[Quite possibly one of the best science writers today. Interesting, provocative and topical -- always.]

Science writer Matt Ridley has found a way to tell someone else's story without being accused of plagiarism. Genome: The Autobiography of a Species in 23 Chapters delves deep within your body (and, to be fair, Ridley's too) looking for dirt dug up by the Human Genome Project. Each chapter pries one gene out of its chromosome and focuses on its role in our development and adult life, but also goes further, exploring the implications of genetic research and our quickly changing social attitudes toward this information.

Genome shies away from the "tedious biochemical middle managers" that only a nerd could love and instead goes for the A-material: genes associated with cancer, intelligence, sex (of course), and more.

Readers unfamiliar with the jargon of genetic research needn't fear; Ridley provides a quick, clear guide to the few words and concepts he must use to translate hard science into English. His writing is informal, relaxed, and playful, guiding the reader so effortlessly through our 23 chromosomes that by the end we wish we had more. He believes that the Human Genome Project will be as world-changing as the splitting of the atom; if so, he is helping us prepare for exciting times--the h

In The End of History and the Last Man, Francis Fukuyama argued that history was over because the world was converging toward societies of democratic capitalism. The book's thesis, much disputed when it was first published as an article in 1989, seems all the more dubious in the wake of September 11.

Now, in Our Posthuman Future, a volume likely to be similarly contested, he claims that biotechnology has brought about "the recommencement of history." By that he means that the biotechnological manipulation of human beings may well "move us into a 'posthuman' stage of history"--change human nature in ways that erode the foundations of the putative convergent political order.

Fukuyama brings to this exploration considerable philosophical knowledge, including a manifest respect for Nietzsche, a quotation from whom heads many of the book's chapters.

Despite his selectivity, Fukuyama concedes that human biotechnology holds "undisputed promise" and does not want to get rid of it. Yet he is unwilling to leave the biotechnological enterprise to its own devices, fearing, with good sense, that it is too driven by commerce and ambition to exercise self-restraint.

In the closing section of his book, he calls for a departure from free-market capitalism in biotechnology--national and internati

This exciting new book by Dr. Michael West tells the story of stem cell research, nuclear transfer, telomeres, the resetting of the biological clock in somatic cells and much more!

Biotechnology is on the cusp of a bold new age in medicine that could alleviate so much human suffering. Where will these new discoveries lead us and how will we choose to use them? These are just a few of the questions Dr. West takes on in this book. This book should be required reading for everyone especially those who oppose all cloning. This is one of the most exciting books published this year. Recommended to anyone who wants to know more about science and especially genetics.