.

This book is clearly meant for lay people like myself. It is written at an accessible level and has plenty of humor to make the reading engaging. If my high school biology class had used this book, I would have learned a lot more. As it is, I feel a lot more informed about human anatomy than I used to be. From the structure of our eyes to the interconnections of the bones in our ankles and wrists. This is a very educational book that keeps your i ...more

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May 04, 2018 Michael Perkins rated it it was amazing

Caveat: for a book that’s supposed to be for lay people, it’s pretty detailed. I liked that for the most interesting topics to me (e.g. autoimmune diseases), but less so for some other topics.

The book does live up to its title. And it brought up a memory from some time ago. Back in the 70’s, someone gave me an article to read from Christianity Today magazine which then, and still seems to be, THE evangelical magazine.

The article was written by a surgeon and titled “Fearfully and Wonderfully Ma ...more

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Sep 09, 2019 Steven Meyers rated it really liked it

Part of the reason I was smiling so much while reading ‘Human Errors’ is knowing deeply religious people who believe evolution is bunk would probably think Mr. Lents is doing Satan’s work or is a woefully misguided soul. Unfortunately for their ilk, the author is a biology professor who knows how to explain evolution in layman terms. You do not need one of the big brains to understand what is written in his entertaining book. A long-term religious friend who does not believe in evolution once ar Part of the reason I was smiling so much while reading ‘Human Errors’ is knowing deeply religious people who believe evolution is bunk would probably think Mr. Lents is doing Satan’s work or is a woefully misguided soul. Unfortunately for their ilk, the author is a biology professor who knows how to explain evolution in layman terms. You do not need one of the big brains to understand what is written in his entertaining book. A long-term religious friend who does not believe in evolution once argued with me that he knew a science professor who said only God could have created such a perfect specimen as man. I am agnostic and not a scientist but even I knew that his “science professor” friend was speaking a big heaping mound of caca. Humans are far from perfect. If anything, like all living things on earth, we are a continual evolutionary work in progress. Maybe my religious friend misunderstood the guy and he had said he was a séance professor (if there’s such a thing.)

‘Human Errors’ helps explain the many flaws that currently reside with the Homo-sapiens body. Sweet fancy Moses, it is quite the list, people. Mr. Lents gives a general overview of the most obvious quirks in our bodies. As he states the book would’ve been much bigger to include all the design flaws. Instead the author’s work is only 216-pages long. Its feet are firmly planted in science. What is known is explained. What is unknown, the author serves up the most common hypotheses. ‘Human Errors’ was published in 2018. It covers such areas as the less-than-perfect human eyes, nose, throat, neck, back, knee, superfluous bones, our need for nutrients, obesity, nonfunctional DNA, genetic diseases, human reproduction, autoimmune system, allergies, cancer, and the brain. The book compares how much more efficient the same elements are in other animals. In many cases, humans are the defective outliers. ‘Human Errors’ also includes helpful black-and-white illustrations which are scattered throughout the work. The Epilogue chapter takes a stab at explaining where we and the planet may be heading. Some of it is hopeful while other parts are darned right scary.

Evolution is a continual random process and never quite complete. It’s neither good nor bad. Evolutionary innovations are a tradeoff. ‘Human Errors’ will help you understand why many everyday body functions occur. As Mr. Lents aptly states, “Lurking in our anatomy are some odd arrangements, inefficient designs, and even outright defects. Mostly these are fairly neutral; they don’t hinder our ability to live and thrive. If they did, evolution would have handled them by now.” For people who believe that we are the center of God’s great plan, ‘Human Errors’ may be unsettling. The author stresses that human evolution is more luck than anything. He is correct. The book is a fun, educational, quick read. I guess I’ll have to stop telling everyone that I, and ONLY I, am evolution's most perfect specimen.

