Download or read book Pandora s DNA written by Lizzie Stark and published by Chicago Review Press. This book was released on 2014-10-01 with total page 340 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: 2015 ALA Notable Book Would you cut out your healthy breasts and ovaries if you thought it might save your life? That's not a theoretical question for journalist Lizzie Stark's relatives, who grapple with the horrific legacy of cancer built into the family DNA, a BRCA mutation that has robbed most of her female relatives of breasts, ovaries, peace of mind, or life itself. In Pandora's DNA, Stark uses her family's experience to frame a larger story about the so-called breast cancer genes, exploring the morass of legal quandaries, scientific developments, medical breakthroughs, and ethical concerns that surround the BRCA mutations, from the troubling history of prophylactic surgery and the storied origins of the boob job to the landmark lawsuit against Myriad Genetics, which held patents on the BRCA genes every human carries in their body until the Supreme Court overturned them in 2013. Although a genetic test for cancer risk may sound like the height of scientific development, the treatment remains crude and barbaric. Through her own experience, Stark shows what it's like to live in a brave new world where gazing into a crystal ball of genetics has many unintended consequences.
Download or read book Pandora s DNA written by and published by Chicago Review Press. This book was released on 2014-10-01 with total page 340 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Would you cut out your healthy breasts and ovaries if you thought it might save your life? That's not a theoretical question for journalist Lizzie Stark's relatives, who grapple with the horrific legacy of cancer built into the family DNA, a BRCA mutation that has robbed most of her female relatives of breasts, ovaries, peace of mind, or life itself. In Pandora's DNA, Stark uses her family's experience to frame a larger story about the so-called breast cancer genes, exploring the morass of legal quandaries, scientific developments, medical breakthroughs, and ethical concerns that surround the BRCA mutations, from the troubling history of prophylactic surgery and the storied origins of the boob job to the landmark lawsuit against Myriad Genetics, which held patents on the BRCA genes every human carries in their body until the Supreme Court overturned them in 2013. Although a genetic test for cancer risk may sound like the height of scientific development, the treatment remains crude and barbaric. Through her own experience, Stark shows what it's like to live in a brave new world where gazing into a crystal ball of genetics has many unintended consequences.
Download or read book Pandora s Seed written by Spencer Wells and published by Random House. This book was released on 2010-06-08 with total page 257 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Ten thousand years ago, our species made a radical shift in its way of life: We became farmers rather than hunter-gatherers. Although this decision propelled us into the modern world, renowned geneticist and anthropologist Spencer Wells demonstrates that such a dramatic change in lifestyle had a downside that we’re only now beginning to recognize. Growing grain crops ultimately made humans more sedentary and unhealthy and made the planet more crowded. The expanding population and the need to apportion limited resources created hierarchies and inequalities. Freedom of movement was replaced by a pressure to work that is the forebear of the anxiety millions feel today. Spencer Wells offers a hopeful prescription for altering a life to which we were always ill-suited. Pandora’s Seed is an eye-opening book for anyone fascinated by the past and concerned about the future.
Download or read book Modern Biotechnology written by J. Tramper and published by Springer. This book was released on 2011-04-27 with total page 272 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: According to Greek mythology Pandora was sent down to earth upon the orders of Zeus. She was given a mysterious box which she was not allowed to open. However, Pandora was very curious and when she arrived on earth she couldn't help taking a peek inside the box. She saw that it was filled with gifts and calamities and to her astonishment they all escaped and spread throughout humanity, with all the dire consequences thereof. Only hope was left at the bottom. Figuratively speaking, Pandora's box today represents a source of much suffering. Is modern biotechnology just such a Pandora's box, as the anti-biotechnology lobby would have us believe? Or can we selectively release the gifts and turn this new Pandora's box into a Panacea? Modern biotechnology makes use of the recombinant DNA technology to genetically modify microorganisms, plants and animals in order to make them more suitable for all kinds of applications, such as cultivating food crops, baking bread, making wine, antibiotics and hormones, xenotransplantation, and gene- and stem cell therapy. The book also particularly addresses the controversial aspects of these applications.
