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![[By Siddhartha Mukherjee ] The Gene: An Intimate History by Siddhartha Mukherjee](https://cdn.thestorygraph.com/dxvp1l4jaxsgcgouwi5vwu64fh78)
4.33 AVERAGE
4.33 AVERAGE
Another impressive non-fiction book by Siddhartha Mukherjee.
This book is fantastic. The author takes us on a trip through history, beginning with Aristotle, through events in the 1800's, 1900's and the present, to understand how humans began to understand, and later begin to control, our nature and our destiny. The author's writing style is intelligent and literate without being pretentious; a background in medicine or biology is not necessary to follow.
The story is exciting, written as a type of information quest which includes mysteries, intrigue and strong personalities. Steps and missteps are described in great detail, drawing on the author's background and knowledge.
I was surprised to learn things I never knew, such as the fact that the United States, along with many other countries prior to WWII, jumped on the early eugenics bandwagon, setting up camps and relocating people who were considered "idiots", "imbeciles" or "morons". Thankfully these early forays were abandoned after the atrocities committed during WWII in the name of "racial purity" were seen for what they were.
It appears that the technology is basically in place, with few refinements outstanding, to permit gene-by-gene replacement in humans, not only impacting the current generation of humans, but even their descendants. The ethical, moral and legal impediments to this type of activity are rapidly eroding, and humans are at the edge of a precipice from which there may be no turning back.
Highly, highly recommended!
The story is exciting, written as a type of information quest which includes mysteries, intrigue and strong personalities. Steps and missteps are described in great detail, drawing on the author's background and knowledge.
I was surprised to learn things I never knew, such as the fact that the United States, along with many other countries prior to WWII, jumped on the early eugenics bandwagon, setting up camps and relocating people who were considered "idiots", "imbeciles" or "morons". Thankfully these early forays were abandoned after the atrocities committed during WWII in the name of "racial purity" were seen for what they were.
It appears that the technology is basically in place, with few refinements outstanding, to permit gene-by-gene replacement in humans, not only impacting the current generation of humans, but even their descendants. The ethical, moral and legal impediments to this type of activity are rapidly eroding, and humans are at the edge of a precipice from which there may be no turning back.
Highly, highly recommended!
Genes, genomes, genetics, eugenics and more
The author of this book, Siddhartha Mukherjee, is also of the author of “The Emperor of All Maladies” (for which he which won a Pulitzer Prize). It was the excellence of that book that prompted me to get this book.
The first half of the book is indeed a history of mankind’s increasing knowledge and understanding of genes. We initially are told about some of the earliest conjectures regarding life and heredity. They could only be conjectures because there was no ability to see what biological mechanism enabled the passing of physical characteristics on to future generations. But Darwin’s observations and Mendel’s experiments eventually become the impetus for others to theorize and experiment. Still, our ability to better understand was highly dependent upon having the more sophisticated lab equipment capable of showing that which is almost infinitesimally small. But slowly and surely, man’s knowledge and understanding of life and heredity increased. And that history was a very effective way to slowly introduce these gene concepts to the reader as well. (“The Emperor of All Maladies” used this same historical perspective to help the reader learn about cancer.)
Some of the topics especially interesting to me was [1] the effort to determine the structure of DNA (now commonly known as a double-helix), [2] the race to complete the Human Genome Project, [3] the highly questionable arguments presented in the book “The Bell Curve” and [4] some of the early attempts by some groups (including Germany’s WW II Holocaust) to implement eugenics practices without regard of morality.
Another aspect I thought was both impressive and awe-inspiring was that a lot of the early experimental work with genes entailed performing hundreds or even thousands of experiments. Whether working with pea plants, fruit flies, bacteria or other forms of life, the sheer tedium and repetitiousness of working in such a detailed manner for months or years was daunting. That a group of scientists could maintain such focus and patience, all to advance our knowledge of gene a single step at a time, is laudatory.
As one would expect, the author treated the topic of genes as a technical subject with an interesting history behind the discovery of its structure and function. But I noticed a few times where the author had some fun with his writing. Regarding Mendel, he wrote that Mendel was “giving peas a chance”. Regarding a premature (and deadly) attempt at gene therapy, he wrote “the prophets were in it for the profits”. I didn’t notice a lot of these literary tricks, but it was still fun to find such Easter Eggs.
Bottom line: “The Gene: An Intimate History” is a good book, but know that “The Emperor of All Maladies” was an easier read because “Maladies” was such a broad topic that that book could only delve to a certain depth whereas “Gene” is basically about DNA, an incredibly long and complex molecule that required the book to dive to a greater depth.
The author of this book, Siddhartha Mukherjee, is also of the author of “The Emperor of All Maladies” (for which he which won a Pulitzer Prize). It was the excellence of that book that prompted me to get this book.
