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What are the effects of spending an entire season indoors, as most of us have done this year?
I dont mean the psychological effects but the material ones.
I wonder about the carpets that have gotten worn down from pacing.
The couches that sag from cradling our butts all day.
The expanded inventories of elastic-waist pants, house slippers, sweatshirts.
The pandemic has forced us to confront exactly how little control we have over our homes.
I am unapologetically indoorsy, writes the author in her introduction.
Its not that I dont like nature; I think nature is lovely.
Ive been camping several times and enjoyed it!
Me and Emily Anthes, we could not be less alike.
Im usually out by page 30.
In any case, my alarm bells tend to go off early.
I am glad to report that Anthes passes the trustworthy test.
Her sources are respectable and diligently noted.
Those cool facts come fast and furious.
The New York City subway, for example, is smothered in microbes associated with bare feet.
The scientist continues: Imagine millions of people running around down there.
Another WTF moment: Pillowcases and toilet-seat surfaces are apparently strikingly similar from a microbiological perspective.
The results come back a year later.
Nothing to freak out about, the scientist who processed the swabs assures Anthes.
Many of those could be totally nonpathogenic.
and basements (hotbeds of arthropod diversity).
Patients in sunny rooms fare better than patients in shady rooms.
The books best chapter explores how neuroatypical people interact with their surroundings.
(Can we standardize that?)
What happened next will not shock you: The changes were received warmly by neurotypical people, too.
Students who attend class in well-ventilated and well-maintained buildings perform better academically.
But for every unsurprising conclusion, theres a curveball.
The system requires no heavy equipment and can be installed inexpensively on an existing house by just two people.
Rather than pour catastrophically into a home, the floodwater itself lifts residents to safety.
The Great Indoorsisnt a self-help book, but our present context has layered it with some self-helpy applications.
All those studies proving that plants cause joy?
They dont specify that the plants should be exquisite.
Gather ye weeds while ye may.
