The Gene: An Intimate History

Recommended by William Mair, professor of molecular metabolism at the Harvard Chan School

“The Gene” is a wonderful recount of the development of molecular biology and our fundamental understanding of genetics and the biology of heritability. What I love is that it isn’t just a story of the discoveries and the scientists behind them, but of a community wrestling with the ethics and outcomes of their findings. Even though the book is nearly 10 years old, Mukherjee compares that journey to what we see today with CRISPR gene editing — where the science is, in many ways, racing ahead of the consequences. That same logic might just as easily apply to AI or longevity science.