{"product_id":"gulp-adventures-on-the-alimentary-canal-9780393081572","title":"Gulp: Adventures on the Alimentary Canal","description":"\"America's funniest science writer\" (\u003cem\u003eWashington Post\u003c\/em\u003e) takes us down the hatch on an unforgettable tour. The alimentary canal is classic Mary Roach terrain: the questions explored in \u003cem\u003eGulp\u003c\/em\u003e are as taboo, in their way, as the cadavers in \u003cem\u003eStiff\u003c\/em\u003e and every bit as surreal as the universe of zero gravity explored in \u003cem\u003ePacking for Mars\u003c\/em\u003e. Why is crunchy food so appealing? Why is it so hard to find words for flavors and smells? Why doesn't the stomach digest itself? How much can you eat before your stomach bursts? Can constipation kill you? Did it kill Elvis? In \u003cem\u003eGulp\u003c\/em\u003e we meet scientists who tackle the questions no one else thinks of--or has the courage to ask. We go on location to a pet-food taste-test lab, a fecal transplant, and into a live stomach to observe the fate of a meal. With Roach at our side, we travel the world, meeting murderers and mad scientists, Eskimos and exorcists (who have occasionally administered holy water rectally), rabbis and terrorists--who, it turns out, for practical reasons do not conceal bombs in their digestive tracts. \u003cp\u003eLike all of Roach's books, \u003cem\u003eGulp\u003c\/em\u003e is as much about human beings as it is about human bodies.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAbout the Author\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eRoach, Mary:\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e - \u003cstrong\u003eMary Roach\u003c\/strong\u003e is the author of five best-selling works of nonfiction, including \u003cem\u003eGrunt\u003c\/em\u003e, \u003cem\u003eStiff\u003c\/em\u003e, and, most recently, \u003cem\u003eFuzz\u003c\/em\u003e. Her writing has appeared in \u003cem\u003eNational Geographic\u003c\/em\u003e and the \u003cem\u003eNew York Times Magazine\u003c\/em\u003e, among other publications. She lives in Oakland, California.","brand":"W. W. Norton \u0026 Company","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":50323991527698,"sku":"9780393081572","price":19.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0831\/4771\/8930\/files\/img_df388d68-a6f6-4aed-9b6a-8b70b622c2aa.jpg?v=1727663715","url":"https:\/\/surprise-castle.myshopify.com\/products\/gulp-adventures-on-the-alimentary-canal-9780393081572","provider":"Surprise Castle","version":"1.0","type":"link"}