Human Genetic Engineering

Over a decade ago, as the Human Genome Project completed its mapping of the entire human genome, hopes ran high that we would rapidly be able to use our knowledge of human genes to tackle many inherited diseases, and understand what makes us unique among animals. But things didn't turn out that way.

How did human minds become so different from those of other animals? What accounts for our capacity to understand the way the physical world works, to think ourselves into the minds of others, to gossip, read, tell stories about the past, and imagine the future? These questions are not new: they have been debated by philosophers, psychologists, anthropologists, evolutionists, and neurobiologists over the course of centuries. One explanation widely accepted today is that humans have special cognitive instincts.

In the sultry, shadow-drenched streets of New Orleans, a fertility clinic whispers promises of miracles. But beneath its guise of hope, two vampire doctors play a sinister game. Their dark secret? Impregnating clients with a bloodline never meant to see the light of day. A bloodline blending human and vampire, birthing children with terrifying, untamed powers. But secrets in the vampire world don't stay hidden for long. The overlord, a figure of nightmarish authority, uncovers their treachery. His verdict is swift and brutal – extermination. Yet, the deed is done. The city now blessed ...

Your DNA determines who you are… But what if it’s not your DNA? Orion Montgomery’s world shatters in an instant when ancient secrets and cutting‑edge science collide. Once a quiet, misunderstood mechanic with a mysterious heritage, he now possesses uncanny abilities that mark him as both a target and the key to humanity’s future. As ruthless enemies close in and the long-buried secrets of his lineage unravel, every heartbeat propels him deeper into a web of betrayal and danger. With the fate of his family hanging in the balance, Orion must decipher the coded clues of his own DNA ...

The alien invasion is just beginning. The stakes are higher, the enemies deadlier as the alien invasion continues and the team must navigate dangerous missions and uncover the truth behind the Coldhorn Initiative. Scattered across the globe, Arthur, Elliot, Millicent and Stanley must find their way home and stop the evil plans of Hellinix, the Blood of Breogan and the Children of Gaia. From a remote archaeological dig in the Sahara to a resort paradise in the Bahamas and a tropical rainforest in Papua New Guinea, they'll have to rely on each other to survive and uncover the truth. As they ...

Enter a boundless world of human potential and unravel the mysteries of genetic engineering. In this captivating science fiction novel, the ban on human genetic engineering sets the stage for an exhilarating story. Two decades after the ruthless eradication of genetically engineered humans—genehs—the world believed their chapter had closed. But prepare for shattered beliefs. Join trainee detective Miriam Hunter on a thrilling journey as she investigates perplexing burglaries: and uncovers a female geneh. Questions flood her mind. How did this geneh emerge? What drives her baffling ...

This new book by Spencer Wells, the internationally known geneticist, anthropologist, author, and director of the Genographic Project, focuses on the seminal event in human history: mankind's decision to become farmers rather than hunter-gatherers.

The United States is embarking on a medical revolution. Supporters of personalized, or precision, medicine—the tailoring of health care to our genomes—have promised to usher in a new era of miracle cures. Advocates of this gene-guided health-care practice foresee a future where skyrocketing costs can be curbed by customization and unjust disparities are vanquished by biomedical breakthroughs. Progress, however, has come slowly, and with a price too high for the average citizen.

In Unfit for Purpose, biologist and broadcaster Adam Hart explores the mismatch between our fundamental biology and the modern world we have created. In each chapter Adam reveals the many ways in which biological adaptations that evolved to help us survive and thrive now work against us. For example, in the modern world stress is a killer, but how did 'fight or flight' instincts turn from life-savers to life-takers? Obesity might be a disease now, but is it really just a troublesome side-effect of our complex evolutionary past?

In this engaging exploration, archaeologist Ian Hodder departs from the two prevailing modes of thought about human evolution: the older idea of constant advancement toward a civilized ideal and the newer one of a directionless process of natural selection. Instead, he proposes a theory of human evolution and history based on "entanglement," the ever-increasing mutual dependency between humans and things.

