Right this minute, your body is carrying roughly 38 trillion microbial cells along with it—and in the vast majority of cases, you couldn’t live without them. On top of that, you harbor around 380 trillion viruses, most of which are either beneficial or benign. The Hidden Power of Microbes draws back the curtain on this vast microworld in 24 half-hour lectures delivered by acclaimed science communicator Dr. Melissa Booth, research scientist, professor, and Founder and Principal of The Science Communicator, devoted to training scientists to tell accurate, compelling stories about their fields.
Dr. Booth covers the major types of microbes, the history of their discovery, their evolution and physiology, their role in human health and disease, their importance in agriculture and industry, their ubiquity in every corner of nature, and the possibility that they even exist beyond Earth. As a narrative tool, she introduces a fictional character named Lina. Throughout the course, you follow Lina’s experiences with the tiny organisms that she encounters and that colonize her—from birth through adulthood.
Dr. Booth describes the metabolism of bacteria, yeast, viruses, and other microbes, making their intricate machinery understandable and linking it to processes such as digestion, fermentation, and antibiotic activity. True to her science communicating calling, Dr. Booth turns microbiology into a thrilling detective story!
