The Design of Life

By Renato Dulbecco

Book Overview

Nobel laureate Renato Dulbecco presents a fascinating overview of the current state of information about life processes, ranging from the characteristics and activities of DNA to sexuality, practical aspects of genetics, communication between cells and between organisms, and the effects of drugs on the brain. He concludes with a provocative discussion of biology and human affairs in which he poses questions about brain programming and its relationship to accountability, freedom of choice, and the future.

"An impressive overview of contemporary molecular biology. . . . Dulbecco leads us through virtually all of the exciting currents of recent research, from the origin of life to the biological significance of sexuality, from the most elementary evolutionary concepts to the design of the brain."--Joshua Lederberg, American Society for Microbiology News

"Should be of interest to general readers who want to understand the developments that have taken place in biology during the past 30 years as well as to specialists in the field who want to learn more about Dulbecco's perspective."--American Scientist

"People will] enjoy reading and learning about the thread of life in the cell, the mating habits of the bowerbird in New Guinea and] of the grunion in California, the problem of AIDS, and so on. Read it, enjoy it and learn from it."--David Hall, New Scientist

"An excellent resource book for students who have difficulty in understanding the terminology of modern molecular biology; also recommended as a resource to any biologist who has struggled to try to make the discipline comprehensible to the nonscientist."--Choice

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: B000OSBM00
• ISBN13: 9780300044775
• Release Date: September 1990
• Publisher: Yale University Press
• Length: 462 Pages
• Weight: 2.00 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.1" x 7.1" x 10.0"

Customer Reviews

A Serious Introduction to Genes

I was looking for a good introductory type book into Genes and Biotech and I think I found one. This book starts from Cell and explanis DNA RNA all that good stuff with nice tecnical drawings showing the growth, partitions, mutations etc. It is written for educational purposes so it is not popular science type that all in words, it is serious but you do not have to be a med student to understand this. A good bilogy background and serious reading will do.Book continues with other subjects related to genes and DNA. I particularly liked the sections about Brain, the machinery and the design of it. it is a perfect book about DNA and Genes and life.