The Code Breaker: Jennifer Doudna, Gene Editing, and the Future of the Human Race
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- Create Date：2021-05-08 03:19:01
- Update Date：2025-09-07
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- Author：Walter Isaacson
- ISBN：B08GP2J186
- Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle
Reviews
Kathy
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I only give a book 5 stars， if I think about it long after I have stopped reading it and boy did this one qualify。 Walter Isaacson takes you through the discovery of CRISPR in a way that makes you feel as if you were there and makes you wish that you had been there。 He writes in a clear， straightforward language that makes the science easy to understand， even for a layman。 The book stimulates your intellect and encourages your curiosity （I may even read“The Double Helix”）。 He inextricably ties t I only give a book 5 stars， if I think about it long after I have stopped reading it and boy did this one qualify。 Walter Isaacson takes you through the discovery of CRISPR in a way that makes you feel as if you were there and makes you wish that you had been there。 He writes in a clear， straightforward language that makes the science easy to understand， even for a layman。 The book stimulates your intellect and encourages your curiosity （I may even read“The Double Helix”）。 He inextricably ties the subject matter to the current pandemic and makes you better understand the events of the past year。I strongly recommend this book as well as “The Innovators” （also by Isaacson about the digital revolution） for everyone living through the current age of technology。 。。。more
Grant McGuire
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Excellent Wonderful book。 The author uses his writing powers turn off all of us。 I like the way he judges different personalities and finds a good side in them
El
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I would've given this book a much higher rating had it been 200 pages shorter。 I really enjoyed the first half of the book which talked about Doudna， Charpentier， and Feng Zhang。 Unfortunately， then it de-evolved into a manscuse to mansplain and copious bloviation。 There were several sections that added nothing to my understanding of either this technology or these people， and generally took away from the narrative。 I also didn't see value in the author inserting himself constantly into the narr I would've given this book a much higher rating had it been 200 pages shorter。 I really enjoyed the first half of the book which talked about Doudna， Charpentier， and Feng Zhang。 Unfortunately， then it de-evolved into a manscuse to mansplain and copious bloviation。 There were several sections that added nothing to my understanding of either this technology or these people， and generally took away from the narrative。 I also didn't see value in the author inserting himself constantly into the narrative。 I think the role of a good biographer is to focus on the subject， not on themselves。 I actually don't care about Mr。 Isaacson's participation in the COVID trial， among other things。 There were far too many "side-plots" and "side-characters。" Buried in there is a powerful tale of two women whose scientific fervor and unlikely friendship persevered against all odds， and won them a historic Nobel Prize， and I didn't appreciate anything that distracted or detracted from it。 。。。more
Rene Low
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Audiobook Walter has such incredible skills to convey the pithy parts of a life and his intelligence allows him to not shy away from the difficult intellectual parts but in this book he injects himself into the story at times in a way that takes away rather than adds to it。 There is much of interest in here and it deals with issues that are relevant at this exact moment in time but this also makes me think it is a bit premature， discussing the impacts of these discoveries on the coronavirus befo Audiobook Walter has such incredible skills to convey the pithy parts of a life and his intelligence allows him to not shy away from the difficult intellectual parts but in this book he injects himself into the story at times in a way that takes away rather than adds to it。 There is much of interest in here and it deals with issues that are relevant at this exact moment in time but this also makes me think it is a bit premature， discussing the impacts of these discoveries on the coronavirus before they are fully known。 It was novel to be reading/listening to this in the height of the pandemic however。 。。。more
Michael Armijo
