Sam Kean

The periodic table of the elements is a crowning scientific achievement, but it's also a treasure trove of passion, adventure, obsession, and betrayal. These tales follow carbon, neon, silicon, gold, and all the elements in the table as they play out their parts in human history. The usual suspects are here, like Marie Curie (and her radioactive journey to the discovery of polonium and radium) and William Shockley (who is credited, not exactly justly,...

Traces the story of a renegade group of soldiers, scientists, and spies who were sent into Axis territory to spy on and sabotage Germany's nuclear weapons research and prevent Hitler from obtaining a nuclear bomb.

"In The Disappearing Spoon, bestselling author Sam Kean unlocked the mysteries of the periodic table. In THE VIOLINIST'S THUMB, he explores the wonders of the magical building block of life: DNA. There are genes to explain crazy cat ladies, why other people have no fingerprints, and why some people survive nuclear bombs. Genes illuminate everything from JFK's bronze skin (it wasn't a tan) to Einstein's genius. They prove that Neanderthals and humans...

A collection of the year's best science and nature writings, selected by New York Times bestselling author Sam Kean. "This is one of the most exciting times in the history of science," Sam Kean proclaims in his introduction to The Best American Science and Nature Writing 2018. "Things aren't perfect by any means. But there are more scientists making more discoveries in more places about more things than ever before." The twenty-six pieces assembled...

Cover the "Manhattan Project" of DNA: the Human Genome Project to sequence all three billion base pairs of human genetic material. Two separate teams, led by Francis Collins and Craig Venter, competed bitterly to reach this costly goal, which required new technologies and controversial methods. Examine the politics and unexpected legacy of this effort, which was declared complete in 2003.

Investigate the curious career of microbes in our bodies, not just the ones that make us sick, but more crucially, those that get incorporated into our DNA, driving evolution in unpredictable ways. For instance, the placenta that makes most mammals distinct from egg-laying animals appears to be an adaptation derived from an invasive virus. Learn why 8% of our genome is viral in origin.

Your investigation begins with the independent discoveries of genes and of DNA in the mid-1800s. Follow both trails into the 20th century, as chromosomes are discovered and the realization finally begins to dawn that genes and DNA may be related.

Investigate the first precision technique for genetic engineering, CRISPR, heralded as holding the potential for science fiction-like manipulation of the human genome. Trace the history of CRISPR-based techniques from a coastal salt marsh, to the fight over patents. Consider the potential for abuse of this powerful tool.

Look at the genetic basis for certain diseases and how personalized genetic medicine might be customized to the hidden histories that each of us have written in our DNA. Discover what makes the challenges so daunting and focus in particular on the different mechanisms behind different cancers, and how genetics helps us disentangle the differences.

Enter the home stretch in the race to find the structure of DNA. With eminent chemist Linus Pauling leading the pack, longshots James Watson and Francis Crick got a key clue from rival investigator Rosalind Franklin (without her knowledge). Analyze the reasoning that led Watson and Crick to their 1953 breakthrough, and consider why Franklin didn't beat them to it.