In the small “Fly Room†at Columbia University, T.H. Morgan and his students, A.H. Sturtevant, C.B. Bridges, and H.J. Muller, carried out the work that laid the foundations of modern, chromosomal genetics. The excitement of those times, when the whole field of genetics was being created, is captured in this book, written in 1965 by one of those present at the beginning. His account is one of the few authoritative, analytic works on the early history of genetics. This attractive reprint is accompanied by a website, http://www.esp.org/books/sturt/history/ offering full-text versions of the key papers discussed in the book, including the world's first genetic map.
"A lucid, thought-provoking account of the case for 'nature' as a determinant of personality."—Peter D. Kramer, Author of Listening to Prozac and Should You Leave? Nowhere is the nature-nurture controversy being more arduously tested than in the labs of world-renowned molecular scientist Dean Hamer, whose cutting-edge research has indisputably linked specific genes to behavioral traits, such as anxiety, thrill-seeking, and homosexuality. The culmination of that research is this provocative book, Living with Our Genes. In it, Dr. Hamer reveals that much of our behavior—how much we eat and weigh, whether we drink or use drugs, how often we have sex—is heavily influenced by genes. His findings help explain why one brother becomes a Wall Street trader, while his sibling remains content as a librarian, or why some people like to bungee-jump, while others prefer Scrabble. Dr. Hamer also sheds light on some of the most compelling and vexing aspects of personality, such as shyness, aggression, depression, and intelligence. In the tradition of the bestselling book Listening to Prozac, Living with Our Genes is the first comprehensive investigation of the crucial link between our DNA and our behavior. "Compulsive reading, reminiscent of Jared Diamond, from a scientist who knows his stuff and communicates it well."—Kirkus Reviews "A pioneer in the field of molecular psychology, Hamer is exploring the role genes play in governing the very core of our individuality. Accessible . . . provocative."—Time "Absolutely terrific! I couldn't put it down."—Professor Robert Plomin, Social, Genetic & Developmental Psychiatry Research Center, Institute of Psychiatry
The Middle East plays a major role in the history of genetic science. Early in the twentieth century, technological breakthroughs in human genetics coincided with the birth of modern Middle Eastern nation-states, who proclaimed that the region's ancient history—as a cradle of civilizations and crossroads of humankind—was preserved in the bones and blood of their citizens. Using letters and publications from the 1920s to the present, Elise K. Burton follows the field expeditions and hospital surveys that scrutinized the bodies of tribal nomads and religious minorities. These studies, geneticists claim, not only detect the living descendants of biblical civilizations but also reveal the deeper past of human evolution. Genetic Crossroads is an unprecedented history of human genetics in the Middle East, from its roots in colonial anthropology and medicine to recent genome sequencing projects. It illuminates how scientists from Turkey to Yemen, Egypt to Iran, transformed genetic data into territorial claims and national origin myths. Burton shows why such nationalist appropriations of genetics are not local or temporary aberrations, but rather the enduring foundations of international scientific interest in Middle Eastern populations to this day.
Get the low-down on genetics with easy-to-understand terms and clear explanations. From interpreting dominant and recessive genes to learning about mutations, this book shows the different factors that can determine a person's DNA.
Biosocial Surveys analyzes the latest research on the increasing number of multipurpose household surveys that collect biological data along with the more familiar interviewerâ€"respondent information. This book serves as a follow-up to the 2003 volume, Cells and Surveys: Should Biological Measures Be Included in Social Science Research? and asks these questions: What have the social sciences, especially demography, learned from those efforts and the greater interdisciplinary communication that has resulted from them? Which biological or genetic information has proven most useful to researchers? How can better models be developed to help integrate biological and social science information in ways that can broaden scientific understanding? This volume contains a collection of 17 papers by distinguished experts in demography, biology, economics, epidemiology, and survey methodology. It is an invaluable sourcebook for social and behavioral science researchers who are working with biosocial data.
