Explaining Humans: What Science Can Teach Us about Life, Love and Relationships* (HB)

Winner of the Royal Society Science Book Prize 2020! Diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder at the age of eight, Camilla Pang struggled to understand the world around her. Desperate for a solution, she asked her mother for something that didn't exist: an instruction manual for humans. So, Camilla created her own. Now armed with a PhD in biochemistry, Camilla dismantles our obscure social customs, identifies what it really means to be human and uses the language of science to examine life's everyday interactions, including: Decisions and the route we take to make them; conflict and how we can avoid it; relationships and how we establish them; etiquette and how we conform to it. Explaining Humans is an original and incisive exploration of human nature and the strangeness of social norms, written from the outside looking in. Camilla's unique perspective of the world, in turn, tells us so much about ourselves and is a fascinating guide on how to lead a more connected, happier life.