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Here is a fascinating book that inspires one to be more involved with science and discovery。 I read Walter’s book about Leonard DaVinci （and loved it）， so I was anxious to read this one that centers around the 2020 Nobel Prize winner for Chemistry， Jennifer Doudna， and other major contributors to science in this new age of gene-editing。 Here are the lines in the book that intrigued me most: The key to innovation is connecting a curiosity about basic science that can be applied to our lives。 We a Here is a fascinating book that inspires one to be more involved with science and discovery。 I read Walter’s book about Leonard DaVinci （and loved it）， so I was anxious to read this one that centers around the 2020 Nobel Prize winner for Chemistry， Jennifer Doudna， and other major contributors to science in this new age of gene-editing。 Here are the lines in the book that intrigued me most: The key to innovation is connecting a curiosity about basic science that can be applied to our lives。 We all see nature’s wonders every day， whether it be a plant that moves or a sunset that reaches with pink fingers into a sky of deep blue。 The key to true curiosity is pausing to ponder the causes。 What makes a sky blue or a sunset pink or a leaf of sleeping grass curl？ Jennifer Doudna: “My high-school biology teacher， Marlene Hapai， taught us that science was about a process of figuring things out。” The Double Helix: It is the way that chemistry—the study of how atoms bond to create molecules—become biology。 “Hypocrisy in search of social acceptance erodes your self-respect。” James Watson （author of The Double Helix） began saying things that seemed to emanate from the dark side of the Force: “The dark side of the Force is a pathway to many abilities that some consider to be unnatural。” “Never do something that a thousand other people are doing。” --Jack Szostak How little strands of RNA behaved would become increasingly important， both to the field of gene editing and to the fight against coronaviruses。 Jennifer Doudna learned how to pause， like wall used to do as children， and wonder about how things worked。 The scientist does not study nature because it is useful。 He studies it because he takes pleasure in it， and he takes pleasure in it because it is beautiful。 --Henri Poincare， Science and Method， 1908 “Direct Repeats” is CRISPR （clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats）。 “Bacteria have an immune system。 They’re able to remember what viruses have attacked them in the past。” CRISPR systems were a way that bacteria acquired immunity to viruses。 As is often the case in the history of science， discoveries can have unexpected applications。 CRISPR was， indeed， an immune system that bacteria adapted whenever they got attacked by a new type of virus。 She was good at brainstorming with people she trusted。 She was not good at navigating a corporate environment where the competition was for power and promotions rather than discoveries。 “Creating great products is important， but what’s even more important is creating a team that can continually make such products。” --Steve Jobs Her scientific success had always come from connecting small dots to make big pictures。 “Why else do we do science？ We do it to go after big questions and take on risks。 If you don’t try things， you’re never going to have a breakthrough。” --Jennifer Doudna Her critical big questions were designed to get her researchers to look up from the details and see the big picture。 Whay are doing this？ She will ask。 What’s the point？ There were lessons from the Arts Emmanuelle Charpentier would discover: “You also must know the basics and master the methods。 That requires persistence—repeating experiments and repeating them again， perfecting how to prepare。。。” “The more one moves， the more one learns to analyze as a new situation and see things that others who have been in the system a long time have not identified。” “Be prepared for the unexpected。” --Louis Pasteur In-person meetings can produce ideas in ways that conference calls and ZOOM meetings can’t。 In explaining the amazing mechanisms of life， little things matter。 And very little things matter a lot。 Competition drives discovery。 Jennifer Doudna calls it “the fire that stokes the engine。” “If it were not for competitive people our world would not be as good because what drives people to do good things is recognition。” --Emmanuelle Charpentier “My mother always told me to keep my head down and not be arrogant。” --Feng Zhang “My teacher loves enzymes。 He told me that whenever you face a tough question in biology， just say ‘Enzymes’。 It’s the correct answer to most questions in biology。” --Feng Zhang Don’t fight over divvying up the proceeds until you finish robbing the stagecoach。 If ever man fell ill， there was no defense---no healing food， no ointment， nor any drink—but for lack of medicine they wasted away， until I showed them how to mix soothing remedies。 --Prometheus A gene known as P53 encodes for a protein that suppresses the growth of cancerous tumors。 It helps the body respond to damaged DNA and prevents cancerous cells from dividing。 Humans tend to have one copy of this gene， and cancers proliferate if something goes wrong with it。 Elephants have twenty copies of this gene， and they almost never get cancer。 Researchers are currently exploring ways to add an extra P53 gene into humans。 Aldous Huxley’s BRAVE NEW WORLD， published in 1932， described a similarly dystopian future in which genetic modification produces an elite class of leaders with enhanced intellectual physical traits。 “We are not in the BRAVE NEW WORLD yet， but we are well along the road。” --Jemery Rifkin， the social theorist。 On human-germline engineering， Jennifer Doudna; “In my view， a complete ban might prevent research that could lead to future therapies。” DARPA （the Pentagon’s Research Agency） has a project going， in conjunction with Jennifer Doudna’s lab， to study how to create genetically enhanced soldiers。 A study （by schizophrenia-research pioneer， Nancy Andreasen） of thirty prominent contemporary authors showed that twenty-four had experienced at least one episode of major depression or mood disorder， and twelve were diagnosed with bipolar disorder。 Ashkenazi Jews， who lived for centuries in Northern Europe， were genetically more intelligent than other ethnic groups， a point he supported by rattling off those who had won Nobel Prizes。 --James Watson。 Jennifer Doudna: “The world is kind of mosaic。 There are people who have great qualities， but they also have flaws。 All of us， if we’re honest with ourselves， know that we have things that we’re great at and things that we’re not so great at。” “I wish it need not have happened in my time，” said Frodo。 “So do I，” said Gandalf， “and so do all who live to see such times。 But that is not for them to decide。 All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given us。” --Tolkien， LORD OF THE RINGS ‘When one place is in trouble， assistance comes from all quarters。” --an old Chinese saying。 The COVID19 pandemic that killed more than 1。5 million people in 2020 will not be the final plague。 However， thanks to the new RNA （RiboNucleicAcid） vaccine technology， our defenses against most future viruses are likely to be immensely faster and more effective。 Most deaths from COVID19 came from organ inflammation due to unwanted immune-system responses。 Feng Zhang: “The most important next steps will be innovations in MICROFLUIDICS which involves channeling tiny amounts of liquid in a device， and then connecting the information to our cell phones。 That will allow us all， in the privacy of our homes， to test our saliva and blood for hundreds of medical indicators， monitor our health conditions on our phones， and share the data with doctors and researchers。 Molecules are becoming the new microchips。 。。。more
David
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An important book to understand the current capabilities of CRISPR and biotechnology and how the Covid-19 vaccine was developed so quickly。
Tanja Berg
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Absolutely fascinating biography of a great scientist in a field that has made tremendous progress in recent years - much thanks to Jennifer Doudna。 I am ashamed to say that I didn’t even know she had won the Nobel Prize for her discoveries in biochemistry and gene editing。 The other surprise is how devastatingly current the book is， covering some issues of the COVID-19 epidemic。 The pandemic has resulted in less competition and more cooperation between scientists， so that’s at least something。
Lezley
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What a fascinating story！ Having just received my first vaccine I was glad that this book gave me a little understanding about what goes on behind the scenes。 Isaacson has the talent to take a very complex story and explain it in terms the ordinary person can almost understand。 The pictures throughout the book were an added bonus， as an introduction to the brilliant scientists mentioned。 Jennifer Doudna's life story is inspirational。 When I grow up I want to be。。。。。a scientist！ Unfortunately， I' What a fascinating story！ Having just received my first vaccine I was glad that this book gave me a little understanding about what goes on behind the scenes。 Isaacson has the talent to take a very complex story and explain it in terms the ordinary person can almost understand。 The pictures throughout the book were an added bonus， as an introduction to the brilliant scientists mentioned。 Jennifer Doudna's life story is inspirational。 When I grow up I want to be。。。。。a scientist！ Unfortunately， I'm a seventy year old woman who never was able to have that dream。 I'm so glad that the next generations of women will feel no constraints and Dr。 Doudna will be a beacon for them all！ 。。。more
Sarah Rockwood
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I could not put this book down！ Not only is Walter Isaacson a fantastic author， but Jennifer Doudna's story is inspiring and gripping。 I frequently felt waves of nostalgia for my times working the Stanley Hall as an undergrad， the same building where Dounda's lab dwelled during the major 2012 breakthrough。 I also greatly appreciated how Isaacson wove so many different perspectives into the story， including those of scientific friends and foes。 As a scientist myself， I found his descriptions of t I could not put this book down！ Not only is Walter Isaacson a fantastic author， but Jennifer Doudna's story is inspiring and gripping。 I frequently felt waves of nostalgia for my times working the Stanley Hall as an undergrad， the same building where Dounda's lab dwelled during the major 2012 breakthrough。 I also greatly appreciated how Isaacson wove so many different perspectives into the story， including those of scientific friends and foes。 As a scientist myself， I found his descriptions of the research accurate and engaging， and helped me to learn more about my field and become even more excited about pursuing it！ 。。。more
