Columbia University Press
Troublesome Science: The Misuse of Genetics and Genomics in Understanding Race
Key Metrics
- Rob DeSalle
- Columbia University Press
- Hardcover
- 9780231185721
- 9.1 X 6 X 1.1 inches
- 1.05 pounds
- Science > Life Sciences - Genetics & Genomics
- English
Secure TransactionBook Description
DeSalle and Tattersall argue that taxonomy, the scientific classification of organisms, provides an antidote to the myth of race's biological basis. They explain how taxonomists do their science--how to identify a species and to understand the relationships among different species and the variants within them. DeSalle and Tattersall also detail the use of genetic data to trace human origins and look at how scientists have attempted to recognize discrete populations within Homo sapiens. Troublesome Science demonstrates conclusively that modern genetic tools, when applied correctly to the study of human variety, fail to find genuine differences. While the diversity that exists within our species is a real phenomenon, it nevertheless defeats any systematic attempt to recognize discrete units within it. The stark lines that humans insist on drawing between their own groups and others are nothing but a mixture of imagination and ideology. Troublesome Science is an important call for researchers, journalists, and citizens to cast aside the belief that race has a biological meaning, for the sake of social justice and sound science alike.
Author Bio
Dr. DeSalle works in molecular systematics, microbial evolution, and genomics. His current research concerns the development of bioinformatic tools to handle large-scale genomics problems using phylogenetic systematic approaches.
Dr. DeSalle has worked closely with colleagues from Cold Spring Harbor Labs, New York University, and the New York Botanical Garden on seed plant genomics and development of tools to establish gene family membership on a genome- wide scale. His group also focuses on microbial genomics, taxonomy, and systematics.
In particular, they approach tree-of-life questions concerning microbial life using whole genome information. He also dabbles in Drosophila systematics.
Education
- Washington University, Ph.D, 1984
University of Chicago, B.A., 1976
Source: American Museum of Natural History
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