(If you are interested in a clear fun explanation of evolution, I wholeheartedly recommend ‘Why Evolution is True’ by Jerry A. Coyne.) ...more

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Jan 13, 2019 Karen Sadler rated it it was ok

We have too many bones! We have to rely too much on our diet for survival! We suffer from too many cognitive biases! Reading about our design flaws was kind of interesting, but the best part of this book were the few pages toward the end about the possibility of alien life. Specifically this quote: "...some current estimates predict that the universe harbors around seventy-five million civilizations." WHAT?! This possibility more than anything else I've ever heard or read gives me a better idea ...more

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Feb 05, 2019 Noah Goats rated it really liked it

Human Errors is about all the weird little quirks and monstrosities left in the human body after eons of evolution. It turns out evolution is an incompetent designer and has screwed us up in many ways. We have extra bones we don't need, frequently illogical mental processes, and even a massive number of dead viruses woven into our DNA. Like any book of this type, some sections were more interesting than others, but, on the whole I enjoyed it and I learned a bunch.

I read this on Kindle with an w ...more

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Mar 25, 2019 Chuy Ruiz rated it it was amazing

Shelves: science, psychology

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. I feel like I learned a lot about human genetics, and many other things. I liked the writing style, it never felt dry or like it dragged. I will definitely seek out any other books he has written.

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Jan 10, 2019 M rated it really liked it

I find the book very interesting. The language is easy to understand, there are good examples, and it is full of very interesting fun-facts that, for a person without deep knowledge of biology and anthropology, were sometimes really suprising! Quick and nice read.

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May 07, 2018 Kate rated it really liked it

Shelves: arc-netgalley-edelweiss, science-and-medicine, non-fiction-people-places-things, 2018

Anyone who knows me (or follows me on Instagram) knows I'm obsessed with anatomy (and by extension to a lesser extent, physiology). It borders on pathological. I have anatomical charts and skulls as decoration all over my apartment, and an entire bookshelf devoted to various anatomy texts across a lot of timespans. (But to be fair, I was a TA for college anatomy classes for five years, so it's not like it's a completely random interest). So when this showed up in my Netgalley options, I snagged Anyone who knows me (or follows me on Instagram) knows I'm obsessed with anatomy (and by extension to a lesser extent, physiology). It borders on pathological. I have anatomical charts and skulls as decoration all over my apartment, and an entire bookshelf devoted to various anatomy texts across a lot of timespans. (But to be fair, I was a TA for college anatomy classes for five years, so it's not like it's a completely random interest). So when this showed up in my Netgalley options, I snagged it. I will read anything pertaining to anatomy.

I was pleasantly surprised. Usually, I know 99% of information in these types of books. But, this one focused on the flaws of our anatomy and physiology, so it was a new spin and dove deeply into things I had certainly thought about in my years of biology coursework, but had never really investigated.

I also like that this is generally accessible, but there were a few issues. It could have had better editing (I found myself rolling my eyes every time he said something to the extent of "no engineer would design a structure this way", because it happens at least three times per chapter). Early on in the book (chapter two-ish? or maybe the latter part of chapter one?) I was really annoyed by his sentence structure, too. It was overly simple, and reminded me a lot of the pre-meds I teach who are brilliant scientists but do admittedly struggle with the flow of their writing, particular non-academic/non-scientific writing. While this is a book about science, it's targeted to the average Joe, so there were opportunities for improvement. But, it got better as it went on (or I got used to it and blocked it out. Not sure which). There's also times where he gets a little more technical than I expected, particularly around some of the gene stuff. I've have my share of genetics courses and I was able to follow along, but there were some things that made me really think back to my college classwork to remember and understand, which for many readers may be bordering on too scientific. But generally, he does a nice job of explaining complex topics for the non-science reader.

I also strangely found the section on behavioral economics, particularly the "why we suck at managing currency and gamble away our money" fascinating. I'm glad that was included.

Generally, a solid read. I'd definitely recommend it to my students (and anyone with a passing interest in the human body), pre-meds and non-pre-meds alike.

