Download or read book Genes and the Bioimaginary written by Deborah Lynn Steinberg and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2016-03-03 with total page 200 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Genes and the Bioimaginary examines the dramatic rise and contemporary cultural apotheosis of 'the gene'. The book traces not only the genetification of modern life but is also a journey through the complex relationship between science and culture. At the heart of this book are three interlinked questions. The first concerns the paradigmatic transformations of the 'genetics revolution': how can we understand the impact of genes on social arenas as diverse as law and agriculture, politics and medicine, genealogy and jurisprudence? Second, how has the language of genes come to pervade public discourse - as much a trope of personal narrative as of the popular imaginary? And third, how can we gain critical purchase not only on the conditions and consequences of a particular science, but on its projective seductions, the terms of its persuasion, and the dilemmas and anxieties provoked in its wake? Through a series of illuminating case studies ranging from 'gay genes' to 'Jew genes', to genes for crime; from CSI to the Innocence Project, from genetics (post)racial imaginary to its phantasies of redemption, the book examines the emergence of the gene as a pre-eminent locus of both scientific and social explanation, and as a powerful object of spectacle, projective phantasy and attachment. Genes and the Bioimaginary makes a distinctive contribution to our understanding of how knowledge comes to be not only powerful, but plausible.
Download or read book Dealing with Genes written by Paul Berg and published by University Science Books. This book was released on 1992 with total page 380 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Those of us who read a daily newspaper or scan a weekly magazine have grown accustomed to being told that the science of genetics influences countless aspects of our existence, from human development, health, and disease to the ecological balance of our planet. We accept this, and yet most of us have only the faintest idea of what a gene really is or how it functions. This book, then, is a primer on modern genetics, and its aim is to teach any interested general reader all he or she needs to know about how genes work - and about how a detailed knowledge of their workings can be applied to some of the most pressing problems of our time. Written by two world-renowned researchers in molecular biology and illustrated with uncommon clarity and precision, Dealing with Genes will satisfy the interest of general readers, including those who have little formal background in biology. It will also serve admirably as an authoritative text for students taking nonmajors courses in biology, genetics, molecular biology, biotechnology, and related disciplines.
Download or read book The Misunderstood Gene written by Michel Morange and published by Harvard University Press. This book was released on 2001 with total page 256 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: At a time when the complete human genome has been sequenced and when seemingly every week feature news stories describe genes that may be responsible for personality, intelligence, even happiness, Michel Morange gives us a book that demystifies the power of modern genetics. The Misunderstood Gene takes us on an easily comprehensible tour of the most recent findings in molecular biology to show us how--and if--genes contribute to biological processes and complex human behaviors. As Morange explains, if molecular biologists had to designate one category of molecules as essential to life, it would be proteins and their multiple functions, not DNA and genes. Genes are the centerpiece of modern biology because they can be modified. But they are only the memory that life invented so that proteins could be efficiently reproduced. Morange shows us that there is far more richness and meaning in the structure and interactions of proteins than in all the theoretical speculations on the role of genes. The Misunderstood Gene makes it clear that we do not have to choose between rigid genetic determinism and fearful rejection of any specific role for genes in development or behavior. Both are true, but at different levels of organization. Morange agrees with those who say "we are not in our genes." But he also wants us to understand that we are not without our genes, either. We are going to have to make do with them, and this book will show us how.
Download or read book What Genes Can t Do written by Lenny Moss and published by MIT Press. This book was released on 2003 with total page 258 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A historical and critical analysis of the concept of the gene that attempts to provide new perspectives and metaphors for the transformation of biology and its philosophy.
Download or read book Genes Cells and Brains written by Hilary Rose and published by Verso Books. This book was released on 2014-04-08 with total page 353 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Our fates lie in our genes and not in the stars, said James Watson, co-discoverer of the structure of DNA. But Watson could not have predicted the scale of the industry now dedicated to this new frontier. Since the launch of the multibillion-dollar Human Genome Project, the biosciences have promised miraculous cures and radical new ways of understanding who we are. But where is the new world we were promised? Now updated with a new afterword, Genes, Cells and Brains asks why the promised cornucopia of health benefits has failed to emerge and reveals the questionable enterprise that has grown out of bioethics. The authors, feminist sociologist Hilary Rose and neuroscientist Steven Rose, examine the establishment of biobanks, the rivalries between public and private gene sequencers, and the rise of stem cell research. The human body is becoming a commodity, and the unfulfilled promises of the science behind this revolution suggest profound failings in genomics itself.
Download or read book The Epigenetics Revolution written by Nessa Carey and published by Columbia University Press. This book was released on 2012-02-14 with total page 354 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Introduces the new field that may revolutionize the understanding of human health and disease.
