Professor Tom Oliver

Professor Tom Oliver headshot
 

Tom Oliver is a Professor at the University of Reading, leading their Ecology and Evolution research group. He is a leading systems thinker, advising both the UK government and the European Environment Agency.

Twitter: @Tom_H_Oliver


 

Biography

Tom Oliver is a Professor at the University of Reading, leading their Ecology and Evolution research group. He is a leading systems thinker, advising both the UK government and the European Environment Agency. He is a frequent contributor to broadcast media and regularly gives talks on environmental science to general audiences. He has published more than seventy scientific papers in world-leading interdisciplinary journals and won two first-place prizes for essays communicating science to a broader audience.


 

Books

The Self Delusion Book Cover

The Self Delusion

THE SELF DELUSION: THE SURPRISING SCIENCE OF OUR CONNECTION TO EACH OTHER AND THE NATURAL WORLD (W&N, 2020) is his first book. The paperback was published in January 2021. 

From the back cover:

  • Most of our 37 trillion cells have such a short lifespan that we are essentially made anew every few weeks 

  • The molecules forming our bodies have been component parts of countless other organisms, from ancient plants to dinosaurs

  • The bacteria, fungi and viruses that make up half our bodies influence our moods and even manipulate our behaviour Every word and every touch we receive from other people transforms the neural networks in our brain and changes our sense of self


The Self Delusion is an explosive, powerful and inspiring book bringing together overwhelming evidence to prove our existence as independent beings is an illusion - and why understanding our many connections is the key to a better future​.

 
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