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Genome: The Autobiography Of Species In 23 Chapters: The Autobiography of a Species in 23 Chapters

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I really enjoyed this book, and appreciated it, because it explained basic genetics better than anything else I've ever read. In another section Ridley briefly discusses the relationship between behavioural genetics and the problem of free will - does chaos theory have a relevance here, explaining the smaller scale unpredictabilities in our decisions ? He also stakes out his own point of view on some controversial issues which encourages you to think through how you feel.

Serotonin is a similar brain chemical that when very low can lead to impulsiveness and when very high lead to OCD.Robert Plomin's announcement in 1997 of the discovery of "a gene for intelligence" on chromosome 6 is the foundation for this chapter's lengthier discussion of the genetic basis for intelligence. Rather than the detached scientist studying life through a microscope, Ridley actively engages with life, challenging and observing and questioning. So, from the formal science of genetics being explained to me in popular science fashion in "Genome: the Autobiography of a Species in 23 Chapters” I have expanded my knowledge of my own origins. So, in the interest of honesty, I must disclose that my inflated expectations were probably the biggest contributor to my lackluster reaction.

A jargon-free excursion of intellectual discovery that will carry any reader along its tour of exciting, often delightful, stories structured to help us understand in everyday terms, and to remember, the revelations about genetic evolution that have come to light in the last few decades. I found most gripping the sections towards the end, as we become gradually more aware of the fantastic possibilities of genetic engineering. Taking on another controversy, Ridley cites studies indicating sexual orientation is 50% due to genes. There were many occasions in this book when I stopped to read a paragraph out to my wife who was also fascinated. I envy Ridley's talent for presenting, without condescension, complex sets of facts and ideas in terms comprehensible to outsiders.The information isn’t distributed neatly across our chromosomes: in fact, those of us with a Y chromosome have one that does almost nothing overall, despite the fact that it affects carriers’ phenotypes so markedly.

The principles of what had seemed a highly esoteric field became much clearer and more straightforward. The controversial conclusion is that willed action can alter our evolutionary history and genetic composition, by changing the environment to which we have to adapt. Dawkins represents, to me, the high point of the scientist end; he does not pepper his books with interesting anecdotes and trivia, but concentrates on real theories and real dilemmas in science.

But when Ridley ventures into a discussion of the human genome project and ongoing efforts to sequence the human genome, his analysis is brief, very superficial, and misinformed. One of my favourite things about the book is that it is packed with fun facts that I can still remember now, which in turn made me even more interested in the subject. Ridley moves from topic to topic like a student who has been told that he must include a long list of them in his paper.

This may sound like Lamarck's tale of the blacksmith's strong arms 'handed down' to his sons, but it is not. The output of the human genome project is a heavy duty subject – just understanding what’s involved in the process is not easy; interpreting the results operates at a whole different level. Most of the sources are academic papers or articles, and the popular books and textbooks referenced are mostly outdated. Nevertheless, the book is fascinating, even if modern genetic technologies are not even mentioned--as they were not yet invented at the time of publication! Ridley discusses two chromosome 15 genetic diseases, Prader-Willi syndrome and Angelman's syndrome: Prader-Willi inherited from the father, Angelman's from the mother, through sexual antagonism and the placenta's control by paternal genes.There isn't enough of interest in the rest of the book to begin to salvage it, or to recommend it over any book on roughly the same subject. Also, I learned how genes can be expressed due to the release of cortisol and other hormones during periods of stress. It is only because we know what happens when the gene is missing or mutated that we think of it as a “disease gene.

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