Cannibalism: Interview with Dr. Bill Schutt

WILDCIDE

Today’s interview explores everything Cannibalism. Yep, you heard that right. Tune in while Chelsea and Bailey interview author and zoologist Dr. Bill Schutt to discuss his surprising specialty of cannibalism. Although we don’t dive into the gory aspect of cannibalism, we do take a very cool dive into cannibalism from a zoological and human cultural perspective; although it does shine some light on why criminal cannibalism is so sensationalized as well. Plus hear Dr. Bill’s wild story about eating placenta. This is a Wildcide episode you definitely don’t want to miss!

A little about our special guest:

Dr. Bill Schutt was born in New York City and raised on Long Island by parents who encouraged his love for turning over stones and peering under logs, Dr. Schutt quickly grew a passion for the natural world, with its enormous wonders and its increasing vulnerability.

Dr. Schutt received his Ph.D. in zoology from Cornell and held a post-doctoral fellowship at the AMNH where he received a Theodore Roosevelt Memorial Grant. He has published over two dozen peer-reviewed articles on topics ranging from terrestrial locomotion in vampire bats to the precarious, arboreal copulatory behavior of a marsupial mouse. His research has been featured in Natural History, The New York Times, Newsday, The Economist, and Discover. Dr. Schutt lives on Long Island with his wife and son.

Dr. Schutt is an Emeritus Professor of Biology at LIU Post and a research associate at the American Museum of Natural History. His newest non-fiction book, Pump: A Natural History of the Heart was published on September 21, 2021 and is currently available everywhere books are sold. Pump has already garnered great reviews from Publisher’s Weekly (starred review), Kirkus Reviews, The Wall Street Journal, Cool Green Science, and elsewhere. His last book, Cannibalism: A Perfectly Natural History, garnered widespread rave reviews from The New York Times, The Boston Globe and elsewhere. Schutt’s first book, Dark Banquet: Blood and the Curious Lives of Blood-Feeding Creatures, was selected as a Best Book of 2008 by Library Journal and Amazon, and was chosen for the Barnes & Noble Discover Great New Writers program.

Dr. Schutt’s first novel, Hell’s Gate, was published in 2016. The Himalayan Codex (R.J. MacCready novel #2) followed in June 2017 and The Darwin Strain (R.J. MacCready novel #3) made its debut in August 2019. He is currently working on a new non-fiction book on teeth, and has also finished the first draft of his first solo novel.

Resources:

Dr. Schutt’s website: https://billschutt.com/

Dr. Schutt's new book, "Bite: An Incisive History of Teeth, from Hagfish to Humans” which will be out on Aug. 13: https://www.hachettebookgroup.com/titles/bill-schutt/bite/9781643751788/

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​​Art for the podcast was created by Kelly Steen. Editing/Production for the podcast by Bltzwolff

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