Saeed esmaili
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Excellent book，well written，step by step toward discovery and seince I enjoyed it and will try to read it again
Douglas
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A bit more on ethics and the implications of CRISPR than biography （compared to his other books）， but still a great read。
Diana Schrader
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The race is on--for humanity！
Bruno Laschet
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This is the story of Jennifer Doudna。 She won together with a second woman the Nobel-Price 2020。In the first half of the book you learn why and you can't stop reading。 It's well written and very exciting。 The second half is more about the ethic and danger of this new technology。 Very informative book。 This is the story of Jennifer Doudna。 She won together with a second woman the Nobel-Price 2020。In the first half of the book you learn why and you can't stop reading。 It's well written and very exciting。 The second half is more about the ethic and danger of this new technology。 Very informative book。 。。。more
Kirsten Reimer
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This book begins as a fairly even-handed telling of the exciting story of the discovery of CRISPR， but it ends disappointingly with a premature historicization of the COVID pandemic with Walter Isaacson himself emerging as a major character。 The presentation of the science was mostly clear， but several themes in the book were repeated so much that it was hard to keep reading。 It felt like no one read the last 100 pages of this book before it went to print。 First half of the book gets ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️， l This book begins as a fairly even-handed telling of the exciting story of the discovery of CRISPR， but it ends disappointingly with a premature historicization of the COVID pandemic with Walter Isaacson himself emerging as a major character。 The presentation of the science was mostly clear， but several themes in the book were repeated so much that it was hard to keep reading。 It felt like no one read the last 100 pages of this book before it went to print。 First half of the book gets ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️， last half gets ⭐️⭐️。 Basically I wanted this book to be about CRISPR， but it ended up being about COVID ugh。 。。。more
Candice
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You should definitely read this book and everything else he has written。
Stephanie
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What was once science fiction now becomes the Gattaca reality of our age！Curiosity-driven science， fierce competition， collective collaboration， brilliant out-of-the-box thinking， passion and perseverance， intellectual stamina， and pure love of wanting to know how and why things work is the hallmark of Jennifer Doudna's adventurous spirit that leads her to save countless lives and， ultimately， win the Nobel Prize for science。 I INHALED this book （a first Isaacson biography for me）， as he led me What was once science fiction now becomes the Gattaca reality of our age！Curiosity-driven science， fierce competition， collective collaboration， brilliant out-of-the-box thinking， passion and perseverance， intellectual stamina， and pure love of wanting to know how and why things work is the hallmark of Jennifer Doudna's adventurous spirit that leads her to save countless lives and， ultimately， win the Nobel Prize for science。 I INHALED this book （a first Isaacson biography for me）， as he led me through her beginnings of Doudna's interest in science - a paperback book from the library that her dad nonchalantly plopped on her bed - Watson & Crick's Double Helix。Isaacson fills you with the technical side of gene editing with great detail， especially when he gets to the CRISPER technology， and you can't but be flummoxed and awed at the beauty of nature， and how she， with her team， develop a way to change a person's DNA by really injecting it with a spliced section of RNA。 The tech was a mite heavy， but not too terrible to understand。 He even gave some nice clear drawings and pictures for visual aids。The race to be the first in science exploration always seems to be lightening fast， and the the moral and ethical issues lag behind， playing a serious game of catch up。 Of course， if we could rid the world of terrible disease， why wouldn't we？ Well， should we？ What happens if this goes terribly wrong？ Will gene editing eventually lead to Designer Babies - only afforded by the wealthy - and the rest of us are left with the random soup of the collective mix？ Or should it be used only for treatment？ What is considered an ok fix， while another is just to make us better looking， stronger， faster， or smarter？ This is such a HUGE issue that is on the precipice of our world and really needs to be fleshed out。 Why not just speed up the evolutionary scales that they would eventually reach anyway？When should gene editing be used for treatment， and when should it be used for enhancement？ Cue Huxley's Brave New World here， since the scary science is our new reality I think Doudna's character， though， is what stood out the most。 She truly wants to benefit mankind， and she dedicates her entire life to helping science push us to a better place。 Her phenomenal mind， dedication， business prowess， and intellectual accumen is SO inspiring。 She brings people from all over the world to work together in such a rewarding， meaningful way。 Crazy to think that she is working with people in China， Argentina， Puerto Rico， and Sweden ALL AT THE SAME TIME。 Yet there are always those biohacks and rogue scientists who don't want to play by the rules， and they are the ones who give ethical scientists a bad name。 Keeping them in check so that they are not just racing for fame and glory is quite the task。 Take the guy who injects himself with a growth hormone known to push past the muscle mass barrier in frogs - just to see what would happen！ This is a slap-palm-to-forehead moment， but there are people out there on the fringe willing to do and try anything。 They are reckless and dangerous， but also the risk takers that push the boundaries for better inventions。I think the one part that was not exactly my favorite is that through the race to be the first in publishing their discoveries， they would undercut magazine articles， push deadlines， and are literally cutthroat to undercut the other teams。 This almost gave it a 4-star rating， but without this competition， I think they may not have pushed each other as hard as they did， and this only made them better scientists （though maybe not exactly better people）。This book is just amazing and totally engrossing。 To know and see the human race's future is in gene editing stretches the imagination to our current reality。 Whether we are prepared for the ensuing ethical considerations is another story。 。。。more
Mary
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Crazy timely！ Wow！ I love Mr。 Isaacson's other books but this one is so current - Love the final part about the covid vaccines！ Thank you！ Crazy timely！ Wow！ I love Mr。 Isaacson's other books but this one is so current - Love the final part about the covid vaccines！ Thank you！ 。。。more
Jamie Mallon
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Isaacson delivers on another great biography。 In this case he takes a complex topic， DNA and gene editing， and simplifies it。 He also takes the time to explore the moral implications of gene editing and brings out the nuances of the topic。
jaga
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Mixed feelings about this book。 The science history and the development of CRISPR is so important and Isaacson does a fabulous job documenting both。 But the book dragged for me and I found it disjointed。 It starts out with the young Jennifer Doudna and how she was inspired by Watson’s “Double Helix”。 Doudna then goes on to achieve great things as a professional， gravitating to the RNA space， which was not the popular path at the time。 Turns out， RNA leads Doudna to CRISPR and becomes key to addr Mixed feelings about this book。 The science history and the development of CRISPR is so important and Isaacson does a fabulous job documenting both。 But the book dragged for me and I found it disjointed。 It starts out with the young Jennifer Doudna and how she was inspired by Watson’s “Double Helix”。 Doudna then goes on to achieve great things as a professional， gravitating to the RNA space， which was not the popular path at the time。 Turns out， RNA leads Doudna to CRISPR and becomes key to addressing the SARS-COV 2 pandemic。 In between， we hear about the battles of the scientists on CRISPR， the ethical issues of CRISPR， the controversy around an ageing Watson， and other things。 I also got the sense that Isaacson tended to favor the perspective and account of Doudna， his central character。 In the end， I gave the book high marks， due to the extraordinary subject matter and Isaacson’s commitment to producing a thorough account。 。 。。。more
Logesh Sadasivam
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A beautiful tale of CRISPR human’s motivated by science & curiosity and source of solution delivered from bacteria developed through billion years of evolution for the future of humanity！！！ Big question is how does the modern species going to use it for betterment of life？？？？？ Will be revealed by future society ！！！
Rachel
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This book is packed full of great information as well discovery， I listened to the narration with awe。 I found myself in tear sometimes with the amount we as a world just went through and the bio technology that is leading the way into the future。
