Why does the giant squid（乌贼）have eyes as large as a football? Why do more than 350 species of fish produce their own electricity? Why do dogs become more optimistic after two weeks of plentiful sniffing（嗅）? 

The mysteries and miracles of animal senses are revealed in this year's winner of Royal Society Trivedi science book prize. An Immense World by Ed Yong is an exploration of the unique sensory world of other creatures, from tree hoppers to singing frogs, who sense the world in vastly different ways to humans. 

Yong has interviewed many kinds of scientists during his writing but sensory biologists are his favourite. "There's a surprising number of sensory biologists who are themselves neuro-atypical—they have something like face blindness or colour blindness, " he says. "Their different than"normal way of experiencing the world themselves might help them better empathize（共情）with other creatures who have those experiences. The core of this book is curiosity and empathy, understanding and valuing animals for their own benefit, and trying to put ourselves in the shoes of creatures who are very different to us. "

Yong's book carries an important message about how our lack of understanding of the sensory worlds of other animals is hugely destructive. Studies have shown that LED lights are particularly damaging to bats and insects. Flowers illuminated（照亮）by bright lights receive 62%fewer visits from insects. Meanwhile, low-frequency noise in oceans has risen 32-fold since the Second World War because of global shipping-damaging whales' ability to communicate. 

Unfortunately, reducing noise and light pollution is nowhere near the political agenda. "It's understandable why it's not on the political agenda because it's not a visceral（强烈的）problem like a plastic-ridden beach or chemicals billowing from a smokestack, "says Yong. "Light and sound don't produce the same kind of horror. Light especially feels like an entirely good thing-we want more light in our lives；light is knowledge, safety, beauty and goodness. So just raising awareness that these are problems that could be tackled is an important first step and one I hope An Immense World moves people further towards taking. "