Download or read book Pandora s Picnic Basket The Potential and Hazards of Genetically Modified Foods written by Alan McHughen and published by Oxford University Press, UK. This book was released on 2000-06-22 with total page 291 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The first book to look at all the issues involved in GM (genetically modified food) technology in a clear and dispassionate way. Alan McHughen surveys the technology that makes GM food possible, assesses the risk of health and environmental dangers and the regulatory and labelling processes in force to protect the consumer. Question and answer boxes and case histories, and the author's easy writing style make this an essential purchase for all those interested in the debate. - ;Are you concerned about fish genes in tomatoes? Worried that brazil nut genes in soybeans can result in potentially lethal allergic reactions? That rapeseed plants bred to be resistant to herbicides could become uncontrollable superweeds? You are not alone. The issue of genetically modified foods has fast become one of the most debated of recent years, with scientists and companies seeking to develop the technology on one side, and consumer groups and environmentalists on the other. However, in spite of the great heat generated by the debate, there is very little real information on the subject, either about the technologies in use or about the regulatory processes established to approve the processes and the products. This book sets out to explain, in clear and direct language, the technologies underlying so-called genetically modified food, and compares them with other "natural" methods of plant breeding and production. The author then looks at the safeguards in place from regulators around the world and asks whether these are sufficient. The question of labelling, held by some to be an obvious way out for concerned consumers, is examined, and the honesty and usefulness of some of these labels addressed. The book then looks at issues of real concern, particularly environmental issues, and ways in which a consumer can seek to avoid GMOs if they so choose. In each chapter, key topics are addressed through question and answer boxes. Real case histories illustrate the development and regulation of GMOs, and by the end of the book the reader will be able to make an informed choice about whether to support or challenge this technology, the products of which are increasingly pervasive. -
Download or read book Pandora s Potatoes written by Caius Rommens and published by Createspace Independent Publishing Platform. This book was released on 2018-10-07 with total page 84 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: -THIS BOOK HAS SERVED ITS FUNCTION AND IS RETIRED-GMO potatoes are quietly entering the market place with innocuous names such as Innate, White, and Hibernate. They are suggested to have maintained all the original traits of normal potatoes and to have gained three new traits: enhanced disease resistance, enhanced uniformity, and enhanced healthiness. However, the reality is different. As a crop, the potatoes contain genetically unstable traits, two of which appear to have been lost already (or are in the process of being lost), suffer a significant yield drag and reduction in size profile, conceal bruises and potentially spread diseases, may be grown and stored in ways that maximize disease and pest pressures, and were developed through an act of biopiracy. As a processed food, they lost the sensory attributes that make normal potato foods so attractive, and they are also likely to contain new toxins. If it were up to me, the creator of these potatoes, I would call them Pandora's Potatoes. They are the worst GMOs ever commercialized.
Download or read book Pandora s Genes written by Kathryn Lance and published by eReads.com. This book was released on 1999-12-01 with total page 256 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book The Lost Family written by Libby Copeland and published by Abrams. This book was released on 2020-03-03 with total page 196 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: “A fascinating exploration of the mysteries ignited by DNA genealogy testing—from the intensely personal and concrete to the existential and unsolvable.” —Tana French, New York Times–bestselling author You swab your cheek or spit in a vial, then send it away to a lab somewhere. Weeks later you get a report that might tell you where your ancestors came from or if you carry certain genetic risks. Or, the report could reveal a long-buried family secret that upends your entire sense of identity. Soon a lark becomes an obsession, a relentless drive to find answers to questions at the core of your being, like “Who am I?” and “Where did I come from?” Welcome to the age of home genetic testing. In The Lost Family, journalist Libby Copeland investigates what happens when we embark on a vast social experiment with little understanding of the ramifications. She explores the culture of genealogy buffs, the science of DNA, and the business of companies like Ancestry and 23andMe, all while tracing the story of one woman, her unusual results, and a relentless methodical drive for answers that becomes a thoroughly modern genetic detective story. Gripping and masterfully told, The Lost Family is a spectacular book on a big, timely subject. “An urgently necessary, powerful book that addresses one of the most complex social and bioethical issues of our time.” —Dani Shapiro, New York Times–bestselling author “Before you spit in that vial, read this book.” —The New York Times Book Review “Impeccably researched . . . up-to-the-minute science meets the philosophy of identity in a poignant, engaging debut.” —Kirkus Reviews (starred review)
Download or read book Pandora s Lab written by Paul A. Offit and published by National Geographic Books. This book was released on 2017 with total page 290 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Exploring the most fascinating and significant scientific missteps, the author presents seven cautionary lessons to separate good science from bad.