Thanks to Netgalley for the free review copy! ...more

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Apr 28, 2018 Phil Smith rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Human Errors: A Panorama of Our Glitches, from Pointless Bones to Broken Genes by Nathan Lents admits from the get-go that there are more than enough books about how great and wondrous the human body is. Lents takes a whole different tack: how human bodies have huge design flaws, from big system like our bones to the DNA in every cell.

Why do we have a blind spot in each eye? It is because the retina is wired backwards. Why are the drains for our sinuses in the wrong place? To make room for our Human Errors: A Panorama of Our Glitches, from Pointless Bones to Broken Genes by Nathan Lents admits from the get-go that there are more than enough books about how great and wondrous the human body is. Lents takes a whole different tack: how human bodies have huge design flaws, from big system like our bones to the DNA in every cell.

Why do we have a blind spot in each eye? It is because the retina is wired backwards. Why are the drains for our sinuses in the wrong place? To make room for our oversized brains. Is it really a good idea to take in food through the same opening that we use for breathing? Lents thinks definitely not. The wrist has way too many bones, grouped “...like a pile of rocks,” a turn of phrase that produces a vivid mental image.

Human Errors brings up ideas about vitamins that I had never remotely considered. Why don’t dogs and other animals need vitamin C in their diets? Because they can make it themselves. Why can’t we? Because, through a genetic mutation, we lost that ability. Minerals, which always have to be consumed, cause us problems because we have trouble absorbing them. Calcium absorption gets worse as we age, and iron deficiency is the number one nutritional deficiency both in the US and in the world. Obesity is also a natural fallout from poor design.

Focusing in on human DNA and running the numbers, Lents demonstrates that DNA are enormously wasteful, with 97% of DNA not “saying”anything. These include strings called pseudo genes, one of which causes us to not be able to generate our own vitamin C. Other strands of DNA are discarded bits of ancient viruses, and even pieces of our own genetic material, copied over and over like an office printer run amok.

There are a myriad of problems with human reproductive systems, from the fact that the Fallopian tubes are not even connected to the ovaries (!) to the fact the sperm can only turn in one direction. Autoimmune diseases are just ongoing mistakes made by your body, plain and simple. Allergic reactions to poison ivy and bee stings fall in this same category.

Memory is another area where we have big problems. Given only some information about an event, our brains try to fill in the gaps. In the case of gambling, our imperfect brains try to find patterns where there are none. Kudos to Human Errors for shining a light in dark places, providing me with new insights into how the body works (and doesn’t). ...more

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About Nathan H. Lents

Nathan H. Lents

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Nathan H. Lents is professor of biology and director of the Honors College at John Jay College of the City University of New York.

His research has been published in a dozen leading science journals, including the Journal of Biological Chemistry, Molecular Cell, the Journal of Forensic Sciences, and the American Journal of Physiology, as well as science education journals such as the Journal of Co ...more

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“There are species that can run faster, climb higher, dig deeper, or hit harder, but humans are special because we can run, climb, dig, and hit. The phrase jack of all trades, master of none fits us perfectly. If life on earth were like the Olympic Games, the only event that humans would ever win is the decathlon. (Unless chess became an Olympic sport.)” — 4 likes

“We have retinas that face backward, the stump of a tail, and way too many bones in our wrists. We must find vitamins and nutrients in our diets that other animals simply make for themselves. We are poorly equipped to survive in the climates in which we now live. We have nerves that take bizarre paths, muscles that attach to nothing, and lymph nodes that do more harm than good. Our genomes are filled with genes that don’t work, chromosomes that break, and viral carcasses from past infections. We have brains that play tricks on us, cognitive biases and prejudices, and a tendency to kill one another in large numbers. Millions of us can’t even reproduce successfully without a whole lot of help from modern science. Our flaws illuminate not only our evolutionary past but also our present and future. Everyone knows that it is impossible to understand current events in a specific country without understanding the history of that country and how the modern state came to be. The same is true for our bodies, our genes, and our minds.” — 2 likes

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