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InxAOut on a Limb Ben Kilham invites us into the world he has come to know best the world of black bearsxA For decades Kilham has studied wild black bears in a vast tract of Northern New Hampshire woodlands At times he has also taken in orphaned infantsxfeeding them walking them through the forest for months to help them decipher their natural world and eventually reintroducing them back into the wild Once free the orphaned bears still regard him as their mother And one of these bears now a -year-old female has given him extraordinary access to her daily life opening a rare window into how she and the wild bears she lives among carry out their daily lives raise their young and communicate Witnessing this world has led to some remarkable discoveriesxA For years scientists have considered black bears to be mostly solitaryxA Kilhams observations though reveal the extraordinary interactions wild bears have with each other They form friendships and alliances abide by a code of conduct that keeps their world orderly and when their own food supplies are ample they even help out other bears in needxAxA Could these cooperative behaviors he asks mimic behavior that existed in the animal that became humanxA In watching bears do we see our earliest forms of communications unfoldxA Kilhams dyslexia once barred him from getting an advanced academic degree securing funding for his research and publishing his observations in the scientific literature After being shunned by the traditional scientific community though Kilhamxs unique findings now interest bear researchers worldwide His techniques even aid scientists working with pandas in China and bears in Russia Moreover the observation skills that fueled Kilhamxs exceptional work turned out to be born of his dyslexia His ability to think in pictures and decipher systems makes him a unique interpreter of the bears world Out on a LimbxAdelivers Kilhamxs fascinating glimpse at the inner world of bears and also makes a passionate case for science and education in general to open its doors to different ways of learning and researchingxdoors that could lead to far broader realms of discovery Kilham and his work have been featured in five internationally televised documentaries In addition to being on over forty nationally broadcast radio shows including National Public Radio he has appeared onxAThe Today ShowxAGood Morning AmericaxAABC Nightly NewsxAThe David Letterman Show and more.