Download or read book Pandora s Sisters written by Michael Stephen Fuchs and published by Pan Macmillan. This book was released on 2008 with total page 324 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Two weeks earlier, Kate Quinlan was just your average British expat with a PhD, working in Silicon Valley as an artificial-intelligence designer for ultraviolent video games, spending the evenings hanging out with her pet chimp—and wondering how something as weird as human consciousness could have evolved through mere Darwinian selection. But when a disconcertingly attractive behavioral geneticist and a hotshot cryptologist stroll into her life, she begins looking for answers in the backwaters of the human genome—the 97 percent written off as "junk DNA." And when men in strange hats come looking for her hard drive, shooting first and never really asking any questions, she finds herself on the run—pursued by multiple squads of heavily-armed religious zealots, the Feds, and worse. All seek to obtain, or to suppress forever, the key to the revelatory stretch of DNA known as the Pandora Sequence. The outcome of their race to control this explosive secret will forever alter how humanity regards itself—that is, if anyone lives long enough to tell the tale.
Download or read book Deep Ancestry written by Spencer Wells and published by National Geographic Books. This book was released on 2007-11-20 with total page 275 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Travel backward through time from today's scattered billions to the handful of early humans who lived in Africa 60,000 years ago and are ancestors to us all. In Deep Ancestry, scientist and National Geographic explorer Spencer Wells shows how tiny genetic changes add up over time into a fascinating story. Using scores of real-life examples, helpful analogies, and detailed diagrams and illustrations, he explains exactly how each and every individual's DNA contributes another piece to the jigsaw puzzle of human history. The book takes readers inside the Genographic Project—the landmark study now assembling the world's largest collection of DNA samples and employing the latest in testing technology and computer analysis to examine hundreds of thousand of genetic profiles from all over the globe—and invites us all to take part.
Download or read book The Gene Machine written by Bonnie Rochman and published by Scientific American / Farrar, Straus and Giroux. This book was released on 2017-02-28 with total page 289 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A sharp-eyed exploration of the promise and peril of having children in an age of genetic tests and interventions Is screening for disease in an embryo a humane form of family planning or a slippery slope toward eugenics? Should doctors tell you that your infant daughter is genetically predisposed to breast cancer? If tests revealed that your toddler has a genetic mutation whose significance isn’t clear, would you want to know? In The Gene Machine, the award-winning journalist Bonnie Rochman deftly explores these hot-button questions, guiding us through the new frontier of gene technology and how it is transforming medicine, bioethics, health care, and the factors that shape a family. Rochman tells the stories of scientists working to unlock the secrets of the human genome; genetic counselors and spiritual advisers guiding mothers and fathers through life-changing choices; and, of course, parents (including Rochman herself) grappling with revelations that are sometimes joyous, sometimes heartbreaking, but always profound. She navigates the dizzying and constantly expanding array of prenatal and postnatal tests, from carrier screening to genome sequencing, while considering how access to more tests is altering perceptions of disability and changing the conversation about what sort of life is worth living and who draws the line. Along the way, she highlights the most urgent ethical quandary: Is this technology a triumph of modern medicine or a Pandora’s box of possibilities? Propelled by human narratives and meticulously reported, The Gene Machine is both a scientific road map and a meditation on our power to shape the future. It is a book that gets to the very core of what it means to be human.
Download or read book Mapping Humanity written by Joshua Z. Rappoport and published by BenBella Books. This book was released on 2020-07-07 with total page 249 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "A good companion for those with a science background interested in learning more about human genetics." —Booklist Thanks to the popularity of personal genetic testing services, it's now easier than ever to get information about our own unique DNA—but who does this information really benefit? And, as genome editing and gene therapy transform the healthcare landscape, what do we gain—and what might we give up in return? Inside each of your cells is the nucleus, a small structure that contains all of the genetic information encoded by the DNA inside, your genome. Not long ago, the first human genome was sequenced at a cost of nearly $3 billion; now, this same test can be done for about $1,000. This new accessibility of genome sequence information creates huge potential for advances in how we understand and treat disease, among other things. It also raises significant concerns regarding ethics and personal privacy. In Mapping Humanity: How Modern Genetics Is Changing Criminal Justice, Personalized Medicine, and Our Identities, cellular biology expert Joshua Z. Rappoport provides a detailed look at how the explosion in genetic information as a result of cutting-edge technologies is changing our lives and our world. Inside, discover: • An in-depth look at how your personal genome creates the unique individual that you are • How doctors are using DNA sequencing to identify the underlying genetic causes of disease • Why the field of gene therapy offers amazing potential for medical breakthroughs—and why it's taking so long • The fantastic potential—and troubling concerns—surrounding genome editing • The real impact—and validity—of popular personal genetic testing products, such as 23andMe • Details of how molecular biology and DNA are changing the criminal justice system • Facts you should know about Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs) Throughout, in compelling, accessible prose, Rappoport explores the societal, ethical, and economic impacts of this new era. Offering a framework for balancing the potential risks and benefits of genetic information technologies and genetic engineering, Mapping Humanity is an indispensable guide to navigating the possibilities and perils of our gene-centric future.
