Comedic Science - Mary Roach

Monthly Media Obsession

Runner Up for this month’s media obsession: the album “Caroline 2," by Caroline
(see more below)

This past month I had the pleasure of reading Mary Roach’s latest book, “Replaceable You : Adventures in Human Anatomy.” It isn’t rare that a non-fiction opens my eyes to the latest reaches of science, or be changed by the profundity of the material. It is exceptionally rare however, that I would have these experiences and giggle as much as I do while reading Mary Roach.

Roach’s comedic style ranges from easy to laugh bathroom humor, to the more sophisticated jokes that occur only if you are reading her books carefully; these later bits make me feel like I was sharing an inside joke with a good friend. They feel like a reward. What makes her writing even more unique, is her ability to bring humor to scientific, often less touched, biological topics.

These topics are explored without boundaries, without politeness in mind. In “Replaceable You,” Mary travels the world to visit specialists ranging from plastic surgeons and hair transplanters, to the pig farms where transplant organs are “raised.” These first hand accounts is where a lot of the comedy occurs, she handles interactions in ways that remind me of David Sedaris novels, if Sedaris was as curious as he is fixated.

This particular book explores the myriad of ways we can replace parts of our bodies; from skin, hair and cosmetics, to life saving surgical options on the horizon. It touched a lot of personal experience for me in ways that maybe won’t for all readers. I was captivated by the discussion of transplant organs, considering I only have one kidney left; I was curious about the future of heart surgeries, as my mother has had multiple. In hindsight is obvious that the chapter on how prosthetic legs had an influence on me when I had a doctor’s appointment a few days later…

I’m still waiting for a few of her other books from the library, but I also had the pleasure of reading her book “Gulp,” last month. A book that in many ways is funny, simply because it discusses the parts of our own bodies that normally make us laugh. I found myself reading Gulp like it was paperback pulp, something accessible, yet you keep turning the page. This is a genuine compliment; it is so difficult to make science accessible to “every” reader, but Mary Roach makes it look easy.

Unlike recommending a book, I’m recommending this author; her topics vary, and I’m sure one of them with catch your eye. She asks big questions:

How do you feel about engineering pigs to be more like humans, in order to better transplant their organs?
How does gender bias play a role in sexual organ surgeries?
Can you really replace it with a finger?
How many people are actually transplanting their pubic hairs to elsewhere on the body?

Go support your library or local bookstore with a guaranteed laugh and lesson all in one.

This Month’s Runner Up: Caroline 2, by Caroline

I can’t see myself always needing to have a runner’s up position for these monthly media obsession posts. The goal of these side quests are to help me pay more attention and be more intentional with how I consume media.

This past month I listened to the album “Caroline 2,” like I haven’t listened to an album since college: on repeat.

Caroline, the band, released their debut album in 2022; formed out of London, with eight members featured on the records. Unlike in a lot of large bands, where one or two performers tend to orchestrate the sound and the others members, Caroline's sounds are as varied and diverse as the humans that make it up. The long, almost orchestral tracks are filled with experimental sounds and live instruments. There is a sound that emerges, somewhere between a dirge and a drone at times, that feels unique; feels new.

During other tracks, the dark envelopment of the music is broken by the dawn of something lighter. These contrasts play with something emotional, and with almost mantra like lyrics, there is room for the mind to wander to where it needs to. I couldn’t tell you what genre this album is, nor even some songs within it; it instead feels like it stretches itself to encompasses something larger, the full breadth of “taste.”

The last album I remember replaying immediately after I had finished listening to it, was “Tomboy,” by Panda Bear back in 2011. I’m not one to burn out something I enjoy, but there is something so special about Caroline 2 that I couldn’t quite grasp after my first listen, or my second, or after a dozen plays in a single week. It is like the experience of nostalgia, and gratitude for change simultaneously. A sound directed towards both the paths taken, and the ones not.

Caroline reminds me I’m grateful for every feeling that arrives in life, because I get to feel.

Above; my favorite track | Below: One of their hits

This Monthly Media Obsession is part of the rotating themed Friday content, such as this Side Quest. These accompany the longer and more thought provoking Full Posts on Inner Magic. If you enjoyed this writing, you may enjoy my many other offerings.