Summary and Analysis of The Gene: An Intimate History: Based on the Book by Siddhartha Mukherjee
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This short summary and analysis of The Gene by Siddhartha Mukherjee includes:
- Historical context
- Chapter-by-chapter summaries
- Detailed timeline of key events
- Important quotes
- Fascinating trivia
- Glossary of terms
- Supporting material to enhance your understanding of the original work
About Siddhartha Mukherjee’s The Gene:
From the Pulitzer Prize–winning author of The Emperor of All Maladies, The Gene is a rigorously scientific, broadly historical, and candidly personal account of the development of the science of genetics, the dramatic ways genes can affect us, and the enormous moral questions posed by our ability to manipulate them.
As Siddhartha Mukherjee maps out the fascinating biography of the gene, from research and experimentation to scientific breakthroughs, he always returns to the narrative of his own family’s tragic history of mental illness, reminding us that despite our huge leaps in knowledge, there is still much we do not understand about the incredibly complex human genome.
The Gene is an important read for anyone concerned about a future that may redefine what it means to be human.
The summary and analysis in this ebook are intended to complement your reading experience and bring you closer to a great work of nonfiction.
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Summary and Analysis of The Gene - Worth Books
Context
The Gene was published in May 2016, thirteen years after the mapping of the human genome was completed and only a year after the announcement that an efficient method for modifying human genes had been discovered. Siddhartha Mukherjee, the Pulitzer Prize–winning author of The Emperor of All Maladies, describes the evolution of genetic science from its infancy in the late 19th century up to the present day, when the idea that many human traits or characteristics—including sexual preference and intelligence—are largely genetic in nature has taken hold in public discourse.
The larger questions center on the very real possibility of modifying the human genome. Now that the science has advanced to the point where this is possible, who should make the choice as to whether it should be done, if at all? Will gene modification be used to eliminate diseases, or for some less noble purpose? The 20th century has already provided lessons on how genetic science can be used to justify atrocities. Today the gene is, more than ever, a dangerous idea,
and how it is put to use will have an enormous influence on humanity’s future.
Overview
The Gene: An Intimate History is a rigorously scientific, broadly historical, and candidly personal account of the development of the science of genetics, of the dramatic ways genes can affect us, and of the enormous moral questions posed by our ability to manipulate them.
Siddhartha Mukherjee begins by explaining how three members of his family were unraveled by genetic mental illness. He uses this story to introduce the gene itself and the history of genetics. Like the byte in digital data or the atom in matter, the gene is the most basic unit of information in biology, the lowest common denominator of living organisms. Understanding it is essential to understanding human biology, illness, wellness, temperament, and personality. And, as the author states, the centuries-old quest to control the gene has caused it to become one of the most powerful and dangerous ideas in the history of science.
The book’s structure is historical and chronological. It begins in 350 BC with Aristotle’s surprisingly accurate theories of heredity, and ends in 2015, when the technology to modify the