The Eighth Day of Creation: Makers of the Revolution in Biology, 25th Anniversary Edition [Paperback]

Horace Freeland Judson (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0879694785 | ISBN-13: 978-0879694784 | Publication Date: November 1, 1996 | Edition: Expanded

This lay history of molecular biology now contains material on some of the principal figures involved, particularly Rosalind Franklin and Erwin Chargaff. The foreword and epilogue sketch the further development of molecular biology into the era of recombinant DNA.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

In the foreword to this expanded edition of his 1979 masterpiece, Horace Freeland Judson says, "I feared I might seem the official historian of the movement"--molecular biology, that is. If by official he means "authoritative; definitive; the standard against which all others are measured" then his fears are warranted. Detailed without being overly technical, humane without being fulsome, The Eighth Day of Creation tells of molecular biology's search for the secret of life. "The drama has everything--exploration of the unknown; low comedy and urgent seriousness; savage competition, vaulting intelligence, abrupt changes of fortune, sudden understandings; eccentric and brilliant people, men of honor and of less than honor; a heroine, perhaps wronged; and a treasure to be achieved that was unique and transcendent." And in Judson this drama found its Shakespeare.

Review

The revelations of modern biology make a remarkable human and scientific story, and it has never been told better than in Horace Freeland Judson s The Eighth Day of Creation.... What is especially fortunate is that he is a graceful writer with a keen sense of the human as well as the scientific drama.... I finished the book with a great sense of elation and a deepened sense of admiration for what the human family, at its best, can accomplish. Jeremy Bernstein- The New York Times Book Review --The New York Times Book Review

In his massive, marvelous history of molecular biology... Judson introduces us to many fiendishly clever experiments, some fiercely competitive rivalries, and some of the greatest scientific minds ever to ponder the mysteries of biology.... He has talked with nearly everyone involved, and The Eighth Day of Creation is a unique oral history of a scientific revolution; to my knowledge there has been nothing else like it." (Review of the First Edition)-LEON GUSSOW, Chicago Tribune --LEON GUSSOW, Chicago Tribune

A historian has mused that the memory of man is too frail a thread on which to hang history; Judson's achievement, in drawing out the memories of so many participants in the epic of molecular biology and weaving them into a single robust skein, is magisterial. His work fittingly commemorates a golden age which already seems as remote as that of Darwin and Huxley.- Nature --Nature

Product Details

• Paperback: 714 pages
• Publisher: Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory Press; Expanded edition (November 1, 1996)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0879694785
• ISBN-13: 978-0879694784
• Product Dimensions: 10 x 7 x 1.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.8 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #149,392 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

42 of 43 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Biomedical research, as it is actually practiced, June 29, 2002

By 

Paul Laub (formerly of San Jose, CA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Eighth Day of Creation: Makers of the Revolution in Biology, 25th Anniversary Edition (Paperback)

Judson's book, like Tracy Kidder's "The Soul of a New
Machine", stands out for getting it: the passion, the
politics, and the personalities behind scientific
and technological progress, as well as its pitfalls and
cul de sacs. Judson's book, like no other I've read,
captures molecular biology as it is practiced.

I received this book as a gift in 1980 when I was a
college freshman hoping to major in biochemistry.
Today, much as I like to see the biomedical research I
do as a rational, deductive, "hypothesis-driven"
affair, there is unescapably the human element. Think
ego, and all of the other human qualities, respectable
or scorned. Have you seen genome sequencer J. Craig
Venter on the cover of Time (or was it Newsweek?). What
do you think put him there?

Science as a human endeavor was put forth theoretically
in 1962 by historian Thomas Kuhn in his "The Structure
of Scientific Revolutions". Complementing Kuhn, Judson
illustrates it in deliciously readable human terms. For
this reason this book is unmatched and is worth six,
not five, stars.

Max Perutz appears significantly in Judson's story. In
1990, as a beginning graduate student, I had the
priviledge of meeting and conversing with Perutz. He
was just as Judson portrayed him: modest, plodding,
dedicated, pursuing what he might learn from the
structure and properties of hemoglobin. Reading Judson
a decade earlier prepared me for this most important
meeting for me.

Though dated (the story stops about 1975), I heartily
recommend this book to anyone considering a career in
biomedical research. Judson successfully conveys the
human reality of that honorable profession. Some times
it hurts -- crystallographer Rosalind Franklin never
got her due -- but that's the state of the profession.

24 of 25 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great piece of historical writing, April 22, 2001

By 

S A Mataga (Lower Hutt New Zealand) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Eighth Day of Creation: Makers of the Revolution in Biology, 25th Anniversary Edition (Paperback)

I loved this book. Before reading it, I had the rather naive view that Crick and Watson discovered the structure of DNA and suddenly "all was light". I hadn't realised the huge effort required over the next twenty years to attain an understanding of the linkages between that structure and the biological processes it codes for. Judson's book tells that story, in detail, and is written at a level that I could follow (as a layperson with a keen interest in science).

Judson talked to the researchers responsible for all the major developments in molecular biology, and quotes extensively from his interviews, so the reader gets a feel for the human side of the great adventure, the sense of community and the rivalries, the frustrations and dead ends as well as the victories.

Be warned that it is not a light or short read. It demands the reader's close attention. Fortunately, though, it is a pageturner that (with only minor exceptions) keeps the reader gripped.

It should also be noted that the first edition of the book was written in the early seventies and, while no doubt Freedland has updated it, the main narrative ends in about 1972. There is a final chapter on developments since then, but it is of necessity quite brief and touches on a limited number of highlights.

15 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Power of Science is not the last answer but the next question, April 11, 2006

By 

C. Wu (Northern California) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Eighth Day of Creation: Makers of the Revolution in Biology, 25th Anniversary Edition (Paperback)

A gripping drama with the biggest question of all, what is life? That's what "The Eighth Day of Creation" is, a historical drama capturing the characters, the challenges, the thrills and disappointment that makes science the compelling endeavor that it is. It's unfortunate that this book has not been made into what would be a great mini-series.

The brilliance of this book is that it investigates the people behind the science, and how they approach their problems. Some are matters of pure logic to deduce the results such as the deciphering of the genetic code, while others are pure perseverance such as coming up with the physical structure of myoglobin. But what makes the book powerful is that each discovery is a major accomplishment, but that it also uncovers the next question. And Judson follows the line of reasoning to answer the next question. It also explores the human side of science, the fierce faith that an answer exists and that they will find it. You get a flavor of science as it is practiced in James Watson's "The Double Helix" but you get the full meal here.

A warning, while the book goes to great lengths to explain the science, those lacking at least college biology may find the subject matter difficult to comprehend. More valuable for graduate students in any of the sciences, it is a complement to the facts by giving a perspective on how those facts are discovered.