The Gene- Book Review

Fascinating book. It proved a few points to me-

1. We have done almost nothing in molecular or drug or genetic research compared to some countries in the world. Genentech was making drug therapy based on genes roughly from the seventies/eighties. Research on these was happening at a furious pace even before, for decades.

2. Leaks are important-uncited work also is in the same category, more or less. Scientists don't always want to co-operate for a cause, like any other human beings.

3. Some people work for decades to solve a small problem, thanklessly at times.

4. Unless you can put two and two together, you are not going to be a discoverer/inventor. The twos can come from different people's work.

5. It's fascinating when a knowledgeable person explains the story of an invention, or discovery, just like the author here explaining how the structure of the DNA was discovered, among other things.

6. Eugenics was a stated ambition of many people in the U.S. though Hitler took it to undreamt-of evil extremes.

7. We (all humans) are all likely descended from one woman in Africa, because only women can pass on mitochondrial cells to their children.

8. Good books are rare. About science, even rarer.

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