coli we can see the history of life,” Zimmer writes, “and we can see its future as well. In recent years, biotech engineers have manipulated its genes to create life-sustaining drugs. Zimmer moves from discovery to discovery, marking each scientist’s contribution to the larger body of knowledge, but he doesn’t dwell too long on individuals. coli helped them figure out what genes are made of and how genes are turned on and off, among other watershed findings. coli, scientists have come to understand the building blocks and mechanisms that underpin all life. coli - the usually harmless, microscopic bacteria that live in our guts.īut as Carl Zimmer, a science writer for the New York Times, explains in Microcosm, humans have more in common with the bacteria than they realize. Homo sapiens likes to believe it is the most advanced species on the planet, certainly way ahead of anything as primitive as E. coli.Īnd the Washington Post has a short but sweet write-up: book by Carl Zimmer Science & Math Books > Biotechnology Books ISBN: 0691048339 ISBN13: 9780691048338 Topology from the Differentiable Viewpoint by Carl Zimmer See Customer Reviews Select Format Hardcover 3.99 - 4.69 Paperback 8.09 Select Condition Like New Unavailable Very Good 4.69 Good 4. Nick Anthis, who writes The Scientific Activist, has a positive review that’s particularly interesting given that every day he is up to his elbows in the subject of my book: E. Some of the past CSW talks, from folks like Steven Pinker, Gary Taubes, and Chris Mooney have been posted online, so I’ll let you know if mine ends up there as well.Ģ. I’ll be speaking at 4 pm at the Babbio Center. He even admits that the book made him question his long-held belief that science’s best days are over. The Center’s director, John Horgan, blogged the other day about the talk, having just read Microcosm. For you New Yorkers, that’s a quick PATH ride under the Hudson. Jersey! I’ll be returning to the Garden State where I spent my formative years, to speak next Wednesday at the Center for Science Writings at Stevens Institute of Technology in Hoboken NJ. Written in elegant, even poetic prose, Zimmer's well-crafted exploration should be required reading for all well-educated readers.I’m happy to relay some new information about my book Microcosm: E. It can survive in frozen soils and stomach acid. Zimmer devotes a chapter to the ethical debates surrounding genetic engineering. In my book Microcosm (which has just come out in paperback), I took great pleasure in all the things that something as tiny as E. At the age of seven, he had declared that he hoped to become like Einstein and to discover a few things in science. Lederberg was motivated not by a displaced libido, but by scientific ambition. Each selection from his book is accompanied by an introductory essay by Carl Zimmer, reflecting on the history. coli’s pivotal role in the history of biology, from the discovery of DNA to the latest advances in biotechnology. coliįlagellum as Exhibit A, but the author shows how new research has shed light on the possible evolutionary arc of the flagellum. In 1946, a twenty-year-old medical school student called Joshua Lederberg decided to find out whether microbes make love. In this startlingly original biography of a germ, Zimmer traces E. Advocates of intelligent design often produce the E. He starts clumsily, but the book quickly comes alive. To support the Guardian and Observer order your copy at . coli is the lens Carl Zimmer uses to bring biology into focus. Has taught us about how our own cells age. Life’s Edge: The Search for What It Means to Be Alive by Carl Zimmer is published by Picador (£20). ) explains that by scrutinizing the bacteria's genome, scientists have discovered that genes can jump from one species to another and how virus DNA has become tightly intertwined with the genes of living creatures all the way up the tree of life to humans. Zimmer ( Evolution: The Triumph of an Idea These rod-shaped bacteria were among the first organisms to have their genome mapped, and today they are the toolbox of the genetic engineering industry and even of high school scientists. , some coexisting quite happily with us in our digestive tracts. coli 's pivotal role in the history of biology. Noted science writer Zimmer says there are in fact many different strains of E. A Best Book of the YearSeed Magazine Granta Magazine The Plain-Dealer In this fascinating and utterly engaging book, Carl Zimmer traces E. , they think tainted hamburger or toxic spinach.
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