Biotech: The Countercultural Origins of an Industry (Politics and Culture in Modern America) (Hardcover)

~ Eric J. Vettel (Author)

Editorial Reviews

Review

...compelling history... -- Issues in Science and Technology Librarianship, Winter 2007

Vettel's [book] is compelling, well documented, and important. -- BioScience, April 2007

Review

"Eric Vettel ably illuminates the political economy of science at the end of the 1960s, including the impact on attitudes among younger bioscientists of the demand for relevance in research; and he provides a riveting on-the-ground account of how in the Bay Area that response helped give birth to the region's biotechnology industry. This is a valuable book, deeply researched and altogether readable."—Daniel Kevles, Yale University

"The wide range of economic, social, cultural, and personal factors chronicled in the book—particularly the interaction between the institutional and personal—gives the reader a deep appreciation of the subtle and complex forces at work during this tumultuous period in U.S. history. . . . [Biotech] offers a provocative early look at an enterprise that is sure to receive much more scholarly analysis in the years to come."—American Historical Review

"Compelling, well-documented, and important. . . . [Biotech] helps us begin to see some of the complex questions that we will have to address in deciding how much and which basic research, applied science, and technological application we want."—BioScience

"This is one of those rare books. . . . What is passed over or hinted at in other histories is here explored in depth and with the skill that comes from a sympathetic familiarity with his subject and subjects. . . . The only history of the field I will keep and recommend."—Nature Biotechnology

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 296 pages
• Publisher: University of Pennsylvania Press (June 27, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0812239474
• ISBN-13: 978-0812239478
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6.1 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: No customer reviews yet. Be the first.
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #1,755,733 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)