GENOME The Autobiography of a Species in 23 Chapters

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  Genome: The Autobiography of a Species in 23 Chapters Matt Ridley (Fourth Estate, £8.99) Buy it at BOL It looks deliberately, depressingly gimmicky: the author's magnificent chromosomes are punched into the cover of the book, his face peeping through ... (read full critics)

  guardian.co.uk published on Sat, 25 Sep 2010

• Not an Inkling

  As I write, machines around the world are chewing up human chromosomes and spitting out the raw DNA sequence at an astounding rate of 5 billion bases a year. The four nucleotides that make up the sequence of DNA – adenine, guanine, cytosine and thymi ... (read full critics)

  lrb published on Sat, 4 Sep 2010

2 Reviews

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  Genome: The Autobiography of a Species in 23 Chapters

  What a fascinating read! I barely put down this book! Actually, I've read this book twice. Liked it that much! Although I am not a bench scientist per se, I'm a researcher at heart and by training. This book speaks perfectly to the <<Renaissance Researcher>> type in all of us.

  I f ... (continue)

  What a fascinating read! I barely put down this book! Actually, I've read this book twice. Liked it that much! Although I am not a bench scientist per se, I'm a researcher at heart and by training. This book speaks perfectly to the <<Renaissance Researcher>> type in all of us.

  I find that the genetics courses I've taken would have been 'easier' had I read Matt Ridley's book "Genome" first. It's like a bedtime story -- chapter by chapter -- for adults who like to think. Who like to imagine. Who are visionaries in their own right and who see beyond the surface level of people and things and so much more. Matt writes efficiently and succinctly while captivating the reader... who walks away with a better grasp of what cannot be seen easily -- that being our genes and genetics. He is careful not to rule out the important role of the environment in genetics, as any number of us realize that genes need an environment in which to express themselves.

  I was especially intrigued by his discussion of male homosexuality. His work lends support to the idea that genetics play a significant part in determining one's sexuality. As a friend and acquaintance to any number of gay men, I deeply sympathize with this discussion. I've witnessed the struggles that some gay men experience, particularly those who are closeted. It's painful to watch, and all anyone can do is lend support while understanding that genes are expressing themselves within a given environment.

  With genomics and nanotechnology moving forward at the speed of light, Matt's book may be slightly outdated by some individuals' standards; however, the information is classic and, therefore, never goes out of style. Instead, we build on it. And we refer back to it. I would read this again in a nanosecond!

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  Kimberly Petrovic said on Oct 22, 2008 about the Paperback edition | Add your feedback

• I used this book in my investigation for a project for the Franklin Institute.

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  Batona said on Jun 5, 2007 about the Paperback edition | Add your feedback

Book Details

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• English Books
• Others 344 Pages
• ISBN-10: 0007635737
• ISBN-13: 9780007635733
• Publisher: TED SMART
• Pub date: Jan 01, 2000
• Also available as: Paperback, Hardcover, Audio Cassette and School & Library Binding

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