susan insley
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Read and LearnI needed to become educated — in at least a basic way — about gene editing and I thought this would be the book to do that。 It is— and so much more。 It’s a history; a series of human stories; a course in biology， biochemistry; an introduction to new worlds （for me）; a cornucopia of descriptors。 Thought provoking。 Read and learn。
Pritimay
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The last few chapters are so much better。
Wai-kit Ng
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Although the book is written to chart the science and discoveries of Jennifer Doudna （co-winner of the 2020 Nobel prize in Chemistry）， the author wrote， in simple terms， about genes， RNA， DNA and gene editing。 I finally understood （in layman's term） about CRISPR 。。。 the difference between DNA and RNA。 And what mRNA is - which forms the basis of both the Pfizer-BionTech and Moderna vaccines。 I marvel at human ingenuity in being able to edit our own genes。 Even though， this is a trick that bacteri Although the book is written to chart the science and discoveries of Jennifer Doudna （co-winner of the 2020 Nobel prize in Chemistry）， the author wrote， in simple terms， about genes， RNA， DNA and gene editing。 I finally understood （in layman's term） about CRISPR 。。。 the difference between DNA and RNA。 And what mRNA is - which forms the basis of both the Pfizer-BionTech and Moderna vaccines。 I marvel at human ingenuity in being able to edit our own genes。 Even though， this is a trick that bacteria already knew in their defence against viruses。 But it must have taken bacteria a few trillions evolution cycles to get there。 Of course， what we do with this technology is going to define us and the human race。 We shall see。 。。。more
Maxine McDonald
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A difficult read but very very interesting。 I learned a great deal about gene editing and the history of CRISPR and messenger MRA and the many groups of scientists including Jennifer Doudna who have worked or are currently working on projects to cure diseases and help humanity。 It is absolutely amazing what can be done at the molecular level to cut and replace human DNA and cure sickle cell anemia， Huntingtons and cancers as well as working on COVID19 since the beginning of the pandemic。
Michele
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This book is well worth reading。 It’s very timely for today， and after reading it， I have a better understanding of the importance of biotechnology and the role it has played in the COVID vaccine and testing。 The specific focus of this book is RNA and CRISPR， a trick used by bacteria to fight viruses that was discovered in 2012 by Jennifer Doudna， the central character， and others what is CRISPR？ It is an acronym that stands for “clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats。” There This book is well worth reading。 It’s very timely for today， and after reading it， I have a better understanding of the importance of biotechnology and the role it has played in the COVID vaccine and testing。 The specific focus of this book is RNA and CRISPR， a trick used by bacteria to fight viruses that was discovered in 2012 by Jennifer Doudna， the central character， and others what is CRISPR？ It is an acronym that stands for “clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats。” There are clustered repeated sequences in bacteria that can be used to fight viruses and， as was discovered by Doudna and others， can be used to fix a genetic problem。 Walter Isaacson helps us think through some of the big questions with CRISPR and it’s capacity to edit genes。 CRISPR can be used to edit genes， but should we？ Perhaps we should to make us less susceptible to deadly viruses like COVID。 Perhaps we should eliminate sickle cell anemia， cystic fibrosis， and Huntington’s Disease。 But what about depression， blindness， being short， etc？ We learn in this book that CRISPR is already being used to treat sickle-cell anemia， cancers， and blindness。 What about using it as a defense against genetically engineered weapons？ Research on this is already underway。 “The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency （DARPA）， which is the Pentagon’s well-funded research arm， launched a program called Safe Genes to support ways to defend against genetically engineered weapons。 It dispensed $65 million worth of grants， making the military the largest single source of money for CRISPR research。 。。。 DARPA already has a project going， in conjunction with Doudna’s lab， to study how to create genetically enhanced soldiers。”Will editing the gene pool increase the inequality in our society because the only people who can pay for it are those with wealth？ In his words， “If these offerings at the genetic supermarket aren’t free （and they won’t be）， will that greatly increase inequality—and indeed encode it permanently in the human race？” Very likely， yes。 “New biotech procedures would be expensive， so people who were born into privilege would likely get the most benefits。 