Who are we? : microbes, the puppet masters! / Yuan Kun Lee.

Hackensack, N.J. ; London : World Scientific, [2009], ©2009.

viii, 85 pages : illustrations ; 23 cm

Why do you get a kick out of roller coaster rides and bungee jumps? -- Looking into the cells : how human are we? -- Looking into the command post of human cells : the nucleus, are we human at all? -- Why is there so much junk in our genes? -- The tendency of humans to trade-off our body functions under the assault of disease-causing microbes -- Looking into our intestines -- Why do we have diarrhoea? -- Do we eat because we need the food? -- Microbes help those who help themselves -- Are we fat because we eat too much and exercise too little?

Our indecent liaison with yeast -- Who is the father of democracy? -- The pseudo-tyrants -- Did HIV learn from smallpox? -- Why are some pathogens more willing to kill the hosts than others? -- SARS virus, the new kid on the block -- Who is afraid of bird flu? -- Why do microbes want to colonize the human body? -- Does the ability to love make humans different from lower forms of organisms? -- Microbes kill for their offspring! -- Does your blood type determine your fortune? -- A human body without microbes?

Includes bibliographical references (p. 80-85).