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Craig Holdrege and Steve Talbott's analysis
of genetic engineering is the smartest, most original, and most compelling
I have seen anywhere, in journalism or academia.
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Michael Pollan, author of The Omnivore's
Dilemma and The Botany of Desire.
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The authors offer a refreshing style of
scientific interpretation and have brought the discussion of the issues
to a new level by making excellent use of current scientific findings
that disclose how genes operate in vivo and by drawing on bioethical
discussions.
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Sheldon Krimsky, Urban and Environmental
Policy and Planning, Tufts University.
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From the book cover:
In 2001 the Human Genome Project announced that it had successfully mapped
the entire genetic content of human DNA. Scientists, politicians,
theologians, and pundits speculated about what would follow, conjuring
everything from nightmare scenarios of state-controlled eugenics to the
hope of engineering disease-resistant newborns. As with debates
surrounding stem-cell research, the seemingly endless possibilities of
genetic engineering will continue to influence public opinion and policy
into the foreseeable future. Beyond
Biotechnology: The Barren Promise of Genetic Engineering
distinguishes between the hype and reality of this technology and explains
the nuanced and delicate relationship between science and nature.
Authors Craig Holdrege and Steve Talbott evaluate the current state of
genetic science and examine its potential applications, particularly in
agriculture and medicine, as well as the possible dangers. The authors
show how the popular view of genetics does not include an understanding of
the ways in which genes actually work together in organisms. Simplistic
and reductionist views of genes lead to unrealistic expectations and,
ultimately, disappointment in the results that genetic engineering
actually delivers.
The authors explore new developments in genetics, from the discovery of
"non-Darwinian" adaptive mutations in bacteria to evidence that suggests
that organisms are far more than mere collections of genetically driven
mechanisms. While examining these issues, the authors also answer vital
questions that get to the essence of genetic interaction with human
biology: Does DNA "manage" an organism any more than the organism manages
its DNA? Should genetically engineered products be labeled as such? Do the
methods of the genetic engineer resemble the centuries-old practices of
animal husbandry?
Written for lay readers, Beyond
Biotechnology is an accessible introduction to the complicated
issues of genetic engineering and its potential applications. In the
unexplored space between nature and the laboratory, a new science is
waiting to emerge. Technology-based social and environmental solutions
will remain tenuous and at risk of reversal as long as our culture is
alienated from the plants and animals on which all life depends.
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