Download or read book Lifelines written by Steven Rose and published by Oxford University Press. This book was released on 2003-10-09 with total page 356 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A distinct voice in the nature/nurture debate, Rose's series of essays are a response to the biological reductionism of Richard Dawkins's book, The Selfish Gene (OUP, 1990), which insists that all aspects of human life are in our genes, and everything arises as a consequence of natural selection. Rose argues that life depends on the elaborate web of interactions that occur within cells, organisms, and ecosystems, and in which DNA has but one part to play.
Download or read book The Society of Genes written by Itai Yanai and published by Harvard University Press. This book was released on 2016-01-11 with total page 295 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Since Dawkins popularized the notion of the selfish gene, the question of how these selfish genes work together to construct an organism remained a mystery. Now, standing atop a wealth of new research, Itai Yanai and Martin Lercher—pioneers in the field of systems biology—provide a vision of how genes cooperate and compete in the struggle for life.
Download or read book The Thread of Life written by Susan Aldridge and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 1996 with total page 276 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Susan Aldridge gives an accessible guide to the world of DNA and also explores the applications of genetic engineering in biotechnology. She takes the reader, step by step, through the fascinating study of molecular biology. Aldridge also looks at the wider world of biotechnology and how genetic engineering can be applied to such problems as producing vegetarian cheese or cleaning up the environment. Although easy to read, this book does not avoid the science and provides a stimulating introduction to this enigmatic part of nature.
Download or read book A Closer Look at Genes and Genetic Engineering written by Michael Anderson and published by The Rosen Publishing Group, Inc. This book was released on 2011-08-15 with total page 89 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Introduces genes, describes the structure of chromosomes and disorders that occur from mutations or alterations, and discusses the practice and application of genetic engineering.
Download or read book It Ain t Necessarily So written by Richard Lewontin and published by New York Review of Books. This book was released on 2001-09-30 with total page 404 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Is our nature—as individuals, as a species—determined by our evolution and encoded in our genes? If we unravel the protein sequences of our DNA, will we gain the power to cure all of our physiological and psychological afflictions and even to solve the problems of our society? Today biologists—especially geneticists—are proposing answers to questions that have long been asked by philosophy or faith or the social sciences. Their work carries the weight of scientific authority and attracts widespread public attention, but it is often based on what the renowned evolutionary biologist Richard Lewontin identifies as a highly reductive misconception: "the pervasive error that confuses the genetic state of an organism with its total physical and psychic nature as a human being." In these nine essays covering the history of modern biology from Darwin to Dolly the sheep, all of which were originally published in The New York Review of Books, Lewontin combines sharp criticisms of overreaching scientific claims with lucid expositions of the exact state of current scientific knowledge—not only what we do know, but what we don't and maybe won't anytime soon. Among the subjects he discusses are heredity and natural selection, evolutionary psychology and altruism, nineteenth-century naturalist novels, sex surveys, cloning, and the Human Genome Project. In each case he casts an ever-vigilant and deflationary eye on the temptation to look to biology for explanations of everything we want to know about our physical, mental, and social lives. These essays—several of them updated with epilogues that take account of scientific developments since they were first written—are an indispensable guide to the most controversial issues in the life sciences today. The second edition of this collection includes new essays on genetically modified food and the completion of the Human Genome Project. It is an indispensable guide to the most controversial issues in the life sciences today.
Download or read book Beyond Biotechnology written by Craig Holdrege and published by University Press of Kentucky. This book was released on 2010-03-01 with total page 272 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In 2001 the Human Genome Project announced that it had successfully mapped the entire genetic content of human DNA. Scientists, politicians, theologians, and pundits speculated about what would follow, conjuring everything from nightmare scenarios of state-controlled eugenics to the hope of engineering disease-resistant newborns. As with debates surrounding stem-cell research, the seemingly endless possibilities of genetic engineering will continue to influence public opinion and policy into the foreseeable future. Beyond Biotechnology: The Barren Promise of Genetic Engineering distinguishes between the hype and reality of this technology and explains the nuanced and delicate relationship between science and nature. Authors Craig Holdrege and Steve Talbott evaluate the current state of genetic science and examine its potential applications, particularly in agriculture and medicine, as well as the possible dangers. The authors show how the popular view of genetics does not include an understanding of the ways in which genes actually work together in organisms. Simplistic and reductionist views of genes lead to unrealistic expectations and, ultimately, disappointment in the results that genetic engineering actually delivers. The authors explore new developments in genetics, from the discovery of "non-Darwinian" adaptative mutations in bacteria to evidence that suggests that organisms are far more than mere collections of genetically driven mechanisms. While examining these issues, the authors also answer vital questions that get to the essence of genetic interaction with human biology: Does DNA "manage" an organism any more than the organism manages its DNA? Should genetically engineered products be labeled as such? Do the methods of the genetic engineer resemble the centuries-old practices of animal husbandry? Written for lay readers, Beyond Biotechnology is an accessible introduction to the complicated issues of genetic engineering and its potential applications. In the unexplored space between nature and laboratory, a new science is waiting to emerge. Technology-based social and environmental solutions will remain tenuous and at risk of reversal as long as our culture is alienated from the plants and animals on which all life depends.
