Will I love A Crack In Creation?

A Crack in Creation was the first mainstream book that conveyed the extraordinary potential and ethical peril of the new genome editing technology, CRISPR. And who better to write it than the scientist who co-developed the “genetic scissors”, Professor Jennifer Doudna (who won the Nobel Prize three years later).

The book is also notable for the candid manner in which Doudna discusses her own nightmares about the potential misuse of CRISPR – fears that erupted one year later in the ‘CRISPR babies’ scandal.

This co-authored book, written in the voice of Jennifer Doudna, recounts the recent history of genetic engineering including details of Doudna’s early scientific career and the backstory of CRISPR technology including her successful collaboration with Emmanuelle Charpentier.

Together, Doudna and Charpentier were awarded the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 2020. At the outset, Doudna warns that “it won’t be long before the repercussions from this technology reach your doorstep.” In the short term, imagine the potential for “life-changing treatments” and “life-saving cures”.

In the longer term, imagine how the technology might be used to direct the evolution of our species.… show more.

Two leading experts on protein-RNA chemistry explain the workings and alarming potential behind the gene-editing tool CRISPR. They describe in clear language how the CRISPR-Cas9 system was uncovered, how it can be used to manipulate DNA, and the incredible hope it offers to cure HIV, genetic diseases, and some cancers. At the same time, these inventors of the technology raise alarm and warn of the incredible danger and unforeseen consequences posed by rewriting the code of an organism—a biological genie that once released can never be harnessed or controlled. I read this book on the plane after a… show more.