genetics

20,000 years ago, people crossed a great land bridge from Siberia into Western Alaska and then dispersed southward into what is now called the Americas. Until we venture out to other worlds, this remains the last time our species has populated an entirely new place, and this event has been a subject of deep fascination and controversy. No written records--and scant archaeological evidence--exist to tell us what happened or how it took place. Many different models have been proposed to explain how the Americas were peopled and what happened in the thousands of years that followed. A study of both past and present, ORIGIN explores how genetics is currently being used to construct narratives that profoundly impact Indigenous peoples of the Americas. It serves as a primer for anyone interested in how genetics has become entangled with identity in the way that society addresses the question "Who is indigenous?".

"Presents a history of the human understanding of heredity and how it has shaped society, chronicling the transitions brought about by genetic research and making predictions about how evolving understandings are likely to impact the future"--OCLC.

The true story of a group of young scientists who set out to bring the Woolly Mammoth, a creature that has been extinct for three thousand years, back into the world through a sequencing of frozen DNA harvested from the Arctic circle.

Explores how scientists around the world are resurrecting various kinds of extinct animals through fossils and genetic technologies.

Who wouldn't be thrilled to see a real, live dinosaur, like those in Michael Crichton's Jurassic Park? Readers find out if it is possible to bring extinct animals back to life. This book delves into the science behind attempts to revive extinct species through processes such as cloning and genetic engineering, and compares actual with fictional efforts. It looks at how scientists have gone about trying to revive extinct species, such as the quagga, woolly mammoth, and passenger pigeon. It also considers the ethics and the ecological effects of trying to revive an extinct species and introduce it to a modern-day ecosystem.

"Presents a history of the human understanding of heredity and how it has shaped society, chronicling the transitions brought about by genetic research and making predictions about how evolving understandings are likely to impact the future"--OCLC.

Explores the pros and cons of bringing animals like the passenger pigeon or the woolly mammoth back from extinction and discusses the cutting-edge science that makes it possible.

"Using DNA collected from remains as a genetic blueprint, scientists aim to engineer extinct traits - traits that have evolved by natural selection over thousands of years - into living organisms. [The author] argues rather than viewing de-extinction as a way to restore one particular species...that the overarching goal should be the revitalization and stabilization of contempory ecosystems"--Dust jacket.