Carl Zimmer's Blog, page 89

Evolution Reviews The Tangled Bank: "Radical"

The Tangled Bank gets a three-page review in the latest journal of Evolution, the world's leading journal on evolutionary biology. The reviewers, Judith Bronstein and Peter Reinthal of the University of Arizona, have very kind things to say. Here are a few of the passages that made me smile:

Each chapter reads more like a compelling narrative or a first-rate newspaper article than as a (classically, rather dry) textbook. Zimmer is a skilled essayist; he manages to be engaging without being...

Epigenetics and the Brain: Woo-free Coolness

In my latest column for Discover, I take a look at epigenetics and the brain. Along with the genetic circuitry in the DNA of our brain cells, we also have an additional layer of molecules that can switch genes on and off. A lot of this so-called epigenome gets locked into place when our brains are first developing, but it still remains malleable throughout our lives. Our environment can rework our epigenome, and some studies suggest that this reworking may produce long-term changes in...

George Orwell's Blog: Now Things Get Interesting

Two years ago I noted that George Orwell had started a blog. Or, rather, Orwell's diaries began to be posted, day by day, online. I liked the idea at first, but after a while I drifted away. The initial entries from a relatively quiet time in Orwell's life, dealing with stuff like how many eggs he got from his chickens on a given day.

But there's nothing like a war to make life all too interesting:

It is impossible even yet to decide what to do in the case of German conquest of England. The...

Soul Made Flesh Plus Four

[image error]Uta Frith, a world expert on autism, has listed Soul Made Flesh as one of her favorite books about the mind over at the web site Five Books:

I admire communicators who tell you about complex matters, which you would otherwise have little hope of learning about. I write scientific books so I understand how difficult it is. This book is a book about science and at the same time a book about history, and I love reading about the history of science. Here he writes about the beginnings of the...

The Genome At Ten: Two Pictures

In honor of the tenth anniversary of the human genome project, here are a couple telling images, courtesy of Mihaela Pertea and Steven L Salzberg.

First: a visual history of the estimates of the number of genes in the human genome.

And second, a warning to anyone who believes in an iron law that the more protein-coding genes in a species, the more sophisticated/complex/cool/human that species is:



I for one welcome our grapey overlords.

The Microscopic Gas Tank

Could E. coli some day take the place of deep sea oil wells? In my latest podcast I talk to James Liao of UCLA about engineering microbes to churn out high-performance fuel. Check it out.

The Taste of Science [Science Tattoo]

Ariel writes, "I am happy to see that other science dorks like myself have inked up our passions. This is the molecular representation of glutamic acid, the amino acid associated with the Umami flavor, the proverbial fifth taste. I am a former chef turned public health major and fell in love with the elegance of chemical compounds but never forgot my unctuous roots.

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3 Quarks Daily Finalist

I've moved on to the final round for the 2010 prize in science from 3 Quarks Daily. Now it's in the hands of Richard Dawkins. Congratulations to everyone who has made it this far (including my fellow Discover bloggers Sean Carroll and Ed Yong). Stay tuned for the decision on June 21.

Greetings From Beijing

I'm in Beijing for a few days on assignment. I have (selectively) great Internet access. So I'll be blogging, but I won't be immersed in social networks. More anon.

[Image: d'n'c/Flickr]

Binary Dad [Science Tattoo]

Zachariah writes, "Binary ink of my eldest daughter's name: Lain."

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