Perspectives On Genetics

For more than ten years, the distinguished geneticists James F. Crow and William F. Dove have edited the popular "Perspectives" column in Genetics, the journal of the Genetics Society of America. This book, Perspectives on Genetics, collects more than 100 of these essays, which cumulatively are a history of modern genetics research and its continuing evolution.

This reader comprises 33 articles obtained from a variety of publications, both scholarly and popular. It is intended to help you gain a basic understanding of genetics and its varied applications in the real world.

Dorothy Wertz and John Fletcher pioneered the first international study of ethical and social issues in genetics in 18 nations. This book reports and discusses their second and more representative study in 36 nations. The survey focused on actual situations that occur in the practice of medical genetics, presented as case vignettes that can also be used in teaching and policy discussion. Among the issues discussed are privacy, prenatal diagnosis, patient autonomy, directiveness in counseling, sex selection, forensic DNA banking, "genetic discrimination," and "eugenics". This is Dorothy Wertz's final book, as she died in April, 2003. It is a one of a kind cross-cultural study of complex ethical issues in the uses of genetic information. No one else has attempted to look at the international aspects of medical genetics on such a broad scale. The results provide a resource for discussion both within and among nations. Much bioethical and policy discussion now occurs in an information vacuum. The survey showed that what people would do, and their reasons for doing it, differed considerably from what ethicists think they "should" do. Many will be surprised at the results, especially in nations where bioethical discussion is just beginning. Genetics and Ethics in Global Perspective is of interest to medical geneticists, genetic counselors, social scientists and anthropologists who study cross-cultural issues, bioethicists and bioethics centers and health policy makers.

Originally published in 1986, we were living in a world in which the number of publications in behaviour genetics had reached a point where it was difficult, even for those teaching the subject, to keep up with the literature. The editors of this title believe that there is a need for people who have planned and executed long-term research programs to summarize and comment on their results. This volume was intended to help meet that need. The authors were given free choice of subject and format. The result is a variety of topics that had been researched mainly over the previous decade. Chapter 1 is an exception and looked back at the work of others in behaviour genetics over a quarter-century and tried to detect trends in the types of research done in the field.

Compelling essays on understanding the interplay of genes in society.

A thorough cross-disciplinary exploration of the implications of genomics-influenced educational practice, for consideration by scientists, practitioners and laypersons alike.

Completely updated to reflect new discoveries and current thinking in the field, the Fourth Edition of Essential Genetics is designed for the shorter, less comprehensive introductory course in genetics. The text is written in a clear, lively, and concise manner and includes many special features that make the book user friendly. Topics were carefully chosen to provide a solid foundation for understanding the basic processes of gene transmission, mutation, expression, and regulation. The text also helps students develop skills in problem solving, achieve a sense of the social and historical context in which genetics has developed, and become aware of the genetic resources and information available through the Internet.