Vital Harmonies - Molecular Biology and Our Shared Humanity

Erscheinungsjahr 2006
ISBN: 978-0-231-13113-1
Verlag: Columbia University Press

Buch, Englisch, 176 Seiten, Print PDF, Format (B × H): 134 mm x 203 mm, Gewicht: 297 g

The year 2003 marked the fiftieth anniversary of James Watson's and Francis Crick's discovery of the structure of DNA, which began a revolution in the biological sciences and radically altered the way humans view life and themselves. In this poetic account Erwin Fleissner, an eminent cancer researcher and teacher, offers a personal and professional reflection on the most significant developments in molecular genetics and cell biology over the past fifty years. Vital Harmonies is a sweeping look at these crucial scientific advances and an insider's perspective on what scientists have actually learned from them.

Contrasting the humanistic side of scientific research with more deterministic or "mechanical" explanations of life processes, Fleissner discusses everything from natural selection to the tradition of rational inquiry stemming from the Enlightenment. He goes on to describe the structures of macromolecules and their "organizing" principles as well as cancer genes, stem cells, and the Human Genome Project. He also explores neuronal cells and the emergence of consciousness and how biological evolution is the foundation of our personal reality as well as our global responsibility. Fleissner asserts that scientific investigations cannot negate our essential "humanness" nor should the public fear them. Taking an optimistic perspective, he argues that a deeper knowledge of ourselves as biological entities will provide us, ultimately, with greater health, serenity, and self-knowledge. Vital Harmonies gives readers, whatever their background, an engaging analysis of some of the most important questions facing humanity today.

Autoren/Hrsg.

Fleissner, Erwin

Fachgebiete

• Geisteswissenschaften Geschichtswissenschaft Geschichtliche Themen Wissenschafts- und Universitätsgeschichte
• Medizin | Veterinärmedizin Medizin | Public Health | Pharmazie | Zahnmedizin Klinische und Innere Medizin Onkologie, Krebsforschung
• Medizin | Veterinärmedizin Medizin | Public Health | Pharmazie | Zahnmedizin Vorklinische Medizin: Grundlagenfächer Humangenetik
• Naturwissenschaften Biowissenschaften Proteinforschung
• Interdisziplinäres Wissenschaften Wissenschaften: Allgemeines Geschichte der Naturwissenschaften, Formalen Wissenschaften & Technik
• Naturwissenschaften Biowissenschaften Molekularbiologie
• Interdisziplinäres Wissenschaften Wissenschaften: Allgemeines Geschichte der Human- und Sozialwissenschaften
• Medizin | Veterinärmedizin Medizin | Public Health | Pharmazie | Zahnmedizin Medizin, Gesundheitswesen Geschichte der Medizin
• Medizin | Veterinärmedizin Medizin | Public Health | Pharmazie | Zahnmedizin Vorklinische Medizin: Grundlagenfächer Molekulare Medizin, Zellbiologie

Inhaltsverzeichnis

Prefatory NoteAcknowledgmentsPrologue: Molecular Biology from the Viewpoint of a PractitionerThe Genetic Point of ViewThe Logic of the CellFrom Cell to OrganismAbnormal Cell Growth in CancerHuman Genomes and Human BeingsOn ConsciousnessMolecular Biology and the Limits of Molecular ExplanationNotesGlossarySelect Bibliography and Further ReadingIndex

Über Autor(innen)

Erwin Fleissner is professor emeritus of biology and former dean of sciences and mathematics (1987-1998) at Hunter College, City University of New York. Before Hunter, he was a member of the Sloan-Kettering Institute for Cancer Research where he discovered the protein composition of retroviruses and researched the roles of cell-derived genes in cancers caused by such viruses in animals.