Download or read book Human Genetics written by Russ Hodge and published by Infobase Publishing. This book was released on 2010 with total page 249 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Genetics and Evolution is a six-volume set that explores the principal fields of modern molecular biology from their origins to the most recent discoveries and technological breakthroughs. A century and a half after evolutionary and genetic science began, biology and medicine are coming together to form a powerful new view of the living world that is having a dramatic effect on human health and society. As well as introducing the basic terms and concepts, the set examines the most significant social and ethical issues surrounding current biomedical research and serves as a valuable guide to the world that science is creating. Human Genetics: Race, Population, and Disease offers a fascinating introduction to the field of human genetics-from its historical roots to recent discoveries in and out of the laboratory-focusing on its applications to medicine, forensic science, and genetic counseling. The book looks at human beings as individuals who arise through an interaction of genes and the environment and explores the rich variety within the human species, including the differences between individuals and groups, the genetic meaning of race, and how genes influence behavior and society. The volume includes information on the application of genetics to solve crime diagnosis and genetic counseling evolutionary psychology the genetics of cancer the "history" of the human genome human diversity modern genetics and human beings stem cell research The book contains more than 30 color photographs and four-color line illustrations, sidebars, a chronology, a glossary, a detailed list of print and Internet resources, and an index. Genetics and Evolution is essential for high school students, teachers, and general readers who wish to learn about the "revolution" of evolutionary research and discovery. Genetics And Evolution Set Developmental Biology Evolution The Future of Genetics Genetic Engineering Human Genetics The Molecules of Life Book jacket.
Download or read book The Year of the Genome written by Gerald Weissmann and published by Macmillan. This book was released on 2003-05 with total page 308 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: From stem cells to alternative medicine to the mapping of the genome, a lively and stimulating stroll through today’s great scientific breakthroughs Over the course of one year (2000–01), celebrated essayist and research physician Gerald Weissmann documented the modern age of enlightenment, charting its scientific marvels and new plagues. His diary of “the year of the genome” takes us on a literary exploration of laboratories and beyond to see the impact on human life and culture of Dolly the sheep, mad cow disease, RU 486, the Human Genome Project, AIDS drugs, and a score of other current developments. Whether calling on Ralph Waldo Emerson to explain Craig Venter’s drive to unravel the genome or tracing the effect of Rachel Carson’s legacy on the spread of malaria around the world, Weissmann is an invaluable interpreter of the genetic revolution.
Download or read book DNA written by James D. Watson and published by Knopf. This book was released on 2017-08-22 with total page 513 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The definitive insider's history of the genetic revolution--significantly updated to reflect the discoveries of the last decade. James D. Watson, the Nobel laureate whose pioneering work helped unlock the mystery of DNA's structure, charts the greatest scientific journey of our time, from the discovery of the double helix to today's controversies to what the future may hold. Updated to include new findings in gene editing, epigenetics, agricultural chemistry, as well as two entirely new chapters on personal genomics and cancer research. This is the most comprehensive and authoritative exploration of DNA's impact--practical, social, and ethical--on our society and our world.
Download or read book The Century of the Gene written by Evelyn Fox Keller and published by . This book was released on 2000-10-27 with total page 200 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This study provides a profound analysis of the achievements of genetics and molecular biology in the 20th century. It calls attention to the surprising ways these advances challenge the familiar picture of the gene, and the need for a new vocabulary.
Download or read book Genes in Conflict written by Austin Burt and published by Harvard University Press. This book was released on 2008-03-15 with total page 613 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In evolution, most genes survive and spread within populations because they increase the ability of their hosts (or their close relatives) to survive and reproduce. But some genes spread in spite of being harmful to the host organism—by distorting their own transmission to the next generation, or by changing how the host behaves toward relatives. As a consequence, different genes in a single organism can have diametrically opposed interests and adaptations.Covering all species from yeast to humans, Genes in Conflict is the first book to tell the story of selfish genetic elements, those continually appearing stretches of DNA that act narrowly to advance their own replication at the expense of the larger organism. As Austin Burt and Robert Trivers show, these selfish genes are a universal feature of life with pervasive effects, including numerous counter-adaptations. Their spread has created a whole world of socio-genetic interactions within individuals, usually completely hidden from sight.Genes in Conflict introduces the subject of selfish genetic elements in all its aspects, from molecular and genetic to behavioral and evolutionary. Burt and Trivers give us access for the first time to a crucial area of research—now developing at an explosive rate—that is cohering as a unitary whole, with its own logic and interconnected questions, a subject certain to be of enduring importance to our understanding of genetics and evolution.
