A Beginner's Guide to Genetics and Its Applications

Description

A Beginner's Guide to Genetics and Its Applications

By Charlotte K. Omoto, Paul F. Lurquin,

Publisher: Columbia University Press
Number Of Pages: 224
Publication Date: 2004
Sales Rank: 1258836
ISBN / ASIN: 0231130139
EAN: 9780231130134
Binding: Paperback
Manufacturer: Columbia University Press
Studio: Columbia University Press
Average Rating: 5

Covering newsworthy aspects of contemporary biology -- gene therapy, the Human Genome Project, DNA testing, and genetic engineering -- as well as fundamental concepts, this book, written specifically for nonbiologists, discusses classical and molecular genetics, quantitative and population genetics -- including cloning and genetic diseases -- and the many applications of genetics to the world around us, from genetically modified foods to genetic testing.

With minimal technical terminology and jargon, Genes and DNA facilitates conceptual understanding. Eschewing the organization of traditional genetics texts, the authors have provided an organic progression of information: topics are introduced as needed, within a broader framework that makes them meaningful for nonbiologists. The book encourages the reader to think independently, always stressing scientific background and current facts.

Review:

Excellent Genetics for Beginnners book

My dad has always been kind of an amateur naturalist, and he has recently been reading several of the various books by Richard Dawkins. As a biochemist working in the biotech industry, I have always encouraged him to read a little bit about molecular biology and genetics, field which I believe are important to learn about in order to gain a more complete understanding of how life really works. Recently, he asked me if I could recomend a good book on the subject of genetics. I found this quest not particularly easy. There are many excellent textbooks on genetics out there, but these are not really what I would call "armchair reading." Of course any college general biology textbook will have an excellent discussion of genetics and molecular biology - but again, too hard-core. One excellent book on genetics is the "Cartoon Guide to Genetics" by Larry Gonick and Mark Wheelis, but this book was written in 1991 and is now hopelessly out of date for this rapidly advancing field. Then there is "Genetics for Dummies," but I thought the title of this book would be a bit insulting potentially.

Anyway - I came across this book by Charlotte Omoto and Paul F. Lurquin. I would encourage anyone interesting in biology and genetics to pick up a copy of this extremely well-written little book. I think this book is absolutely perfect. It starts out with a short introduction on the history of the discovery of DNA, then goes into an introduction to basic genetics concepts, such as the use of the Punnett square predict genetic outcomes, recessive vs. dominant traits, sex-linked traits, etc. It gives lots of very nice examples of Mendalian traits in humans. In chapter 4, there is a very nice discussion of the molecular biology of genetics - which is such a beautiful theory that it is a shame that most people don't know much about it. Chapter 5 goes into the use of bacteria to make human proteins - an extremely important part of modern molecular biology research. Chapter 6 has a discussion about genetically modified foods. Chapters 7,8, and 9 discuss chromosomal abnormalities, mutations, and recombination - which is all very important for an understanding of human (and non-human) genetics. Chapter 10 is my favorite - it gives a very well written description of the Hardy-Weinberg theory of how genes propogate in a population. This is all tied in with the theory of evolution in chapter 11. Chapters 12 and 13 then go into newsworthy topics such as nature-vs-nurture and human cloning.

All in all, it is a very well written book which everyone should read. My only criticism is that the figures are not as good as they could be. The authors need to hire a good artist to help them with the next edition! I think they're clear enough, but they could have been made a lot nicer. Still - I give the book a five star rating.

Dave

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