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It's rare for a book's title to say so clearly what the book is about. In the case of Rupert Sheldrake's latest work, the controversial content is right on the front cover. Pet owners will see it and smile in recognition; skeptical scientists will shake their heads and mutter about "maverick scholars." We all know of cases of dogs (and cats) who know when their owners are coming home, who go to wait at the door or window 10 minutes or more before their human arrives. Conditioned by the tight rigor of contemporary scientific thinking, we either look for rational explanations or we file the phenomenon away in our minds as "unexplained" and are careful not to talk about it with our scientist friends.
Sheldrake has shown in the past that he is not afraid to be labeled a rebel, thanks to his theory of morphic resonance, which suggests the following:
Natural systems, or morphic units, at all levels of complexity are animated, organized, and coordinated by morphic fields, which contain an inherent memory. Natural systems inherit this collective memory from all previous things of their kind by a process called morphic resonance, with the result that patterns of development and behavior become increasingly habitual through repetition.
Sheldrake believes that the "telepathy" between pets and humans, or between flocks of birds or schools of fish that move as a single organism, can be explained this theory. Sheldrake is less persuaded by anecdotes that suggest animal clairvoyance--warning of something in the near future--but refuses to disallow the possibility.
He accepts that the case histories he details so thoroughly in this book are anecdotal, but that makes them no less real; and as a scientist himself he sets up experimental conditions for studying this previously ignored phenomenon that show beyond any doubt that the phenomenon exists. He castigates traditional scientists for their refusal to countenance anything that doesn't fit in with their existing paradigms (or prejudices) and challenges them to come up with some more "acceptable" explanation--but none is forthcoming.
This fascinating book is a first attempt at a scientific investigation into a puzzling but quite common occurrence. One hopes that other scientists will follow Sheldrake's brave lead. --David V. Barrett
Pressestimmen
"This brilliant and timely book shows how good science can take us to a new level of understanding other animals. Read it and you will appreciate animals in a very different light, and in that light discover and affirm some of the powers that we share with them."
----Dr. Michael W. Fox, veterinarian and author of The Animal Doctor's Answer Book and Animals as Teachers and Healers
"A wonderful treatment of a very important phenomenon. It's high time that someone grappled with it, and Sheldrake does so insightfully and responsibly. This is a splendid and thought-provoking book."
--Elizabeth Marshall Thomas, author of The Hidden Life of Dogs and Tribe of the Tiger
"At times delightful, at times outrageous, this provocative book might well be onto something that nobody ever imagined before. If true, this book will turn our understanding of animals inside out."
--Jeffrey Masson, author of When Elephants Weep and Dogs Never Lie About Love
"A remarkable book, a fascinating penetration into the life of dogs few if any of us have understood. Dr. Sheldrake takes us to places we have only been able to wonder about."
--Roger A. Caras, author of The Bond: People and Their Animals, A Cat Is Watching, and A Dog Is Listening