In this fresh and provocative view of a seven-million-year evolutionary journey, Finlayson demonstrates the radical implications for the interpretation of fossils and technologies and shows that understanding humans within an ecological context provides insights into the emergence and spread of Homo sapiens worldwide.

Investigations Of Agent Adams eBook series, episode 4. When the line between survival and morality blurs, what will humanity choose? The Echoed Life Foundation promises salvation in the face of a dwindling food supply and a collapsing ecosystem. Led by visionary CEO Lee Benson, the foundation pioneers revolutionary cloning technologies. Backed by the enigmatic and influential Senator Pat Fox, the project takes a dark turn as genetic experiments push the boundaries of evolution itself. Unknown to the public, Earth has just recently entered into a catastrophic sixth extinction event. The ...

The Mind of the Market will change the way we think about the economics of everyday life. Drawing on research from neuroeconomics, Michael Shermer explores what brain scans reveal about bargaining, snap purchases, and how trust is established in business. Utilizing experiments in behavioral economics, Shermer shows why people hang on to losing stocks and failing companies, why business negotiations often disintegrate into emotional tit-for-tat disputes, and why money does not make us happy.

When did the human species turn against the planet that we depend on for survival? Human industry and consumption of resources have altered the climate, polluted the water and soil, destroyed ecosystems, and rendered many species extinct, vastly increasing the likelihood of an ecological catastrophe. How did humankind come to rule nature to such an extent? To regard the planet's resources and creatures as ours for the taking? To find ourselves on a seemingly relentless path toward ecocide?

After seeing his own cells used to grow clumps of new neurons - essentially mini-brains - Philip Ball begins to examine the concepts of identity and consciousness. Delving into humanity's deep evolutionary past to look at how complex creatures like us emerged from single-celled life, he offers a new perspective on how humans think about ourselves.

In How We Do It, primatologist Robert Martin draws on 40 years of research to locate the roots of everything from our sex cells to the way we care for newborns. He examines the procreative history of humans as well as that of our primate kin to reveal what's really natural when it comes to making and raising babies, and distinguish which behaviors we ought to continue - and which we should not. Although it's not realistic to raise our children like our ancestors did, Martin’s investigation reveals surprising consequences of - and suggests ways to improve upon - the way we do things now.

Like it or not, she needs him. Someone wants Mia dead, and that’s just not going to happen. Kellen will keep her chained to his side if he must, in order to protect her. He’s one of the AlphElite, the most feared class of warrior in the galaxy. He always gets what he wants, and he wants Mia with a passion that sears his very soul. Mia grew up an orphan on the streets of one of the roughest planets in the galaxy. Recruited by the intergalactic crime syndicate ORG at a young age, she’s one of the best in their stable of data thieves. Tough, independent and focused, she wants all the ...

What makes us human? Why are we the only animals who wear clothes, drive cars, trawl the internet, and fly helicopters on Mars? It’s all because we’ve learnt to talk, yet remarkably, we still don’t know how we did it. Speech! suggests an answer that’s been hiding in plain sight - the simple yet radical shift that turned our analog grunts and shrieks into words. But, its consequences are far from simple: being able to share ideas through language was an evolutionary tipping point - it allowed us to link up our minds.

At a conference in Hong Kong in November 2018, Dr. He Jiankui announced that he had created the first genetically modified babies - twin girls named Lulu and Nana - sending shockwaves around the world. A year later, a Chinese court sentenced Dr. He to three years in prison for "illegal medical practice". As scientists elsewhere start to catch up with China's vast genetic research program, gene editing is fueling an innovation economy that threatens to widen racial and economic inequality. Fundamental questions about science, health, and social justice are at stake.

The stakes are higher, the enemies deadlier, the adventure non-stop - join the fight to save humanity in the latest instalment of the epic saga. When a super-smart ape reveals to Arthur and Elliot that they missed something important while investigating Hellinix, the four heroes must return to Level-8, the vault at the center of the corporation's rot, to uncover their ultimate goal. Elliot has lost his sword, Arthur has fallen for Elliot's best friend, Millicent is struggling to fit in with the team, and Stanley just wants to know where the mangoes are. Can they keep their minds on the ...