Download or read book Mobilizing Mutations written by Daniel Navon and published by University of Chicago Press. This book was released on 2019-09-20 with total page 409 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: With every passing year, more and more people learn that they or their young or unborn child carries a genetic mutation. But what does this mean for the way we understand a person? Today, genetic mutations are being used to diagnose novel conditions like the XYY, Fragile X, NGLY1 mutation, and 22q11.2 Deletion syndromes, carving out rich new categories of human disease and difference. Daniel Navon calls this form of categorization “genomic designation,” and in Mobilizing Mutations he shows how mutations, and the social factors that surround them, are reshaping human classification. Drawing on a wealth of fieldwork and historical material, Navon presents a sociological account of the ways genetic mutations have been mobilized and transformed in the sixty years since it became possible to see abnormal human genomes, providing a new vista onto the myriad ways contemporary genetic testing can transform people’s lives. Taking us inside these shifting worlds of research and advocacy over the last half century, Navon reveals the ways in which knowledge about genetic mutations can redefine what it means to be ill, different, and ultimately, human.
Download or read book Leaving Mundania written by Lizzie Stark and published by Chicago Review Press. This book was released on 2012-05-01 with total page 274 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Exposing a subculture only beginning to enter the imagination of mainstream America, this is the story of live action role-playing (LARP) games. A hybrid of games—such as Dungeons & Dragons, historical reenactment, fandom, and good old-fashioned pretend—LARP games are thriving and this book explores its multifaceted culture and related phenomenon, including the Society for Creative Anachronism, a medieval reenactment group that boasts more than 32,000 members. The history of LARP is detailed and is shown to have arisen from the pageantry of Tudor England and is currently being used as a training tool for the U.S. military. Along the way, the author duels foes with foam-padded weapons, lets the great elder god Cthulhu destroy her parents' beach house, and endures an existential awakening in the high-art LARP scene of Scandinavia.
Download or read book NPE A story guide for unexpected DNA discoveries written by Leeanne R. Hay and published by BookLocker.com, Inc.. This book was released on 2021-10-15 with total page 188 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Genealogy is a fun hobby until the results of a consumer DNA test reveal a devastating secret. NPE* A STORY GUIDE FOR UNEXPECTED DNA DISCOVERIES is an authentic resource for people uncovering a new identity, their loved ones, and genealogists who encounter NPEs in a family tree. There is no more fundamental human need than to belong – first to a family, and then to others. My story and research over three years provide information and support to guide readers. Relatable insights and true stories are presented that address the initial shock of discovery, suggestions about communications, new ethnicities, family recognitions and rejections, and the history of illegitimacy. NPEs are found in all races, religions, and socio-economic groups in every country where consumer DNA tests are sold. By 2022, 142 million people worldwide will take DNA tests for genealogy and medical information. Ten to fifteen percent will discover they are NPE, like me. (*Non-paternity event is a genetic genealogy term for a break in the family line/name, when your ‘Dad’ is not your biological father.)
Download or read book Pandora s Baby written by Robin Marantz Henig and published by . This book was released on 2006 with total page 340 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This is the highly acclaimed book by Robin Marantz Henig about the early days of in vitrofertilization (IVF) and the ethical and legal battles waged in the 1970s, as well as the scientific advances that eventually changed the public perception of 'test tube babies'. Published in paperback for the first time, this timely and provocative book brilliantly presents the scientific and ethical dilemmas in the ongoing debate over what it means to be human in a technological age. About the author:Robin Marantz Henig is the author of eight books. Her previous book The Monk in the Garden: The Lost and Found Genius of Gregor Mendel,was a finalist for the National Book Critics Circle Award. She writes about science and medicine for the New York Times Magazine,where she is a contributing writer, as well as for publications such as Scientific American,Smithsonian,and The Washington Post. Robin Henig garnered two prestigious awards in 2006: the Science in Society Award, the highest honor in science journalism, awarded by the National Association of Science Writers, and The Watson Davis and Helen Miles Davis Prize awarded by The History of Science Society for the best book in the history of science for general readers.