That could widen， and genetically encode， existing inequalities。 “The possibilities presented by gene therapy and gene surgery may in fact call into question a central element of democratic political theory and practice: the commitment to equality of opportunity。” “ It’s hard to imagine a scenario where this wouldn’t be the case。 However， Doudna is helping to make sickle-cell treatments affordable through her Innovative Genomics Institute。Who should decide when genetic editing of our species is allowable？ This is a huge question in the book and one with hard answers。 It turns out that when you try to get the consensus of society， a poll on Twitter isn’t the way to go。 And the author reminds us “the desires of an individual might conflict with the good of the community。”Should it only be for somatic cells and not germline cells， which means the traits would be heritable？ Sickle cell anemia is a good candidate for somatic edits and is already being done successfully。 The issue is that “Crossing the germline takes us to a distinct new realm。 It involves engineering a genome rather than nurturing one that was produced naturally， and it introduces a change that will be inherited by all future descendants。”Should there be a moratorium on germline edits in humans？ This is a huge debate in the book and mostly the answer appears to be no。 In Doudna’s view， “a complete ban might prevent research that could lead to future therapies， and it is also impractical given the widespread accessibility and ease of use of CRISPR-Cas9。”If no moratorium on germline edits， what should the rules be？ What is the “prudent path forward”？ How far should we go if and when methods of engineering our genes turned out to be safe？ They might be “‘Edu ally necessary”， “absence of reasonable alternatives” and “restriction to preventing a serious disease or condition。” These are all ideas that have been developed by numerous conferences of scientists throughout the world。 Perhaps it helps to think about germline edits in 4 categories: 1。 treatments2。 preventions3。 enhancements， and 4。 super enhancements。 It can also be looked at in terms of positional and absolute goods。 Height is positional because the taller person is the one who benefits。 Enhanced resistance to virus is an absolute good because it benefits all。 In my mind， prevention and treatment make sense。 I’m not sure about enhancements， but super enhancements definitely seem like it could turn us into gods， which Yuval Harari warned about in Homo Deus。Walter Isaacson also cautions against super enhancements: “One odd result of allowing super-enhancements could be that children will become like iPhones: a new version will come out every few years with better features and apps。 Will children as they age feel that they are becoming obsolete？ That their eyes don’t have the cool triple-lens enhancements that are engineered into the latest version of kids？ Fortunately， these are questions we can ask for amusement but not for an answer。 It will be up to our grandchildren to figure these out。” Of course the absolute goods make a lot more sense than the positional goods。 I hope everyone would agree with that， even if parents can pay for their babies to be better positioned with height， etc。 Is this “a new eugenics—a liberal or libertarian eugenics， one based on free choice and marketed consumerism”？ “The question is whether germline gene editing will someday be considered just another in a long continuum of once controversial biological interventions， such as prenatal or preimplantation screening， that have gradually been accepted。 If so， does it make sense to treat germline editing as something distinct， subject to a different set of moral standards？”“To what extent would creating gene-edited babies—and abandoning the idea that our genetic endowments came from a random natural lottery—undermine our sense of moral empathy？。。。 Or， to frame the question from a more bioliberal perspective: If the technology was available to make healthier and better babies， would it be ethically wrong not to use it？”Is there a risk we will decrease the diversity of humanity？If CRISPR is used to avoid disability， how do you define disability？ “Challenges and so-called disabilities often build character， teach acceptance， and instill resilience。 They may even be correlated to creativity。。。 Would Miles Davis have been Miles Davis without sickle cell？” Also， FDR had polio， which has been eradicated。 Would we have never had FDR if we never had polio？And what about the seeming link of depressive disorders and creativity。 “The number of creative artists with major depressive disorder is in the thousands。” Should we eliminate depression？ Would Chris Cornell be Chris Cornell without depression。。。 and I know he killed himself。 Tough questions。。。 Walter Isaacson says it well， “At this point in our deliberations， we have to face the potential conflict between what is desired by the individual versus what is good for human civilization。 A reduction in mood disorders would be seen as a benefit by most of the afflicted individuals， parents， and families。 