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Reviews tagging 'Cursing'
The Code Breaker: Jennifer Doudna, Gene Editing, and the Future of the Human Race by Walter Isaacson
1 review
felofhe's review against another edition
challenging
informative
reflective
tense
medium-paced
3.5
Isaacson's sprawling half-biography, half-journey through the complex and growing field of biotechnology is an admirable effort. At times, though, it veers into misguided territory. Isaacson's sections where he asks questions of the reader, well-intentioned though they may be, feel like poking the bear of public opinion and don't adequately contextualize the history of eugenicist rhetoric that often grabs these questions. I worry that uniformed readers may quickly fall into terrible rabbit holes if they decide to look for more possible answers to these questions.
That aside, I do think the biographical sections of the book are the strongest. We learn about Doudna and the environments that built her through the people that are still there and those that surround her now. She's painted as a power player but one who is never out to use that power to subjugate, merely to advocate for herself. Isaacson frames her as a modern Rosalind Franklin, and giving Doudna the spotlight Franklin never got in her own lifetime.
Unfortunately, too much is also devoted to the darker figures in the history of genetics, namely James Watson. Isaacson's attempts to humanize Watson feel like a priest trying to convince a rapist to repent. Nothing Isaacson does truly makes Watson feel any different than his reputation has established. If nothing else, Watson has always been the master of his own legacy and that remains so. Additionally, Isaacson highlights perspectives that too often feel exclusively white, male, cis, and able-bodied. He attempts to address this at various times, but I can't help but feel as though he could have done more to highlight more diverse perspectives on morality. Certainly many of the scientists highlighted come from diverse backgrounds, but it's oddly always the white ones that end up at the morality table.
Ultimately, it's a good-natured but flawed effort. Worth a very careful read, but do not ket this be your only insight into the field of biotechnology. It should only be an introduction.
That aside, I do think the biographical sections of the book are the strongest. We learn about Doudna and the environments that built her through the people that are still there and those that surround her now. She's painted as a power player but one who is never out to use that power to subjugate, merely to advocate for herself. Isaacson frames her as a modern Rosalind Franklin, and giving Doudna the spotlight Franklin never got in her own lifetime.
Unfortunately, too much is also devoted to the darker figures in the history of genetics, namely James Watson. Isaacson's attempts to humanize Watson feel like a priest trying to convince a rapist to repent. Nothing Isaacson does truly makes Watson feel any different than his reputation has established. If nothing else, Watson has always been the master of his own legacy and that remains so. Additionally, Isaacson highlights perspectives that too often feel exclusively white, male, cis, and able-bodied. He attempts to address this at various times, but I can't help but feel as though he could have done more to highlight more diverse perspectives on morality. Certainly many of the scientists highlighted come from diverse backgrounds, but it's oddly always the white ones that end up at the morality table.
Ultimately, it's a good-natured but flawed effort. Worth a very careful read, but do not ket this be your only insight into the field of biotechnology. It should only be an introduction.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Ableism, Animal cruelty, Cancer, Chronic illness, Death of parent, Dementia, Gaslighting, Grief, Infertility, Medical content, Medical trauma, Misogyny, Racism, Sexism, Terminal illness, and Xenophobia
Minor: Abortion, Cursing, and Drug use
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