Cannonball Read 17

Sticking It to Cancer One Book at a Time

A Potpourri of Gene-Editing Perspectives

The Mutant Project: Inside the Global Race to Genetically Modify Humans by Eben Kirksey

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Earlier this summer, I started reading and reviewing a number of books related to gene technology with a specific focus on CRISPR. This was not just for my own enjoyment; I’m teaching a class on Gene Technology this winter so I thought I better brush up on everything. And since I’ve been asked to attract as many non-majors as possible, I’ve decided not to focus on just the technical aspects, but also the social and legal aspects as well. This brings us to the next […]

Why You Shouldn’t Cut-and-Paste a Genome Like a Word Document

CRISPR People: The Science and Ethics of Editing Humans by Henry T. Greely

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I made quick promise at the end of my review of Gene: An Intimate History, that I would be reviewing a number of books about a certain individual who wanted to ‘win’ the gene editing arms race. And how very reckless he was. That man, of course is Hè Jiànkuí. This is the man who tried—and succeeded—in inducing heritable CRISPR-mediated genome modifications in human embryos that then resulted in live births. Hank Greely’s CRISPR People: The Science and Ethics of Editing Humans is a rather […]

A Journey to the Center of Life

Gen: Perjalanan Menuju Pusat Kehidupan by Siddharta Mukherjee; Damaring Tyas W Palar

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Another (daft) reading challenge! A few years back I took the best part of 8 months to read through an Indonesian translation of The Emperor of All Maladies: A Biography of Cancer  (Kanker Biografi Suatu Penyakit.) I wasn’t sure if I was going to continue with the rest of the translations of Mukherjee’s books. But Google Play was nothing but persistent.  So there we have it; it was a little less laborious this time, but I have managed to make my way though the translation […]

You’ll Be Examining More Than Just the Chicken and the Egg Here

From Darwin to Derrida: Selfish Genes, Social Selves and the Meanings of Life by David Haig

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David Haig’s From Darwin to Derrida: Selfish Genes, Social Selves and the Meanings of Life is probably not one of the most accessible books that I could close the year on—which is why I decided to make it my second last and not the last review of the year.  David Haig is an Australian biologist and current George Putnam Professor of Organismic and Evolutionary Biology at Harvard University. I first came across his work when reading up about genomic imprinting and maternal-fetal conflict. (These subjects are […]

A Subject With Many Facets

The Song of the Cell: An Exploration of Medicine and the New Human by Siddhartha Mukherjee

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Damn, sometimes you come across an author who’s skills you envy so much it hurts. Siddhartha Mukherjee is absolutely one of these authors. I wish I could communicate the intracies of biology in the way Mukherjee does, while keeping it both interesting and easy to digest. I sometimes struggle to do this in person, but in writing? It’s a daunting task.  Both of Mukherjee’s previous books— The Emperor of All Maladies: A Biography of Cancer; and The Gene: An Intimate History—are both excellent books that […]

What an Idea Becomes Means More Than How It Got There

The Cold War Politics of Genetic Research: An Introduction to the Lysenko Affair by William deJong-Lambert

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  At the start of this year, I decided to focus a bit more on reviewing history books – more so than I had been previously. Come February and a couple of Twitter and media storms down the track, and I decided to revise this a little. I have no intention to stop focusing on history, but where I can, I’m going to try and dip into more into the history of science and bioethics. It’s 2020, and I’m sorry, I am going to get […]



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