Science

The Genetic Lottery: Why DNA Matters for Social Equality

The Genetic Lottery: Why DNA Matters for Social Equality

  • Downloads：5916
  • Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
  • Create Date：2021-09-20 06:50:57
  • Update Date：2025-09-06
  • Status：finish
  • Author：Kathryn Paige Harden
  • ISBN：0691190801
  • Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle
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Summary

A provocative and timely case for how the science of genetics can help create a more just and equal society


In recent years， scientists like Kathryn Paige Harden have shown that DNA makes us different， in our personalities and in our health--and in ways that matter for educational and economic success in our current society。

In The Genetic Lottery， Harden introduces readers to the latest genetic science， dismantling dangerous ideas about racial superiority and challenging us to grapple with what equality really means in a world where people are born different。 Weaving together personal stories with scientific evidence， Harden shows why our refusal to recognize the power of DNA perpetuates the myth of meritocracy， and argues that we must acknowledge the role of genetic luck if we are ever to create a fair society。

Reclaiming genetic science from the legacy of eugenics， this groundbreaking book offers a bold new vision of society where everyone thrives， regardless of how one fares in the genetic lottery。

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Reviews

Dorthy Williamson ，

This illuminates such an interesting problem facing the future of our society。 Not only do the rich have access to better schools， but what if in the future they have access to better genes？ This book made me think about the future of society in a bunch of different ways。 Highly recommend。

Peter Tillman ，

An interesting profile of the author at the New Yorker:https://www。newyorker。com/magazine/20。。。She writes， “Yes， the genetic differences between any two people are tiny when compared to the long stretches of DNA coiled in every human cell。 But these differences loom large when trying to understand why， for example， one child has autism and another doesn’t; why one is deaf and another hearing; and—as I will describe in this book—why one child will struggle with school and another will not。 Geneti An interesting profile of the author at the New Yorker:https://www。newyorker。com/magazine/20。。。She writes， “Yes， the genetic differences between any two people are tiny when compared to the long stretches of DNA coiled in every human cell。 But these differences loom large when trying to understand why， for example， one child has autism and another doesn’t; why one is deaf and another hearing; and—as I will describe in this book—why one child will struggle with school and another will not。 Genetic differences between us matter for our lives。 They cause differences in things we care about。 Building a commitment to egalitarianism on our genetic uniformity is building a house on sand。”The profile includes her unfortunate encounter with Progressive 'cancel culture。' She self-identifies as a political Progressive。 Didn't help her。 Well worth reading her profile。 Sounds like a very bright scientist， fortunately with Tenure。 。。。more

Owlseyes ，

“The Genetic Lottery” reflects her years spent wandering in the desert。 The book does not shy away from technical details， but it wears its learning lightly; alongside Harden’s frequent Biblical allusions are references to the movies “Clueless” and “Sliding Doors。”In: https://www。newyorker。com/magazine/20。。。 “The Genetic Lottery” reflects her years spent wandering in the desert。 The book does not shy away from technical details， but it wears its learning lightly; alongside Harden’s frequent Biblical allusions are references to the movies “Clueless” and “Sliding Doors。”In: https://www。newyorker。com/magazine/20。。。 。。。more

Fredrik deBoer ，

An accessible primer from a researcher working on the cutting edge of the field， The Genetic Lottery is also a passionate defense of an egalitarian society in a world where not all people are blessed with the same gifts。 Harden recognizes what so many people refuse to understand: that denying the influence of genetics in our lives does not make that influence go away。 Instead， progressive denialism leaves people of conscience unable to clearly articulate the case for a social system that nurture An accessible primer from a researcher working on the cutting edge of the field， The Genetic Lottery is also a passionate defense of an egalitarian society in a world where not all people are blessed with the same gifts。 Harden recognizes what so many people refuse to understand: that denying the influence of genetics in our lives does not make that influence go away。 Instead， progressive denialism leaves people of conscience unable to clearly articulate the case for a social system that nurtures all people regardless of circumstance。 A world where we are not blessed with the same innate gifts through our genes is a world where the case for a strong social democratic state is much stronger， as such a world is one where no one is fully in control of their lives and thus where no one deserves poverty， hunger， and depravation。 Harden's text gives readers the scientific background necessary to understand heritability and the ethical arguments necessary to defend our duty to protect the most disadvantaged among us。As someone with not just a political and academic interest in this subject， but with the same interests in genetics as everyone and some unusual ones besides， I found The Genetic Lottery timely and moving。 。。。more

Chris Boutté ，

I received an advanced copy of this book， and it’s so damned good。 For most of my life， I believed in meritocracy even though I’ve personally seen how the “genetic lottery” can screw you。 I’m a recovering drug addict who struggles with depression and anxiety， and these run in my family。 On top of that， I’m one of those people where I have to work 10x as hard to lose weight。 But because of my sobriety， I liked to tell myself that “working hard gets you where you need to go”。 Unfortunately， that’s I received an advanced copy of this book， and it’s so damned good。 For most of my life， I believed in meritocracy even though I’ve personally seen how the “genetic lottery” can screw you。 I’m a recovering drug addict who struggles with depression and anxiety， and these run in my family。 On top of that， I’m one of those people where I have to work 10x as hard to lose weight。 But because of my sobriety， I liked to tell myself that “working hard gets you where you need to go”。 Unfortunately， that’s not always the case。 In this book， Kathryn Paige Harden does an incredible job laying down the foundation about how genes do and don’t affect us。 There are many myths and misconceptions she debunks throughout the first part of the book， but she breaks down what the science actually says。 The first half of the book was a bit difficult for me because too much talk about biology and genetics just goes over my head。 Despite my lack of comprehension of the topic， the author was able to get the main points across， and she uses epic 90s movie references throughout， which is a great way to teach people。 In the second half of the book， she dives into how our views on genetics affect the legal system， moral responsibility， education， job opportunities， and other systemic issues。 By the time Kathryn got to the social issues， I couldn’t stop reading the book。 I can’t wait for it to launch and for others to learn more about the reality of the genetic lottery so we can work towards more equality rather than basing someone’s value on things outside of their control。 。。。more

Reference

google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=The Genetic Lottery: Why DNA Matters for Social Equality

hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=The Genetic Lottery: Why DNA Matters for Social Equality&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft

The British Library https://bll01.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/search?query=any,contains,The Genetic Lottery: Why DNA Matters for Social Equality&tab=LibraryCatalog&search_scope=Not_BL_Suppress&vid=44BL_INST:BLL01&lang=en&offset=0