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Special to the Daily Journal/Messenger

“The Guinea Pig Diaries: My Life as an Experiment” (Simon and Schuster, $25.00)

By Trevor Seigler

It’s safe to say that A.J. Jacobs routinely goes places where no one has gone before. In his first book, “The Know-It-All,” he read the entire Encyclopedia Britannica in a little over a year. He followed that up with “The Year of Living Biblically,” in which he attempted to live by the rules and regulations of the Good Book (both Testaments). Now he gives us appetizer-sized versions of his more recent experiments in human behavior, each one just as illuminating (and irritating to his long-suffering wife) as his previous endeavors.

“The Guinea Pig Diaries: My Life as an Experiment” (Simon and Schuster, $25.00) isn’t united by a narrative like his previous books, but is more a collection of some of the smaller-scale ideas he’s pursued in the name of meeting deadlines as well as satisfying his curiosity. Whether he’s posing as his attractive nanny on an online dating site or posing nude per the request of a Hollywood actress with more experience in that arena, Jacobs reveals all and learns a little about himself as well as his subject material. It isn’t always pretty, but Jacobs gets an entertaining story out of each experience nonetheless.

Jacobs’ journalistic style owes more than a little to precursors like “New Journalism” and participatory journalists like George Plimpton. Think of him as Hunter S. Thompson, minus the drug-fueled paranoia. Jacobs throws himself into such unusual positions in order to gain a better understanding, and in the process fill us in on what he’s learned. From trying to follow George Washington’s rules of etiquette, he learns how to resist the urge to spit and curtsey in a manner that highlights his calves (because in Washington’s times, a big calf meant a big … well, you know). In trying to cut down on his multitasking, he finds that talking to yourself cuts back the amount of mental distractions that could send your brain on divergent tangents of thought. And he realizes the pitfalls of fame when he masquerades as an Australian actor to whom he bears a slight resemblance on one of the biggest nights in Hollywood.

Outsourcing is a hot topic these days, so Jacobs outsources his personal and professional chores to a company in India, with surprising results. His efforts to help his unlucky-in-love nanny find a man let him in on what women really think about the men they meet online (He even roots for a few of the would-be suitors to be “the one”). And he tries to embrace a more rational view of the world, never mind his OCD.

The book’s best experiment, however, is saved for last: For a month, Jacobs will do whatever his wife says, minus the sarcastic back-and-forth that characterizes their relationship. After all, readers of Jacobs’ two previous books are convinced of her saint-like status in putting up with his constant documentation of their private lives in the course of conducting his experiments. It doesn’t work out so well when she recognizes the tone he’s using with her in conversation is the same as when he’s talking to their young son, but the “male chastity belt” goes over well.

“The Guinea Pig Diaries” continues A.J. Jacobs’ quest to put himself in uncomfortable situations for the sake of journalism. Like Plimpton and Doctor Gonzo before him, he often finds himself in moments of abject embarrassment and comical outcomes. But, to paraphrase “South Park,” he learns something important at the end of the day. That’s probably the best motive to continue putting himself in the laboratory of human experience.