In the Beginning Was the Worm : Finding the Secrets of Life in a Tiny Hermaphrodite

by Andrew Brown

This book is an account of the first great triumph of the thirty-year struggle to decode the complete DNA of a nematode worm. Success in this was what made the human genome project possible. IN THE BEGINNING WAS THE WORM is an exciting but scrupulous account of a genuine scientific triumph, which will delight both those who know the subject and those who don't. IN THE BEGINNING WAS THE WORM tells of some remarkable characters who have changed our approach to science irrevocably, among them Sydney Brenner, a heroic dreamer who first thought of understanding an animal as a sort of biological Meccano; John Sulston, his first post-doctoral student, who managed to raise GBP30 million; his friend, Bob Horvitz, who has, to all intents and purposes, spent more than thirty years studying the 22 cells of a worm's vulva; and Fred Sanger, the only man to have won two Nobel Prizes in the same discipline. Decades of painstaking research triumphed in 1998, when this worm was the first creature to have all its DNA mapped -- but now what? We still don't know how to build a single worm. In this intriguing story of dreams and disillusionment, Andrew Brown contemplates the next fifty years of biological science, and the way that ignorance expands to surround all available knowledge.

Genres: Science, Nonfiction, Popular Science, Genetics, Biology

256 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2003

Reviews

[Hilary · Rating 3 out of 5]

A nice read, not super engaging.

[gadabout · Rating 3 out of 5]

An nteresting topic and well-covered, but awkwardly written.

[Adil Khan · Rating 1 out of 5]

The subject is interesting, but the writing is tedious and poor. DNFed after two chapters.

[DaniPhantom · Rating 3 out of 5]

I wish there was more worm facts in this book about worms. Either way, I’m glad there’s a book about worms to begin with.

[Brok3n · Rating 3 out of 5]

Too much personality and DNA

I read this eleven years ago (10-Nov-2011), and was not super impressed. It didn't tell me much I didn't already know, and I am not so enamored of the personalities on which the book focuses.

I worked on the worm (C elegans) for most of my professional life -- from 1984 until 2015. My first International Worm Meeting was 1985. Thus, although I was not there for most of the events recounted here, I was there shortly after, and I heard about them from people who had experienced them first-hand. Thus, I didn't read this book expecting to learn more about C elegans research and researchers -- I read it to find out what people such as Andrew Brown have to say about it all. The focus on genome sequencing feels off to me. It was a big deal when it happens, but it isn't what most worm researchers care most about. We are mostly there for the biology. We LOVE the worm itself.

I know and respect most of the people involved, some more than others, but hardly any of them as much as Brown appears to want me to.

Blog review.

[James Watson · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Worm" is an engaging book about the beginning of genome sequencing, originating from the focused study of a type of nearly-microscopic, transparent worm. It is a chronicle of a historic research effort, and an insight into how research is conducted, rather than a technical discussion of biology. Andrew Brown assumes the reader has very little knowledge of genetics, and takes care to explain (in simple terms) key topics that are necessary to understand events and their importance to the narrative.

I would have liked there to be just a little more technical discussion in the book, but the author leaves numerous footnotes and sources pointing to further reading.

[Blair · Rating 3 out of 5]

Brown uses a common strategy of fitting a collection of scientific discoveries into a character-driven narrative, but the narrative itself is somewhat scattered and meandering. There are outright nonsequitors and typos, and a lot of underwhelming attempts at cleverness. The stories told are definitely interesting in places, and his inclusion of lab techs in his cast of characters is commendable, but I'm not sure this book would hold my interest for long if I weren't already interested in the subject.

[Emilie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Best science book I've ever read.