Al-Artima

Author's name: Shadi Abdelhafiz

This book helps you see beyond the ordinary. The bird that chirps near your window is not performing a casual act, but rather sees what you do not see, and perceives the world in a completely different way than you. The cat that stretches lazily on your sofa is not just a pampered creature, but a biological marvel that scientists thought defied the laws of physics. The ant that walks on the edge of your desk carries in its tiny brain organizational solutions that the most complex human systems have not yet reached. That chimpanzee that you see in the zoo, sitting still, looking into the void in front of it without apparent interest, employs in its conflicts a military deception that allows it to maintain the balance of power, in a manner similar to the strategies of modern armies. As for the squid, it is not just a crustacean that has become accustomed to living in salt pans that resemble in their harshness other worlds beyond Earth, but rather it is a truly amazing opportunity to test the limits of life.

But before you embark with me on this journey, which unfolds across 17 stations, each presenting a startling insight into the animal kingdom—one that may initially shock you with its uniqueness—I invite you to shed the weight of habit, to leave behind the clamor of concrete and the noise of screens, and to walk with me through forest paths, along riverbanks, and among flocks of birds. And when you finish this journey, perhaps you will see the world with different eyes, filled with contemplation grounded in the scientific method of thinking, or what I like to call "wisdom," and with patience and life itself.