This poem is inspired by recent research, which suggests that the magnetic 'sixth' sense that some animals possess is likely to come from bacteria.

Symbiotic Senses

The Science:
Sara ‘Saartije’ Baartman (ca. 1789 –1815) was an enslaved Southern African woman exhibited in European freakshows under the name Hottentot Venus. After living in poverty for most of her life, she was sold to an animal trainer. On Baartman’s death, her body was dissected by ‘scientists’ keen to validate racial stereotypes, and displayed in a Paris museum. Her brain, genitalia and skeleton were not buried in her homeland until 2002.

Hottentot Speaks by Jenny Mitchell

Welcome to Consilience
the online poetry journal exploring the spaces where science and art meet. Each issue of Consilience features poems about science all linked by a common theme, written by poets of all backgrounds. At Consilience, we aim to publish all the submissions that we receive and to make both the poetry and the science accessible to all audiences. Here, we feature audio recordings of poems or short pieces by authors who published in Consilience. For more information about the journal, team and how to submit a poem, visit our website: https://www.consilience-journal.com/

Audio poems produced by Zed Sehyr @Consilience Journal

Hottentot Speaks by Jenny Mitchell

Consilience

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