DNA: The Secret of Life
by James D. Watson, Andrew Berry
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Book Summary Information
Author: Andrew Berry, James D. WatsonEdition: Paperback
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Published: 2003-01-01
ISBN: 0375710078
Number of pages: 464
Publisher: Knopf
Book Reviews of DNA: The Secret of Life
Book Review: The ultimate book of life's secret
Summary: 5 Stars
This is a fascinating scientific tale of life's history told by one of science's champions - Dr. Watson. We are fortunate that he is also a gifted writer and story teller. This book is a scientific page turner and by the end of the first few chapters the reader realizes what all the excitement is about. It is an easy read and a good review for people with science background, for others the details might prove challenging but the big picture is certainly within grasp. With the sequencing of the human genome, many aspects of our lives has and will change, this book can help usher us into the new age by teaching us the basics so we can be "DNA literate". I am a clinical physician but this book has awakened the scientist in me. I highly recommend it.
Summary of DNA: The Secret of Life
Fifty years ago, James D. Watson, then just twentyfour, helped launch the greatest ongoing scientific quest of our time. Now, with unique authority and sweeping vision, he gives us the first full account of the genetic revolution?from Mendel?s garden to the double helix to the sequencing of the human genome and beyond.Watson?s lively, panoramic narrative begins with the fanciful speculations of the ancients as to why ?like begets like? before skipping ahead to 1866, when an Austrian monk named Gregor Mendel first deduced the basic laws of inheritance. But genetics as we recognize it today?with its capacity, both thrilling and sobering, to manipulate the very essence of living things?came into being only with the rise of molecular investigations culminating in the breakthrough discovery of the structure of DNA, for which Watson shared a Nobel prize in 1962. In the DNA molecule?s graceful curves was the key to a whole new science.
Having shown that the secret of life is chemical, modern genetics has set mankind off on a journey unimaginable just a few decades ago. Watson provides the general reader with clear explanations of molecular processes and emerging technologies. He shows us how DNA continues to alter our understanding of human origins, and of our identities as groups and as individuals. And with the insight of one who has remained close to every advance in research since the double helix, he reveals how genetics has unleashed a wealth of possibilities to alter the human condition?from genetically modified foods to genetically modified babies?and transformed itself from a domain of pure research into one of big business as well. It is a sometimes topsy-turvy world full of great minds and great egos, driven by ambitions to improve the human condition as well as to improve investment portfolios, a world vividly captured in these pages.
Facing a future of choices and social and ethical implications of which we dare not remain uninformed, we could have no better guide than James Watson, who leads us with the same bravura storytelling that made The Double Helix one of the most successful books on science ever published. Infused with a scientist?s awe at nature?s marvels and a humanist?s profound sympathies, DNA is destined to become the classic telling of the defining scientific saga of our age.
From the Hardcover edition.
What makes DNA different from hordes of competitors purporting to help readers understand genetics is that it is written by none other than James Watson, of Watson and Crick fame. He and his co-author Andrew Berry have produced a clear and easygoing history of genetics, from Mendel through genome sequencing. Watson offers readers a sense of immediacy, a behind-the scenes familiarity with some of the most exciting developments in modern science. He gleefully reports on the research juggernaut that led to current obsessions with genetic engineering and cloning. Aided by profuse illustrations and photos, Watson offers an enthusiastic account of how scientists figured out how DNA codes for the creation of proteins--the so-called "central dogma" of genetics. But as patents and corporations enter the picture, Watson reveals his concern about the incursions of business into the hallowed halls of science.
After 1975, DNA was no longer solely the concern of academics trying to understand the molecular underpinnings of life. The molecule moved beyond the cloisters of white-coated scientists into a very different world populated largely by men in silk ties and sharp suits.
In later chapters, Watson aims barbs at those who are concerned by genetic tinkering, calling them "alarmists" who don't understand how the experiments work. It is in these arguments that Watson may lose favor with those whose notions of science were born after Silent Spring. Nevertheless, DNA encompasses both sides of the political issues involved in genetics, and Watson is an enthusiastic proponent of debate on the subject. The book accompanies a 5-part PBS series. --Therese Littleton
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