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Living with Our Genes

The Groundbreaking Book About the Science of Personality, Behavior, and Genetic Destiny

Author Dean H. Hamer, Peter Copeland
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Paperback
$20.00 US
Knopf | Anchor
5.2"W x 7.9"H x 0.8"D  
On sale Feb 16, 1999 | 368 Pages | 9780385485845
Grades 9-12 + AP/IB
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Nowhere is the nature-nurture controversy being more arduously tested than in the labs of world-rennowned molecular scientist Dean Hamer, whose cutting-edge research has indisputably linked specific genes to behaviorial traits, such as anxiety, thrill-seeking, and homosexuality.

The culmination of that research is the provacative book, Living with Our Genes.  In it, Dr. Hamer reveals that much of our behavior--how much we eat and weigh, whether we drink or use drugs, how often we have sex--is heavily influenced by our genes.  Dr. Hamer also sheds light on some of the most compelling and vexing aspects of personality, such as shyness, aggression, depression and intelligence.

Living With Our Genes argues that genes are the single most important factor in the wondrous variability of human behavior. In the past, studies of twins supported the assumption that inheritance plays a major role in why we feel or behave the way we do. Now, scientists are developing an impressive arsenal of research to identify the individual genes that guide human behavior.

In the tradition of Listening to Prozac, this is an anecdote-filled book that attempts to explain how we arrive at the idea of self in an ever-changing scientific landscape.

PRAISE FOR LIVING WITH OUR GENES

"Compulsive reading, reminiscent of Jared Diamond, from a scientist who knows his stuff and communicates it well."  --Kirkus Reviews

"A pioneer in the field of molecular psychology, Hamer is exploring the role genes play in governing the very core of our individuality.  Accessible...provocative."  --Time
Dean H. Hamer is a preeminent geneticist and the author of The Science of Desire, a New York Times Notable Book of the Year, and Living with Our Genes. Together with his scientific collaborators at the National Cancer Institute at the National Institutes of Health, he has authored more than 100 articles for popular and academic science journals. His television appearances include Good Morning America, Dateline, Oprah, national news shows, and documentaries for HBO, PBS, and the Discovery Channel. Dr. Hamer received his PhD from Harvard University and is the recipient of numerous awards, including the Ariens Kappers Award for Neurobiology. View titles by Dean H. Hamer
Peter Copeland, a journalist based in Washington, DC, has published four books. His first book, She Went to War, was written with Rhonda Cornum, a U.S. Army doctor who was a POW in Iraq. He wrote My Soul Purpose with Heidi von Beltz. Copeland and Dean Hamer collaborated on The Science of Desire and Living with Our Genes. Copeland was the editor and general manager of the Scripps Howard News Service. He started his journalism career at the City News Bureau of Chicago, covered the U.S.-Mexico border for the El Paso Herald-Post, and spent five years covering Latin America while based in Mexico City. He covered the Pentagon for five years, including the U.S. invasion of Panama, the Gulf War, and the invasion of Somalia. Currently he is a writer and media consultant.   View titles by Peter Copeland

About

Nowhere is the nature-nurture controversy being more arduously tested than in the labs of world-rennowned molecular scientist Dean Hamer, whose cutting-edge research has indisputably linked specific genes to behaviorial traits, such as anxiety, thrill-seeking, and homosexuality.

The culmination of that research is the provacative book, Living with Our Genes.  In it, Dr. Hamer reveals that much of our behavior--how much we eat and weigh, whether we drink or use drugs, how often we have sex--is heavily influenced by our genes.  Dr. Hamer also sheds light on some of the most compelling and vexing aspects of personality, such as shyness, aggression, depression and intelligence.

Living With Our Genes argues that genes are the single most important factor in the wondrous variability of human behavior. In the past, studies of twins supported the assumption that inheritance plays a major role in why we feel or behave the way we do. Now, scientists are developing an impressive arsenal of research to identify the individual genes that guide human behavior.

In the tradition of Listening to Prozac, this is an anecdote-filled book that attempts to explain how we arrive at the idea of self in an ever-changing scientific landscape.

PRAISE FOR LIVING WITH OUR GENES

"Compulsive reading, reminiscent of Jared Diamond, from a scientist who knows his stuff and communicates it well."  --Kirkus Reviews

"A pioneer in the field of molecular psychology, Hamer is exploring the role genes play in governing the very core of our individuality.  Accessible...provocative."  --Time

Author

Dean H. Hamer is a preeminent geneticist and the author of The Science of Desire, a New York Times Notable Book of the Year, and Living with Our Genes. Together with his scientific collaborators at the National Cancer Institute at the National Institutes of Health, he has authored more than 100 articles for popular and academic science journals. His television appearances include Good Morning America, Dateline, Oprah, national news shows, and documentaries for HBO, PBS, and the Discovery Channel. Dr. Hamer received his PhD from Harvard University and is the recipient of numerous awards, including the Ariens Kappers Award for Neurobiology. View titles by Dean H. Hamer
Peter Copeland, a journalist based in Washington, DC, has published four books. His first book, She Went to War, was written with Rhonda Cornum, a U.S. Army doctor who was a POW in Iraq. He wrote My Soul Purpose with Heidi von Beltz. Copeland and Dean Hamer collaborated on The Science of Desire and Living with Our Genes. Copeland was the editor and general manager of the Scripps Howard News Service. He started his journalism career at the City News Bureau of Chicago, covered the U.S.-Mexico border for the El Paso Herald-Post, and spent five years covering Latin America while based in Mexico City. He covered the Pentagon for five years, including the U.S. invasion of Panama, the Gulf War, and the invasion of Somalia. Currently he is a writer and media consultant.   View titles by Peter Copeland

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