In 1969, Jon Beckwith and his colleagues succeeded in isolating a gene from the chromosome of a living organism. Announcing this startling achievement at a press conference, Beckwith took the opportunity to issue a public warning about the dangers of genetic engineering. Jon Beckwith's book, the story of a scientific life on the front line, traces one remarkable man's dual commitment to scientific research and social responsibility over the course of a career spanning most of the postwar history of genetics and molecular biology. A thoroughly engrossing memoir that recounts Beckwith's halting steps toward scientific triumphs--among them, the discovery of the genetic element that turns genes on--as well as his emergence as a world-class political activist, Making Genes, Making Waves is also a compelling history of the major controversies in genetics over the last thirty years. Presenting the science in easily understandable terms, Beckwith describes the dramatic changes that transformed biology between the late 1950s and our day, the growth of the radical science movement in the 1970s, and the personalities involved throughout. He brings to light the differing styles of scientists as well as the different ways in which science is presented within the scientific community and to the public at large. Ranging from the travails of Robert Oppenheimer and the atomic bomb to the Human Genome Project and recent "Science Wars," Beckwith's book provides a sweeping view of science and its social context in the latter half of the twentieth century.
Almost daily we hear news stories, advertisements, and scientific reports that promise genetic medicine will make us live longer, enable doctors to identify and treat diseases before they start, and individualize our medical care. But surprisingly, a century ago eugenicists were making the same promises. The Science of Human Perfection traces the history of the promises of medical genetics and of the medical dimension of eugenics. The book also considers social and ethical issues that cast troublesome shadows over these fields./divDIV DIVKeeping his focus on America, science historian Nathaniel Comfort introduces the community of scientists, physicians, and public health workers who have contributed to the development of medical genetics from the nineteenth century to today. He argues that medical genetics is closely related to eugenics, and indeed the two cannot be fully understood separately. He also carefully examines how the desire to relieve suffering and to improve ourselves genetically, though noble, may be subverted. History makes clear that as patients and consumers we must take ownership of genetic medicine, using it intelligently, knowledgeably, and skeptically, lest pernicious interests trump our own./div
Introduction to Genetics: Science of Heredity presents a linear programmed text about hereditary and genetics. This book discusses a variety of topics related to heredity and genetics, including chromosomes, genes, Mendelism, mitosis, and meiosis. Organized into six chapters, this book begins with an overview of some of the experiments that first provide an understanding of heredity and laid the foundation of the science of genetics. This text then provides detailed information about the cell and explains how the essential parts of it reproduce and divide. Other chapters consider how the chromosome theory can explain not only the facts of Mendelism, but also the many complications that arise in genetics. This book discusses as well the problems that can happen during the process of mitosis and meiosis. The final chapter deals with the practical problems that confront the plant breeder. This book is a valuable resource for teachers and students of biology.
In the nearly 60 years since Watson and Crick proposed the double helical structure of DNA, the molecule of heredity, waves of discoveries have made genetics the most thrilling field in the sciences. The study of genes and genomics today explores all aspects of the life with relevance in the lab, in the doctor's office, in the courtroom and even in social relationships. In this helpful guidebook, one of the most respected and accomplished human geneticists of our time communicates the importance of genes and genomics studies in all aspects of life. With the use of core concepts and the integration of extensive references, this book provides students and professionals alike with the most in-depth view of the current state of the science and its relevance across disciplines. - Bridges the gap between basic human genetic understanding and one of the most promising avenues for advances in the diagnosis, prevention and treatment of human disease - Includes the latest information on diagnostic testing, population screening, predicting disease susceptibility, pharmacogenomics and more - Explores ethical, legal, regulatory and economic aspects of genomics in medicine - Integrates historical (classical) genetics approach with the latest discoveries in structural and functional genomics
Biological inheritance, the passage of key characteristics down the generations, has always held mankind’s fascination. It is fundamental to the breeding of plants and animals with desirable traits. Genetics, the scientific study of inheritance, can be traced back to a particular set of simple but ground-breaking studies carried out 170 years ago. The awareness that numerous diseases are inherited gives this subject considerable medical importance. The progressive advances in genetics now bring us to the point where we have unravelled the entire human genome, and that of many other species. We can intervene very precisely with the genetic make-up of our agricultural crops and animals, and even ourselves. Genetics now enables us to understand cancer and develop novel protein medicines. It has also provided us with DNA fingerprinting for the solving of serious crime. This book explains for a lay readership how, where and when this powerful science emerged.