They would desire it。 But does the issue look different when asked from society’s vantage point？ As we learn to treat mood disorders with drugs and eventually with genetic editing， will we have more happiness but fewer Hemingways？ Do we wish to live in a world in which there are no Van Goghs？”“How do we distinguish between traits that are true disabilities and ones that are disabilities mainly because society is not good at adapting for them？” The examples he gives is that it’s a disadvantage to be black but not a disability， yet black parents might chose light skin for their kids because of the advantage it conveys。 This book is also a love story to science and how the curiosity of people like James Watson and Jennifer Doudna， basic curiosity about the way things work and why they are that way， lead to amazing and life changing discoveries like DNA’s structure and CRISPR。 “We all see nature’s wonders every day， whether it be a plant that moves or a sunset that reaches with pink fingers into a sky of deep blue。 The key to true curiosity is pausing to ponder the causes。 What makes a sky blue or a sunset pink or a leaf of sleeping grass curl？” This is a particularly striking quote about curiosity cited in the book: “The scientist does not study nature because it is useful。 He studies it because he takes pleasure in it， and he takes pleasure in it because it is beautiful。 —Henri Poincaré， Science and Method， 1908”Watson’s and Doudna’s stories are intertwined as we learn。 “Doudna’s career would be shaped by the insight that is at the core of The Double Helix: the shape and structure of a chemical molecule determine what biological role it can play。 It is an amazing revelation for those who are interested in uncovering the fundamental secrets of life。 It is the way that chemistry—the study of how atoms bond to create molecules—becomes biology。” We learn quite a bit about Watson in this book， including some of his off color comments in his later years that have been unfortunate。 We also learn quite a bit about publishing and patents。 There was an intense competition between Jennifer Doudna’s lab and Feng Zhang to publish and patent their discoveries， and it was fascinating to learn the intricacies of how that worked。 It also is illuminating to see how the urge for university’s to be the first for all possible discoveries hampers the sharing of information and the overall goal of improving this world for all。 COVID changed that， at least temporarily。 Michael Eisen， a colleague of Doudna’s at Berkeley， said， “We all would benefit returning academic science to its roots in basic discovery oriented research。 We see with CRISPR the toxic effects of turning academic institutions into money hungry hawkers of intellectual property。” I think I agree with him after reading this book。 We also learn about CRISPR’s role with COVID vaccines and testing， which was fascinating。 And we learn how the Trump administration botched the testing and vaccination process in America。 All the questions above would be interesting to bring up at book club。 As well， we might want to watch the 2019 documentary about CRISPR， Human Nature。 。。。more
Joseph Durham
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Walter Isaacson has once again written with wonderful insight about a creative spark of the 21st century。 Considering the danger， trauma and recent hope of the Covid-19 crisis， it should be read by all who are interested in understanding the troubled world that just passed before us and continues to challenge everyone。 When you are finished you will have gained insight into genetics， scientific discovery， the intense competition among its participants， and the world changing revelations that the Walter Isaacson has once again written with wonderful insight about a creative spark of the 21st century。 Considering the danger， trauma and recent hope of the Covid-19 crisis， it should be read by all who are interested in understanding the troubled world that just passed before us and continues to challenge everyone。 When you are finished you will have gained insight into genetics， scientific discovery， the intense competition among its participants， and the world changing revelations that they will change our lives going forward。 I am troubled some by the power to make inheritable changes in our genetic make-up。 As you read the book Walter Isaacson notes this genetic power also， and he discusses it as you go along。 Perhaps he will write another book that explores these implications further。 。。。more
Davidjcolussirogers。com
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A bit scattershot。 Interesting bits。 Feels like author picked his hero early on and was determined to justify his choice。
Lavon Herschberger
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Starts really slow。 Pretty technical in places。 Good discussion of ethical questions of gene editing， both current tech and future。 I found it fascinating， but if you’re not familiar with biological science， it might be a tough read。
Mary Jo
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