DNA Is Not Destiny, Steven J. Heine
DNA Is Not Destiny, Steven J. Heine
List: $34.99 | Sale: $24.50
Club: $17.49

DNA Is Not Destiny
The Remarkable, Completely Misunderstood Relationship between You and Your Genes

Author: Steven J. Heine

Narrator: Stephen R. Thorne

Unabridged: 10 hr 14 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Published: 04/18/2017


Synopsis

Around 250,000 people have had their genomes sequenced, and scientists expect that number to rise to one billion by 2025. Professor Steven J. Heine argues that the first thing we will do on receiving our DNA test results is to misinterpret them completely. Despite breathless (often lightly researched) media coverage about newly discovered "cancer" or "divorce" or "IQ" genes, the prospect of a DNA test forecasting how your life is going to turn out is vanishingly small.

In DNA Is Not Destiny, Heine shares his research?and his own genome sequencing results?to not only show what your genes can actually tell you about your health, intelligence, ethnic identity, and family but also highlight the psychological biases that make us so vulnerable to the media hype. Heine's fresh, surprising conclusions about the promise, and limits, of genetic engineering and DNA testing upend conventional thinking and reveal a simple, profound truth: your genes create life?but they do not control it.

Reviews

Goodreads review by Marja on July 19, 2019

This is what happens when a non-geneticist decides to write a book about genetics. I can see why this may be an eye-opening book for a person who is not well versed in genetics but I happen to have a degree in genetics and I wasn't impressed. The book contains text book examples of genetics mashed u......more

Goodreads review by Jim on August 13, 2017

This nonfiction book is the one to read if you're thinking about becoming a customer of 23AndMe or one of their genome sequencing competitors. What Heine points out is that there are some genes that have very strong to strong associations with a condition/disease, such as the genetic variants for blo......more

Goodreads review by Emma on January 15, 2020

As a geneticist this book taught me a lot about the way we view Genetics and how it can shape our inherent biases about people. It's a fantastic read for everyone and makes understanding Genetics clear while also reiterating how little we know about Genetics.......more

Goodreads review by Marvelade on March 09, 2018

What an enjoyable and stimulating read! Mainly, this book is about consuming genetic information. Because humans have been proven to be terrible at self-insight and poor at keeping their own biases at bay, Heine devotes his work to proving that they are equally bad at consuming information that pert......more

Goodreads review by Paul on November 02, 2017

Serious Eye Opening Fun. This was a fun and quick read. It makes me want to read a more complex book on genetics. The book even goes into a subjects I had not expected like GMO’s (genetically modified organisms). Well written, clear and myth busting. My favorite quote that was quoted by the author is......more