Gene Future [Hardcover]

Thomas F. Lee (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0306445093 | ISBN-13: 978-0306445095 | Publication Date: August 21, 1993 | Edition: 1

We are poised at the doorway to a future which could surpass the Industrial Revolution in its impact on the world. We are beginning to scrutinize genes in order to read the very history of evolution, and to alter plants and animals in ways undreamed of only a few years ago. As the tools of science have become more sophisticated, scientists have been able to delve deeply into the inner recesses of cells. The fruit of their labor, the new biology, promises us an unprecedented understanding of genes, offering an illuminating view into the most intimate operations of living things from microbes to humans - and with that, the potential to gain increasing control over life itself. Our gene future will soon present us with a cornucopia of products by drawing upon a variety of organisms - plants, animals, and even human cells - that will influence the lives and health of us all. As Thomas Lee, a biologist and author of the acclaimed The Human Genome Project: Cracking the Genetic Code of Life, so vividly shows, the new biology is already beginning to make its mark on our lives. Every week newspapers announce that scientists have found the gene for a disease such as cystic fibrosis or a particular form of cancer, or have seized on a gene therapy to try to combat it. The controversy over using DNA fingerprinting as admissible evidence in court has sparked public concern. The injecting of experimental genes into humans and animals has triggered recent debates. Soon genetically engineered tomatoes and other "transgenic" vegetables will be available on the shelves of our local grocers. As Lee so wisely and eloquently cautions, there may be perils along this pathway as well as miraculous discoveries. Do dangers lurk in this new technological approach to nature? May we unwittingly be doing irreparable harm to individuals, not to mention the biosphere? This perceptive author even-handedly assesses the controversies surrounding the perils that may await us as molecular science m

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

Things are happening now in and around the biotechnology field, and this book brings you the news. Fascinating advances are being made in the fight against genetic diseases. Lawyers, laboratories, and judges are wrangling over DNA fingerprinting. Agrochemical corporations and ecologists are debating the use of genetically altered, herbicide resistant crops. And panels are convening everywhere. Government panels, scientific panels, panels of concerned citizens, and panels of concerned religious leaders are meeting in every major city on the planet. All of them are discussing where we are going, where we ought to go, and where we dare not go with the knowledge that we glean almost daily about the "New Biology." Gene Future takes us first into the past: Lee looks at our history as a species and then at our history as searchers for--and tinkerers with--the secrets of the genetic mechanism. But the future, of course, is Lee's focus; he takes care to point out both the problems and the promises inherent in our latest attempt to re-create the world. Patrick Wall

Product Details

• Hardcover: 339 pages
• Publisher: Basic Books; 1 edition (August 21, 1993)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0306445093
• ISBN-13: 978-0306445095
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.7 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.3 pounds
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,883,103 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Thomas Lee is a retired biology professor. He prefers writing, reading, and treading the earth lightly. He and his wife Eileen have six children and three grandchildren. Perhaps that is a heavy tread. At any rate, he is continuing his writing in the form of novels, which are more than likely eagerly anticipated.