Mann Chats in the Stacks book talk: Honeybee Democracy, 2010-11-11

In his newest book, professor of neurobiology and behavior Thomas Seeley presents insights offered by years of close observation of how honeybees find new homes. For the honeybee, finding and moving into a new home is a challenge that takes place each year and bears life-or-death consequences for the entire swarm. In language accessible to scientist and layperson alike, Seeley explains the experiments undertaken to understand how bees identify and investigate potential sites for a new home, communicate information gleaned from their explorations, and come to a successful group decision on which site will work best. Hailed equally as brilliant piece of science at work, a book with practical implications for beekeepers, and a revealing exploration of a remarkable model for collective wisdom and effective decision-making, Honeybee Democracy provides another dimension to our understanding of the honeybee as humanity’s greatest friend among the insects.