The first half of the book is indeed a history of mankind’s increasing knowledge and understanding of genes. We initially are told about some of the earliest conjectures regarding life and heredity. They could only be conjectures because there was no ability to see what biological mechanism enabled the passing of physical characteristics on to future generations. But Darwin’s observations and Mendel’s experiments eventually become the impetus for others to theorize and experiment. Still, our ability to better understand was highly dependent upon having the more sophisticated lab equipment capable of showing that which is almost infinitesimally small. But slowly and surely, man’s knowledge and understanding of life and heredity increased. And that history was a very effective way to slowly introduce these gene concepts to the reader as well. (“The Emperor of All Maladies” used this same historical perspective to help the reader learn about cancer.)
Some of the topics especially interesting to me was [1] the effort to determine the structure of DNA (now commonly known as a double-helix), [2] the race to complete the Human Genome Project, [3] the highly questionable arguments presented in the book “The Bell Curve” and [4] some of the early attempts by some groups (including Germany’s WW II Holocaust) to implement eugenics practices without regard of morality.
Another aspect I thought was both impressive and awe-inspiring was that a lot of the early experimental work with genes entailed performing hundreds or even thousands of experiments. Whether working with pea plants, fruit flies, bacteria or other forms of life, the sheer tedium and repetitiousness of working in such a detailed manner for months or years was daunting. That a group of scientists could maintain such focus and patience, all to advance our knowledge of gene a single step at a time, is laudatory.
As one would expect, the author treated the topic of genes as a technical subject with an interesting history behind the discovery of its structure and function. But I noticed a few times where the author had some fun with his writing. Regarding Mendel, he wrote that Mendel was “giving peas a chance”. Regarding a premature (and deadly) attempt at gene therapy, he wrote “the prophets were in it for the profits”. I didn’t notice a lot of these literary tricks, but it was still fun to find such Easter Eggs.
Bottom line: “The Gene: An Intimate History” is a good book, but know that “The Emperor of All Maladies” was an easier read because “Maladies” was such a broad topic that that book could only delve to a certain depth whereas “Gene” is basically about DNA, an incredibly long and complex molecule that required the book to dive to a greater depth.
The Gene made me fall in love with biology again. If I wouldn’t be working in the field, I think I would’ve reconsidered careers. Beware, it really has that power!
informative
reflective
slow-paced
The type of book I find super interesting but only read once every 2 months
8/10
The Gene is a sprawling history of genetics beginning with the life and ideas of early theorists such as Darwin and Mendel; the ugly turn in the early 20th century to eugenics and the abuses in totalitarian societies; the modern development of the field identifying genetic diseases and mapping the human genome; cutting edge research of gene editing and therapy; and finally a look into the future of the field with its potential to improve lives and raise ethical questions for society. Mukherjee does all this while blending medical and philosophical perspective with poignant personal anecdotes. The book does a wonderful job of balancing accessibility to someone without a background in the field with a desire to give the material proper scientific justice. There are a few places Mukherjee’s writing could some improvement (occasionally painful one-liners or ostentatious literary flourishes), but overall is very well written and I’d strongly recommend it to anyone interested in the subject.
The Gene is a sprawling history of genetics beginning with the life and ideas of early theorists such as Darwin and Mendel; the ugly turn in the early 20th century to eugenics and the abuses in totalitarian societies; the modern development of the field identifying genetic diseases and mapping the human genome; cutting edge research of gene editing and therapy; and finally a look into the future of the field with its potential to improve lives and raise ethical questions for society. Mukherjee does all this while blending medical and philosophical perspective with poignant personal anecdotes. The book does a wonderful job of balancing accessibility to someone without a background in the field with a desire to give the material proper scientific justice. There are a few places Mukherjee’s writing could some improvement (occasionally painful one-liners or ostentatious literary flourishes), but overall is very well written and I’d strongly recommend it to anyone interested in the subject.
I think I must have had higher expectations after his book about Cancer. I enjoyed the first 15-20% of this book when he was writing about the history of scientific discoveries, but then he switches to a long chapter on the politics of 20s-40s and that's what I find to be annoying in many non-fiction books these days. I didn't mind the parts where he tells about his own family history of mental illnesses, but sometimes they felt out of place. I was also a bit irritated by his constant jumps from one topic to another, since I was listening to the audiobook version - I sometimes kept loosing track of the chronological events.
It would be a disservice to give this book anything less than 5 stars. This book truly took me on a journey I never expected. It wasn't a science text, no pages of tables and data; it was a story told by an exceptionally accomplished teller.
Siddhartha Mukherjee is a fabulous writer who makes complicated science read like a novel. Can't wait to see what he tackles next.